Unwanted Critters Aboard

Whether we like to admit it or not, we all have problems from time to time with unwanted critters aboard. I'm not talking the domestic variety; I'm talking the 4 or 6+ legged variety. An occasional spider (small) is tolerable. You can't do much about the errant fly that comes in through the open companionway. Mozzies we don't like, so our screens are always in use when they're around. No, I'm talking about any critter that invades and gets out of hand aboard. I'm talking about the other creepy-crawlie varieties like roaches and rats, for instance. Eeewwww! We've never had a rat aboard, but if you tie up to a waterfront dock, the chances increase significantly that one will get aboard. We've certainly seen them up close, dead and alive. There are rat guards that some folks put on their docklines which at least give the rats something to think about as they're figuring out how to get around them. Once aboard, they eat and gnaw at everything including wood, wiring and foodstuffs. It ain't pretty and they're hard to get rid of. Traditional rat traps eventually do the trick, we're told, but it takes awhile and you have to hope they die in the trap and not get away wounded to die in some obscure place on the boat.

I remember friends in Ecuador who hailed the fleet about 8pm one night when a boa (no legs) crawled up their anchor chain, came down through their open forward hatch and settled comfortably in their head. Maureen nearly had a heart attack when she went forward to do her business that evening. A local guy finally went out to help them and, we're told, had the boa for dinner the next night. Rest assured, we never eat what we catch if it's been living on board!

When Jelly was aboard, she was great at bringing critters in as opposed to keeping them out. Huge moths (usually with a bite out of their wings) and small birds were her specialty. They were always deposited on my side of the bed and never truly appreciated.

We've been inundated by flies on occasion. One time in particular in Gloucester, Massachusetts, they about drove us crazy. David sat in the cockpit like the Mad Swatter, gloating and laughing maniacally each time another body was added to his growing pile of carcasses. He wanted to mount their little dead bodies on toothpicks as an example to the other flies, but I had to stop him.

Roaches are probably the biggest worry aboard. In the colder climates like here in Tassie, we'd never seen one ... that is until we tied up to the Elizabeth Street Pier. Roaches seem to like the undersides of pilings and piers. David spotted a few at low tide when our view of the underside of the pier was best. We hadn't seen any aboard and we sprayed the lines which we think deterred them from making any forays onto Cups. At least, we haven't seen any yet. What's the gestation period for roaches? Three weeks maybe. We're still on the look-out.

In the tropics, it was hard to avoid roaches. When you buy groceries, they're in the plastic bags. If you set your backpack down for minute on the floor, they crawl in. They lie in wait in packaged cardboard boxes of macaroni or crackers. They crawl inside bunches of bananas. We began leaving all of our groceries on the dock or in the dinghy, removing every item from its bag, box or over-wrap and inspecting it carefully before allowing it aboard. A hassle for sure, but much easier than trying to get rid of a whole herd of undesirables later.

Weevils present another issue in the tropics. They seem to come as an extra added protein bonus with your flour and grain purchases. You know how flour usually comes in heavy-duty paper bags? The tops are just folded over and glued shut...always a little flour loose at the top? Weevils seem to thrive in that floury environment and the poor packaging does nothing to deter them. I add bay leaves to all my dry goods canisters as a deterrent to unwanted bugs. I spread a few bay leaves around in our food lockers, too. It seems to work.

We've had bees and wasps aboard in great numbers especially in the tropics when we've had hands of bananas hanging from the boom crutch. We learned quickly to move the fruit elsewhere on the boat and never bring it down below until we're actually using it. We watched in dismay as an entire swarm of bees invaded the boatyard in New Zealand and visited Nine of Cups for a half hour or so. We were off the boat as we watched them land and were very, very relieved when they decided there was nothing there to warrant their attention any longer.

Ants were the bane of my existence for awhile. First, flying ants which came in swarms aboard the hardstand boats in Ecuador. It lasted for just a few days, but man were they ever thick. I fought with tiny little ants from Panama to Chile and they nearly drove us nuts. We watched one day at Shelter Bay Marina while we were on the hard. They marched determinedly up the hull and onto the deck and of course, found their way below into my galley. We sprayed them; we tried to drown them; we stepped on them; we used ant cups. Nothing seemed to work until we got to Chile's cooler weather.

We thought we'd share a recipe for Roach Cookies that has been effective for roaches and other creepy crawlers in the past. Obviously, keep them out of reach of children and pets.

Roach Cookies:

3 parts boric acid powder

1 part flour

1 part sugar

milk

Mix dry ingredients with enough milk to form a thick paste. Roll out or put teaspoon size dollops on wax paper. Let them air dry. When dry, cut into roach-size servings. Actually, we put a teaspoon full of paste in used plastic bottle caps and to let them air dry. We then distributed the caps throughout the boat. The roaches munch and then take some home to their kiddies. It works wonders without using toxic sprays.

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Days and Ways to Celebrate

A daily list of mostly obscure holidays and fun ways to celebrate them.

Sci-Fi Day

Isaac Asimov's birthday (1920-1992). His most famous work is the Foundation Trilogy.

Try reading or watching some sci-fi to celebrate.

Swiss Cheese Day

Not only eat Swiss cheese, but if you're up to your eyeballs in projects, consider the Swiss cheese scheduling approach...leave a few holes in your schedule.

New Year's Resolutions

I always make New Year's Resolutions. Do you? Actually, the real question is, do you make New Year's Resolutions and keep them? The two biggest resolutions I've made and kept were to quit smoking (1989) and to write a daily blog post (2011). I've obviously forgotten and/or abandoned the rest. I looked into the history of New Year's resolutions … thank you, Wikipedia. It seems the idea of reflecting on the past year and making plans for the new year is nothing new. The Babylonians did it and so did the Romans. Medieval knights renewed their vows to chivalry at year's end. It's definitely a logical time to look at what you've done or didn't do during the past year and make some improvements. It's a time of new beginnings. Say goodbye to the old; let it go. Embrace the new.

Interesting, but not surprising, studies show that during the past century, the nature of resolutions has changed drastically. People used to resolve to better themselves in some intrinsic way: be more generous, be more cheerful, be more helpful to others, be more involved in community. Today folks tend towards more superficial and self-centered changes: better clothes, better body, better stuff, better job.

A low percentage of people actually keep their resolutions, but the percentage increases when 1) you share your resolution/goal with others; 2) set reasonable expectations and 3)set specific goals instead of broad ones, e.g. “exercise 30 minutes/day at least 3 times/week” versus “exercise more”. I also think writing down your goals and then reviewing those goals during the year help to reinforce your resolve and contribute to your success. Just the process of examining yourself and thinking about who you are and what you might want to improve is a positive action.

I found a blog that was very insightful in making resolutions. Lifehacker seems to provide a reasonable formula for making and keeping resolutions that improve your lifestyle. He looks at developing a preliminary plan, “a scaffolding”, he calls it, which sets you up for success.

So you haven't really given this much thought, but now you think it's a good idea? Start setting up the framework now and work into the resolutions. It doesn't have to start January 1st...it can start February 1st. Just set a specific date that you can work towards. It's never too late to start, but heck don't let it go another year. Goals are much easier to attain if you set them in the first place.

So … with that in mind, I give you my New Year's Resolutions 2013:

Get rid of the junk food on the boat and start eating healthier.

This is easier once we're at sea, but it's such a temptation when we have access to a supermarket regularly. I need to lose weight and I know it. Cutting down on the junk food intake will help considerably. Giving up that second glass of wine in the evenings might help, too, but I don't want to take this too far.

Walk / exercise at least ½ hour every day.

When I start writing each morning, I'm in “sit-down” mode for hours. My goal is to get up off my keister and do something … walking is one way to get some exercise at least ½ hour every day. While we're on passage, I'll figure out something else. I know that once exercise becomes a habit and a part of your life, it's much easier. Maybe every time I have the urge to grab a snack, I should go for a walk? My sister, Lin, is so good at this and so is Gentry (the blog mistress). I wish it was a genetic thing instead of requiring so much effort. Yeah, yeah. No pain... no gain.

Finish writing a book.

I have several books “in the works”. They've been “in the works” for a couple of years now, all in various stages of “unfinished”. It can be an e-book or a cookbook or a novel or a compilation of sailing stories. Anything...but I need to get one finished.

I might also add that if all else fails... January 17th is the official “Ditch Your New Year's Resolutions Day”. Just kidding.

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Days and Ways to Celebrate

A daily list of mostly obscure holidays and fun ways to celebrate them.

New Year's Day

...on the Gregorian calendar anyway. First day of the New Year and usually celebrated by recuperating from the festivities of the night before.

First Foot Day

First Foot is celebrated in several countries including Greece and Scotland. The first person to set foot in your home (or on your boat maybe?) after the stroke of midnight on New Year's is thought to bring good luck. It's not usually a resident family member and the person cannot be in the house at the stroke of midnight. The visitor usually brings some traditional gifts like bread, a coin and perhaps some whiskey or wine signifying that you'll have enough to eat, drink and spend for the upcoming year.

Start the First Foot tradition by spreading the word in advance and then visiting friends and neighbors with the traditional gifts to insure their good luck.

Sydney-Hobart Race

Hobart's pleasant, laid-back waterfront morphed into a high energy, frenetic port right before our eyes in preparation for welcoming the participants of the Sydney-Hobart Race and the concurrent Tasmania Taste Festival. Booths and marquees (tents) lined the wharf. Barricades were set up. Streets were closed off. Colorful flags and banners fluttered in the stiff breeze. Port-a-loos were trucked in. All that remained was the arrival of the race boats.

Last year on Boxing Day, we were on a friend's boat bouncing around on the choppy waters near the Sydney Heads with hundreds of other boats, waiting for the start of the Sydney-Hobart Race. We watched as the two lead boats, Investec Loyal and Wild Oats, sprung off the starting line and seemed to fly by the sea marker to make their turn south to Hobart. It was thrilling to watch and we found it even more exciting since three of the men aboard our yacht including the skipper had participated in 10+ races in past years and provided lots of colorful commentary.

This very prestigious race began in 1945 as a proposed “cruise” by folks who preferred cruising to racing. The 630 nm route is now considered one of three top offshore sailing races in the world. Though it's held during the Australian summer, the weather is still unpredictable and the ride across the Bass Strait can be most challenging. In 1998, a hurricane-force storm claimed five boats and six lives. The record currently for the fastest elapsed time is held by Wild Oats XI who made it in 42 hours, 40 minutes and 10 seconds. That's an average of about 15 knots/hour.

There were 77 boats competing in this year's race and as I write this several boats have still not arrived. The Line Honours Winner this year was Wild Oats XI which won Line Honours in six previous Sydney-Hobart races. This year's win was considered a treble: 1)They broke the record for the fastest time ever, covering the 630 nm course in 1 day, 18 hours, 23 minutes and 12 seconds (the previous record was set by them in 2005); they won Line Honours (first over the line) and the Handicap Honours (overall race). Pretty fast sailors!

We decided to take the dinghy into Hobart town from our anchorage in Cornelian Bay, a few miles up the Derwent. We hadn't used our new Yamaha outboard since it arrived and because it was new, it had a careful “breaking in” regimen to follow. Why not break it in en route to town? We arrived just in time to watch Bengal 7 cross the line. The wharves were thronged with people. As we dinghied into the inner harbor where we'd berthed just a few days ago, we watched the Ambersail crew settle into their berth and start celebrating. The crew looked tired, but exhilarated.

We tied up the dinghy midst the fishing fleet and headed over to see the race boats up close. Precision, high-tech everything; not an extra ounce of comfort aboard. These boats are meant to sail … fast. Definitely not cruise … slowly.

Peter Luke, one of the skippers in the first race, died in 2007. He still holds the record for the slowest elapsed time in the race aboard Wayfarer. Obviously, our kind of guy. We think, however, we should have some claim to that title since we watched the boats leave from Sydney last year and didn't arrive in Hobart until December of this year.