nominal's Hitchhiking Adventure

[nominal]

As a new TF member and someone considering living aboard and cruising, I put out a post for anyone in the Houston area who might be able to give me a ride on their trawler. Thanks to quick thinking by dimer2, my inquiry turned into an opportunity to crew for a TF member who was unexpectedly running solo on his return to Texas. 48 hours and 500 miles after dimer2 reached out to me, I pulled into the marina in Destin, FL and met rainman and "Rhino," a very cool Jarvis Newmann 46.

Adventure often requires a reckless element, and mine will be no exception. I left my truck in Florida with no real plan to retrieve it. Perhaps a long bus ride will be the price I pay for this opportunity, but those details are best left for another day. Today, we cruise.

After a night of great hospitality in Destin, we set off Tuesday morning on the back side of some localized storms. I spent about half the day at the helm, and had a great time. The wind and the waves were mild, so I'm absolutely going to buy a trawler and move aboard. (Ask me again after 3-foot seas in Mobile Bay tomorrow!) Really though, this is a great opportunity to see how I handle the ride.

Of course, I'll add some photos after I put a charge on my dying phone. For now I just want to say thanks to dimer2 and rainman for the adventure!

 

[nominal]

A welcome sight after nine hours in my truck - Destin!

"Rhino" stands ready to go.

rainman had the perfect slip for the night.

The storms clear out and we're underway.

New friends swimming and jumping alongside.

 

[ddalme]

Nominal
Your hooked!!

 

[dimer2]

Yep, I see a lot of time on Yachtworld in your future! I will PM you the name of the best broker in Houston as you going to need one!

 

[Shrew]

Why didn't you just fly or Bus there to begin with? Now you're making the trip three times (Truck out, Bus to pick up truck, truck back home again). That is round trip fuel in the truck PLUS a bus ride or flight.

A bus or flight on the first leg would have made the trip once. Too late now, but just a thought.

 

[ddalme]

Why didn't you just fly or Bus there to begin with? Now you're making the trip three times (Truck out, Bus to pick up truck, truck back home again). That is round trip fuel in the truck PLUS a bus ride or flight.

A bus or flight on the first leg would have made the trip once. Too late now, but just a thought.

Hey
He might catch a boat back.

 

[ragin cajun]

Hey
He might catch a boat back.

That's a very good possibility! With everyone on the gulf coast starting their summer cruises he might just find another boat needing his services!

 

[nominal]

Shrew, logic has no place in my adventures. I hopped in my truck an hour after first talking to rainman. I did much of the drive to Eastbound and Down from Smokey and the Bandit. It's all part of the fun.

 

[wyoboater]

Like someone said..........."you're HOOKED"! And Rhino is a great boat to learn on!

 

[nominal]

Rhino is a beast. I can't believe dimer2 sold her.

We did 11 hours today, including around four hours of zig-zagging because our desired course put the wind and 3-foot seas directly on our beam. We initially tried riding it out, but Rhino let us know she was unhappy with loud noises from below. rainman is gonna have to find a better way to secure the refrigerator.

Apart from tacking like a sailboat for a good part of the day, today was pretty satisfying. After the nasty rolling action, the rest didn't seem too bad. I handled it okay, including some time below taking inventory of the drawers that emptied themselves. I found some potato chips and a tasty granola bar, but I'm not sure that's why he sent me to check on the galley...

 

[markpierce]

Nominal
Your hooked!!

Beware! It's a disease!

 

[Steve]

If you all stop in Houma, La. on the way home let me know, if I can I'll drop by the dock, I met Rainman as he was heading East with Blue & Michelle earlier this year!
Same goes for other TF members stopping in Houma.

 

[Johnnycat]

That is so cool. I salute your impulsiveness!

And hats off to rainman and dimer2 for allowing such an adventure.

 

[nominal]

The first two hours of day 2. Blissful...

The next nine. Yeehaw!

 

[ragin cajun]

With that N wind blowing you're not going to get any thunderstorms but Miss. Sound is gonna be interesting just like Mobile bay! Anchoring along the Islands in the sound will be rough going! If you don't mind running in those conditions then you're born to be a trawler cruiser! Enjoy your trip!

 

[cardude01]

With that N wind blowing you're not going to get any thunderstorms but Miss. Sound is gonna be interesting just like Mobile bay! Anchoring along the Islands in the sound will be rough going! If you don't mind running in those conditions then you're born to be a trawler cruiser! Enjoy your trip!

I pounded through the Mississippi Sound last year with strong winds on the nose, and it really sucked! But you have more boat under you...

Have fun!!!

 

[dimer2]

" rainman is gonna have to find a better way to secure the refrigerator"

The refrigerator and drawers are designed to break loose at a roll of 12.7 degrees, allowing the contents then roll to the centerline, lowering the center of gravity. It's a safety feature lesser boats don't normally have

 

[nominal]

Safety Feature - ACTIVATED. LOL!

 

[LUVN LIFE]

Nominal, pass the word to rainman that the Terra Verde, Fl crew miss the happy hours in Rhino's aft deck.

 

[nominal]

Nominal, pass the word to rainman that the Terra Verde, Fl crew miss the happy hours in Rhino's aft deck.

Will do! He was telling me about a couple on a beautiful Hatteras down there. Is that you guys?

 

[LUVN LIFE]

Yes sir. We enjoyed having them around. Hatteras is close. Hargrave design, but an Atlantic.

 

[nominal]

We're now at anchor just east of the bridges and locks at New Orleans. A couple of locals gave us some bait, so we have lines in the water. One Black Drum and one Catfish of sorts paid us a visit, but we're going to settle for sandwiches this evening.

Leaving Gulfport. Is this a ship or an amusement park?! (The dockworker told us it is a cable layer)

The forecast for the Mississippi Sound was much the same as Mobile Bay yesterday, but we gave it a go. We were rewarded with 1 to 2 foot seas ahead of the beam followed by a few hours of this. Ahhhhhh..........

With an early end to an easy day, rainman found a nice anchorage just east of the bridges and locks of New Orleans.

 

[nominal]

Yes sir. We enjoyed having them around. Hatteras is close. Hargrave design, but an Atlantic.

Oops! My mistake, not his. He showed me a picture yesterday and my memory failed me. He says hello. As dimer2 mentioned to me earlier, getting rainman to actually post on TF takes an act of congress.

 

[ddalme]

Nominal
It's smooth sailing from now on

 

[nominal]

Well, we arrived in Beaumont on Sunday night. Let me tell you, rainman was absolutely driven to reunite with his wife as soon as possible. It made for some long and exhausting days, and my nightly Trawler Forum updates suffered. It was all worth it when we finally backed into their slip and I saw her standing there waiting for him. Those last few minutes seemed to draw out, and it seemed that both of them were ready to swim the last few feet. That, ladies and gentlemen, is a happy couple.

The long days did nothing to dull my enthusiasm though. I was having a ball. Each day I awoke refreshed and eager to hear that big Detroit rumble to life. We alternated between anchorages and marinas, so I learned a little more at the end of each day. rainman showed me how he handled the everyday tasks, big and small, of running a boat.

We spent far more time talking to tugs on the radio than I expected. The recent threads about commercial traffic versus recreational traffic are interesting to read because we found the tug captains to be helpful, courteous, and appreciative of our willingness to accomodate their need for greater maneuvering room. I think I actually picked up a new language in the two days spent among the commercial traffic west of the Mississippi. I'm still working on my Cajun accent though.

I'm struggling a bit to upload photos, so it looks like I'll need a new post for each one. I'll try to improve upon that next time!



My first lock experience. I doubled up the line for a minute so I could let go to take a photo. I was waiting for the lockmaster to yell at me.

 

[nominal]

Here a boat that can put itself "on the hard."

 

[nominal]

This boat has an oddly-shaped bow. Can anyone explain why?

 

[nominal]

This was a beautiful sunset, but our westbound course made the preceding two hours very tough on the eyeballs.

 

[nominal]

rainman got an appreciative response on the VHF from this captain for giving him lots of room.

 

[nominal]

The skies seemed friendly as Rhino returned to Texas.