BWGLCC 2019 Fall Cruise

Accounts of trips taken in Boston Whaler boats; organization of rendezvous for Boston Whaler boats
jimh
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BWGLCC 2019 Fall Cruise

Postby jimh » Tue Oct 01, 2019 5:34 pm

The traditional BWGLCC Fall Cruise on Mullet Lake, Burt Lake, Crooked River, and Indian River was held Saturday, September 28, 2019. Ten Boston Whaler boats partipated.

Five boats launched at the north end of Mullet Lake. The lake level was lower than normal with about 8-inches of water missing. This made the already shallow access there a possible problem for the larger boats, and five boats launched at a very nice ramp in the town of Indian River.

BOATS and Boat Names: crew

  • REVENGE 25 (unnamed): Don and Gail
  • REVENGE 22 W-T WD continuouswave: Jim and Chris
  • GUARDIAN 22 See Ya’: Dave and Mindy
  • OUTRAGE 20 Pau Hana: Dave and Kathy
  • OUTRAGE 18 B-W One: Con and Martha
  • DAUNTLESS 17 Don’s Dauntless: Don and Elsa
  • MONTAUK 17 (unnamed): Norm and Diana
  • NAUSET 16 Emmarie Jean: John and Holly
  • MISCHIEF 15 A Lil’ Mischief: Sam and Emmarie
  • STRIPER 15 Giddy Up: Bob and Renee

Splitting the fleet launching between two ramps avoided congestion at the Mullet Lake ramp, which can accommodate only one boat. The low water level also prevented the usual pre-launching of early arrivals that would normally stay at the dock at Bybrook. The water was so low on Mullet Lake that coming to that dock was only possible for the smaller boats, and even then it was difficult.

The weather was cool and cloudy on Saturday morning at the 10 a.m. start of the cruise, but by 2 p.m. the sun came and warmed us considerably.

The fleet cruised to Alanson for lunch and then returned to their launch points.

There were few other boats operating in the cool morning so we could run the Crooked River at speed. When the sun came out in the afternoon the boat traffic increased and prevented one section of high-speed running from occurring.

It was very good to see Dave at the helm of See Ya’. The GUARDIAN 22 with Yamaha 250-HP Classic two-stroke-power-cycle carburetor engine had a wonderful engine note when accelerating onto plane. The heavier GUARDIAN hull seemed to give the smoothest ride in the fleet.

The power-to-weight ratio maximum had to be Giddy Up. With a Mercury six-cylinder in-line 115-HP engine, it was a very fast 15-foot boat. Also the custom woodwork in the modified STRIPER 15 interior was beautiful and very artfully accomplished.

jimh
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Re: BWGLCC 2019 Fall Cruise

Postby jimh » Thu Oct 03, 2019 1:13 pm

GUARDIAN22.jpg
Fig. 1. GUARDIAN 22 piloted by Dave and Mindy in the Mullet Lake-Indian River waterway. The engine is a 250-HP Yamaha V6 classic carburetor two-stroke-power-cycle. The boat has the Super Console option. It is 10:45 a.m. and the sun has not yet appeared.
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DONS_DAUNTLESS.jpg
Fig. 2. Don and Elsa are underway on DON'S DAUNTLESS 17, powered by an Evinrude 115-HP Ficht Direct-Injection engine.
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EMMARIE_JEAN.jpg
Fig. 3. John and Holly aboard EMMARIE JEAN, powered by an E-TEC 90. Definitely heading upstream.
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MISS_CHIEF.jpg
Fig. 4. Sam and Emmarie on plane with A LIL' MISCHIEF, powered by an E-TEC 60 H.0. Note how much hull is out of the water in this view. Photo credit Bob D.
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ALLANSON_Dock_2.jpg
Fig. 5. The rather old and rickety town dock at Alanson on the Crooked River was filled with Boston Whaler boats. Here we see Dave and Kathy on PAU HANA, John and Holly on EMMARIE JEAN, Con and Martha on BW-ONE, Dave and Mindy on SEE YA', and Emmarie on A LIL' MISCHIEF. Not seen in the foreground are the two REVENGE's. Three more boats docked further upstream. We just had a late lunch and the sun has come out.
ALLANSON_Dock_2.jpg (116.21 KiB) Viewed 29709 times


LightningTeeShirt.jpg
Fig. 6. The gift of this tee-shirt to John was particularly dark humor: his boat was struck by lighting while on the trailer on the highway in route to the July BWGLCC Lake Michigan Cruise. Bob tries to lean out of the picture in the foreground.
LightningTeeShirt.jpg (45.56 KiB) Viewed 29709 times

jimh
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Re: BWGLCC 2019 Fall Cruise

Postby jimh » Fri Oct 04, 2019 1:10 pm

I really like the modifications Bob has made to his STRIPER 15 Giddy Up. Below are several photographs that show what has been changed.

All photos by Bob D.

striperOnTrailer.jpg
Fig. 7 STRIPER 15 on trailer. The height of the aft thwart seat has been raised several inches. New folding-back cushioned rotating seats are installed. The Mercury 115-HP engine has hydraulic steering. The radio antenna is mounted to the starboard stern quarter inwhale and folds down nicely behind the side railings.
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striperConsoleDetail.jpg
Fig. 8. The stock console has been fitted with a wooden top with slanted dashboard. The steering wheel is a classic six-spoke Grant Destroyer model and now has an improved height and very nice angle to the helmsman. The wood is finished with a high gloss.
striperConsoleDetail.jpg (78.36 KiB) Viewed 29684 times


striperAtDock.jpg
Fig. 9. On GIDDY UP the deck has been covered over with plastic deck tiles. The trolling motor battery in under the seat in front of the console. Slide tracks for the canvas top frame solve the problem of where to position it when stowed and when up.
striperAtDock.jpg (144.96 KiB) Viewed 29661 times

jimh
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Re: BWGLCC 2019 Fall Cruise

Postby jimh » Sat Oct 05, 2019 1:52 pm

ENGINE SUMMARY

The ten boats had a total of 11 engines. The breakdown:

  • seven Evinrude engines including three E-TEC's (continouswave, A Lil' Mischief, Emmarie Jean), a Ficht (Don's Dauntless), and three classic two-strokes (BW-One and the Revenge 25 twins);
  • one Yamaha (See Ya');
  • one Suzuki (Pau Hana); and
  • two c.1980 Mercury in-line six-cylinder two-strokes (Giddy Up and the Montauk).
All the engines were two-stroke-power-cycle except the Suzuki.

jimh
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Re: BWGLCC 2019 Fall Cruise

Postby jimh » Sat Oct 05, 2019 2:30 pm

Dave B shot a very nice high-resolution motion-picture recording of the run in the upper half of the Crooked River, coming into Alanson from Burt Lake. The GUARDIAN 22 See Ya' made a very stable camera platform. Just ahead of Dave's boat is my boat, continuouswave, and I had no idea Dave was so close behind me.

At the start of the run the boat speed is only about 25-MPH. Due to the gray overcast sky, the lighting was very flat, and I was having some trouble picking out which way the river would turn next. Once I got to the long straightaway through Hay Lake, I went to full-throttle, and the boat accelerated to 43.8-MPH. Dave tried to pass, but after jumping our wake decided there was not much room to starboard. He jumped back into our wake. Shortly thereafter the NO-WAKE sign appears on the port side, but I don't think Dave saw it. He was a little surprised when I came off plane.

The movie is quite fun to watch and will give a good idea of what it is like to run this twisting river. The movie link is:

http://continuouswave.com/whaler/movies/crookedRiverRunAlanson2019.m4v

(There is no audio track.)

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Todd
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Re: BWGLCC 2019 Fall Cruise

Postby Todd » Tue Oct 08, 2019 11:18 am

Looks like a really nice trip and gathering. Thanks for the summary, pictures, and video, they make me want to join a future outing.

Todd

biggiefl
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Re: BWGLCC 2019 Fall Cruise

Postby biggiefl » Wed Oct 09, 2019 11:09 am

The on-trailer view of the engine shows a 1986 or newer 115-HP on Giddy Up. The view of the boat in the water shows a 1980 to 1983 cowling on it. Was [the engine] changed or [was the change] just the front cover that covers the latches to remove the cowl?

[Note to NICK: Bob is often working overseas and he may not be able to reply to your question.]
On my 24th Whaler. Currently in the stable: 86 18' Outrage, 81 13' Sport(original owner), 87 11' Sport, 69 Squall(for sale cheap).

jimh
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Re: BWGLCC 2019 Fall Cruise

Postby jimh » Wed Oct 23, 2019 9:23 am

More pictures from the cruise:

continuouswave.jpg
Fig. 10. CONTINUOUSWAVE underway in the marsh of southern Mullet Lake. We are heading downstream from Indian River to meet the other boats coming upstream from the lake. The sun has not yet broken through the overcast sky. Photo credit: David B.
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striper15inTurn.jpg
Fig. 11. GIDDY UP making a 180-degree hairpin turn in the Crooked River at speed. Photo credit: David B.
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