Let's Get this Party Started!!!

[iliohale]

Come on people, let's start thinking about those warm delta afternoons playing in the water. Let's get this forum kicking!!

What are people doing to get ready besides buying water cannons? Our lessons learned from last years Doo Dah was the following:

1. Keep a big old cooler of ice and drinks in the cockpit at all times.
2. Shade shade shade.
3. Bring less food and keep the meal plans very simple and easy to fix without a lot of cooking, more BBQ stuff.
4. Bring more water toys and wet wear gear.
5. Bring another 10" O2 Cool Fan (had one last year and it was great but need two).
6. Bring a solar shower or two.
7. Bring more cloths pins for hanging up stuff to dry.
8. Never trust Silent Sun, they will nail you with water balloons every time.

So the big purchase for the iliohale this year is a dodger with a full cruiser awning and side shades that we can keep up when we sail/motor. This will keep the cockpit nice and shady and help with the flying water balloons. Otherwise, this additional stuff is pretty simple and cheap.

[erikdj]

Good call on the bimini top. Was thinking about getting one for our boat.  Where are you looking?

What about ice?  Any notes on where to stop along the way to get ice?

I"ve got my O2 Cool Fan in my wishlist. :-P

Thanks for the helpful list!

[bccodyssey]

And after all of that prep.....watch out for the shallow side of Hog Island.  Gary needs to share those dance steps he did with the boom that swung his keel off of the mud!  It was impressive.

[iliohale]

Erik & Brian - ice was not a problem. Every place we went had ice or it was within a short dinghy ride to get it. I am sure, however, that there are isolated spots where that may not be the case. A good cooler should get you a couple of days of cold beer, I mean drinks. We just liked having cold drinks right in the cockpit and not taking up room in our frig.

Wayne - I wear the delta mud skid mark on the bottom of my keel with pride. They say that if you haven't run aground in the delta, you really haven't experienced it. And once you run aground, doing the delta mud dance is a timeless and honored tradition.

[iliohale]

Another tip, and something that we did last year, bring a couple of watermelons. We put the melon in a mesh bag and hung over the side in the water for the entire day. At dinner time it was a great treat to eat cool watermelon, they weren't super cold, but cold enough to be good.

[admin]

We may try dry ice this time. Gary's right; you can get ice just about everywhere - except if you're at anchor in the middle of nowhere. We found that we needed to replenish ice every other day. We have no refrigeration.

What you get/bring will depend on the size of your boat and your tolerance for roughing it. For instance, I could care less about onboard showers or air conditioning. My answer for both is to jump in the water.

Here's more stuff to bring culled from last year's survey:

"Quick-loading water guns. Swim ladder."

"Sailing dinghy. 25 gallon bucket for water fights!"

"We bought: Screening material, tarp for cockpit shade."

"A little clip-on electric fan helped with the heat. We forgot a lot of stuff: next year, a packing list! Also next year: Boogie boards, a sailing dinghy, a dodger for the bash back."

"Biggest purchase was a kayak from West Marine."

"I upgraded my battery monitoring system, we brought a hard sailing dinghy and 2-inflatable kayaks (but only found time to launch one). We followed hard-earned lessons from last year: drink LOTS of water (we always had a jug of package-mixed Gator Aid in the refrigerator), eat regularly even if you're not hungry, remembering to take a cool shower aboard and having an easily-accessible swim ladder for cool-down swims, and keeping ice in the refrigerator."

"I bought a $125 air conditioner. I purchased the unlimited delta drag out for $34 and used it to save $600-800 off Tinsley Isl. Net the openings for next year. Used all the toys especially the water guns. Sun shade is a must."

Christine Weaver, Doodette
Stink Eye, Laser 28