Cocodrie- Lousiana – MC252 – Gulf Oil Spill Response

I was called by my friend Kelli Turner at Vancouver Paramedic Services to give him some help with a contract he had on the Gulf Oil Spill for Western Canada Marine Spill Response. So it was off to the spill response center at Cocodrie, Lousiana for a three week stint. The position was as a Financial Contract Administrator. The job was to process job tickets and charges for contractors at the Cocodrie site for MRSC which is the major spill response organization in the United States. My only comment about the job is that it was an interesting learning experience about big projects and how they are run.

  This is the Cocodrie Site which is about 100 miles South of New Orleans on the Gulf of Mexico

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dflee/4857948586/



Boats and Equipment at Cocodrie

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dflee/4836669030/

Work at the Cocodrie Spill Site

 


http://www.flickr.com/photos/dflee/4836669026/
The houses are all set on pilings because the land is only about 2 feet above water at the best of times any storm brings a tidal surge. It has been quite common for this area to be under water.

 
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dflee/4854030950/


The projected heat index posted above for Cocodrie was not the hottest day we had, most days it never drops below 80 F even at night.

When we weren’t working we checked out some of the local attractions, here are some of the crew along with yours truly hanging out after a good Louisana fried chicken dinner.

 

 

 

              This local Alligator was hanging around out back of the restaurant looking for leftovers.



This was an interesting adventure in Lousiana, meeting some new friends, seeing the wildlife, and checking out Burbon St and the French Quarter in New Orleans.

 

               

 

 

This is a must read article if you are boating or you or your kids are swimming or around the water this summer. I could never understand how people that can drown with onlookers and other close by and no one reacts. This article explains why it happens. Click Here http://mariovittone.com/2010/05/154/

Sailing with Vlad - This is Vlad - a very smart fellow that bought a MacGregor. Smart because he bought a MacGregor, realized he needed some help becoming a confident boater, and hired yours truly to help him learn about boating. Oh, and by the way he is a scientist on the National Research Council, so in my book that makes him very smart.

Vlad had a dream of owning a sailboat, and sailing on the ocean, here he is living his dream, sailing off the Fraser River in the Straight of Georgia; and as you can see he is a very happy fellow. Here's what Vlad had to say in an e-mail after a day sailing.
Dear Dave
Thank for you care. I very value our relations. I am very glad that I met you.
Vlad is also from Russia and so we sometimes need too have a discussion on the various sailing terms to get them translated so they make sense to all concerned.

I enjoy getting out on the water and helping someone develope as a confident boater and I have enjoyed seeing Vlad get to develope and become more confident on the water.

Like all boaters , he will continue to learn as his experience grows and I wish him all the best and Safe Boating.

 

Pretrip Check List

Before going to the Boat:

ü  Weather Check –Marine weather on the internet and weather channel on the radio.

ü  Wind Check - windmapper

ü  Tides and Current Check- do you have a tide and current book on board.

ü  Chart Check – Do you have charts for the intended cruising area

ü  Trip Plan – let someone know where you are going and when you plan to return. They should know the type of boat , registration number, and number of people on board.

ü  Supplies: proper clothing for the trip, lifejackets, food etc

On the Boat:

ü  Check for fuel of LP gas odors

ü  Inspect bilges

ü  Check fuel, ( sufficient plus reserve )oil coolant, batteries, terminals

ü  Check extinguishers  and operational

ü  Fresh water and food

ü  Self draining holes are clear

ü  Ropes, lines, and rigging for sailboats are in good repair

ü  Anchors are rigged and ready for use

ü  Lifejackets for all passengers – right sizes – ( children)

ü  Radio Check –Traffic check

ü  First aid kit

ü  Tools and spare parts

ü  Throw line, Flares-

ü  Show passengers where all emergency equipment is and they understand how to operate it – radios, flares, lifejackets

 

ØShow one other person how to operate the vessel in case you are disabled.

ØWeather check before departure – has the weather changed – are winds expected to rise before you reach your destination – do you have a plan for sitting out weather in protected areas if required.

ØRemember advise the person left your trip plan with, if you are not going to return when planned -

 

The following site was mentioned on the Macgregors owners forum and so we are added the information for the site  here http://ocscsailingblog.com/2009/07/19/5-cool-iphone-apps-for-sailors/
They have some really cool applications that would be fun to have and also save you a bunch of money. You can use these apps instead of buying more electronics. Check these out.

The day dawned with the sunshowing it's face. BC has had a record rainfall for November so this was definately a day to take advantage of and get some boat time in.
I arrived at the Marina at 11 AM and figured on some sailing but again there was very little wind, considering the tempeture was about 6C,that was most likley not a bad thing. So I motored up the lake at 2500 rpm and about 6 knots. The plan was to go a beach area I had not explored about 16 k up the lake. At about 2:00 and still not quite where I planned,the clouds had started to roll in at the south end of the lake where the Marina is, the tempeture was dropping as the sun was being blocked out and it felt like time to turn for home. I decided enought with the 6 knots, lifted the rudders and kicked the Tohatsu up to wide open to drain the ballast and headed for home. It is great to have a Mac or what. Now making 14 knots, it was getting a little chilly to say the least, but the GPS said I had only an hour to endure at this speed. Time to grit your teeth and go for it!!!!!!.
The wind had also picked up and a little spray was coming over the boat. Boy the full enclosure or at least the wide dodger looks like a good option at about that time. Oh well summer will come back and then this would be agreat way to cool off after a long day in the hot sun, keep thinking positive is my moto!
I arrived back in the Marina and got Mac all secured with a number of extra lines and bumpers, prepared for a blow, just in case I don't get out for while. It really is getting a bit cool for this boating thing at his time of year. The old body was feeling a bit numb and stiff by the time this day was out. I plan to use the boat as much as possible and a cold day on the boat still beats hanging out at home!!

This was another overcast November day with the tempeture hovering around 10 C, but not a breath of wind. I started out from the Marina at 11:00 pulled out some lunch from home and motored up the lake. A good day for motoring and some quiet time on the boat. There is a beach about 5 miles up on the west side I have dubbed Scout Camp Bay. The boy scouts have a cabin in the bay they use.

 I always have the fly rod on the boat and anchored and tried a few casts in off the creek that runs into the bay. The only sign of  fish were some salmon spawning on the beach in front of the creek. The salmon are in pretty bad shape after the trip up the Fraser and Harrison River. It is surprising that salmon do continue up the 40 miles of Harrison Lake to the Lillooet River to Spawn.
I also have been reading that there are crayfish in lakes and rivers in BC and they can be caught in prawn traps, so I also gave that a try, but with no luck.

 I decided to try picking up some wind to sail back to the Marina, but it was a lost cause. There was not enought wind to fill the sails and the 1 knot I was making according to the GPS was not cutting it, so it was back to motoring. The sun was dropping behind the snow covered mountains and the tempeture was dropping. A full cockpit enclosure would be nice if I plan to continue to use the boat over the winter. For now I guess picking some days when the sun is showing itself will have to do.
It  was a great day, finished off with a glass of wine tied up at the Marina!!!! 

November 06 2009
This is the first post  to log our sailing trips with our new to us 1998 Macgregor 26 x swingkeel sailboat.
The boat was acquired in Sept of this 2009, after a few months of looking and learning about the boats. The process was a bit frustrating as MacGregors are very popular and every time we found one that looked good it was gone before we even got to see it. We finally found one that was the right price and in not bad condition, and as a bonus the owner had redone the trailer which is in perfect condition after all his work.  The engine is the original 50 hp Tohatsu and seems to run okay and will do for now. The idea was to get the boat earlier in the year and use it over the summer, but that didn't work out.
We have now had a chance to get the boat out a fair number of times in conditions from flat calm to 20 knot plus winds.  I have had boats of various kinds since I was about 6 years old so I am very familiar with evrything associated with the water. The whole sailing thing is new since I have never had a sailboat, and we are learning as we go. It has been interesting and I think we now have a fairly good handle on what we are doing.
So now we are starting a blog which will be an online log to track our adventures with the new boat which we see many of the contributors at http://www.macgregorsailors.com/ have done with some very professional looking results so here we go and we look forward to sahring with others what we are doing.