Flying Fifteen "Saffron" cruises Moreton Bay over a magic two day winter weather window - Day 2

[@georgeschwerin2517]

Great outing Jason. It was nice meeting you yesterday on Wotama!

[@gregw6353]

The fifteens looked good Jason

[@kristiansikora7354]

You really were flying there!

[@jasonstork9606]

Yeah we were doing OK. 8-10 knots wind and flat water.

[@tomedom5107]

F15 really do go nicely eh? I see what you mean by those bungees up to the mast, maybe its a special feature of F15s that the jib sheets snag? Not that it doesnt happen often enough with other boats. Did I see that Darryl's boat has a kind of hoop/bow structure to do the same job?

[@jasonstork9606]

Yes Darryl has some fairly practical things on his boat from his years as a cruising sailor.

[@TonyKeyes]

That was a lovely outing. Those F15s really move, don't they? I've always been deterred from Schulz's by stories of the entrance shoals, but you made it look easy.

[@jasonstork9606]

Only looked easy because I didn't film the "fun". Both of us ran aground a few times. Had to jump out and lean the boat to lift the keel and push off. The channel in there is really narrow and the water was turbid and it was impossible to see the bottom.

[@tomedom5107]

@@jasonstork9606 Do you carry a depth stick/ sounding pole/ dipstick? All the keelboat guys around here use a simple bamboo stick, often marked with the safe depth. Some fit a cork to one end, I think to make it easier to feel soft mud. No longer than strictly needed, it can be used one handed and is swung with a rotating wrist action forward and down to feel the depth then back and out of the water, repeat, describing a flattish cone rather than a disk. I have one I use in Lapwing, 18" depth. Very useful in thin water to work out if you are sailing an even depth or if it's actually getting shallower!

[@jasonstork9606]

@@tomedom5107 Yes definitely. I have a 4 foot long paddle. I know if I hit the bottom with about 1 foot above water then I'm about as shallow as I want to get. F15 draws 2'6". Normally I can see the bottom when it's that shallow but last weekend the power boats were chopping up the mud with their props in the shallow water and we could not see the deep parts of the channel. A bamboo stick would be much easier to handle than a paddle, it's a good idea. I've often thought about permanently mounting a stick on the gunnel with a bell on it, so when it hits the bottom it rattles....but never got around to it. I know Paul would tell me to get one of those electro gizmos with depth on it.

[@tomedom5107]

@@jasonstork9606 Also, I'd suggest you practice sailing with the boat healed over, which can usefully reduce the draft to get you out of trouble. However if you then get stuck while healed, you may be there a while!

[@lionelpatton6205]

*Promosm* 😍

[@lucilaloken7218]

'promo sm' 😁