Video Page Added

I've added a new page, pages are on the right side of the screen, for videos. Check back often as I'll probably add a new video about once a week.

Jimmy John's

Looks like Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches has named a sandwich after Bootlegger. What the conspiracy theorist will notice is that the sandwich is number 14, the same number as Peterson/Wiggers 37's built. Photo taken by John Hanks.

 

The After

Photos taken by Homer, he owns the Hinckley 38 seen in previous postings, on Friday, June 14 at 11:32 with a water level of 25.5. Lots of mud, stink, and mosquitoes. The straps did their job, kept Bootlegger and the cradle as one when she started to float.

How to sail

I Didn't Know That...

Turns out that the Mississippi river level graph in the Friday, May 31 posting is live. It updates on it's own and shows the actual river levels.

She Floats

I was able to get into the harbor today, Tuesday, June 4 to check on Bootlegger. All of the pictures below were taken between 10 AM and noon with a water level of 34.88 ft., which should be the crest. Look at the post below for a comparison.

 Approaching the harbor from the river.

 Just inside the sailboat harbor.

 There's a road under all that water in front of the sailboats.

 She floats. Actually, she's lightly bouncing on the bottom.

 A friend's Hinckley 38 that was moved to a high spot right before the flood struck. She was located at a lower spot than Bootlegger.

 A Morgan 30 next to the Hinckley.

 The lift well is about 10 ft. under.

 Another shot of Bootlegger. The straps to the cradle worked, Bootlegger and the cradle move as one.

 That's a propane tank floating behind Bootlegger, it's tied off to trees. What me worry?

 The Alberg 35 next to Bootlegger, also strapped to it's cradle.

 From the deck of Bootlegger.

 Another deck shot. The cockpit scuppers, drains, were clogged with leaves from the tree behind Bootlegger, but not a drop down below.

 Bloch Marine's travel lift on the highest hill in the harbor. Just inches out of the water.

 From the deck of Bootlegger. The blue Pearson 44 fell over in the last flood when the stands moved.

 Inside Bloch Marine's shop.

 To the left is the entrance to the harbor.

 Bootlegger and the Alberg 35 tied together. You can see the anchor line off of the stern of Bootlegger.

 Bootlegger tied to trees and strapped to the cradle.

 A pontoon boat inside of Bloch Marine's shop loaded with all of the office equipment on it.

 Stern view of the Hinckley 38.

 Truck for sale. Recently washed and engine flushed. Cheap.

The red van is proof that when they there's a flood coming you probably should move your vehicle away from the river. On the other side of the shed is a green pick-up truck. Dumb ass'.

 Another picture of the lift.

 The Lakefront docks to the left, a road between the trees, and the river to the right. At least that's how it's supposed to be.

Veronica's Ericson 28 floating high and dry at her dock. What really surprised me was that power is still on at all of the docks.

40 Days and 40 Nights

The plan was to keep the boat out of the water and in St Louis so that I could complete some of the projects that I’ve put off, once and for all. I wanted to repaint the topsides and deck, renew the anti-skid, install a removable V-berth, install a SSB, repaint the mast, etc. 

If there’s one thing that a boat owner should learn, is that your plans have to stay flexible. In my case, that means working around an unanticipated flood.  More accurately, the second flood of the year.

Originally, the forecast was for a flood peak of 28.8 ft, I start to float at 35 ft, nothing to worry about. Then the forecast changed and in less than 24 hrs it was revised up to 34.1 ft. Of course, it is likely to go even higher if we, or those north and west of St Louis, get more rain.

So how do you prepare for a major flood? Launch the boat, if possible, and putting it in a dock would seem like the obvious thing to do. After all, the boat doesn’t care how deep the water is as long as it’s deep enough to float. I would love to have had that option, but the water came up so fast that the lift well, and the road to it, want under water before we could launch. 

Plan B. Strap the boat to the cradle so that if the boat does float it stays in the cradle and doesn’t fall on its side when the water recedes; tie the boat to trees and put an anchor out so that the boat doesn’t take a wild ride thru the woods or go to Memphis; put the mast on the deck to keep it out the water; make sure the cockpit drains are clear; close all thru-hulls, but not cockpit drains; charge the batteries; bilge is dry; etc.

The water is already at the tree line. Tied to the Alberg 35 which is going to be tied to a building and an anchor put out.

 Anchor line off of the stern

175 ft of anchor line and chain to a boulder behind Bootlegger. I tried to use my Suburban to set the anchor, but the ground was too hard and rocky, so I put the anchor and chain around the boulder.

The yellow line ties to the tree and the white one to the anchor/boulder.

 Three 12,000 lb. breaking strength straps tie Bootlegger and the cradle together. The cradle ought to kill my light air performance. Maybe I should put in for a rating adjustment.

 Water on the rise, 10 more feet 'till peak. Under normal pool you would be able to see the road that is now covered with water. Photo taken at 12:30 PM on Friday, May 31.

 Another view. Photo taken at 12:30 PM on Friday, May 31.