Fall 2005

Hose replacement aboard a Flicka would be time consuming and expensive. A detailed owner’s manual would make it easier. Photo: Tom Davison © 2005 By Tom Davison Recently, I began working on an issue of Flicka Friends dedicated to replacement of the multitude of hoses aboard the Flicka. Depending on the engine, head and other equipment aboard, the parts list can be lengthy. So far, three of the hose systems have been photographed and some documentation has been completed. This includes the bilge, engine exhaust and engine antisiphon. A parts list is being developed, but the arrival of spring will be necessary to complete the project. A detailed list of each part, a photograph showing the location, placement and path, will make the factory installation of the hoses easy to duplicate. For anyone installing new equipment, this information will answer many questions. For those refitting their Flicka, the information should provide a quick reference to ensure you install the new items correctly. The list will also alert you to unavailable items.

This reference would provide professionals with the information that they need to get work done to the original factory specifications. It will allow you to check their work against a given standard. While working on these articles, it occurred to me that this information could become part of a Flicka reference manual. Recently, a Pacific Seacraft Flicka Owner’s Manual was sent to me. Since Pacific Seacraft isn’t providing detailed information, this effort may become more important in the future. The articles and information within Flicka Friends could be converted into a Flicka Owner’s Manual that discusses each system in detail. The various upgrades over the years would need to be considered. This is a worthy project, one from which the Flicka community should benefit. If you are interested in assisting with this endeavor, please let me know.

A number of hulls were built by Nor’star and some were completed by Westerly Marine. The manufacturer of the bulk of the class is Pacific Seacraft Corporation who built 434 hulls in California. Flicka Friends is published on a quarterly basis, with issues being mailed in March, June, September and December. Articles, letters, comments and photos relating to the Flicka are welcomed and encouraged.

Copyright 2005 Dennis Pratt/Flicka Friends Dennis Pratt - Publisher 685 Spring Street, #191 Friday Harbor, WA 98250 (360) 370-5133 scamper@rockisland.com Tom Davison - Editor P.O. Box 462 Empire, MI 49630 (231) 228-7044 flickafriends@coslink.com

http:www.coslink/personal/ flickafriends/mainpage/index.html

My Flicka s/y MARITIME is lifted from Yokohama Bay for the annual application bottom paint. Photo: Shinji Kurato © 2005 By Shin Kurato Every summer, we paint the bottom of my Flicka s/y MARITIME. The lifting, cleaning, painting, and launching took three days this year. Our friends Chiyo, Makoto, and Bahsan came to help us. It was hard work, but fun! The warm waters of Tokyo Bay are a perfect environment for seaweed and shellfish. Hulls need to be cleaned and painted annually to prevent buildup. Another boat’s hull, which had not been cleaned nor painted for two years, was being cleaned at the same time. The entire hull below the waterline was covered with marine growth. Luckily, my Flicka only had limited hull additions. MARITIME was lifted from Tokyo Bay by a large travel lift, set on a cradle, and then moved to another part of the marina so we could begin work. The first step was to scrap off the marine growth. Except for the lower pintle and gudgeon, it was limited. The next step was to pressure wash the hull to remove the remaining film and residue. The last step before painting was masking the boot stripe. It was now time to begin painting. On the second day, we applied a fresh coat of bottom paint to the hull. The cradle at the marina allowed us to support the hull while removing various pads for access.

A pressure washer was used to clean the shellfish and seaweed for the hull of s/y MARITIME. Photo: Shinji Kurato © 2005 of MARITIME’s Hull

Painting the bottom of the keel with MARITIME lifted above the cradle. Photo: Shinji Kurato © 2005 A fresh layer of bottom paint was applied. Photo: Shinji Kurato © 2005

MARITIME is ready for another year of sailing. Photo: Shinji Kurato © 2005 The propeller, and the lower pintle & gudgeon were also painted. Photo: Shinji Kurato © 2005

The next day, we painted the entire Flicka bottom again. After we finished this second bottom painting, the propeller and gudgeon were cleaned. This was followed with a layer of paint. While we were painting the propeller, a motorboat came back to the marina. They got two big marlins, one was 330 pounds, another one was over 440 pounds!. They were enjoying sashimi. The third day, we painted underneath the keel when MARITIME was lifted up cradle. Finally, we cleaned the hull above the water line and waxed it. After all of this work, it was great to stand back and admire the Flicka. Now she looks so beautiful! She was launched after having dried the bottom for about one hour and then we enjoyed a short sail. After sailing, we enjoyed a small party in marina.

With a clean hull and fresh bottom paint, s/y MARITIME, it is time to launch. Photo: Shinji Kurato © 2005

We can see Yokohama Marina at: http://210.158.218.12/me/ port/general/gaiyou/mhonmoku-e.html

The advertisement caught my eye, and instant interest: “Welcome to the New York State Canals.” Canals in New York ? I had long yearned to voyage the canals of Europe, but New York State was so much closer to my home in Bermuda. I sent off for the package of information and cruising guides and pulled out my atlas. Well, it wasn’t Europe, but there on the network of sheltered US inland waterways was Rome, Greece, Amsterdam, Athens and Berlin, Verona and Warsaw. I sold my business, rented out my condo and started making plans to ship Dart to New Jersey. My 1979 Flicka needed a few modifications. I installed an 11gallon fuel tank in the cockpit locker with a coaming fill/vent. This was a big improvement on the original 6-gallon tank which required a refill during a long day of motoring. The mast, sails, and rigging were removed and stored. A friend provided a short mast made from an old boom. I painted this red for fun. It proved useful for flying burgees, courtesy flags and was a hitch for the wind scoop. The height was sufficient to enable me to pass below all bridges on the waterways (except on one memorable occasion.) I treated her to a new 9.9 four stroke Yamaha outboard. It came with electric start and cockpit controls which were easy to use, a big improvement from leaning over the stern to change gear. A Raytheon Autohelm (“wraith”) was my copilot and not only steered Dart better than I, but provided me with time-out in short spells.

I installed a "back" for the settee, a big improvement. Note Tucker's bed under the v-berth. Photo: Gill Outerbridge © 2005

DART already had a Force 10 propane stove which, with a flowerpot upended on a burner, doubled as a cabin heater (per Bruce Bingham!). The previous owner had already installed a generous locker over the v-berth. A boating companion fitted her out with custom galley storage behind the stove. Two gelcell batteries provided plenty of power and I found I could leave them for nearly a year and still start the engine. The interior was already a comfort zone as you can see from the pictures. Tucker, my Jack Russell terrier, already considered DART her second home and loved sailing around Bermuda's sheltered harbors. Finding a suitable trailer was a challenge. The tri-axle that I was loaned was not configured for a sailboat but my inventive son-in-law bolted on planks topped with adjustable yardstands and Dart was soon securely poised for the freighter voyage across to New York.

Interior showing the galley and custom stowage. The tiled stove top lifts off and sets on the folding table to left and is useful for hot pans etc.. Photo: Gill Outerbridge © 2005 Exploring The Canals of Canada

Sailing wasn’t going to be a part of this voyage. The bridges over the canals required a different tack. DART is shown sailing on my home water of St. George’s Harbour in Bermuda. Photo: Gill Outerbridge © 2005

All the comforts of home for my trip through the canals of Canada. Note the custom cabinet over the v-berth. Photo: Gill Outerbridge © 2005 Our First Overnight Crossing By Brian and Ruth Eklund August, 2005 s/v KARA DU Each year my wife, Ruth, and I decided we'd try to add a new adventure to our Flicka sailing repertoire. This year, it was our first night sail in little KARA DU. Many of you have already done it, but it was a big deal for us. So, after spending a couple of nights at the Isthmus in Catalina, we headed off at noon for San Diego (actually Chula Vista Marina), a 98 mile trip that put us about as far South as you can go and still stay in the States. It was a beautiful day for sailing with an odd Easterly wind that forced us to go to weather but at a nice 5 knot clip. Still under full sail we watched the sun set over the West, put on our Sospenders vests, clipped on strobe lights, and prepared ourselves mentally for the nine hours of darkness that were about to encompass us as we sailed along some twenty miles from shore. "I better heat up some soup before it gets too dark to see", I told Ruth as she took the helm.

Enjoying fine sailing aboard KARA DU. Photo: Brian & Ruth Eklund © 2005

Just a few minutes later my head shot up from below as she shouted, "a whale spout, right over there, at 2 o'clock." Of course I missed it, and since I couldn't let the soup slide around on the stove, back below I went. But within moments I was greeted by a much louder shout, no, a scream. Ruth was standing now, staring over the starboard side with a terrified look on her face. This time I caught a glimpse of the whale that had startled her, just as it sounded, some 20 feet off our starboard side. It was heading East with us, but was much too close considering, as we later determined, that it was the largest of all mammals, growing to between 90 and 100 feet - a blue whale.

Ruth & Brian Eklund about s/y KARA DU. Photo: Brian & Ruth Eklund © 2005 Aboard s/y KARA DU I barely had time to re-adjust the soup on the stove when Ruth screamed again, "its crossing our bow." This time I had to grab the tiller - I pushed it hard to port - although the whale was diving it was just too close for comfort. "What's going on" we asked each other, "How many are there?" "Do they think we're a whale?" Go ahead, picture the full keel of a Flicka under the water! We did. It wasn't that we were fearful of an attack, but we could imagine the damage a playful swipe of the tail could inflict on little KARA DU.

The sun sets behind Brian as we begin out first overnight passage aboard Flicka s/y KARA DU. Photo: Brian & Ruth Lund © 2005

I envisioned us flopping around at the mercy of waves and current with a disabled rudder. Then worse, I saw us floating along in our little life preservers, twenty miles off the coast, as the last rays of light fell into the Pacific. But not much time for those worries. The whale surfaced again, this time passing our port side, headed West. It was so close we could see its colors gleaming in the fading light and even spotted a splashguard around the blowhole that helped identify it as a blue. “I'm going to start the motor so it knows we're not a whale”, I told Ruth. I doubt she heard me as she was already busy banging pots and pans together to add to our cacophony. As the motor began to chug we didn't even dare to glance back over the stern as we heard a last, loud "whoooosh" as she blew, and headed off towards Catalina. And so began our first night sail in little KARA DU, circled by a whale, or whales.

Sailing into San Diego Bay after our first overnight passage aboard our Flicka s/y KARA DU. Photo: Brian and Ruth Eklund © 2005

No, we didn't take pictures, though a cardiogram might have been helpful, and we certainly didn't have any trouble keeping awake for our watch. Sailing BEN MAIN, Jr. By Tom Davison While summer was coming to an end here in northern lower Michigan, there was still a little time left to sail s/y BEN MAIN, Jr. Tom Grimes planned to pull his Flicka in early October. His Flicka would be in the barn about one week before the peak fall colors. Some of the trees were already showing changes. Plans were made for an end of the season trip to Power Island. It isn’t very far away, roughly twelve miles or so. Power Island a small 200 acre island county park located along the west side of the Mission Peninsula in Grand Traverse Bay. This long, narrow peninsula separates East and West Bay. Over the years there were a variety of names. The current name is from the family that owned the island and made a gift to the public when they donated it to Grand Traverse County for a county park. There is a dock on the east side of the island, but current lake levels have left it nearly high and dry. Since we would need to row ashore, there was another Bruce P. Bingham design being towed behind the Flicka. It was a Trinka dinghy named LITTLE BEN with matching gray gelcoat, boot stripe and bottom paint. The weather postponed the trip one day. A front brought out hazardous weather warnings with specific statements for boaters. The Monday trip started on Tuesday. Suttons Bay Marina is very protected from south and west winds. As we cleared the shelter of the trees, the wind began to pick up. After setting the main, we found that the speed was four knots. Since the wind was astern, we didn’t unfurl the genoa. We made good time down the bay and after awhile, began looking for the

With the green can behind us, it was time to turn south into the West arm of Grand Traverse Bay. Photo: Tom Davison © 2005

buoy marking the turn. The shallow point extends well into the bay. No cutting corners here. After clearing the buoy, we turned south into the west arm of Grand Traverse Bay. The route south from Suttons Bay gradually took us across the west arm of Traverse Bay toward the pass north of Power Island. Initially, we were close to shore and the winds were on the light side and varied in strength. After awhile, the 120% furling genoa was completely open. It was reduced by one turn and seemed to be about right for the crossing.

For this trip, there will be another Bruce P. Bingham design trailing behind Flicka s/y BEN MAIN, Jr. It was “LITTLE BEN.” Photo: Tom Davison © 2005

This changed along the way and strengthened when we cleared a point to the south. Here the bay widened and the southwesterly wind filled in completely. The wind was erratic. At times, the rail would be near the water, a short time later the deck would return to near horizontal. The strong wind gusts were still manageable and there was enough sail for the lighter periods. Our route to Power Island took us across a low saddle between the island and the mainland. The course was near the red nun buoy near Power Island. The winds were increasing a bit with a little funneling. Looking ashore, there was a single powerboat. The end of the dock was visible and nearly dry from the lower lake levels of late. We tacked in twenty knots winds and headed toward the island. As it turned out, the sun was directly in front of us. Getting close to the dock or anchorage didn’t seem the more prudent thing to do. We decided not to stop at Power Island.

At times, a gust would put the rail near the water. A minute later the deck would be nearly horizontal, strong and variable winds! Photo: Tom Davison © 2005

Reversing course, we furled the genoa and tacked with the full main. The marina was now our destination. The run across the bay to the east was at four knots with the main alone. The gybe near shore was a strong change and the next course was above five knots. Not bad for just the full main. Sailing BEN MAIN, Jr. Our destination was a small private marina. While they don’t have transient slips, I stopped by earlier in the summer and gained permission to use a vacated slip. A telephone call over the weekend secured the reservation and a boat slip number. Our assigned boat slip was located on the south side with a great view, but exposed to the wind. After docking, I enjoyed the sunset of the bay. The colors were great. A fine way to end a good day of sailing on the waters of Lake Michigan. The wind prediction for the evening was around five knots. This didn’t happen and ten to fifteen knots flowed for hours. The marina was a bit active and the Flicka moved about for several hours. It wasn’t enough to keep you awake for long. At four-thirty in the morning, the wind stopped. Getting up, I found that the moon was directly overhead and the bay was a beautiful sight.

The approach to Power Island would be entering a new anchorage into the sun. With the rocks, it didn’t seem prudent, so we turned away. Photo: Tom Davison © 2005

Breakfast was a simple snack with coffee. I had a deadline this afternoon and needed to get back to the marina by no later than two. Meeting the requirement wasn’t a big deal. We motored away form the marina and out toward Power Island. Turning west, we made our way through the pass into the west arm of Grand Traverse Bay. Turning north, we headed downwind towards Suttons Bay. With the winds directly astern, we opted to motor diagonally across the long narrow arm to reach Stony Point and the turn into Suttons Bay. Getting back to shore, we docked in the protected harbor and began clearing the boat for the year. Several armloads of stuff made it into the truck. With a deadline to meet, I left Tom at the marina and headed off to work. This will be a trip to repeat next summer in better conditions.

With s/y BEN MAIN, Jr. comfortably docked, it was time to relax. The southwest wind kept the waters moving until four in the morning. Photo: Tom Davison © 2005 To Power Island

With everything secure, it’s time to enjoy the surroundings, including a great sunset. Photo: Tom Davison © 2005

After a windy night afloat, morning found smooth waters in the harbor. Photo: Tom Davison © 2005

Recently, Gary Kries the editor of the newsletter SEA TALK, the “official” publication of the Northwest Pacific Seacraft Owner’s Association, sent me an e-mail asking about selling his Flicka. He was having trouble to dizziness after surgery and felt that sailing would be troublesome. He also wanted to spend more time with his family and pursue other goals. Gary has been sailing the waters of Puget Sound and British Columbia for decades. Last summer, he spent fiftytwo days exploring Puget Sound, the San Juan Islands and up into Desolation Sound. Other trips aboard s/y PASSAGES include Vancouver Island, Barkley Sound and many of the harbors around Puget Sound. Gary has been a driving force behind the Northwest Pacific Seacraft Owner’s Association. While there are various sizes of Pacific Seacraft sailboats on their list, more often than not, there is a Flicka story in the newsletter. With four rendezvous each year, this group has been the most active in the country.

PASSAGES at the dock, ready for another outing. Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005

The listing for his Flicka arrived and was posted to the internet. Gary reports that a new owner is looking at his Flicka and the sale might be done this month. The new captain will be getting a classic and lighter Flicka, s/v PASSAGES, Pacific Seacraft Flicka # 10. I’d like to thank Gary for the hard work and dedication shown as the editor of SEA TALK. His newsletter is always a welcome sight in the mail. I’m looking forward to the next issue. His plan is to continue publishing the newsletter which will allow him to maintain a link to his favorite pastime — sailing. I know that he will be most welcome at all of the future N.P.S.O.A. rendezvous. Thanks Gary!

PASSAGES has a unique brown transom. Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005 s/y PASSAGES

PASSAGES has a comfortable interior, including a heater. Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005

Anchored in Garrison Bay, San Juan Island, Washington Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005

The galley and companionway of PASSAGES Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005

Sailing on Commencement Bay , Washington Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005 Flicka Profile:

Sailing on Commencement Bay, Washington Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005

Head and companionway of s/y PASSAGES Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005

PASSAGES at a Blake Island Rendezvous with other members of the Northwest Pacific Seacraft Owner’s Association. Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005 s/y PASSAGES

PASSAGES anchored at Effingham Island in Barkley Sound. Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005

Cockpit of s/y PASSAGES. Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005

PASSAGES rafted with other Flickas in Barkley Sound. Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005

Starboard bench and head of s/y PASSAGES. Photo: Gary Kreis © 2005

How many anchors are on your bow? Here are some different arrangements. Hal DeVaney sent a number of images showing different Flicka systems. Photos: Hal DeVaney © 2005