Chris-380
Well-Known Member
Safe travels, thanks for the update!
Want to go for a boat ride?
- Thread starter Gofirstclass
- Start date
Well?? Waiting for the much anticipated news here??
boatman37
Well-Known Member
- Jun 6, 2015
- 4,255
- Boat Info
- 2006 Crownline 250CR. 5.7 Merc BIII
Previous: 1986 Sea Ray 250 Sundancer. 260 Merc Alpha 1 Gen 1
- Engines
- 5.7 Merc BIII
Following this. Love reading about peoples adventures and seeing pics
wyrman
Well-Known Member
- Jul 12, 2012
- 1,922
- Boat Info
- 2007 310 Sundancer
- Engines
- Twin 350's, V drives
2003 Fisher 17 aluminum
90hp Honda 4 stroke
We went for a dinner cruise to Anthony's last night, and saw that Beachcomber was MIA.
Figured you must have started your trip.
Good luck with the trip, and stay safe, especially when you get to the end of the Columbia.
Figured you must have started your trip.
Good luck with the trip, and stay safe, especially when you get to the end of the Columbia.
Gofirstclass
Well-Known Member
Nothing great to add. We're in The Dalles, OR. We traveled 74 miles the first day, added an additional 40 or so miles today and went through two locks. The second lock (The Dalles Dam) we had to wait almost an hour for a tug and barges to pass through the lock heading upstream. We could have pushed the issue a bit to get them to let us pass through first because we were closer to the lock but I deffered to the tug and let them go through first.
We ate at a sports bar tonight and had a good dinner. We got a ride from the marina up to the bar from a gal we met in the parking lot (I paid her $10) then got a ride back to the marina from a cop and his wife who had been in the same restaurant. Funny stories in both and I'll probably write them later. I also have a few photos to post but that will have to wait for another time.
For now, it's a bit after 9:00 and I'm heading to bed. Nightey night.
We ate at a sports bar tonight and had a good dinner. We got a ride from the marina up to the bar from a gal we met in the parking lot (I paid her $10) then got a ride back to the marina from a cop and his wife who had been in the same restaurant. Funny stories in both and I'll probably write them later. I also have a few photos to post but that will have to wait for another time.
For now, it's a bit after 9:00 and I'm heading to bed. Nightey night.
Chris-380
Well-Known Member
Thank you for the update! Hoping you continue to have safe travels and a few good stories/memories!
DaFish
Active Member
- Mar 11, 2011
- 663
- Boat Info
- 1999 370 DA
- Engines
- 7.4 MPI Horizon Merc w/ V-Drives
Thanks for the update - wishing you all continued safe passage. Looking forward to more
ziekman@cox.net
Active Member
Safe travels, and calm seas... with you in full spirit!
Gofirstclass
Well-Known Member
OK, I guess I owe everyone an apology. I told you I'd keep you posted on what is going on but since we left Arlington on Thursday morning we have not had any wifi.
It's now Monday morning at 6:00 and getting ready to be underway around 8:00.
We're now in Ilwaco, WA, the last pit stop before we cross the Columbia Bar and hit the Pacific. Since we left Arlington we spent one night at The Dalles, one night at Government Island (just upstream from Portland, OR) then one night at Tom's dock. No wifi at any point so this is my first update.
I designated Jim to the "Ship's Photographer" and he has been a busy boy. I decided that rather than both of us taking pics I'd let him do it and I'll use his pics.
Gotta run to get breakfast ready for the crew! Cross your fingers for a safe trip for us. If we make Port Angeles that's going to be about a 232 mile run.
It's now Monday morning at 6:00 and getting ready to be underway around 8:00.
We're now in Ilwaco, WA, the last pit stop before we cross the Columbia Bar and hit the Pacific. Since we left Arlington we spent one night at The Dalles, one night at Government Island (just upstream from Portland, OR) then one night at Tom's dock. No wifi at any point so this is my first update.
I designated Jim to the "Ship's Photographer" and he has been a busy boy. I decided that rather than both of us taking pics I'd let him do it and I'll use his pics.
Gotta run to get breakfast ready for the crew! Cross your fingers for a safe trip for us. If we make Port Angeles that's going to be about a 232 mile run.
wyrman
Well-Known Member
- Jul 12, 2012
- 1,922
- Boat Info
- 2007 310 Sundancer
- Engines
- Twin 350's, V drives
2003 Fisher 17 aluminum
90hp Honda 4 stroke
Best of luck going over the bar Mike.
In case people don't know, the Coast Guard has a station there that they train their guys.
It gets really bad there under the right conditions.
They have the boats that roll completely over in the rough water.
In case people don't know, the Coast Guard has a station there that they train their guys.
It gets really bad there under the right conditions.
They have the boats that roll completely over in the rough water.
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- Nov 4, 2019
- 2,480
- Boat Info
- 2010 Sundancer 500
2015 Brig Falcon 330T
- Engines
- Twin Cummins QSC550 w Zeus Pods
Safe Trip Gents!
Gofirstclass
Well-Known Member
Here's some more stuff for you to peruse.....
I’m going to add some additional “stuff” as I think of it; most of it will be stuff that just didn’t seem to fit in each day’s post or maybe it’s stuff I didn’t think of at the time but thought of it later.
Day 1 - to Arlington, OR
This was probably the roughest water day of our trip. As we started the winds were stiff and the waves about 3’. That quickly changed to waves 4’-5’ and stayed that way almost all the way. It’s 74 miles, we left on time, got to McNary on time and then had a nice (albeit bumpy) ride the rest of the way. The dock at Arlington is oriented N-S. With a strong (30-40kts) wind from the west it blew us hard up against the dock. We had lots of fenders out so they absorbed the bump and we had no damage. OK GUYS! Get the captain a cold one!
For dinner we hiked about ¾ mile up to the town’s only restaurant. I got a burger that turned out to be mediocre at best. Then we hiked back to the boat and relaxed.
Day 2 – to The Dalles, OR
This run is always a long one—there are two locks to go through and that’s what takes so long. In summer months the locks are on a set schedule for rec vessels. Downstream it’s 9:30, 12:30, 3:30 and 6:30. The dams are close enough together in this part of the river that it’s too easy to cruise from one to the next. Even with very rough water we arrive too early at anything above idle speed and then we have to wait until the scheduled time. PITA
When we got to The Dalles marina the wind was howling. I had to enter the marina and make a hard turn to port and do it between the breakwater and nearby boat houses. Then spin the boat in a 180* turn to side tie at the only long dock they have. On a calm day it’s tricky. With the wind blowing hard it’s tough but to say I nailed it would be an understatement. Not trying to toot my own horn, but both guys said I did the docking maneuver like a professional. OK GUYS, get the captain a cold one!
There are no restaurants anywhere close to the marina so it looked like we were going to have to walk about a mile, uphill both directions through 2’ of snow and blowing winds. I saw a family who appeared to be living out of an old beater motor home who happened to have a truck parked next to it. I approached the mother and offered her $10 for a lift. She jumped at it and we all were happy.
After dinner we came out of the restaurant right ahead of a couple in their 40’s. I told them we were at the marina and asked if they would please give us a ride. I showed them my retired cop ID to let them know they would be safe and when they saw that the gal said “We’d be honored.” Turns out he’s a cop so we had something in common. They gave us the ride then joined us for a beer and a tour of the boat. In our conversation I found out her mother has stage 4 breast cancer. I told her about my battle with cancer and she was surprised. Her comment was “You have cancer but you’re still smiling.”
I told her that when I found out I had cancer it was 3 days before I could even say the word because it scared me so bad, but then I decided I was not going to let the cancer kick my butt either mentally or physically. Another thing we have in common. After a beer and some conversation they left and we headed for bed.
Day 3 – to Government Island
Today was going to be an easy day. Only one lock (Bonneville Dam) and the water between The Dalles and Portland was just like glass. I’ve never seen it that way and we enjoyed it. When we got close to the lock I called them on the radio to let them know we were coming. There was a tug with one barge going into the lock and the lockmaster said if we stepped up the pace a bit we could lock through with the tug. We got up on plane and ran the last few miles at about 22kts. We caught up to the tug just as he was entering the lock and, to my surprise, he told us to tie up to him not the bollard. Another first with Beachcomber. I’d never done that before but it was a piece of cake. Miles to go today: 80 miles from Arlington to go today
Coming out of the lock we were too late to make the fuel dock we were headed to so we stopped short at the dock at Government Island and got tied up. OK GUYS, get the captain a cold one!
Day 4 – To Tom’s Dock near Longview, WA
We left the Government Island dock about 7:00 and cruised through Portland. It was “lumpy” but not bad until we got downstream from Portland and we were back in the 4’-5’ waves and lots of wind and spray. That continued all the way to St. Helens, OR where we stopped for fuel and pumped out. 300 gallons of diesel at $2.00/gallon later we were back on the water headed to Tom’s digs.
We had an uneventful cruise to Tom’s. This is a beautiful stretch of the Columbia. Lots of ships coming up river to load up and head back to wherever, lots of huge terminals and other commercial buildings. The closer we got to Tom’s the more the winds died down and by the time we got to the slough he’s on we were back on glassy water.
This is not all there is to tell about Day 4 but we’re all pooped so I’m going to sign off, put the dishes away and we’re going to hit the hay early. Tomorrow is the day we cross the bar and head up the coast. Our goal is to make it to Port Angeles. If we do, that will be a run of a bit over 200 nautical miles. We plan to shove off around 7:30 and if we run at ~18knots that would work out to a cruise day of around 11.25 hours. That puts us in there around 7:30, about an hour ahead of sunset.
I’m going to add some additional “stuff” as I think of it; most of it will be stuff that just didn’t seem to fit in each day’s post or maybe it’s stuff I didn’t think of at the time but thought of it later.
Day 1 - to Arlington, OR
This was probably the roughest water day of our trip. As we started the winds were stiff and the waves about 3’. That quickly changed to waves 4’-5’ and stayed that way almost all the way. It’s 74 miles, we left on time, got to McNary on time and then had a nice (albeit bumpy) ride the rest of the way. The dock at Arlington is oriented N-S. With a strong (30-40kts) wind from the west it blew us hard up against the dock. We had lots of fenders out so they absorbed the bump and we had no damage. OK GUYS! Get the captain a cold one!
For dinner we hiked about ¾ mile up to the town’s only restaurant. I got a burger that turned out to be mediocre at best. Then we hiked back to the boat and relaxed.
Day 2 – to The Dalles, OR
This run is always a long one—there are two locks to go through and that’s what takes so long. In summer months the locks are on a set schedule for rec vessels. Downstream it’s 9:30, 12:30, 3:30 and 6:30. The dams are close enough together in this part of the river that it’s too easy to cruise from one to the next. Even with very rough water we arrive too early at anything above idle speed and then we have to wait until the scheduled time. PITA
When we got to The Dalles marina the wind was howling. I had to enter the marina and make a hard turn to port and do it between the breakwater and nearby boat houses. Then spin the boat in a 180* turn to side tie at the only long dock they have. On a calm day it’s tricky. With the wind blowing hard it’s tough but to say I nailed it would be an understatement. Not trying to toot my own horn, but both guys said I did the docking maneuver like a professional. OK GUYS, get the captain a cold one!
There are no restaurants anywhere close to the marina so it looked like we were going to have to walk about a mile, uphill both directions through 2’ of snow and blowing winds. I saw a family who appeared to be living out of an old beater motor home who happened to have a truck parked next to it. I approached the mother and offered her $10 for a lift. She jumped at it and we all were happy.
After dinner we came out of the restaurant right ahead of a couple in their 40’s. I told them we were at the marina and asked if they would please give us a ride. I showed them my retired cop ID to let them know they would be safe and when they saw that the gal said “We’d be honored.” Turns out he’s a cop so we had something in common. They gave us the ride then joined us for a beer and a tour of the boat. In our conversation I found out her mother has stage 4 breast cancer. I told her about my battle with cancer and she was surprised. Her comment was “You have cancer but you’re still smiling.”
I told her that when I found out I had cancer it was 3 days before I could even say the word because it scared me so bad, but then I decided I was not going to let the cancer kick my butt either mentally or physically. Another thing we have in common. After a beer and some conversation they left and we headed for bed.
Day 3 – to Government Island
Today was going to be an easy day. Only one lock (Bonneville Dam) and the water between The Dalles and Portland was just like glass. I’ve never seen it that way and we enjoyed it. When we got close to the lock I called them on the radio to let them know we were coming. There was a tug with one barge going into the lock and the lockmaster said if we stepped up the pace a bit we could lock through with the tug. We got up on plane and ran the last few miles at about 22kts. We caught up to the tug just as he was entering the lock and, to my surprise, he told us to tie up to him not the bollard. Another first with Beachcomber. I’d never done that before but it was a piece of cake. Miles to go today: 80 miles from Arlington to go today
Coming out of the lock we were too late to make the fuel dock we were headed to so we stopped short at the dock at Government Island and got tied up. OK GUYS, get the captain a cold one!
Day 4 – To Tom’s Dock near Longview, WA
We left the Government Island dock about 7:00 and cruised through Portland. It was “lumpy” but not bad until we got downstream from Portland and we were back in the 4’-5’ waves and lots of wind and spray. That continued all the way to St. Helens, OR where we stopped for fuel and pumped out. 300 gallons of diesel at $2.00/gallon later we were back on the water headed to Tom’s digs.
We had an uneventful cruise to Tom’s. This is a beautiful stretch of the Columbia. Lots of ships coming up river to load up and head back to wherever, lots of huge terminals and other commercial buildings. The closer we got to Tom’s the more the winds died down and by the time we got to the slough he’s on we were back on glassy water.
This is not all there is to tell about Day 4 but we’re all pooped so I’m going to sign off, put the dishes away and we’re going to hit the hay early. Tomorrow is the day we cross the bar and head up the coast. Our goal is to make it to Port Angeles. If we do, that will be a run of a bit over 200 nautical miles. We plan to shove off around 7:30 and if we run at ~18knots that would work out to a cruise day of around 11.25 hours. That puts us in there around 7:30, about an hour ahead of sunset.
Gofirstclass
Well-Known Member
This is going to be short. The trip from Ilwaco was a LOT longer than we had anticipated . We got started right on schedule but whoever was driving (not me) wouldn't run on plane for fear of running out of diesel. We didn't get in here until after 10:00 p.m.
We had a quick dinner then we're all headed off to bed. With permission of the harbor master we're tied to the fuel dock so we can be first in line for fuel in the a.m. The trip was 202 nautical miles (232 statute miles) and just seemed to take forever.
See ya tomorrow.
We had a quick dinner then we're all headed off to bed. With permission of the harbor master we're tied to the fuel dock so we can be first in line for fuel in the a.m. The trip was 202 nautical miles (232 statute miles) and just seemed to take forever.
See ya tomorrow.
Chris-380
Well-Known Member
Great updates, thank you for sharing! Wishing you and the guys continued safe travels!
Your pic guy sucks.....we need pics... a hole in an elbow that's all we got ?!
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Gofirstclass
Well-Known Member
Guys and gals, I apologize for not updating this but I have been without wifi since the first night of the trip. I will try to do a day by day update starting tomorrow and I have a TON of photos that I need to upload to my 3rd party site before I can post them on here.
Be patient I'm home now (just arrived) so I'll start working on it tomorrow.
Sign me: One Pooped GFC
Be patient I'm home now (just arrived) so I'll start working on it tomorrow.
Sign me: One Pooped GFC
And we still haven’t heard what the replacement cost of said elbow was - as promised.
Gofirstclass
Well-Known Member
$2.49
Gofirstclass
Well-Known Member
OK, I'm finally getting some time to relax and get some pics uploaded. These were taken the first day out as we headed to McNary dam....
The obligatory wake shot...
and a bow shot before we got too far down the river and headed into the rougher water.
This is what the hills alongside the river look like. These cliffs were left after The Great Missoula Floods went through here. (Google it!)
Here's my crew member Jim handling the lines as we tie up inside McNary lock.
Inside the lock as we've reached the bottom and the guillotine gate is opening.
This is the upstream gate at McNary. This is a cantilever gate. It rotates down as boats enter or leave at the upstream end of the lock.
The obligatory wake shot...
and a bow shot before we got too far down the river and headed into the rougher water.
This is what the hills alongside the river look like. These cliffs were left after The Great Missoula Floods went through here. (Google it!)
Here's my crew member Jim handling the lines as we tie up inside McNary lock.
Inside the lock as we've reached the bottom and the guillotine gate is opening.
This is the upstream gate at McNary. This is a cantilever gate. It rotates down as boats enter or leave at the upstream end of the lock.
Gofirstclass
Well-Known Member
I guess an apology is in order for not posting sooner. Since the first day of the trip when we got to Arlington, OR I have not been able to connect to wifi. So no photos, no narrative. My bad by not my fault. Also, the days were long and strenuous so come night time after I had fixed dinner for my crew (HAPPY CREW, HAPPY CRUISE) then cleaned up from dinner and got things ready for the next day's cruise, I was too pooped to do much.
Anyway, the cruise went like this: The first day out (Wednesday) we cruised about 83 nautical miles (95 statute miles). We passed through McNary lock in high winds and fought the same winds and 4'-5' seas to get to Arlington. As we got to the marina at Arlington the winds were blowing straight on the bow. That meant when we got into the marina the winds would blow us straight to the dock. We put out all of our fenders on the stbd side to cushion the blow of hitting the dock. I kept the boat parallel to the dock and just held on as we hit the dock. The boat rocked to the side from the force of hitting the dock but we didn't have any damage due to the large number of fenders.
Arlington only has two restaurants, both sub standard but it's the only game in town. We hiked the 3/4 mile into town and picked a burger joint and I had one of the most mediocre burgers I've had in a long time.
Here's a shot of Beachcomber at the dock in Arlington. This was taken by Jim who I had designated "Ship's Photographer". I had enough stuff to take care of and didn't want to worry about missing a good photo. Thanks Jim.
Anyway, the cruise went like this: The first day out (Wednesday) we cruised about 83 nautical miles (95 statute miles). We passed through McNary lock in high winds and fought the same winds and 4'-5' seas to get to Arlington. As we got to the marina at Arlington the winds were blowing straight on the bow. That meant when we got into the marina the winds would blow us straight to the dock. We put out all of our fenders on the stbd side to cushion the blow of hitting the dock. I kept the boat parallel to the dock and just held on as we hit the dock. The boat rocked to the side from the force of hitting the dock but we didn't have any damage due to the large number of fenders.
Arlington only has two restaurants, both sub standard but it's the only game in town. We hiked the 3/4 mile into town and picked a burger joint and I had one of the most mediocre burgers I've had in a long time.
Here's a shot of Beachcomber at the dock in Arlington. This was taken by Jim who I had designated "Ship's Photographer". I had enough stuff to take care of and didn't want to worry about missing a good photo. Thanks Jim.
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