It started raining overnight......sometimes pretty heavy. My alarm woke me up at 5:30, but with the rain I stayed in the cabin of the boat and waited. When it hadn’t stopped by 6:45, I went ahead and got out so I could start moving on the water by 7:00. The rain continued and finally stopped at 19:30.
After it quit raining, the river was pretty smooth. Quite a contrast if you compare it to the video clip from yesterday!
My first stop was New Amsterdam, the smallest town in Indiana (population 1).
Actually about forty people live in New Amsterdam. They even have two churches. The “smallest town” designation is due to an older woman filling out a census form and writing that she lived in New Amsterdam rather than the postal district she lives in and was supposed to use. When the results of her census information was published, no one caught the mistake, so that’s why the population is officially listed as one. The reason I stopped here was to get a sandwich from the general store, but it has closed since I stopped there on my kayak trip several years ago.
I’ve seen several of these massive slip and slides that dump users right in the river.
I stopped at Derby, Indiana. They're very welcoming of boaters. I was able to fill my two empty 2 gallon gas cans, get food, drinks and other supplies. I ate lunch at the Smackwater Bar & Grille. They filled my cooler with ice before I left.
I had to rig up my umbrella with some bungee cords to help the bimini block the sun.
The place I was going to dock for the night had a bridge too low for my sailboat to pass under, so I ended up on the the Indiana side of the river directly across from Cloversport, Kentucy. The mud is terrible, so I found a washed up section of an old dock and positioned it so I can step off of the boat without sinking in the mud.
I travelled 61 miles today.
What percentage of the time do you use your sail? How many hours per day are spent on the water traveling?
ReplyDeleteThanks,
Larry O'F
I was wondering the same. I love the potter, but why use this craft when doing a trip that is 99% motoring?! Maybe for other planned expeditions? Just curious
ReplyDeleteGreat questions about why I would attempt the Ohio River in a West Wight Potter. Look up Buzz Gentes who did the 6,000 mile Great Loop in a Potter-15 and he didn’t even have a mast. He had two 2hp Honda outboards which he used one at a time. I covered the whole Ohio River in a Hobie Mirage Drive kayak several years ago. I had the sail attachment and ended up using it maybe 5% of the time. So, I wanted to cover the river again, but in my old age wanted an easier alternative. I’m not in a hurry and wanted to be able to just pull up to shore and camp each night, so the Potter seemed to fill the bill. The reality about sailing is that I may not be able to sail at all, but I have the mast up, boom attached and sail ready to raise if the circumstances permit. In practicing for this trip I’d been able to sail in a westerly directions quite a bit, but so far on this trip the winds always seem to be coming directly toward me.
ReplyDeleteI’ve been spending 10 to 12 hours on the water each day, stopping to visit small communities along the way.
It looks like a fun trip and I hope you are enjoying it. The meandering path of the Ohio would certainly make sustained winds a challenge. Looking forward to future updates. Stay safe!
ReplyDeleteRegards,
Larry O'F