Night Snorkeling

 One of my favorite things about being in Hawaii is that I can swim anytime I want, all year round.  The water is definitely saltier than I grew up with on Lake Michigan, but it's a small trade off for the variation of life that you get to see here.  The water is clear, and warm (usually).  The sights are unbelievable.  As soon as we moved here we got snorkel kits, and have used them extensively.  I got SCUBA certified in my second semester of school, but sadly have not gotten a tank on my back since the final certification dive. 

What I love with the ocean is that the life beneath the waves doesn't follow the same rules that it does out here in the air.  Here everything has it's head, mouth, eyes, brain, and all that pretty much in the same spot.  Underwater, the line between plant and animal is blurred so much that I often don't know what I'm looking at.  Tiny creatures make up the largest structures around.  The reefs are plentiful, and house myriad fishes, snails, cucumbers, and other life.  Sadly, with all this beauty, I do see a lot of trash.  We live on the windward side of the island, and the tradewinds blow pretty steadily all year.  With the wind comes the trash.  Mostly it's all beautiful, but I feel saddened when I see a beach covered with broken milk crates, fishing lures, and other rubbish. We are so proud of Finn though.  WHenever he sees ANY trash, he picks it up and announces, "Just saved a sea turtle!".  

I have a buddy who is always out hunting and spearfishing.  He's the consummate outdoorsman.  I have always loved the look of spearfishing.  I used to follow Kimi Swimmy on Insta back in the day when I was hip and on all the social medias.  Anyway, he took me spearfishing once.  It was quite the experience.  You have to go beyond the reef to get to the big fish.  Now, between the reef and the beach, it's pretty calm because the energy of the waves is dissipated on the coral before it hits shore.  Beyond the reef it is also pretty calm because the waves are just swells of energy with nothing to stop them, so you just bob around a bit.  It's that tricky part right ON the reef that things get dicey.  All the swells trying to get to shore pile up on top of the reef and make the large, surfable, waves you see on TV.  They're great if you want to surf on top of the water, but if you are trying to make your way under the water, it's a bit more difficult.  

I marveled at my friend's ability to stay down on the bottom waiting for a fish.  Spearfishing is the most sustainable form of fishing.  I feel like you are hunting the fish on their own territory.  You get to select just the right fish, and there's not accidental bycatch.  Fishing with a single line is not as, but you might hurt the wrong animal you're not going for, and I can't tell you how many lead weights and stray fishing lines I have found in the ocean.  Commercial fishing nets destroy whole fishing zones and all the habitats around.  Anyway, even though it looks amazing, and is the most eco-friendly way to fish, it was still too sad for me to be down there, seeing these beautiful, colorful, graceful fish, and then shooting one.  After getting a fish, he handed it to me while he got it strung up to his float.  I'm pretty sure it stared at me as it died.  

After a while of swimming around, we started to head back in.  Surprise surprise, the fish was no longer there.  To which my friend said, "I thought I felt something tugging on the line.  A shark must have eaten it."  I will definitely think twice before accepting a freshly killed fish while I am still in the water, and I will probably not go spearfishing again.

This same buddy also leads night snorkeling tours.  He goes to a popular snorkel spot that I've been to many times.  It feel like swimming in an aquarium because of all the colorful reef fish, and the clear water.  At night time it's a whole different ballgame.  All of the slower moving -and in many ways, more exotic- animals hide during the day, and come out to do their business at night. 

Giant cowrie shells clung to the underside of jagged rocks.  Holes of varying size and sharpness opened up to a hidden underworld.  Crustaceans of all sorts crawled out to feed.  They are some of the most easily spotted nocturnal animals since their eyes glow like bright LEDs when hit by a flashlight.

Creatures I took to be mainly stationary actually crawled around during the late-night hours.  There were several types of urchins.  Black spine urchins (hurt to step on, happened twice), Hawaiian banded urchins (poisonous, avoid), and boring urchins (so-named for their ability to bore into solid rock, and not so much for their lack of witty conversation) were all out in abundance.  

Sea stars were oddly rare on the nights I have been out night snorkeling.  I went a few times with my buddy, but then he had his appendix out and needed some help to carry things while he recovered.  This was a great way to have fun and make a few bucks.  I suppose I did well enough that he let me take over the tours while he was on vacation.  I am not as good of a photographer, but it was still great to share this underwater world with others, and feel more a part of it myself.

Who would have thought that snails and slugs were some of the most beautiful and mysterious creatures of the night?

There are two types of octopus that I have been able to interact with on these night tours.  They are so intelligent and aware that I have completely sworn off of calamari.  It was never one of my favorite dishes, but I still felt like I had to try some when I went to Chinese buffets.  The only way to stop animals from being hunted, is to stop ordering them on the menu.  I don't know why I don't feel this way about all animals yet, but perhaps someday I'll either get over it, or become vegetarian. 

Anyway, they have complete control over each individual sucker on each of their eight limbs.  This poor guy is down to six tentacles and two stubs.  I hope that it is due to fights with other sea creatures, and not due to mishandling by humans.  Perhaps someday I will be ok with just looking and not touching.  With the octopus, I always try to respect them.  I reach out to see if they want to be held, or to play, but they are very descriptive with their body language.  If he changes color, tries to squirt away, or just reached out and slaps my hand away, then I back off and give him his space.  Their bodies and tentacles feel like a mix between Jello and Velcro.

That there ladies and gents is a cone snail with his harpoon out

"All cone snails are venomous and capable of "stinging" humans; if live ones are handled their venomous sting will occur without warning and can be fatal. The species most dangerous to humans are the larger cones, which prey on small bottom-dwelling fish; the smaller species mostly hunt and eat marine worms. Cone snails use a hypodermic needle-like modified radula tooth and a venom gland to attack and paralyze their prey before engulfing it. The tooth, which is sometimes likened to a dart or a harpoon, is barbed and can be extended some distance out from the head of the snail, at the end of the proboscis.

Cone snail venoms are mainly peptides. The venoms contain many different toxins that vary in their effects; some are extremely toxic. The sting of small cones is no worse than a bee sting, but the sting of a few of the larger species of tropical cone snails can be serious, occasionally even fatal to humans. Cone snail venom is showing great promise as a source of new, medically important substances"  -Wikipedia

Who can tell me what this is?

The patterns and shapes that life under the sea takes is really awe-inspiring

I wish I had picture of all that I saw.  These are just a few of the species I noticed while out at night.  For some reason, it just felt more adventurous.  The water may have been clear, but it was still eerie to only have a field of vision as far and wide as my small flashlight could penetrate.  Sometimes surprises loomed around the next rock.  We once came upon a 6-foot long brown moray eel!  It's not their fault they look so mean, they are just breathing; but still, I wouldn't want one to lunge and make off with my finger.

These are Toby fish.  They are so cute, and they puff up and squeak if you try to hold them.  They are part of the boxfish/puffer fish family, but they have no spines.

Here is our friend from earlier.  The jeweled anemone hermit crab.  Apparently hermit crabs really do like to stack things on their shells to be all Shiny!  In this case, they put anemones on their backs.  The anemones get a free ride to better food, and the hermit crab gets protection in the form of stinging anemones in case someone tries to eat them.  

Well there you have it, a tiny glimpse into the underwater world of Hawaii.  I hope to keep sharing these adventures with you as time goes by.  I have a lot of catching up to do!

Maiden Voyage

OK so this plan has been in the works for a couple of weeks now, and will come to life this evening.  After work tonight I'm going to be meeting up with my brother, Spencer, and my friends, Adam and Gavin.  We're planning to head out at 9:00 PM and sailing over to Michigan.  The closest city I could find was Pentwater, MI which my friend, Bailey, has told me is very nice.  The wind is supposed to be super light tonight, but building into the teens tomorrow.  I'm looking forward to that so I can build enough speed to get home in time for work.  I figure it'll take around 16 hours to get across, then we can sleep or explore for a bit and then turn around and head home.  Both ways we're going to be doing some night sailing.  I'm looking forward to getting out away from all the light pollution, and doing more than a day of straight sailing.  And seeing the sunrise on my boat with nothing on the horizon.  Hopefully we have enough wind to get out of the harbor. 
On another note my $200 compass arrived without any way of calibrating it, so it is constantly 30 degrees off.  I don't see any point in using it if it's going to get me lost.  I guess I'll be relying on the GPS for the 63 mile voyage.  I'm sure there will be 3 nervous mothers tonight, but I'm optimistic that it'll all be ok.  I also got 3 of the 4 swageless terminals for my riggin, so now my turnbuckles are finally rigged right.  As this is my first time using these terminals.  I hope I did it right and that it won't matter if I was a millimeter too long or too short on the shrouds.

I must say it felt a bit odd to take the bolt cutters to my brand new rigging, but it looks a lot better now and should be stronger than the swaged eyes I did have put on there.  I just wish all 4 had shown up at the same time so I could be done with it.  Stupid shipping companies.
Wish me luck!

A few things of note

It's been a pretty fun week.  There have been triumphs and frustrations; realizations and determinations.  I guess I should backtrack a bit to explain things that are going on in order.  Summer is a pretty good time to have adventures, I just wish I had more time to be out there having them.  I had my friends, Charlotte and Kim, come down to go sailing with me on Saturday the 9th.  As we were walking down the dock to the boat I noticed a new couple struggling with a fishing net in the dinghy by their boat.  they seemed to be trying to scoop something off the bottom.  I had passed by them once, but when I realized that they were still at it half an hour later I knew they needed help.  I offered my assistance.  They had accidentally dropped a sliding cleat over the side of their boat. It was an essential piece of their boat and it was in a size that they don't make anymore.  They had mentioned calling the police to send a diver down, but either they didn't do it, or they realized it was a futile attempt.  I told them I had snorkeling gear and I'd be glad to dive for their lost cleat.  It was a bit awkward changing into a wetsuit on my boat while my friends were just on the other side of the thin cabin door, and I'm sure I looked a bit strange wearing a shorty wetsuit and dive goggles.

 I strapped a 20 pound weight around my foot and hopped in the water.  It took a little bit to get used to the chill, but after a minute I didn't notice the cold.  I took a deep breath and slipped below the surface of the murky harbor.  It was completely brown with all the silt that had been stirred up by their fishing net.  I couldn't see my hand in front of my face, but I was still glad to have the mask on.  I was probably about 9 feet deep when my feet sunk into the soft mud.  I immediately began digging around, sweeping the floor with my hands.  I didn't want to push my breath holding capacity, so I kicked back up to the surface.  It was surprisingly easy to get the weight back up with me.  I was directed as to exactly where the cleat fell overboard.  I was sure it would have shifted with all the commotion that had been made.

 I dove again and again about 4 times.  Once I found a little stick that was about the right size and shape, but it wasn't what I was going for.  I decided I was going to flatten myself on the bottom and sweep the whole area and stay down as long as I possibly could.  I took an extra deep breath and plunged down again.  Wouldn't you know it, my foot landed right on it.  It was a couple inches underneath the silt.  They were overjoyed when I returned their missing merchandise.  I didn't let them pay me, but it did get me thinking about how much I like diving for things.  I feel like I should find a shipwreck around here pretty soon just for fun.

After that adventure we did get out sailing and had a glorious time.  We heeled over pretty nicely and just chatted as we cruised about aimlessly.

On Tuesday the wind was nice and fresh in the morning, but by the time Spencer and his lady friend got there the wind had died.  We waited for half an hour before I got bored and decided to go out in whatever breeze there was.  We ghosted out of the harbor under main and jib, and then the wind picked up and we were able to actually move around the lake pretty well.  It was warm and clear with no waves and no clouds.  I tied a string to the tiller so the boat could steer itself for a little bit and then jumped into the dinghy to take pictures.  I love the way Aequitas looks when she's under sail.  I can't wait to get away from land. 

Spencer climbed the mast once because he had to free a halyard, and once just because he wanted to.  No matter how short the mast may seem from the deck, it feels so much taller when you're up on the spreaders.  He took some pictures and some video, but seemed happy to be back down.  You have to consider that any tipping or heeling motion that you would feel on deck is multiplied by how far up the mast you are.  If the boat is heeled over 15 degrees that doesn't feel like much from the boat, but up on the mast you'd be out over the water, not the boat.

As we sailed over the Niagara Escarpment (a giant chunk of the same rock that the Niagara Falls are carved from) we could see clearly through the surface and some times I was sure we would hit a submerged rock.  Amber, (Spencer's friend) was just laying on the foredeck soaking up the rays when all of a sudden her phone committed suicide.  For no reason at all it hopped, skipped, and plopped over the side of the boat without so much as a goodbye.  It was so odd, but oddly funny at the same time. 
We headed in to shore and dropped anchor.  I had friends from church out on the boat after that, but sadly the wind died again... ALL THE WAY!  I couldn't conjure up enough speed to even steer the boat.  It was a disappointing introduction to sailing for a few people.  We had fun swimming though.  Once while I was changing into a swimsuit I heard a grinding noise.  We had run aground again on a sand bar.  I hopped of and tried doing what I had always done, but she just got more and more stuck.  I tried having everyone sit on one side of the boat, and the little sister of the group hang off the boom to tilt it enough, but to no avail.  In the end I had to push the boat closer to shore into a channel between the sandbars, and then find a gap to get out.  After hours of no wind they decided to all head home in the dinghy.  It was quite a sight to see the little boat so loaded down, but it's a sturdy craft equal to the task. 

My brother, Max and his two friends came out after that.  I was able to get us moving slowly towards the lighthouse until the shift in air temperature from day to evening created a little breeze.  I got us all the way around into the harbor, but then when I tried tacking up against the non-existent wind we almost drifted up against the rocks.  Twice.  I jumped in to save my hull once, and max went in the second time while I tried to row the boat out of harms way with the dinghy and about 200 feet of line.  Luckily a man in a rigid-inflatable motorboat came and towed me to my slip.  It was embarrassing being so stranded just days after I had boasted in my engine less skills.  I still don't want to rely solely on the engine, but I should probably put it in.  It has kind of shattered a lot of my enthusiasm, but I can't let one bad learning day get me down.  I guess I need to get back up on the proverbial horse.

Good find

As I was perusing the Craigslist ads last night I came across a good one for an 8' fiberglass rowing dinghy with oars and a dolly.  I called the guy up and made arrangements to pick it up after work.  He was asking $310 (a rather arbitrary number) but I only brought $300 with me.  At the end of it all it was a great deal, but he made me go into town to an ATM to come up with the extra $10.  I've never seen something on Craigslist go for what's asked, and I found it inconceivable that the guy wouldn't come down $10 in price.  Oh well. 
We loaded it onto the top of the van and dropped it off at the marina.  It doesn't track too straight when I'm rowing, but that's mainly cause it so flat on the bottom.  Other than that it's a perfect way to get from ship to shore if I'm anchored off a coastline, or if I just want to paddle around and explore.  I can also use it to tow my boat out of the marina.  So now I really don't need to put my inboard engine in; especially if I get a little outboard for the dinghy.

A map of the trip

Worth it

So today's weather was amazing, and so of course I was down at the boat.  A lot of sawing and gutting.  I had intended to wait until I had power tools to finish removing the cabin sole, but I couldn't take having half of it missing so I went to work with a hand saw.  It was back breaking work, but I loved every minute of it.  Every man needs a project I think.
So I was down in the bilge trying to figure out a way to rip out the plywood more efficiently.  There is a long metal rod left over from something.  Not sure what it is, but it worked very well as a crow bar.
I still have some cleaning up to do, but now at least it's all dry and ready to be rebuilt.  I was thinking about  putting in a wooden floor, but those tend to soak up so much moisture that years from now it'd all have to be redone.  Also I want to make sure it's level.  So what I think I am going to do is pour a whole lot of epoxy resin down there to make a level, solid, dry floor, and then maybe carpet over it.  We'll see.
I had fun clamboring all over sanding down the wood work.  I oiled the bow pulpit today, and introduced the boat to my younger brother and sister for the first time.  I can't wait to get her in the water.  But there's another $100 worth of cosmetics that need to go into it, then about $1800 for the right sails.  We'll see how far I get before summer.

Cutting out small portions of flooring

My "crow bar"

The nasty stuff under the floor

Just about gone

all the wood I removed

Now I just have to put a floor in there

Chores yet to do.

I was able to get over to the boat before all the dew had been dried up by the sun.  I used an old towel to wipe the moisture away so I could begin work.  A little bit more sanding, and another two coats of paint finished off the transom.  It is now gleaming in "china white", and ready to have a name painted on it.  I have decided on the name, but I'll explain that later.
I still need power tools to get the rest of the flooring up in the cabin.  I can't wait to get down there and level it all out so I can rebuild the floor.  I am looking forward to having another 2" of headroom, and a solid surface to walk on.  I am also hoping that the musty smell will go away after I get everything vacuumed up and repainted in the engine compartment.  While I was waiting for coats of paint to dry I curled up in the foreward berth for a few minutes.  It was surprisingly comfortable.  I let my mind wander a bit; I love thinking of when she'll actually be in the water heading off to distant horizons.  I can just imagine diving off of the bow pulpit to help set a heavy anchor in the sand near a tropical reef.  I'd love to bring a surfboard along wherever I go because you never know when you'll find that perfect wave. 
The Sheboygan Sea Scout skipper, Tom, just happened to be driving by.  I showed him my new boat for the first time.  He was kind enough to give me a few names of people who might be able to help me inspect the diesel engine and make sure it's ready to go.  I've always wanted to have an inboard so I can charge up my batteries with the alternator, and so I don't have to strap an ugly outboard onto my freshly painted transom.  There are pros and cons of every set up on a boat, but I think I've found the perfect compromise with everything my boat has. 
I'm hoping to be able to borrow some tools from my grandma (cause we all know she's never gonna use a circular saw) to speed up the work.  The chores I have yet to do are as follows (in no particular order):  install dorade vents, buff out the plexiglass windows so their transparent again, oil all the woodwork and rub rails, remove the rest of the cabin sole, drain and dry the foam insulation, level the cabin floor support, rebuild the cabin sole, re-seat all the stanchions, repair and re-seat the veneer on my deck hatch box, caulk seams on some of the woodwork, clean and paint the engine compartment, repack the rudder bearings, inspect and install the engine (and all parts), clean the head [toilet], inspect the septic tank, mount bow stanchions and hand rail, mount the mast step, paint the bottom with anti-fouling paint, and then buff and wax the whole hull.  It should be fun.  I really am looking forward to it.  A lot of it is just cosmetic, some of it is just preventative maintenance, and some (like the cabin sole) needs to be done. 
Of course I also have to paint the name on her transom. I'll let y'all know my decision in a later post.  I hope to get some before and after pictures up pretty soon as well.  Thanks for reading!