Hello Catalina 36 forum members,
We just purchased Southern Comfort from Bruce who did a superior job of maintaining and improving her. I've been reading quite a lot of messages here during the past 6 weeks and have been really impressed with how valuable it is and how knowledgeable you all are. OK - enough kissing up - here's my question:
Considering that the wing keel is only slightly deeper than the rudder, how worried should I be if/when the wind blows the water out of our creek and Southern Comfort sits on the mud bottom?
If I have multiple, unrelated questions even after going through the archives, do I start a new thread for each issue?
Thank you for your help,
mrmac
Southern Comfort #1881
Tall rig, Wing Keel
Potomac River/Chesapeake Bay
Hello there,
My short answer is no problem as long as you can get free again. My boat is an '86 MK I fin keel and I do that all the time. Usually I cruise up a shallow bay at high tide in the late afternoon, anchor, then let her sit on the bottom overnight. Its peaceful without rolling and typically there are no other boats around because it is too shallow. No need to worry about the anchor dragging or swinging into something. As long as the bottom is soft and (in my case) about 3 feet at low water, she'll sink into the mud and sit upright. Up anchor next morning before the tide drops too much and be on your way. Sometimes I hear the rudder clunk as it drops slightly in the middle of the night as she starts floating again. Never had an issue.
Regards,
John
Welcome Mr. Mac,
There was a recent thread (/forum/technical-discussion/what-check-after-hard-grounding) about sitting on the bottom on a wing keel with a couple of real-life experiences and an incredible photo.
I found that thread by searching for 'sitting on wing keel'. There's a screen shot below.
Note that our search engine is pretty advanced and has some algorithms for prioritizing results that are a mystery to mere mortal man. For example, your post came up first, I think because it is recent and because it has one of the search terms in the subject line. The post I referenced, was the 4th result, even though it basically contains the phrase "sitting on wing keel" ... Number 2 and number 3 I cannot explain.
But it shows, I hope, that the search function is where to start as a new Member with lots of questions. Spend some time reading before posting. Most questions have been answered here at one time or another. And then, if you decide to post, please be concise and descriptive in your subject line and how you state your question for the benefit of future searchers.
(And yes, one thread per subject, please.)
Thanks, and welcome aboard!
Nick Tonkin
*Former* Website Administrator, C36/375IA
*Former* owner, C36 tr/fk #255, Santa Barbara, CA
Captain Tonkin - My fault - I saw the post but felt that the circumstances of my question were different than the poster's - a boat in a slip would likely go through multiple tide cycles and have no one attending to it making sure that the rudder was clear. From the title, I had the misimpression that he had hit hard and was looking for feedback about possible undetected damage. My error. None-the-less, my concern is with possible damage to a rudder in a shallow slip. It was my hope that other members had experience with touching bottom in their slip occasionally and could reassure me that it isn't really an issue. In any case, I didn't want to hijack the thread.
After I posted that first message, I realized that it came across as pretty snarky. I edited it (sine snarky part) and deleted the single issue/ single thread question. BUT I must have failed to save it or post it or whatever.
Anyway, I'm pleased to be part of the Catalina 36 forum and appreciate the help.
mrmac
Southern Comfort #1881
Tall rig, Wing Keel
Potomac River/Chesapeake Bay