s/v Far Niente 2010 Cruising Plan

As we are starting in the Great Lakes, we'll file our plan here.

May - Far Niente (IP 45 #33) will absorb Jeff and Marjorie as full time, live aboard cruisers. After 20 years of education and 30 years of employment we are making our transition from 'land lubbers' to sailors with great anticipation and expectation. We'll launch Far Niente in late May on Lake Macatawa (Holland, MI) and begin the prep work for a wonderful 2010 journey.

June - We hope to have all systems ship shape and depart for northern waters in early June. We plan to take our time, respect the Great Lakes weather and end up in Grand Traverse Bay in mid to late June. We'll spend time with friends and family in the Traverse City area.

July - This will be a busy month. Ports of call we plan to visit: Beaver Island, Mackinaw Island, Mackinaw City for the Great Lakes Cruising Club rendezvous, and finally the infamous North Channel.

August - this will be our 'on the move' month. From the North Channel we'll head down Huron, Erie and into Lake Ontario. Key destination, Oswego, NY where we'll drop the mast and prep for a trip down the Oswego River, Erie Canal, and Hudson River and then to NY harbor.

September - here where we get really flexible. After the NYC region we want to head to the D&C canal to enter the north end of the Chesapeake Bay. No hurry here, just the right weather and right stopping points. We want to have a few things added and inspected on Far Niente. There are numerous fine marinas and craftsman in the north end of the CB we can retain to accomplish the a list desired tasks key to our sail to the Caribbean.

October - This will be our month on the Chesapeake. One of the key points of interest will be the sail boat show in Annapolis the 9th - 12th. I have been to many boat shows in my life, but I never sailed to one! By the end of the month we'll be in Hampton, VA.

November - The Caribbean 1500. We are very excited about taking part in this years rally to Tortoal, BVI. Then, all of the sudden, Far Niente will enjoy the beautiful blue water of the Caribbean.

December - Another busy month; back to the mainland for family and Christmas. We'll be back on board in time to celebrate New Years on Far Niente in the Virgin Islands!

That is the float/cruising plan for Far Niente for 2010.

Jeff

Jeff,
I hope we can meet up somewhere in the North Channel. Check in with the cruisers net out of Little Current every day at 9 AM to hook up.

Jim Wooll - Reverie

I will be very interested to follow your travels. We live across the lake in Wisconsin and will starting that same life style at the end of this year, in an IP as well. What ugrades have you done to get ready for this?

Dave

Dave,

Great to hear a fellow IP sailor is preparing to go. Stay in touch and I am sure we'll connect somewhere in the future.

Far Niente came as a very well prepared cruising yacht. Last summer we added new cruising sails and a lazy jack system. The major upgrade this past winter was the bow thruster; the 45 likes to go forward, not backward. I am certain the thruster will save much money in the future by assisting us in tight docking and locking situations.

We are adding quite a bit of 'safety' equipment as required by the Caribbean 1500. Major items here are the 6 person ocean/off shore life raft and a SSB radio. We'll get the life raft this spring and have the SSB installed late this summer when we arrive in the Chesapeake. On the bubble right now is a water maker. Fellow cruisers say that fresh water is readily available in the Caribbean. So at this stage it may be added later.

Next year (summer 2011) we plan to add a hard dodger and replace all the canvas. Sooner or later we'll need to replace the frig/freezer system, the DC-genset as well as the 800 A-Hr battery bank.

Hopefully the replacement schedule will follow that plan, bu you never know!

Good luck getting ready. Sometimes it seems quite overwhelming, but I am certain is well worth the effort.

Best regards,

Jeff Graham
s/v Far Niente
IP45 #33

Jim,

Absolutely would love to meet you in the North Channel this summer.

As I know you are a NC veteran, what are your recommendations for those places not to be missed?

What channel is the cruiser's net on up there?

Best regards,

Jeff Graham
s/v Far Niente
IP45 #33

The cruisers net is announced on 16 and switches to 71.

I have just posted a prototype planning guide for the North Channel on the GLCC site. Give it a look and tell me what you would like added.

Tell me a little about the kinds of spots you are interested in and I will try to help in your planning. Things like- isolated, scenery,shore activities, dinghy exploring....

Jim