The Quintessential PNW Hazard: Logs

[Hydraulicjump]

Interesting article in the Seattle Times this morning about the M/V Puget, a ship that picks up floating logs in the PNW and, as of late, is putting them into marsh restoration projects.

How stray logs in Puget Sound turn industrial shorelines green

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattl...puget-sound-turn-industrial-shorelines-green/

First, logs scare the heck out of me. Our old boat, a Ranger 29CB, was really vulnerable, both in design and application. Meaning the temptation was to go fast because we could. Our new boat, a Helmsman 38e, has a really deep forward keel and a well-protected prop. But frankly, its best asset is that it’s a go-slow trawler, giving you time to react. That and it is built like a tank. Fortunately, most of the time the logs are concentrated in tide lines. But it is those “cowards”—the ones that are just about to sink and are just below the waterline—that make my stuffing box squeak.

Second, there is only one ship out there collecting logs for all of the PNW? Seems to me you could keep a half dozen going and still not dent the number of logs. Especially after these floods and king tides. I have to believe the high speed ferries would appreciate that. Still, a ship like that costs a lot of $ and once summer comes they have nothing to do.

We are headed up to Seattle to get the boat out for some exercise and my log obsession—especially this time of year—begins.

 

[RCook]

Thanks for the interesting article!

Our NT37 travels mostly at 7 knots, so is similarly less likely to be damaged by logs.

Traveling the Inside Passage (especially very loggy BC) on plane in previous boats, my wife and I would keep our eyes glued to the water ahead. If one was going to take a break from watching, always mentioned it to the other one. Never damaged the hull, but did have to repair a number of props over the years.

Much less stressfull now, and we see and enjoy much more of our beautiful surroundings as we cruise. Quieter and more fuel-efficient too. Slow is good!

 

[NSM]

Interesting story. We took our R29CB to Waterline’s docks last weekend to put on the market. Maybe it was just me but there seemed to be double the number of logs trying to keep me from getting there safely.

Glad you’re enjoying your boat in the winter…

 

[bshanafelt]

my boat cruises at 7 to 7.5 knots.

Pretty good view from the pilothouse.

Somehow, I still manage to collide with logs. Not every season, but certainly every other. At least at these trawler speeds, there really isn't any damage.

For the go fast crowd it can be an entirely different story.


The most terrifying 'log' is the deadhead - when the log inverts and the end of the log is right at the surface - sometimes it undulates like a piston. Be sure that this would be a bad result .

 

[mpstan]

Do freighters or cruise ships even bother changing course when logs are in their way?

 

[Marco Flamingo]

The article reminded me of two things. First was the comment about using the reclaimed logs to make fuel for pellet stoves. That's a bad idea. My neighbor used to think it was simple to cut up drift wood along our beach front for firewood. Because of the salt on the wood, he replaced his stove pipe system every 6 or 7 years. Finally, he had to replace his woodstove. Easy access firewood was no longer a bargain. The same would be true from burning pellets made from saltwater driftwood. I'm sure that the end users wouldn't think it was such a great idea.

The Duwamish reclamation area has been a bit of a hit with local high school age kids, including members of the Duwamish tribe, that volunteer on the project. It must be fascinating to convert desolate industrial waterfront back to a healthy landscape. I wish them good luck.

We have had a series of king tides in Seattle (with more to come). When occurring at the same time as low barometric pressure like in December, the tide comes in farther than it has for years. That lifts driftwood off the shore that has been there for a long time not causing any problems.

I took the Fast Foot Ferry from Seattle to Bremerton this week and the captain had to change course and dance around a lot because of logs in the tide lines. A couple of times it felt like the catamaran hull tipped towards the outside of the turn, unlike a monohull. Zipping along at 35 knots was fun in somebody else's boat.

 

[Hydraulicjump]

And just like that a log strike knocks out a ferry

Ferry on Edmonds-Kingston route disabled after apparent log strike

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattl...ton-route-disabled-after-apparent-log-strike/

 

[bobc]

Ferry on Edmonds-Kingston route disabled after apparent log strike

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattl...ton-route-disabled-after-apparent-log-strike/

Many years ago, a few miles north of the Edmonds ferry, I hit a log about an hour after I was back in the water after my annual haulout. I had just had the props tuned and the boat was running great. I never saw the log, before or after. I limped back to my slip on one engine (different boat), the vibration was so bad. I was sure I had lost a blade.

I had a diver go down to asses the damage and he came back up and asked "which prop?" I couldn't believe that he couldn't tell. It turns out that there was an 1/8" ding in the the tip of one blade that he could just barely feel. So while a Washington State Ferry has large props, I can understand how a log might take a ferry out of service.

 

[rubenova]

A campfire made with driftwood makes fresh caught fish taste better.

 

[PM]

I know that freshwater salvaged logs are very valuable. There are several outfits on the great lakes which salvage and resaw the timbers. They are often gigantic virgin timber and beautiful.

I never considered the salt content on salt water logs, interesting.

pete

 

[ssobol]

I know that freshwater salvaged logs are very valuable. There are several outfits on the great lakes which salvage and resaw the timbers. They are often gigantic virgin timber and beautiful.

I never considered the salt content on salt water logs, interesting.

pete

Logs from fresh cold water are a different story than saltwater logs.

 

[koliver]

Teredos don't go into fresh water

 

[Airstream345]

They grow driftwood big out here. Spending the last two winters on San Juan Island in the Port of Friday Harbor we've seen first hand the winter migration of driftwood from beaches to water and back to beaches. Last Christmas we drove over to South Beach (facing the Straight of Juan de Fuca) during a 40+ knot blow and saw telephone pole sized logs getting picked up and flipped end over end in the surf like toothpicks. Even in the marina we occasionally need the move a 70 footer out from between us and the dock.

 

[GFC]

Many years ago I was enroute from Friday Harbor back to Anacortes to load the boat after a wonderful 2-week cruise through the San Juans and Vancouver Island.

As we pulled out of Friday Harbor the fog was so thick we could barely see the water in front of the boat. About a mile or so out of Friday Harbor we encountered a huge raft of what looked like telephone poles, except they were not all secured together but were spread out over about a square mile.

As we bumped our way through the field of poles we bumped into a dozen or so. We were just idling along and I figured that the poles were on the surface and my props were well below them so I wasn't too worried.

After we got past the poles we were able to step up the speed a bit and continue on our way.

 

[SteveK]

In a previous sailboat OTTO, the auto pilot sensed logs and went around them. Guests were looking at me wondering why I was not concerned, I would say, just watch as OTTO first steered one way then once past returned on course. It was possessed of course as I have no other explanation. One in a hundred I had to take charge and it was due to too many in a group of logs I guess where multiple course changes were needed.

 

[Lockstar]

As I understand it, you are not free to remove logs from the water (assume “sawlog”). Whoever owned the log before it went wandering still owns it. On the Other hand, if that logs sinks your boat, the log owner has no liability.