HF Radio Stuff

This is an Icom IC-7200 in camo color.  This is the radio I wanted to put on my boat Inspiration II when I owner her.  Alas, she is no longer mine but I have changed my focus slightly - to RV & Sailboats.  SAM seems to like the RV idea, I think, as main living quarters and less time on a sailboat.  This means I need to get a boat that is smaller and single hand-able.  With this expanded focus I need to get a tuner or tuners.

My first idea is to use a dipole at home and on the RV and a long wire on the boat.  Translated this means that we must use two different tuners.  The long wire tuner is an Icom AH-4 and the dipole tuner is like LDG Electronics IT-100 Automatic Antenna Tuner. However, it may be best to just use a long-wire for all applications except fixed base home and maybe even there too.  If I do use a long wire then I will get the KISS tuned counterpoise and move it around as well.

OK, In the end I did buy the AH-4 and will run a long wire for the boat, Rv and at home.  Starting with a 72' longwire and a few 11- 17' radials for the counterpoise at home and for RV and boat the KISS gets the nod.

My little contribution of today

♪♫♫ Back Home Again in Indiana ♫♫♪

The whirlwind tour of the FL & Texas is history. We are back in Indiana, boatless, and we are tired.  The search for a new, more appropriate boat, will commence soon.  Right now I am leaning towards a Pearson 35 or a Sabre 34 and SAM is non-commital but likes semi-planing hull Trawlers.  The future boat should be an interesting quest.  Our daughter now works in CT so I will start the search this summer out east.


The Pearson 35 is a well built boat, available and at affordable prices .  One of our friends has a very nice one and this is the basis for our liking that boat.
The Sabre 34 was recommended to us by our mechanic in FL and it has the same availability, price point and build characteristics.  I like the Sabre cockpit layout and the cutter configuration so that may limit availability somewhat.

Not so nautical

This blog post and subsequent ones, until we get a new smaller boat, will only be loosely related to nautical adventures.  That said, we left Indiana last Tuesday and made it to AR near Memphis where we stopped for the night.  The next day we drove to within 3 hours of Austin, TX which is where we are now.

Tonight will be the rehersal dinner for my niece and tomorrow the wedding.  Sunday we will turn around for the trip home to Indiana.  It has been an action packed last two weeks and the trip down was filled with adventure too.  This included finding a hospital to take a look at a rash I was having.

We are staying in an RV Park cabin near our wedding venues and it is raining pretty hard with thunder now.  Temperature is 59°F and barometer is 992.6 and trending +.  The crew went out to shop, eaat and have hair done while I stayed at the cabin to take care of Abby and take a much needed shower.  I sign with you now but may add some later if anything interesting happens.

Trip home & unpack

The roadway was full of people from Florida right on up to Knoxville Good Friday.  Atlanta was a zoo and we lost lots of time there so the planned home run was cut off and we stayed at the Days Inn North in Knoxville. This was a first time stay and it was OK - room was a bit noisy but the view of our rig in the parking lot made up for that.  The hot breakfast was mediocre with lots of little things missing but we were the first ones there and that made up for the shortcomings.  All-in-all our $62 room was pretty good as it was clean with new carpets.  We would stay again.

The final leg home was on uncrowded roads but we went thru Cincinnati instead of taking the I-74 to Indy.  This was a mistake as the road construction and slow traffic was irksome.  Still we arrived home about 1730 hours and we turned on the house and unloaded the cab of the truck and the car.

On the way home we discussed Sabre 34 and this boat might hold some promise.  Still in my deck of cards is the Pearson 35 and Seaward 26RK.  There may be others that interest me but the role of the boat at this time in undefined.  One thing is known, I must be able to single hand the boat for extended periods on inter-coastal, near shore use.  The occasional open ocean  passage must be safe for a single hander and this might leave the Seaward wanting.  Unlike our other boats, seasonal living aboard comfort is not an issue as we will be out for a couple of weeks to a month at most.  We will be planning and researching for a while.

Inspiration II sold

In very rapid turn of events a cash buyer viewed boat, put the $$$$ down and we performed sea trial and survey and laid her up on the hard.  We moved off in one day - everything - and tried to pack it inot a truck with topper and a car that is pulled via a dolly by the truck.  Both are full to brim and we are now in Knoxville on the way to Indiana.

SAM & I are planning our next moves - from a 26' Seward to 37 Island Pack - and all boats in between.  SAM likes a semi-displacement trawler & I want to stick with a cutter rig sailboat that has a shallow draft keel and skegged rudder.  We will have to negotiate that for sure!  Moore later.

Boat Delivery - Ortega Landing Marina

This morning bright and early we took off with s/v Tuktu & Capt Rockwood to deliver boat to Ortega Landing Marina on the Ortega River.  It was a short fun delivery and afterwards we went out for lunch in Avondale area of South Jacksonville. The marine water was so shallow that we had to work pretty hard to reverse pretty hard to get into the slip.  The west wind plus low tide made the water almost too low for the 5' keel Tartan.  They may have to start dredging one of these fine days.

As I write it is raining at a moderate rate and steadily.  I think this will continue for some hours.  This is the first real long rain we have had for a long time.  Maybe the river will rise a bit.  I just awoke from a short nap and it was welcome.  I'll just finish the coffee pick-me-up and pop a couple Kraft Carmel's - good to go.