Ophelia
Yesterday and today the remnants of Ophelia battered Oban. Fortunately Oleander has been reasonably protected for most of it. I did protect the short boat lines with some rubber gadget that prevents the shore lines from jerking the boat and they seemed to work.
I did get awoken by an aweful ticking noise cause by part of the topping lift slamming rhythmically against the upper mast. This can really drive you bonkers when you sleep almost under the mast, the whole boat reverberates! I had already wrapped part of that line around the mast steps but with the wind speed (> 40mph) it just didn’t matter. So I had to get out, dress, get on deck and rewrapped it. Go down below and back to bed. A few minutes later it starts again. You try to ignore it. Clap-clap-clap-clap … CLAP-CLAP-CLAP-CLAP Get out of bed, crap another piece of rope, dress, get back on deck in the streaming rain, undo the wrap and tie a bowline around it and fasten it to one of the cleats on the boom. Works! Go down below, undress, break electric light connector that you knew would be in the way at some point. Sigh. Go back to bed. After 10 minutes: CLAP … CLAP … CLAP
Get very angry, get up, dress, get back on deck in the streaming rain. As I had anticipated but not acted upon: the movement had slid the bowline down the line, disabling my solution and making the noise worse because now 9 meters of line can slap against the mast. So undo the cleat and make a few wraps above the bowline and then lead the line back through the bowline and cleat it again. Now it can’t slide down because of friction! Yes!
Go down below, have a wee dram of whiskey to celebrate and undress go back to bed. All is well until the wind picks up above a certain speed: CLAP! clap clap But this is intermittent but with all the noise and movement it takes a while before I sleep again.
The joys of living in a sailing boat!
