My sailing logbook

April 10, 1999

Passed my boating course exam! Yeeah! After approximately 20 weeks of courses and a final exam later, I am anxious to put into practice what I learned through The Lake St. Louis Squadron. They sure are a great bunch of dedicated people. A special mention goes to Bill Halliday, our instructor. Thanks Bill again for your support! Contact me if you would be interested in following boating courses.

April 17, 1999

Went out to Baie D'urfe Yacht Club to check out our boat after a long winter. Took down the covers and inspected her. She's looking mighty fine. Did some sanding all around the bottom of the boat to get it ready for a good coating. Met some other members of the club. Nice folks. Can't wait for the first BBQ planned for the season. Anxious to meet the members and staff. The marina is calm. Nice cool breeze and sun is shining on the lake. Can't wait to sail!!

May 1, 1999

Today we put her in the water for the first time. George gave her a last polish and shine. It was docking day for many of the boats at the marina. We were there , including my 8-year old daughter and kid brother) from 8:00 am to help with the cranes and anything else that needed to be done. Every member had a job to do. Thank goodness the weather was cooperative. The marina was busy with people and machinery. Watching boats being lifted high up in the air by two straps and then placed in the lake was both awesome and nerve-wrecking, especially when it was her turn!!. At 2:00 pm she was in her docking spot. Later some members (Chrrrris, Ernie, Bill et al), helped us put up her mast. Everyone helped each other out. I really like the community spirit in this club. I couldn't believe that we reached this other step. Exhausted, but content, we looked around one last time and headed off towards home.

May 22, 1999

Took our sailboat out of the harbour for the first time today. We reached the marina early Saturday morning to avoid the crowds. We found no one on the lake. Fantastic. Being our first time, and not yet 100% at ease with the boat's maneuvers and navigation, we did not want to run the risk of ramming into other boaters. We decided to put up only the main sail today and see how that would work for us. We didn't want to push it. So we slowly backed up from our docking space and then slowly headed out of the harbour and onto the lake. I was at the helm. Felt so exciting and exhilarating.

As we ventured off along, we established our destination for today to be the old church (St. Joachim) in Pointe Claire. We would be satisfied today to simply explore the lake, its navigational aids, landmarks and gorgeous homes along the shore. We just wanted to get a feel of the lake in comparison to our chart. Everything seemed so much bigger in real life.

At the helm, I kept constantly surveying the depth meter to make sure our boat would not get stuck. We had received warnings from members that the lake's water level this year was alarmingly low. Great, our first season on the lake! Let's just say, that didn't stop us. The top speed reached was only 3 knots. If we had put up the foresail, I'm sure we would have gone faster. For this time, safety was more important. The wind was slowing down so we decided to head back about 1 1/2 hr after we started. The problem was that we were in irons for almost an hour. Marie Christine was getting pretty cranky and her mother was getting frustrated and tired of overlooking the same house for so long. It was obvious we needed to re-read some sailing chapters. I guess that's part of the experience of beginners. Anyway, George decided to use the motor instead and we headed back to the harbour. The entry was great. We noticed a few on-lookers, which made me a little nervous. I had this picture in my mind of losing control and smashing into one of the docked boats, for some reason. Oof I held on to the helm and kept it steady. George cut the motor just in time for me to jump off and get hold of the ropes. Great parking for the first time. Oops I mean docking! Got to get used to those sailing terms.

We were beat, but boy were we happy. Not bad for our first sailing experience on Lake St. Louis and about our 4th overall. Can't wait for the next time!

June 12, 1999

Work and other obligations kept us from our sailboat, but today we headed off early (again to avoid traffic in the harbour and lake). Sunny and hot but hardly any wind. So what! We decided to do some more exploring of the lake and its surroundings using the motor instead.

We noticed alot more power boats out today than sailboats. Marie Christine sat excitedly at the bow shouting out to me, "Sailboat at port" or "Red buoy at starboard". So glad she is getting into it too, finally!. She made such a stink at home. She prefered to stay home and watch Saturday morning cartoons. Glad to see that she is enjoying the ride this morning.

Noticed several power boat owners who whiz by our sailboat a little too closely and a much too fast, leaving me frantically trying to control my boat amongst the wake left behind. I wonder if they do this intentionally or just due to sheer ignorance. They bug me!

On our way back to the Baie D'urfé Yacht Club, I steered in at a wider angle near the entrance and found ourselves stuck there. I was glad our boat was stuck very close to the marina and not further deep in the lake. After trying different techniques, we managed to free the boat. The second time around was much much better. Again at the helm, I steadily brought her in. Perfect docking!