Ballast

Short outing this afternoon (Monday 2/26). Low 70’s, wind 8-12 but erratic. I did have some good puffs. I sailed with one reef in. The one notable thing to report: after my last outing when I almost capsized, I decided to carry some ballast. I stuffed 3 small duffle bags with 2 partial bags of play sand that I had along with a partial bag of small river rock. I estimate that total weight was 80-100 lbs. The boat seemed a good bit more stable with the ballast. I was able to sit more comfortably on the seats as well. I liked the effects. I’ve collected maybe a hundred lbs of lead that I planned to melt into bars for ballast. Might be a little more motivated to get to that task now.

Edit: Clint Chase commented on my CIY FB post that lead is not your friend in a capsize. He recommended water ballast bags. Probably a good tip. They're a little pricey, but if I'm going to do any serious cruising would probably be worth the investment.