Port: Whortonsville, NC
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Octoberfest 2005

15 October 2005 | Ensign Harbor / Neuse River
Lane Kendall
Octoberfest at Ensign Harbor
We left home at about noon on Friday October 14, headed for Ensign Harbor. Taking a half-day of vacation is allowed at the bank and it really works out well. I can get things organized at work, make sure things are on track before I leave and still get to the boat in time to prepare her for whatever we have planned for Saturday morning. This weekend it was Octoberfest, an annual event hosted by Ensign Harbor's dock masters, Nick and Jeanette. The event consists of a "Closed Course Cruise to Nowhere" followed by a picnic and social at their residence. The closed course cruise is actually a race but Nick is very careful never to refer to it as a race because most of us consider ourselves cruisers and we don't like to race. The course is a triangle, the same as the Summer Solstice race and consists of three existing marks. It starts at the "Piney Point" mark then to the "NR" and Neuse River Junction marks, returning to "Piney Point", 8 to 10 nautical miles in all. Six boats participated in the cruise.

Most of the pictures were taken by Sheryl
Octoberfest Pictures

Weather forecasts for the event were generally favorable, calling for sunny skies but the wind forecast went all the way from 10 mph to small craft advisories of 20 to 25 knots. Nick advised that it would probably be somewhere in that range, and he was right. The good news is, the wind was from the northwest and did not create the nasty square waves that usually accompany sustained winds on the sound. The day turned out to be spectacular with winds fairly steady at 15 to 18 knots. About 15 minutes before we were going to leave the docks, our friend George showed up looking for a "ride". Ours was the first boat he came to that only had a crew of two so he joined us for the day. We left the dock with a double reef in the main sail and the working jib hanked on but furled on deck. Judy and I have been hammered so often by extreme weather conditions that we are a bit "gun shy" when it comes to the quantity of sail we carry. This time we reefed early and often. George is an excellent sailor and I learned a lot from him. We shook one of the reefs out early in the cruise but the left one in the whole time. I would like to think that is why we finished behind the rest of the fleet. I guess it really didn't make any difference where we finished since (as Nick points out) it's not a race anyway! We finished the course and tacked only the number of times we had planned. The little boat did very well. With the single reef there was very little heal and the ride was fairly flat all the way. We returned to the dock with plenty of help getting tied up. My definition of a successful cruise is one that ends with no damage to the crew or the vessel and I am happy to report that this was a successful cruise.

By the time we got the boat organized and got ourselves cleaned up, it was time for the social. We have been around for a couple of years now, and if there's one thing I have learned it is that you do not decline the invitation when Jeanette invites you to eat. The meal was excellent German fare including grilled sausage, potato salad, green salad and dessert. A good meal is always better with good company and there was plenty of that. We got to know some of our dock mates better and that is always a pleasure. Stefan brought his brother Martin all the way from Germany. Martin got the prize for traveling the longest distance. Stefan received recognition for being the fastest boat and the newest members of the WYTC, Doug and Sheryl were recognized for being a most excellent crew aboard "Snowbird" Nick and Jeanette's boat. Art was recognized for his punctuality. Later the younger participants enjoyed more adult beverages Stefan's musical talents at the piano. We left the party before it was over and walked down the dock, back to the boat under the light of a beautiful full moon. It was a peaceful night and sleep came quickly.

Most of the pictures were taken by Sheryl
Octoberfest Pictures
Comments
Vessel Name: Southern Star
Vessel Make/Model: Catalina 30
Hailing Port: Whortonsville, NC
About:
Southern Star is owned and sailed by Lane and Judy Kendall from Mount Pleasant, NC Southern Star (formerly Sea Breeze II) started her life on Lake Lanier near Atlanta. [...]
Extra:
1983 Catalina 30 Tall Rig with Bow Sprint
Builder: Catalina Yachts
Designer: Frank Butler

Dimensions:
LOA: 29' 11"
LWL: 25'
Beam: 10' 10"
Displacement: 10,300 lbs
Draft: 5'3"
Engine: Universal M-25 21HP
Tankage:
Fuel 18 [...]
Home Page: http://www.svsouthernstar.com

Port: Whortonsville, NC