Broadsiders???

[jazzman]

I'm looking for opinions on living broadside (or north-east side), on Winni islands.

1. How many days a season do you fine yourself stuck on the island (or on the shore)?

2. How often do you find yourself freezing and wishing you lived someplace where the sun might shine for more than a couple hours a day?

3. Do you dare leave your nice boat unattended on the island during a storm (even with a breakwater)? Do you have mainland slips for your "nice" boat and your "work" boat?

4. How do you protect your dock in the winter?

Plus any other big pluses (I know... big view, lower cost) or minuses you might think of...

Me, I'm enthralled by the views and the raw nature of it all, but it's easy when you only visit on nice days.

[Webbsatwinni]

1. How many days a season do you fine yourself stuck on the island (or on the shore)?

Stuck on the island is more of an excuse to stay, but we have stayed on the island and stayed home based on wind, but it is rare. It depends on your intestinal fortitude and that of your guests.

2. How often do you find yourself freezing and wishing you lived someplace where the sun might shine for more than a couple hours a day?

Not often at all, we do find (I assume because of the water temp) that during the hot days the island is a better place to be than on the mainland. When we go out we need to remind ourselves to dress for the forecast not the island.

3. Do you dare leave your nice boat unattended on the island during a storm (even with a breakwater)? Do you have mainland slips for your "nice" boat and your "work" boat?

We have one boat so we do not leave it there alone. We have been there in very rough conditions without issue. I would not want to count on that though.

4. How do you protect your dock in the winter?

Bubbler, it keeps the ice from forming around the dock.

Plus any other big pluses (I know... big view, lower cost) or minuses you might think of...

The view! Watching the boats go by (only at 45mph, ugh). I would imagine the challenges are the same as other islands, plan ahead, learn to do without (some great recipes and games came from that part), only invite guests you like, etc

[Island Girl]

Originally Posted by jazzman

I'm looking for opinions on living broadside (or north-east side), on Winni islands.

1. How many days a season do you fine yourself stuck on the island (or on the shore)? I am a chicken so when the N, NW and W wind is over 12 mph I usually stay put. That is several days per season. Sometimes just part of the day. The reason for my webcam is to see the lake conditions before venturing out.

2. How often do you find yourself freezing and wishing you lived someplace where the sun might shine for more than a couple hours a day? A bad day at the lake is better than any day anywhere else. A nice wood fire... and lots of masking tape to seal out the breezes from my cranky sliding glass doors. In the winter... I wish I were someplace warm. One just has to be prepared... books and movies, projects to do, cooking, sleeping... watching a storm move across the lake!

3. Do you dare leave your nice boat unattended on the island during a storm (even with a breakwater)? No (I don't have a nice boat) I am either on the island with the boat tied well, or the boat is in its slip on the mainland and so am I. Do you have mainland slips for your "nice" boat and your "work" boat? Yes, a mainland slip for my boat. I always know I have a place for my boat. Launching every weekend is a real pain, so after the first year, a slip was acquired.

4. How do you protect your dock in the winter? Mine is a breakwater with embedded dock. I do nothing.

Plus any other big pluses (I know... big view, lower cost) or minuses you might think of... Silence, the Ossipee Mountains, hikes, living on the water and messing about with boats!

Me, I'm enthralled by the views and the raw nature of it all, but it's easy when you only visit on nice days. It is pretty on not so nice days. Learn to play scrabble. Sunrise over the lake... sunsets as well, a sudden big blow across the lake, crazy people on boats on super windy days, hanging out with someone you love, walking up island to visit friends, chores while looking at the pretty lake, going boating, swimming or jetskiing by just walking down to the dock... (no prep time). Everything requires a boat ride... great if you like boat rides! Going to different towns after dinner for ice cream by jetski, fishing... floating down the island, casting a rod... No cars and trucks, no street lights... heaven!

Nothing much more to add.... island life on the broads is not for everyone... but it is for me!

[IslandRadio]

Originally Posted by jazzman

I'm looking for opinions on living broadside (or north-east side), on Winni islands.

1. How many days a season do you fine yourself stuck on the island (or on the shore)?

"Stuck" is *usually* a good place to be I've never been stuck very long - once over a weekend in heavy fog, but if I "really" wanted to leave, I could have.... nice excuse to stay holed up!! Occasionally, the wind makes it dangerous to leave in all but the largest of boats.

2. How often do you find yourself freezing and wishing you lived someplace where the sun might shine for more than a couple hours a day?

Only during the winter Fire up the wood stove and cuddle up with someone special

3. Do you dare leave your nice boat unattended on the island during a storm (even with a breakwater)? Do you have mainland slips for your "nice" boat and your "work" boat?

Mainland slip: absolutely, definitely YES (West Alton Marina). Only have one power boat. We are not on the broads side, and in fact have a very protected place to keep the boat when on the Island. This is definitely more of an issue on the broads side. I would not leave a boat unless there were a VERY good mooring available - and even then, I'm not sure. I suppose a good 4 way tie and a breakwater would be acceptable protection.

4. How do you protect your dock in the winter?

Have 2 docks: the main dock is OUT of the water (crank up). The other dock is, unfortunately, not built this way, and finally sustained some significant damage this year. I share this dock with someone else, and we are going to modify it this year to be cranked out of the water like our main docks are once the water reaches a civilized temperature (for me that's about 80 degrees )

Plus any other big pluses (I know... big view, lower cost) or minuses you might think of...

The islands are JUST SO NICE. It's *really* getting away - no cars, no road noise, much more independent living; different kinds of people - I don't know - there's just something really special about the islands. I guess it's true - once and islander, always an islander. I've been an islander for a long time (on various islands around the lake).

Me, I'm enthralled by the views and the raw nature of it all, but it's easy when you only visit on nice days.

It's important to have good, useful stuff to do. There's daily hiking, possibly visiting other islanders at the same time if you're invited (all islanders are invited to stop by our place anytime!!), hobbies (I do amateur radio from the island and build equipment), reading and - hate to say it, but working from "home" (I do a lot of this). Of course, there are always "projects" - like building a bunkhouse, or fixing something

On nice days, sailing, swimming, more hiking, kayaking, etc...even on not-so-nice days for some of it.

Saturday nights at Wolfeboro can be a lot of fun (they have a summer concert series).... Other things - go to the Winnipesaukee Playhouse - this summer's offerings look VERY VERY good - may even buy a season ticket if they are available. Usually have to go to Funspot at least once or twice Hike Mount Major, go to the William Tell Inn (if they reopen) etc. etc. etc...

[Barney Bear]

This year is our forty-fith season at our cottage on East Bear Island. It is at a location that experiences a lot of "heavy" weather situations. We are somewhat protected from northwest to southwest winds. The worst weather comes from the east to southeast [usually wet] and windy.

We keep our boat at Fay's Boat Yard in Smith Cove in Gilford. Our route to the island is across the open stretch of water between Locke's Island and Timber and Round Islands. This area can be rough at times so we have had to stay at the boat yard on a few occasions [have slept in our car]. Also, we avoid going out on the lake in an electrical storm.

We have stayed on the island on a few occasions when the waves were too large. We wait until the wind calms down [usually in the evening for NW winds] or we leave at dawn the next morning.

Fog is rarely a problem. It usually burns off before mid-morning. We also have compass readings for our route. Last year, my wife and I waited on the mainland until we thought it was okay to go out to the island [partial visibility]. We got lost near Timber Island, and used the compass to help out. We now have our GPS ready.

Our best advice is to respect the lake. She can change her mood in a heartbeat.

[codeman671]

Jazzman,

I am in vicinity of Barney Bear and make the same run to Smith Cove. I have yet to find a day that I would not dare make the ride, but it all comes down to what you are driving, your confidence in its ability to hold up, and your experience to get through it. It can get a bit nastier consistently down on the Broads side, but I have seen days where it has been worse on our end as well.

Are you a confident boater? What are you planning on using for an island boat?

[jazzman]

Well, my boating has been limited to the 600 acre lake I live on now, so I wouldn't call myself a brave boater at this point... My biggest issue is getting docked in a strong side wind (I can only dock on one side of my dock and I tend to get blown past the dock). It's of course way easier with a helper. I could see this being a big challenge on the broadside of Rattlesnake or Diamond on a W through N wind. The real estate agents showing me properties have had problems docking out there at a few places.

I have a 22 foot Chaparral Sunesta now (from Fay's). If I end up on Rattlesnake, I've thought about getting an additional lightweight boat that I could just pull and leave in the RIA lot when I leave, but that would require leaving the "nice" boat to fend for itself when I'm not around. I hate the thought of paying 2k+ for a slip rental when I plan to pretty much live on the island from May-Sept.

I can deal with the occasional wind by staying put as long as my boat is safe.

I worry more about never seeing the sun on some of those densely treed Rattlesnake lots that face N or NE. It seems like there might be a lot more pleasant May/Sept days if you face S or SW. But then the views aren't as nice and they cost more... No easy solutions.

[IslandRadio]

One of my neighbors tried various ways to avoid getting a slip on the mainland. In the end, after trying the small boat - pull up at the RIA landing, and a couple of other ideas, they ended up at West Alton Marina.

I don't like paying the money either, but really, if you're on an island, you NEED to have a good boat available all the time, and you need a place to put it. IMHO, that is

[Webbsatwinni]

Originally Posted by IslandRadio

One of my neighbors tried various ways to avoid getting a slip on the mainland. In the end, after trying the small boat - pull up at the RIA landing, and a couple of other ideas, they ended up at West Alton Marina.

I don't like paying the money either, but really, if you're on an island, you NEED to have a good boat available all the time, and you need a place to put it. IMHO, that is

Agreed,

When we purchased, we planned to use RIA to launch and pull every time. That soon became and struggle with the gear, the trash, furniture, etc.
Also, beyond arriving and leaving, there are the little trips in between, if you have to run and get parts, food, DRINKS!, or anything else, having a place to park the boat for a quick trip is something that cannot be overlooked in your plans.

We ended up at WAM, while I hate paying for it as I can easily trailer, the convenience of not doing so is quickly realized.

[Rattlesnake Guy]

Jazzman, answers below.

Originally Posted by jazzman

I'm looking for opinions on living broadside (or north-east side), on Winni islands. The direction means the most depending on the island you live on. The longer the wave have to be influenced by the wind will have a HUGE effect on the size and style they achieve when they hit you. Long run in high wind can result in "rollers". Short run might mean white caps on much smaller peak to trough differences. We had been on the lake a year when we bought, but frankly gave no thought to the questions you asked. We got very Lucky because of the shape of the island and how it saves us from the "longest" direction. The waves can be 10x worse, just a 100 feet off our dock. The waves usualy pass with about a 10-20 degree shore impact which make s ahuge difference in energy.

1. How many days a season do you fine yourself stuck on the island (or on the shore)? In 10 years we have been stuck on shore maybe 3 times. We usually delay a few hours which can make a huge difference. We have not really ever been stuck on the island as we leave in what is usually a favorable direction. Boating in gaps in the radar is much more common reason to leave early or stay late. (We don't like getting wet anymore)

2. How often do you find yourself freezing and wishing you lived someplace where the sun might shine for more than a couple hours a day? As much as I love the fall, I am not a big fan of late October on the Island (compared to the rest of the year) This is really only an issue on rainy days which make it unfun to be outdoors. But in reality we go every single weekend anyway. In the spring we are just so darn happy to finally be out on the island, the cold does not bother us.

3. Do you dare leave your nice boat unattended on the island during a storm (even with a breakwater)? Do you have mainland slips for your "nice" boat and your "work" boat? We also have one boat. No break water. On the Broads side of Rattlesnake. We tie the boat on the north side of the dock and use a pair of over sized whips to keep the boat about 3 feet off the dock. The gentle spring action of the whips is the only reason we can really keep the boat tied to our dock about 10 days a season. We store the boat in a very protected cove on the main land and never worry about the boat in that well protected area no matter what the wind direction is.

4. How do you protect your dock in the winter? All three of our docks are tilt up. We remove the panels and crank them up. We had a neighbor who left the last pair of post dangling in the water last fall and their dock got taken out over the winter. The biggest cause of damage appears to be when the huge ice sections start moving (due to wind). A dock has to be pretty tough to resist this kind of force. In 10 years we have had no dock damage during the winter. We had the most in season damage last year when the hurricane blew from the east and pushed one of our docks about 3 feet to the side. We used to tie our dock panels down when the water got high. Now we just put a couple star head screws in each panel as soon as we set up in the Spring. This saves us the panic trip up in the middle of the worst weather to screw them down.

Plus any other big pluses (I know... big view, lower cost) or minuses you might think of... We absolutely love being on the rough side of the Island. It can make the trip out and back a little white knuckle but we really really like watching the constant change in the wave types and severity. It is amazing how many different water patterns happen in one day. RG just got a time lapse app for her phone and we hope to do a day on the island recording. To be fair I think it is more appropriate to say we are about 70 degrees to the worst wave direction. The waves go past us and bang the shore but not nearly as bad as other parts of the island. If we were turned about 45 degrees CCW, we would not be enjoying the island nearly as much without a break water.

Break waters can be expensive. You can use them as a very effective gauge of how bad the waves are on any section of any island. It might be the best barometer of how exposed and subject to wave pounding a given side of an island might be. If you are looking to buy on a section of island where most of your neighbors have breakwaters and you don't be very concerned. A trip around just about any island will have sections of regular docks and other sections where nearly everyone has a breakwater. If you want to come out in bad weather you probably need to "be like your neighbors".

Other stuff:
It is cheaper to buy. Taxes are lower for the same reason. No cars. A lot more work to transport a gallon of milk from the grocery store to your fridge on the island. Tougher for visitors. (both good and bad) More challenging for contractors. (I am a do just about everything myself kind of guy.) You need to plan ahead well or learn to do without. When the power goes out, they don't just drive a big truck out to fix it.

Me, I'm enthralled by the views and the raw nature of it all, but it's easy when you only visit on nice days. The nice days are great but the bad days are worth it as well.