Report on the 2013 Texas 200

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Report on the 2013 Texas 200

Postby jeadstx » Wed Jun 26, 2013 5:35 pm

The following is my report on this years' Texas 200. There was no unplanned swimming this year. My pictures from the event are at http://s445.photobucket.com/user/jeadst ... 2280563786

This years’ Texas 200 was sailed from Port Isabel, Texas to Magnolia Beach, Texas on Matagorda Bay, not far from Port Lavaca, Texas. Total distance to sail this year was about 220 miles. We would camp four nights and sail for five days. All camps were advertised as primitive.

We headed for Port Isabel on Friday June 7th. We passed through rainstorms on the way to the coast, something I have not encountered in the past for this event. We got down there about 9:30pm and got our motel room at the White Sands Motel and Marina which was to be the starting point for the 2013 Texas 200. Unlike last year, several other sailors were also arriving Friday evening. Saturday was the day to get the boat ready for the event. On Saturday morning we cleaned the boat at the car wash, installed the barber hauler hardware, and loaded the boat with supplies prior to launch. More participants had arrived and boats started launching. We launched around noon after securing a slip to put the boat in. Open slips were in short supply. I had reserved a slip, but it turned out to be a covered one, so we had to find an open one so we could launch with the mast up. The marina at the White Sands normally deals with fishing boats, so they don’t have many open slips for sailboats. Many of the sailboats will double up in the slips. There were about 22 boats in the fleet this year ranging in size from a Mirror Dinghy at 10’-10” to the Bolger Folding Schooner at 31’ (5’ beam).

After the boat was ready and secure in it’s slip we unhooked the trailer from my Jeep and headed off to explore Port Isabel. My crew had never been down that way before so we headed out on South Padre Island for excursion of the sand dunes on the barrier island and a view of the Gulf of Mexico.

Sunday morning at 7:00 am was the skippers’ meeting. As soon as the meeting was over I headed for Magnolia Beach with the Jeep and the empty trailer to the place where the vehicles would be kept at our end point. At 2:00 pm we boarded the bus to head back to Port Isabel. Only one person per boat makes the drive and gets on the bus. My crew got to stay at the Motel in Port Isabel, finish getting the boat ready and hang out with the other sailors at the White Sands.

Monday morning, the 10th, was our first day of sailing. We got a later start than I wanted being the third to the last boat out. Unlike in past, the winds were light so we started out under full sail. Having a crew this year who was familiar with centerboard boats made a big difference. We cleared the harbor and headed out into the Laguna Madre. The winds were from the east instead of from the south to southeast that are normal for this area. Some of the boats opted to take the outside route in the Gulf. We, with most of the fleet choose the inside route through the Laguna Madre. My Day Sailer II under full sail was making good speed. My crew wanted to be at the helm, so I let him. Our first days’ sail was going to be about 42 miles. Our destination was Port Mansfield. As we started heading north we could see the rest of the fleet a few miles ahead of us. Within a couple hours we started passing some of the fleet. As the day wore on the wind shifted to the northeast and strengthened. As we passed one of the event organizers, his only comment was “what’s with this northeast wind, we never have a northeast wind”. Even the local people told us they have never had a northeast wind this time of year. Some of the boats ahead of us went through some light rain storms, the rain missed us, however. By mid-afternoon we decided to put a reef in the sail as the wind continued to strengthen. As we approached Port Mansfield, we had two choices for our first nights’ camp. We could go out to the Port Mansfield Jetties or dock at the Port Mansfield Chamber of Commerce. We decided to go to the C of C dock as did most of the fleet. As we approached the harbor we could hear the Coast Guard on the VHF radio trying to respond to a call for help. We found out the next night that one of the boats had capsized in the gulf. The boat was lost, but the crew and skipper made it to shore safe. From the reports the damaged boat washed up in the surf about an hour after they made it to shore.

We motored up to the dock which was already full of boats. We had some trouble finding a place to tie up. One of the smaller boats made room for us and we tied up. The Chamber left their building open for us to use the restrooms. There was a place to set up tents, and a hose to rinse off with. A large part of the group headed for a restaurant within walking distance. We went with a few other sailors to another restaurant/bar for dinner. We didn’t know about the other place. Port Mansfield would be our only “modern” facilities along the way.

Tuesday morning we prepared to get sailing again. This was going to be about a 50 mile sail to get to camp 2. My crew used the small stove to make coffee and his breakfast. He was slow in getting ready. I’m slow on the boat, he was slow getting ready to sail each day. As a result, we were the last boat to leave the docks at Port Mansfield.

As we headed north up the Laguna Madre we could see three boats on the horizon coming out from the Port Mansfield Jetties. We could barely see them as there was a little haze in the air. The sky was a little overcast with the wind once again out of the east, but a bit light. We moved along at about 3 to 4 knots, not as fast as we would have liked. We eventually reached the land cut. The wind had increased some and our speed had picked up. As we through the land cut, we passed several fishing houses built on stilts and lots of wildlife. Dolphins surfaced alongside the boat. Just when you got ready to take a picture they would disappear. We saw a baby dolphin that was about 4 feet long in the company of two adults. Sometimes they would surface within a foot of the boat.

As we came near the end of the land cut and out into Baffin Bay, one of the boats behind us was starting to close in. I could see by the symbol on the sail that it was an O’Day Mariner. As they came closer we could see they had an inflatable Orca on their bow. We were later told it was their mascot. We were in sight of camp 2 when they finally passed us. We passed a few boats before reaching camp 2.

Camp 2 was a small sand island. As we approached the deeper draft boats were anchored out and folks were walking in the water or pulling their boats closer to shore. We pulled up to the beach and beach the boat. Once beached, we unloaded our camping gear, set up camp and had dinner.

We heard at camp that three boats had pulled out after the first day. One boat had some kind of rigging failure and had to drop out. After the event we found out their rudder broke. The Texas 200 is hard on rudders and tillers. We also were told about the capsize of Laguna Uno in the Gulf and the boat was damaged beyond being able to continue. The Laguna class boats were actually designed for this event. We were told the catamaran was out as well since the father of the catamaran skipper was on the boat that capsized.

Just as it was getting dark, the channel marker lights came on. A couple more boats had come in before dark. A little after 9:00 pm we saw what looked like a light on a sail heading towards camp. We thought it might be the folding schooner since they were trying to sail from Port Isabel to Camp 2 in one day since they couldn’t leave until Tuesday morning. To our surprise it was the one catamaran sailing with the fleet. When they beached they told us the schooner was camped at Hap’s Cut (also spelled as Happ’s Cut on maps), about 10 miles south.

The catamaran crew told us they had pitch-poled in the land cut going about 15 knots. The crew was catapulted about 15 feet in the air from their tramp when the accident happened. They lost their GPS and VHF radio and most of their fresh water. They also had a two foot gash in one of their hulls. They pulled the boat up on the beach and started to make repairs. The sailor of the shortest boat, a 10' Mirror Dinghy had carbon fiber strips and other boats had marine epoxy. The repairs held and the catamaran sailed the rest of the trip.

Wednesday morning was another late start. The catamaran was the only boat left on the beach. I think my crew liked being last out. As we got ready to go the centerboard appeared to jam. We quickly careened the boat with the help of the catamaran crew and it seemed to be free. It may have been that water was really shallow where we were and made it appear to be stuck. Everything worked as we got into deeper water. We started the day with one reef in the main since we were going to be crossing Corpus Christi Bay that day and that can be a hard crossing and wind forecasts were for stronger winds than the day before. This was going to be another 50 mile sail. The catamaran passed us about an hour or so after we started sailing that morning.

As we got near the bridge just before Corpus Christi Bay we passed a place called Snoopy’s. About 8 to 10 boats from the fleet were tied up at their dock. They had stopped for ice and lunch. No room at the dock, we continued on towards the bay. As we reached the end of the channel just before entering the bay, a keel sailboat came up from behind us who wasn’t part of our group. The boats skipper called out to us that he knew who I was. He was from Arlington, Texas and knew the guys in the Day Sailer fleet there. He had read my article from the DS Quarterly last year. We talked for a while, then he headed down the channel across the bay and we headed across the bay on our course which would protect us from the chop a little.

We crossed the bay without any problems and prepared to enter Stingray Hole which leads into Corpus Christi Channel. About that time the catamaran caught up to us again and passed us. We entered the channel and headed for the ferry crossing at the state highway. The wind was nearly out of the east causing us to be close hauled on our run up the channel. My crew was at the helm and I was navigating. We made it through the ferries and were holding a tight course to get to the point where we needed to turn north into Lydia Ann Channel to get to our next camp. We couldn’t get any closer into the wind than we were moving. Then a large tourist fishing boat stopped and anchored right in our line. We couldn’t get around their bow without tacking. We saw we had about 20 to 30 feet between their stern and a dock that we could get through, the charts said the water was deep enough. We changed course and passed close astern. We called out our apologies. Most people waved and were friendly, one guy cursed at us. Fortunately no one had a line in the water, otherwise they might have caught our centerboard.

We passed them and made our turn north. An hour or so later we were coming up on camp 3 at the Quarantine Shore. As we approached camp we saw many boats that were beached already and several folks in swimming. We picked a spot next to the catamaran and beached the boat. It had been a long day, it was good to get into camp. As is my custom, I took a nap on the foredeck for awhile. Camp 3 was an oyster shell beach. The catamaran guys were building a fire. We found out that during the pitch-pole event, while they lost some important stuff, they didn’t lose their grill and icebox. They were soon cooking shrimp wrapped in bacon and steak wrapped in bacon. The rest of the fleet arrived in the next hour.

Thursday morning, my crew was getting his stuff together faster. It looked like we might be able to leave ahead of three or four other boats. The wind was almost non-existent. Then my crew decided to go swimming and sew telltales on the trailing edge of the main. When we left, only the catamaran was still on the beach. Last again, but by then the wind had started to come up.

We headed out across Aransas Bay. The course we took would take us past Paul’s Mott where I capsized last year. Then we would pass through several reefs. There are small narrow channels through the reefs which make for navigational challenges. The deep draft boats had to take the channels which were the long way to go to camp 4 at Army Hole. The wind was getting stronger and it was now a head wind. We caught up to some of the other last boats to leave. Then ahead we saw what looked like a boat aground with two other small boats assisting. Since the boat aground had assistance we proceeded on. We found channel markers through the reefs only shown as pipe on the charts. My GPS appeared to be off by about 40 feet in this area. I compensated for the apparent error and with markers we could find we got through the channels in the reefs. We only bumped bottom a couple times. Through the first reef we could see that four boats behind us were having grounding problems. In past years I had not taken this route so it was new to me. We passed through three more reefs and headed for Ayers Dugout, a reef with a bad reputation for Texas 200 sailors. As we approached we suddenly saw a reef in our path and quickly tacked to the east. We got around it after locating the correct entrance closer to shore, and passed easily through the dugout and into San Antonio Bay. Our only other navigational challenge before camp was South Pass, another reef. As we approached South Pass, the main halyard let lose, pinning my head between the boom and the cuddy cabin top. My crew at the helm, heaved to and parked the boat on the water to get things straightened out. I hadn’t done this maneuver before, something I need to practice. Neat procedure. I had panicked a bit when my head was pinned. My crew this year was a better sailor than I am. We got the sail back up and I calmed down. We proceeded on thru South Pass passing a work barge that appeared to be parked in the center of the channel, but was actually moving very slowly. Trying to get around it we bumped the edge of the channel. About 7:30 pm we finally reached camp 4 at Army Hole. We had been sailing for about 11 hours, our longest sail of the trip. Army Hole is an old WWII Army Air Corps base that has been abandoned since 1946. Some boats were beached, some at the facility docks. We pulled into the docks protected by a breakwater. There were picnic tables there, but no facilities. The state maintains the area, but only minimally.

We set up our camps. A short while after we set up, the skipper of a boat that had joined the group at camp 4 came around to tell everyone he had hot dogs, potato salad, beans, and beer up at one of the picnic tables for anyone who wanted it. He was a regular Texas 200 sailor who had wanted to do the whole trip, but couldn’t this year. He provided a meal instead. It was a good chance to socialize. Camp 4 was the first camp with mosquitoes, but not too many.

Friday was our last day and our shortest sail of the trip, only 24 miles to Magnolia Beach and the finish. There were two ways to go, the short way through some twisty shallow channels or take the channels past Port O’Conner and then into Matagorda Bay where both routes came back together. In the morning my GPS would not power up so we decided to take the channel route. Wind was out of the east and we headed northwest. We had a fairly easy sail up through Port O’Conner and the wind was mostly behind us as we sailed up Matagorda Bay. The sun was very hot that day. We followed the blue sail of the boat Laguna Tres in front of us. There were sails behind us including an odd orange/red sail configuration that was wing and wing. The odd sails turned out to be the homebuilt catamaran that had joined us at camp 4 and had provided dinner for us. The catamaran has two masts that are side by side, one on each hull. We finally saw boats beached at Magnolia Beach. We beached the boat. I got a ride to my Jeep and trailer. We retrieved the boat from the beach rather than going to the boat ramp, made things easy. Shiner Brewery was one of our event sponsors and they had coolers of ice cold beer of different varieties waiting for us. When all the boats finally made it in, we had the shrimp boil to finish the event. We de-rigged the boat after and headed to Port Lavaca to find a motel and get a hot shower. Saturday we headed back to the Austin area. For me, home, for my crew, the airport.

John
1976 Day Sailer II, #8075 - Completed the 2011, 2012, and 2013 Texas 200
1952 Beetle Boat Swan Catboat
Early Rhodes 19
1973 Mariner 2+2, #2607 - Completed 2014, 2015 and 2016 Texas 200
1969 Day Sailer I, #3229
Fleet 135; Canyon Lake, Texas
jeadstx
 
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Location: Dripping Springs, Tx

Re: Report on the 2013 Texas 200

Postby seandwyer » Wed Jun 26, 2013 11:34 pm

Thanks, John. What a great story and adventure--nice pictures, too. I really want to do this some one of these years. Might need to wait until the kids are just a bit older, but soon.

How much practice did you get navigating, using charts, etc before you felt confident in participating in this? I bet you came up with several alternate passages ahead of time dependent on wind and weather conditions. Right now, I know nothing of navigation.

Is that you or the crew in the photos?
Sean
DS1 - 3203
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Re: Report on the 2013 Texas 200

Postby K.C. Walker » Thu Jun 27, 2013 7:18 am

John,

Thanks for the write up on your adventure and the photos! I find these events very intriguing. It's such a different kind of sailing than what I do.

I must admit, I smiled when you mentioned your habit of taking a nap on the fore deck. It sounds like a good habit to me.
KC Walker, DS 1 #7002
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Re: Report on the 2013 Texas 200

Postby TIM WEBB » Thu Jun 27, 2013 10:33 am

Great writeup John! Thanks. Hey, how did that new Lehr motor work out for ya?
Tim Webb
1979 DS2 10099 The Red Witch
(I used to be Her "staff", in the way dogs have owners and cats have staff, but alas no longer ... <pout>)
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Re: Report on the 2013 Texas 200

Postby jeadstx » Thu Jun 27, 2013 11:46 am

seandwyer: That was crew in the picture, camera lens might be damaged taking a picture of me. I navigate using GPS and charts. I usually have a compass available if needed. When following the channels there are markers to follow although this year we had a bit of a problem since sometime since last year they decided to re-number the channel markers south of Corpus Christi. The NOAA maps and the fishing charts did not show the new marker numbers. I had pre-loaded navigational waypoints (860 of them) into my GPS unit prior to leaving for the event. These waypoints included the planned primary route plus alternate routes. By reading accounts of previous years I knew areas to avoid or to be cautious of. One rout that the smaller boats take requires passage under a bridge with an 8 foot clearance. The small boats drop their masts and walk or row them thru that area. Knowing that, I don't want to take the DS2 thru there. There are charts of the route for download at the Texas 200 website, http://www.texas200.com/ under the Route section. These charts are for study or use. I laminate them into a booklet. My GPS can display NOAA maps and match the charts. The maps are my work since that is what I do for a living. Most of the discussion on the Texas 200 has moved from the website to Facebook. Additional pictures will be up on the Texas 200 site soon.

K.C.: I find the fore deck of the DS2 very comfortable and allows me to stretch out at the end of the day. I told my crew that previously I had found a 143 different ways to sit in the cockpit of a DS2. He found an additional dozen or so. Including taking my rowing seat, placing it spanning the cockpit seats and lying on it while at the helm so he could stretch out.

Tim: The Lehr motor worked good the few times we used it. The fourth day the pull cord jammed. On Friday morning, the cord got fixed, but we couldn't get it to start, but we didn't need it that day. We used maybe a quarter tank of fuel (one pound propane bottle). No fumes, regular motor noise. I think it was a good choice.
1976 Day Sailer II, #8075 - Completed the 2011, 2012, and 2013 Texas 200
1952 Beetle Boat Swan Catboat
Early Rhodes 19
1973 Mariner 2+2, #2607 - Completed 2014, 2015 and 2016 Texas 200
1969 Day Sailer I, #3229
Fleet 135; Canyon Lake, Texas
jeadstx
 
Posts: 1216
Joined: Tue Jul 08, 2008 11:10 am
Location: Dripping Springs, Tx


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