Sorry, camera is toast so no pictures. We'll try to pick one up tomorrow. Anyway, we have officially started our second loop as Alton is just below where the IL river comes in. We are still not sure a second loop completion is in the cards but at least we are on our way to somewhere warm.
Alton Marina is probably one of the nicest marinas on the loop. Everything floats. The swimming pool, all the offices, showers and rest rooms and even the fuel storage. Everything is a 10. It is obvious that a government grant was involved here as it does not appear to be financially feasible for a private concern by any stretch of the imagination. You can check it out on the internet.
In all my years involved with car racing, business trips and long distance road trips I never really saw America. Until now. I can't remember who said it but it goes something like this " now with all the interstate highways you can go from coast to coast without seeing anything". It's true. The vast areas of no populations, small hamlets and flocks of thousands of birds can only be seen from our waterway system. Most of the time there is no cell, no wifi, no marinas, nothing but beautiful scenery and wildlife. We seldom get board as around each bend chances are it's something to amaze.
8 days or so and counting to Grand Harbor on the lakes. This is where we will find a bay and relax. Yes, people who know me say that I never relax but there is something special about this area that actually slows me down... well, just a bit...
We're here through tomorrow and then the fun begins as there ain't much civilization between here and there for the next week. River anchorages (O' boy)... this would be a bad time to get off my blood pressure pills.
Kerm
Thursday, October 10, 2013
Alton, IL, mechanical stuff
600 + miles. Wow. At Alton, IL Marina. Nice place. Hot tub (like I would use it), pool (like I would use it) and some of the nicest shower / bathrooms on the loop (I could use a shower).
OK, for the people that like my mechanical updates: oil consumption is at an all time low, temperature for water in the morning is at an all time high but still not 110 (perhaps a sticky thermostat) and new shaft packing seems to be settled in.
Up switch on windlass crapped out the other day. I had a choice to go with Lewmar (English) or Quick (Italian) and I went with the Italians when I bought it a coupe of years ago. I kept on thinking Lucas with Lewmar. Anyway, one switch last year and another now. I'm going to buy Lewmar switches to repace what I have. Hell, they are probably all made in China now anyway. I did hook up a temporary momentary switch up there but Chris gave me the Micky Mouse hand signal upon seeing it.
Depth meters are still on furlough. The Raymarine is toast and the Garmin only works when you don't need it. Tomorrow I'm going to update the Garmin software and if that doesn't work I'll put a choke on the cable. Next I will pull the data cable away from others in the gangway and after that failure I will drink a 12 pack of Bud Light while looking on the internet to find out who the patron saint of depth meters is.
OH, and this is strange, the tach on the upper station goes nuts when I transmit on the radio and they are not even on the same DC circuit AND last spring I added a volt meter on the flybridge that shows the voltage going down all day as we travel. Now I'm guessing that you motor heads are thinking does this have anything to do with the flybridge Garmin. I don't know but right now a rock on a piece of twine looks pretty good.
Pat, in answer to your question, we are indeed running faster than normal. The current is helping a bit but whereas the old sweet spot was 1750 it is now 1825 RPM. Guess the rebuilt fuel injection stuff is more efficient. I also think I may have calculated the hull speed too conservative.
Kerm
OK, for the people that like my mechanical updates: oil consumption is at an all time low, temperature for water in the morning is at an all time high but still not 110 (perhaps a sticky thermostat) and new shaft packing seems to be settled in.
Up switch on windlass crapped out the other day. I had a choice to go with Lewmar (English) or Quick (Italian) and I went with the Italians when I bought it a coupe of years ago. I kept on thinking Lucas with Lewmar. Anyway, one switch last year and another now. I'm going to buy Lewmar switches to repace what I have. Hell, they are probably all made in China now anyway. I did hook up a temporary momentary switch up there but Chris gave me the Micky Mouse hand signal upon seeing it.
Depth meters are still on furlough. The Raymarine is toast and the Garmin only works when you don't need it. Tomorrow I'm going to update the Garmin software and if that doesn't work I'll put a choke on the cable. Next I will pull the data cable away from others in the gangway and after that failure I will drink a 12 pack of Bud Light while looking on the internet to find out who the patron saint of depth meters is.
OH, and this is strange, the tach on the upper station goes nuts when I transmit on the radio and they are not even on the same DC circuit AND last spring I added a volt meter on the flybridge that shows the voltage going down all day as we travel. Now I'm guessing that you motor heads are thinking does this have anything to do with the flybridge Garmin. I don't know but right now a rock on a piece of twine looks pretty good.
Pat, in answer to your question, we are indeed running faster than normal. The current is helping a bit but whereas the old sweet spot was 1750 it is now 1825 RPM. Guess the rebuilt fuel injection stuff is more efficient. I also think I may have calculated the hull speed too conservative.
Kerm
Saturday, October 5, 2013
Mechanical stuff
The boat seems to be running quite well but the depth meters are @#@%!!!. I'll try putting some chokes on the cables and perhaps pulling the cables away from other possible sources of RFI and see what happens. I'm tired of screwing with these things and will give them a couple more shots before I give what we used to call "the lindorfor stomp". You had to have been there to understand.
I put new packing in this spring and I can't get it loose enough to leak to spec's. We have a pressurized forward cutlass so there should be plenty of psi. so will tear that apart tomorrow before we leave and see if it's plugged from salt or sand residue in the heat exchanger. A lot of people do the loop without a clue of the most basic mechanical or electrical know how and seem to do just fine. Perhaps ignorance is bliss and the mechanical gremlins don't bother those people.
These last few days we have had mostly port ties in locks and docks. The Belle and I hates port dockings as the second you hit reverse the stern kicks out to the right as it has a mondo left hand prop. Hence the reason most modern trawlers have thrusters. Anyway, we did fine and perhaps someday I will get over my panic followed by a blood pressure spike when a port tie comes up. Chris knows that I have this problem and is patient when a port situation comes up. Apparently my hearing abilities go down as my blood pressure goes up.
Any one of the Joes, I'll try and call you tomorrow if we have cell. The idle was set by the fuel injection guy at 600 but I had a couple of situations today where when I put it in gear it almost died. I had to goose the throttle in neutral to clean it out. These things only happen in a lock or docking.
Kerm
I put new packing in this spring and I can't get it loose enough to leak to spec's. We have a pressurized forward cutlass so there should be plenty of psi. so will tear that apart tomorrow before we leave and see if it's plugged from salt or sand residue in the heat exchanger. A lot of people do the loop without a clue of the most basic mechanical or electrical know how and seem to do just fine. Perhaps ignorance is bliss and the mechanical gremlins don't bother those people.
These last few days we have had mostly port ties in locks and docks. The Belle and I hates port dockings as the second you hit reverse the stern kicks out to the right as it has a mondo left hand prop. Hence the reason most modern trawlers have thrusters. Anyway, we did fine and perhaps someday I will get over my panic followed by a blood pressure spike when a port tie comes up. Chris knows that I have this problem and is patient when a port situation comes up. Apparently my hearing abilities go down as my blood pressure goes up.
Any one of the Joes, I'll try and call you tomorrow if we have cell. The idle was set by the fuel injection guy at 600 but I had a couple of situations today where when I put it in gear it almost died. I had to goose the throttle in neutral to clean it out. These things only happen in a lock or docking.
Kerm
Departure and the first days
Tuesday, October 1
We started our new journey at 6:45am as
the sun was about to peak over Catfish Point. Bill from Hel'en High
Water and Ann & Dave (and Sophie) waved farewell. A lovely send off from Windmill Marina.
 |
| Our Empty Slip |
 |
| Goodbye Janet, Fred and Sarah |
 |
| Leaving D Dock |
 |
| Bill from Hel' N High Water |
 |
| Dave, Ann and Sophie |
 |
| One last look at the WMA gas dock and office... |
Our buddy boat,
Misstickle, putted out of Afton Marina right on time and we were off.
Beautiful cruise down to Prescott
saying goodbye to the Saint Croix River, a very special piece of
water to us for so many reasons.
 |
| Approaching Prescott Bridges |
 |
| Misstickle |
 |
| Goodbye, St. Croix |
Then a big left turn and on the Mississippi River to
Red Wing, Lake City, Lake Pepin, Winona and Wabasha to Alma,WI. for
our first night. We tied up to the town dock and it was very
comfortable except that the train tracks were about 30 feet from the
docks...very loud throughout the night but, even so, I slept well.
After a tiring day of 81.2 miles and 2 locks we closed up our initial
day.
Boat and crew working well.
Wednesday, October 2
Stayed at Lansing, IA tied to a wall.
We put in a long day of 87.5 miles and cleared 5 locks with an hour
and a half wait at one of the locks. Because of the delay we ended
up coming in to Lansing as the light was failing. Moments of concern
but all was went. We don't plan on any more night adventures.
Cute town and an awesome Quiktrip that
had fresh fruit and veggies.
 |
| and yes...Warren is still with us |
 |
| American Queen came by early this morning |
Thursday, October 3
Stayed at a free dock in Cassville,
WI., after a day of 57.1 miles and 2 locks. The docks were short,
plastic and flimsy but our night was spent without any rocking from
tow traffic or troubles of any kind. In fact, tow/barge traffic has
been minimal all along this stretch.
Fired up the generator and had all the
comforts of home on a free dock...that's what I'm talking about!!!
Friday, October 4
Stayed at Dubuque Marina, a lovely new
facility, after a very short day on the river (27 miles). Severe
weather was forecast so we ducked in early. Took a long, long shower
and did laundry. Shared cocktails with Looper acquaintances, Marc
and.Michelle, on Marc's Ark and many of their friends who boat on
this beautiful part of the Mississippi River.
Saturday, October 5
My camera has died. I will be taking
photos with my phone and hoping they will load into the blog easily.
We are making good progress. We found
out that Lock #17 is closing on October 7 so we'd like to clear it
before that. When locks close for maintenance it can cause a
bottleneck. If tows and barges are part of the jam up delays can be
extensive.
4:30 PM We just arrived at the free dock in Port Byron, IL making it a 82.3 mile and
2 lock day. We were very lucky with the locks...breezed right through. Today was quite dreary with rain and wind...we drove from inside almost all day.
We might go to Sneaky Pete's here in town for a cocktail.
until next time
Christie
Thursday, October 3, 2013
Alert gear heads or, How I Spent My Summer Vacation
Replaced alternator with a 110 amp marine unit. Of course I had to mod the bkts.
Put in an electronic regulator that has more brains then a Crey computer
Installed a companion regulator to control the battery charger for battery split
Wired in all new breakers for DC side
Relocated batteries from port to center while also adding another 4d battery for house
Replaced all battery cables DC primary cables
Replaced crumby bilge boards and painted all
Replaced exhaust thru hull along with fiberglassing in a new backer
Welded up a crack in stainless exhaust pipe
Replaced shaft packing
Replaced bolts in drive couplings
Aligned engine to shaft
New hard injector lines
New soft fuel lines
Injector pump rebuilt
Filters, belts, etc...
Rewired bridge, bla, bla, bla...
etc, etc, etc... and the stuff Chris had on her list
Yup, it's true, cruisers sit on their ass and read books all day while getting great tans.
Kerm
Wait, but wait, there's more. The generator.
The boat never had a generator and frankly I battled this one but sometimes you have to just give up and do it. Joe Hauser Sr. (Chris's brother) made it easier by swinging a deal on a new Onan and then the project begins. Beef up floor, new thru hull, the exhaust was a real treat with fiberglass work and then my favorite, no wait it's not my favorite, the wiring. Done, pain in my little white ass, but done right (I hope). The guys at Windmill Marina and Joe Sr. plus Joe Jr. Hauser gave it the nod so the pain was reduced.
NO MORE ELECTRICAL CRAP ON THE BOAT, PLEASE, no thrusters, no auto pilot, no big screen plotters, no tv antennas, no inverters, no wind mills, no solar crap, no, nothing... well maybe a depth meter that actually works.
Kerm
Put in an electronic regulator that has more brains then a Crey computer
Installed a companion regulator to control the battery charger for battery split
Wired in all new breakers for DC side
Relocated batteries from port to center while also adding another 4d battery for house
Replaced all battery cables DC primary cables
Replaced crumby bilge boards and painted all
Replaced exhaust thru hull along with fiberglassing in a new backer
Welded up a crack in stainless exhaust pipe
Replaced shaft packing
Replaced bolts in drive couplings
Aligned engine to shaft
New hard injector lines
New soft fuel lines
Injector pump rebuilt
Filters, belts, etc...
Rewired bridge, bla, bla, bla...
etc, etc, etc... and the stuff Chris had on her list
Yup, it's true, cruisers sit on their ass and read books all day while getting great tans.
Kerm
Wait, but wait, there's more. The generator.
The boat never had a generator and frankly I battled this one but sometimes you have to just give up and do it. Joe Hauser Sr. (Chris's brother) made it easier by swinging a deal on a new Onan and then the project begins. Beef up floor, new thru hull, the exhaust was a real treat with fiberglass work and then my favorite, no wait it's not my favorite, the wiring. Done, pain in my little white ass, but done right (I hope). The guys at Windmill Marina and Joe Sr. plus Joe Jr. Hauser gave it the nod so the pain was reduced.
NO MORE ELECTRICAL CRAP ON THE BOAT, PLEASE, no thrusters, no auto pilot, no big screen plotters, no tv antennas, no inverters, no wind mills, no solar crap, no, nothing... well maybe a depth meter that actually works.
Kerm
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Southern Belle's Second Loop???
Link to SPOT
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0771ZReqTF9jAQjL3Q1T02Oea6qy2ES7I
Hello to all-
Kerm and I are happily cruising down the mighty Mississippi as I write this.
By way of catching you all up on what has been happening since my last post here is a short synopsis.
The Hauser family lost both Hank and Bunny in 2012 and we miss them very much. However, we were so fortunate to have such truly special people in our lives. Dad gave us the spunk to get out there and discover new places and things while Mom taught us to treasure everything we already had, especially our family. I dedicate this next adventure to both of them and I feel them on board with us.
We shipped The Belle up to Minnesota from Brunswick, GA when Mom was staying with Linda and then after Mom's death we lived with Linda for the winter. Kerm worked on boat parts and systems every day and we planned a major refit. We put 7000 miles on the Belle when we did our first Loop and some major maintenance and updating was in order.
Things we did for our next journey:
Thanks to everyone for help, advice, knowledge sharing and moral support.
Kerm and I spent the summer living aboard at Windmill Marina and we had a great time. Kerm was hired as the gardener and I took over for him when the Belle needed him more than the flowers did. I also helped out in the office and even had a chance to arrange flowers for Windmill's big Fall Party. (Now, when an opening comes up on on a MegaYacht somewhere in the Bahamas I'll have that skill on my resume!! ). Working at the marina and getting to know the folks there and other boaters on the docks made the summer special for us.
It was great to reconnect with family while we were in Minnesota and the Belle will never be up this way again so we are glad people had a chance to see her. The Fourth of July at Linda's was especially good since Mike got out from Portland for a visit.
Now it is time to move ahead and explore. Our plan is to head down the Mississippi, branch off at the Ohio and go down the Tenn-Tom Waterway to Mobile, AL. We will cross the Gulf from Apalachicola or Carrabelle and head down to Joe and Marie's in Cape Coral to visit and pick up Linda. Then across the Okeechobee waterway to the Atlantic side and down to Miami. Then to Bimini and the Exuma islands for the winter. Then....who knows...a second Loop sounds good to me.
I will try to blog as much as I can and I have included a link to our SPOT if you want to follow us on line.
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0771ZReqTF9jAQjL3Q1T02Oea6qy2ES7I
Until later.
Christie
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0771ZReqTF9jAQjL3Q1T02Oea6qy2ES7I
Hello to all-
Kerm and I are happily cruising down the mighty Mississippi as I write this.
By way of catching you all up on what has been happening since my last post here is a short synopsis.
The Hauser family lost both Hank and Bunny in 2012 and we miss them very much. However, we were so fortunate to have such truly special people in our lives. Dad gave us the spunk to get out there and discover new places and things while Mom taught us to treasure everything we already had, especially our family. I dedicate this next adventure to both of them and I feel them on board with us.
We shipped The Belle up to Minnesota from Brunswick, GA when Mom was staying with Linda and then after Mom's death we lived with Linda for the winter. Kerm worked on boat parts and systems every day and we planned a major refit. We put 7000 miles on the Belle when we did our first Loop and some major maintenance and updating was in order.
Things we did for our next journey:
- Complete refinish of the upper deck, fixing bad spots and all new Awlgrip non skid paint.
- Installed new captain and crew chairs on upper deck
- Stripped and repainted mast, installed Linda's Weather Station, new LED spreader and anchor lights, and fixed Si-tex Radar unit. When re-installed, the mast was stepped on a new stainless steel plate which replaced rotting wood step. New stainless backing plates were also made and installed on the mast stay. Thanks, Dan.
- Stripped and refinished much of the teak on the exterior with SEMCO, giving the wood a hand rubbed natural finish. Thanks, Linda and Margie, for the elbow grease.
- Installed a new refrigerator
- Complete cleaning and painting of bilge and engine room.
- Purchased and installed a generator...huge deal for us. Thanks, brother Joe, for the assistance in procuring this wonderful addition to our home.
- Lots of engine work...Kerm will detail that. Thanks Joe Jr. for your invaluable assistance.
- Rewiring projects including all new flybridge wiring.
- Relocation of batteries, new cables and a beautiful new home for them. Also added another brand new AGM battery.
- New bottom paint
- New marine radio with AIS to show us other boat traffic, especially barges on the rivers.
- New propane system with alarms and controls so I don't blow up the Belle
- New window screens to keep out the No-See-Ums
- New hatchway to the upper deck and rebuilt hatches for all others-my personal favorite of Kerm's wood projects.
- Installed new horns and antennas.
- Rebuilt Bow pulpit
- Installed new alternator with all electronic controls
- Rewired AC system to outlets, none of which had proper grounds. Thanks, Cecil (brother-in-law) for your 'wire wisdom' and for finding that the whole grounding system of the boat was broken down.
- Re-bedded all stanchions and rails
- Replaced steering wheel on the flybridge
- Replaced exhaust thru hull fitting that was destroyed due to bad grounding and fiber glassed a new backing plate behind it
- Rebuilt swim platform and re-bedded all support fittings
- Discovered and rectified a dangerous fault in the main steering mechanism.
- Rebuilt toilet- I now know how to replace a Joker valve and believe me it's not funny.
- Added a safety bar by the lower helm station door so captain does not fall out underway.
- And many, many more. Kerm says there's a long way to go yet...I say let's get underway.
Thanks to everyone for help, advice, knowledge sharing and moral support.
Kerm and I spent the summer living aboard at Windmill Marina and we had a great time. Kerm was hired as the gardener and I took over for him when the Belle needed him more than the flowers did. I also helped out in the office and even had a chance to arrange flowers for Windmill's big Fall Party. (Now, when an opening comes up on on a MegaYacht somewhere in the Bahamas I'll have that skill on my resume!! ). Working at the marina and getting to know the folks there and other boaters on the docks made the summer special for us.
It was great to reconnect with family while we were in Minnesota and the Belle will never be up this way again so we are glad people had a chance to see her. The Fourth of July at Linda's was especially good since Mike got out from Portland for a visit.
Now it is time to move ahead and explore. Our plan is to head down the Mississippi, branch off at the Ohio and go down the Tenn-Tom Waterway to Mobile, AL. We will cross the Gulf from Apalachicola or Carrabelle and head down to Joe and Marie's in Cape Coral to visit and pick up Linda. Then across the Okeechobee waterway to the Atlantic side and down to Miami. Then to Bimini and the Exuma islands for the winter. Then....who knows...a second Loop sounds good to me.
I will try to blog as much as I can and I have included a link to our SPOT if you want to follow us on line.
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0771ZReqTF9jAQjL3Q1T02Oea6qy2ES7I
Until later.
Christie
Tuesday, October 1, 2013
Here we go again...
Kerm here, YEA, we left Afton, MN and are now in Alma, WI. Good day. 71 miles and 2 locks. Engine ran fine, systems all OK and the new Tablet with Navionics software is operating beyond expectations. Systems working fine. Garmin depth stuff does not work but what the heck. Small oil leak from injection pump where it connects to housing , need to loosen packing on shaft gland, small leak from secondary fuel filters but with all that we did, whatever. Deal with it.
THANK YOU TO JOE HAUSER SR. AND JOE HAUSER JR. for all the help with the engine and generator. Man, I have more confidence in our engine than ever. I never want what happened on the Cumberland River a couple of years ago (dead engine, narrow river, barge traffic) to happen to the Belle again.
Kerm
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