Three Wishes, Part 2: Nancy's Ambitious Plan -- May 2013

By: Nancy Davidson

Making the Plan Work

Skepticism – no one thought I could do it, including my husband Niel.

The Yacht Controller gives me wireless control of the thrusters as well as transmission, throttle, and windlass. I love it!

As expressed in my first musings last summer, Niel has lost interest in cruising on “Three Wishes”, our Selene 53 powerboat. There are many reasons for this including, but not limited to, weather (he loves hot), boredom (been there, done that) and missing his friends at home. On the other hand, I looked forward to our cruises in the Pacific Northwest all year and couldn’t imagine my life without them. In response to this dilemma, I made the decision last summer to learn to operate “Three Wishes” by myself. It has been a big challenge and the focus of my activities all year. When Niel and I were on the boat in Canada last August for 6 weeks, I followed Niel around like a puppy dog, learning everything I could that he did and taking detailed notes which I later typed in a notebook titled “Operating Three Wishes for Dummies”. This past winter I immersed myself in studying for my Captain’s license and passed all four of the written modules in late March. I have the cruising days on the water that the Coast Guard requires but have many more hoops to jump through before I can formally apply for my license. I have recently learned that licensed Captains may be held to a higher standard of liability and will investigate that before I decide whether or not to submit my application.

Setting and retrieving the anchor by myself was an important skill to master

Last winter I had a Yacht Controller installed on Three Wishes as well as stabilizers. The Yacht Controller is a wireless remote that controls forward, reverse, bow and stern thrusters and the windless. It enables me to be outside on deck where I have e better visibility when docking or anchoring. In late April, after of day of training on the Yacht Controller, I single-handed the two hours from Sidney in Canada to Roche Harbor in the U.S., having to first dock at Customs before docking at my assigned slip. This was then repeated upon my return to Canada. The purpose of my cruise to Roche Harbor was to attend the annual Pacific Northwest Selene Rendezvous. At the final dinner I was awarded a handheld VHF for the accomplishment of single-handing. This successful cruise was a real confidence booster for me and it was wonderful for my accomplishment to be recognized.

"Boot Camp"

I spent 10 days with Captains Patti and Carol of SeaSense cruising to Desolation Sound and learning navigation, safety, and other important skills for my single-handing aspirations.

On May 15th Captains Patti and Carol who own Sea Sense, a boating school based in Florida, arrived on “Three Wishes” in Sidney for a 10 day cruise with me to Desolation Sound and back. On this cruise I successfully anchored the boat 3 times by myself and learned how to tow the dinghy. I also completed 5 successful dockings. (The Yacht Controller and I are becoming friends. I must give it a name.) Patti and Carol are sticklers for safety and this was a prime ingredient in their teachings. I learned the importance of checking the weather on the VHF before cruising and also following our progress on paper charts. When Nobeltec, the GPS navigation program, froze for an afternoon, we followed my drawn route on the charts and plotted our latitude and longitude position every hour to get an accurate reading of where we were and arrived perfectly at our destination. I have many more pages of instruction to type up and add to my “Dummies” notebook. I can’t list here everything I learned from Patti and Carol but you get the idea. I feel as prepared as I can be for my 9 week cruise to the Broughton Islands in July, “God willin’ and the cricks don’t rise” as my Grandmother from Arkansas used to say.

During my time with Captains Patti and Carol we worked on launching and towing the dinghy, setting and retrieving the anchor, and a variety of other skills.

Captains Patti and Carol left yesterday for their return to the East Coast. After waving goodbye to them in their cab, I returned to the boat and called Niel. It was then I learned that Sandy Tandler, one of my oldest and dearest friends had unexpectedly died that morning – my first close friend to die. In addition to mourning, I’m in a strange state of mind, keenly aware of the juxtaposition of life and death. Carpe diem.

Next Month: Part 3: Can Nancy Do it?

You can find a complete album of Nancy's cruising photos in the Selene photo gallery on this site (you must login to view the Selene photo gallery).

 
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  Selene Cruising Blogs  
  The Down East Circle Loop (Part 1)  
  Three Wishes, Part 1: A Big Problem for Nancy  
  Three Wishes, Part 2: Nancy's Ambitious Plan  
  Three Wishes, Part 3: Can Nancy Do It?  
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  Jet Tern Marine Appoints a new Northwest Selene Dealer  
  15th Annual Northwest Selene Owner's Rendezvous  
  Selene Annapolis joins forces with Luke Brown Yachts  
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  Preparing a Selene for International Shore Power (Part 1)  
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  Mikey Smith Joins JTM as VP of Engineering  
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  Mayday Mayhem -- A Selene Rescue Operation  
  Three Wishes, Part 4: The Pleasure and the Pain  
  Three Days on Alaska's Lituya Bay  
  Preparing a Selene for International Shore Power (Part 2)  
  A Winter Cruise to Princess Louisa Inlet  
  Transiting the Panama Canal on Selene 53 Rediscovery II  
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  Three Wishes, Part 6: More Adventures for Nancy  
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  The Down East Circle Loop (Part 3)  
  The Down East Circle Loop (Part 2)  
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