Preview: Slow August – Boathouses of Maine

32 Responses So Far to “Slow August – Boathouses of Maine”

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  Juliet Boyd says:

  What an excellent issue!! Thank you so much for this. ❤️

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  Peter Strock says:

  Should be required running in the background for EVERY cell phone Or better yet provide the lat and long and i will cruise past. A child’s dream of perfect.

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  Robert Hazard says:

  These slow August videos are just the thing for a raw winter’s day!

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  Stephen Howarth says:

  I’m a lifelong resident of the Pacific NW and I find the construction methods of piers and boat houses in Maine and the NW to be quite different. In the NW the shoreside piers and structures are built on forests of pilings in Maine they’re supported by piles of stone, which doesn’t look very stable. Certainly not earthquake proof.

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    Steve Smith says:

    The stacked stone technique is commonly referred to as cribstone. It has been used for several hundred years. One small example is the bridge connecting Orr’s and Bailey’s Island in Harpswell Maine. It is a short 1,122 feet in length and was built in 1927. The technique is used all over Maine for foundations along the coast. Buildings and even some navigational aids (lighthouses) are built on cribstone foundations. These granite rock foundations will, and have, outlasted countless wood pilings.

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    Saverio Biasutto says:

    Wood piling is good if lumber is freshly sawn and piles are always under water: a good example is Venice, built over the centuries on wood piling. The fate of wooden piers is rotting, not a big problem if you’ve a forest back to shore.
    I see from the clip that shore is rocky, that’s another good reason for cribstone piers.
    A structural note: a cribstone structure is flexible and can esily dissipate the earthquake energy, like the Japanese temples does. It’s more reliable than a solid concrete pier.

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  Graham Holmes says:

  First thing I noticed was that thin cord for the mainsheet block. Thought my eyes were deceived and guessed it was wire, but that wouldn’t be good for the boom. Still think it’s risky – not good seamanship. Videos great relaxed boating for an old fella. Thanks Steve and the team.

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  Jim Heumann says:

  Nice!

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  John Pazereskis says:

  Overall, kind of boring. I do hope the bullseye at about 2:30 is soaking up for the season rather than simply sinking!

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    Andrew Blodgett says:

    Since it is Slow August, I believe “boring” is a compliment!

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      Steve Stone says:

      Indeed, we do take that as a modest compliment. So thanks John. If one of the slow august videos really pisses someone off, then we pat ourselves on the back and consider it the highest compliment possible.

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  Robert Byers says:

  Lovely to see how folks blend their land life with their water life! Gently!
  The stories they all must contain ! Always a treat on coastal cruises be it anywhere in the world .thanks
  Robert

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  Brent Williams says:

  Awesome, great relaxing video, beautiful bay.

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  Bob Lister says:

  This reminds me of when my dad was a commercial shell fisherman on Cape Cod back in the 60’s. What was a nice fishing shanty in Osterville where the guys had a coffee and talked before going bull racking. The lot had a small mansion built there the shell driveway is long gone and the old shanty is remodeled into a man cave bar on the water. It is listed for millions.
  The saving grace is Ned Crosby still has his grandfather’s tug the Admiral moored out front

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  Norman Palmer says:

  I am jealous. One comment though: The main sheet looked fairly husky, but the block was secured to the boom by one turn of light weight cordage

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    Steve Stone says:

    Good eye, Norman. I’ve been watching/studying the combo of those two lines for years now and I’d be interested in anyone else’s knowledgable comment on the physics involved. I’ll make a post on Instagram or a post on OCH to start a discussion. I’ve had this boat/rig at it’s limit for force on the mainsheet many times over the years and it never seems to be more force that what that single turn of the small line can take (as evidenced by it never failing). I also think about that force itself and whether that force should cause that line to fail and it seems that line could handle it from a gut feel. So the mainsheet diameter is many times overkill and must be more for the hand’s line-handling comfort rather than strength needed. I could, and probably should, beef up the line securing the block to the boom, but it’s definitely a lesson in the physics of a rig, how it all works together, and having a bit more than what is actually needed and nothing more.

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      William Meier says:

      Do you see any chafing on that line? Is it original to the boat? I would expect the line to be strong enough with the static loads that you’d see sailing but I wonder about the shock loading on that line during a flying gybe, particularly if it was worn.

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        Steve Stone says:

        Thanks William. No chafing at all and no sign of stress. Have been watching that closely knowing that lines rarely if ever just break without sign of stress. Will be replacing with a double wrap of spectra.

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      Claas van der Linde says:

      Interesting to consider this. I am a bit late to this discussion and I don’t know if you have already calculated your mainsheet loads, but let’s try anyway.

      https://www.harken.com/en/support/selection-tools/calculators/mainsheet-loading-calculator/ is a good tool to come up with mainsheet load estimates. (Note: Emphasis on “estimate”!)

      The formula can only do Marconi rigs so for the sake of simplicity let’s assume a Caledonia yawl with a Marconi mainsail with a 11ft long foot and a 20ft long luff. Let’s further assume the sheet is attached 3ft away from the end of the boom and the wind speed is 20 knots (which is probably more than plenty).

      The formula then arrives at a mainsheet load of 450 lbs.

      The little string looks like a 1/8″ string. If it’s polyester it’s breaking load should be somewhere between 275lbs and 440lbs. Given that the loop has two parts, we can multiply that by 2 arriving at a breaking load for the loop of between 550lbs and 880lbs. Not much of a safety margin, but it should work. Spectra would provide the needed safety margin because it is two or three times stronger and can better take the chafe.

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        Steve Stone says:

        Brilliant, Claas. Thanks for doing the hard work. I’ve read somewhere that tying a knot in a line decreases it’s breaking strength by 50%. IF that is the case, and your calculations are in the ballpark, then there’s no safety margin at all. And all the while I’ve had 30′ of spectra in my gear bag and was planning to replace that line this winter. So now I know the rough calculations on it. Now on to the two screws securing the cleat that the main sheet takes one wrap around when under the heaviest loads. I’ve always thought that was the point that was weaker than the lines or block (there’s a pin in that bronze block). It’s all connected and it’s eye-opening when a list is made of all the possible breaking points in a rig.

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  Al Winters says:

  Love it keep them coming plea

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  David Yeowart says:

  what a beautiful place to sail. Thanks again.

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  Jack Lehto says:

  Small watercraft sanctuaries, where function follows form complimentary to their respective locale. Thank you Steve 👍

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  Rick Robinson says:

  Your videos appear as artworks in their own right. So soothing and relaxing to the soul, yet a reminder of the approaching end of this season’s waterborne activities.

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  Kaci Cronkhite says:

  Ahhhh. Just awe.

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  David Tew says:

  Thanks Steve, Your photos and sounds bring back so many memories. My childhood home had a boathouse on the shores of a wide section of the Sudbury River in Massachusetts. It was built in the 1890s and like some on other rivers we could row or paddle into it, pull up to a gated walkway and rack the boats on the walls. There were two old Old Town canoes and an English rowing shell for two. The ceiling had trap doors for passing spars, sails and oars up there for storage. A curved balcony over the outside doors to the water had wicker chairs for looking out over the bay. The boathouse was a child’s dream, sadly burned in the 1970s leaving cut iron nails in profuse piles upon the stone foundation.

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  randall spurr says:

  This video highlights a special type of architecture here in Maine. Buildings with a special purpose, humble solutions to function, gems in there own way. Thank you for putting these images together, a lovely treat.

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  Joel Rubinstein says:

  Beautiful–glad to see they are being maintained for the future.

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  Bob Lawson says:

  Do the boat houses over or partialy over the water need a bubbler in the winter? Nice vide, Thanks.

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  Laurence Clement says:

  Thank you for this. Seeding my dreams for sure.

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  Stuart James says:

  A lovely, serene drift around a picturesque water front ~ Thankyou 😉

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  Alan Pickering says:

  I think I have seen a couple of those over the years. Very nice.