RYC Breakwater Project

RYC News

2007-04-14T22:14:00.000-04:00

For anyone interested in current information concerning the Rothesay Yacht Club please visit:

http://rycnews.blogspot.com/

Otherwise please enjoy an archive of our 2006/2007 Breakwater Project blog.

Regards,
Greg

Done

2007-03-19T15:14:00.000-04:00

So that is it. Next stop, Launch 2007!

Thanks to everyone who visited this Blog and for all those who gave feedback. And a especially big thanks to Bruce Tennant for his regular contribution of photo's.

According to Hugh's report on Sunday evening, everything is complete as per the contract. We still have many tasks to do such as installing the zinc anodes on the sheet pile, installing the mast stepper on the new base, building and installing the new gangway for the launch pad area, preparing additional electrical boxes for the new docks, installing the pump-out station, pounding over 100 pilings, launching the docks, including new ones, and then installing the services everyone expects. WOW! That is quite a list and no doubt there are other things to do.

Needless to say, this all cannot be done by two, or even 10, people. We are a volunteer club and to have a timely launch, with berths ready to go for the warm weather, we will all have to work together.

The budget for 2007 has been completed, the fixture card will be available soon and John Boyd starts in two weeks. Please consider how you would like to participate and then contact the appropriate director. To see a list of the directors and their contact information, click HERE.

Thanks again for visiting, and have a Great Summer!

Greg

Photo's Bruce

2007-03-19T15:08:00.000-04:00

Update

2007-03-12T08:59:00.000-04:00

We walked down to the Breakwater last evening. It is very nice that the weather has warmed up enough to comfortably get out in the evening. Now with the later sunsets, we will be able to work on our boats longer. I find sailors get a little fidgety when things start to melt and the snow disappears of the boat covers. I know, they are forecasting snow on Thursday, but I guy can dream!?!

If you haven't made it down to the project lately you probably haven't seen all the cement that has been poured over the past couple of weeks. And by the looks of it much of it will never be seen again. I am speaking of the sheet pile support blocks that are tied with a long metal rod to the back of the sheet pile. The are substantial. Once they are buried, they will be out of sight. The one large cement block that will be seen for a long time is the foundation for the gangway.

There was an interesting phenomenon we saw last evening. The 80% of the ice in the inner harbour was covered with water - probably 6 or 8 inches. It must have been run-off as it was muddy coloured. It was flowing across the ice near 'A' dock and running into a crack in the ice beside the wharf.

When I get an update from the Breakwater Committee, I will post it here. From a major construction point of view things are starting to wind down. We will see more detail work being done. If anyone has any interesting photo's, please don't hesitate to send them to me.

Launching Pad

2007-03-02T14:25:00.000-04:00

The Sheet Pile has been driven into place, never to move again! They have anchored it back to a huge concrete block that has been poured in place. You will see the tie rods that stretch from the sheet pile, back about 25 feet, to the block. It will all be buried soon. We won't see the concrete block. This is where the boats will be launched, the mast stepper will be installed, and the gangway down to the floating docks (dock "C" maybe?) will be attached.

Bruce provided the photo's. The dates they were taken can be see superimposed on each picture. In this post it goes from newest to oldest.

Pouring Cement. They insulated it after they were done. It generates enough heat that is sets properly as long as it is insulated.

The vertical green pipe is for the mast stepper.

The sheet pile looks nice and straight in this shot

Some finishing touches.

The sheet pile was very ragged across the top edge before they cut it level.

Sheet Pile

2007-02-20T09:56:00.000-04:00

As you will see from the photo's, there are some big changes happening now. According to Hugh Scarth, the Sheet Pile could be done this week, weather and equipment permitting. Bruce provided the photo's and included a note that the I-beams that can be seen in the photo's are there on a temporary basis. They are being used to provide support for the scaffolding and will be removed as the sheet-pile will be self supporting. If anyone has any other info, please pass it on.

Looks like our own version of 'Big Sky Country'

Correct me if I'm wrong but I think this is more of a

Pile vibrator!?! The combination of vibration and

weight cause the sheet pile to gradually sink into

the soil.

First Pile

North-South face

This is a good photo as it shows the 'face' of the

dock where boats will be launched in the spring.

The 'face' is to the left of the gentlemen in the red

coveralls and stretches up towards the club. The
orientation of this section is north-south.

In this photo they have turned the corner to begin

the east-west portion of the sheet pile. This section

will be where a new gangplank will eventually

be installed to the docks, running parallel, and

attached, to the breakwater.

Bi-Law Committee Update (And Breakwater Pictures)

2007-02-16T13:38:00.001-04:00

Bi-Law Committee Update

The Bi-Law committee met for the 3rd time last evening. It was nice that we were able to get the 5 committee members all together! Our next meeting is scheduled for March 25. Everyone seems to feel we are making positive progress on the review, and to quote George: "My initial thoughts were that this was going to be a laborious task of going through a bunch of 'legaleze' but I've found the discussions to be excellent, with full input from everyone." If the work to date is any indication, the Board and membership will see positive results from the effort put into the process by the committee.

Breakwater...

Any of you who has been down to the wharf will have seen a lot more activity. Irving Equipment has set-up to begin installing the sheet pile.

I understand from Bruce (who provided the photo's) that it was really blowing down there - and as many of us know, that is nearly a 10 mile stretch of open ice - not much to slow it down!

Hey, what happened to Long Island - I know it's out there somewhere! I wouldn't be surprised if they saw
a couple of ice shacks scooting by...

See the wind blowing the snow across the
road in front of the club!?!

Breakwater Update

2007-02-15T11:00:00.000-04:00

Busy time of year! Thank you to Bruce for finding some interesting photo's of the project (see the previous post for these photo's).

Here is the latest from Hugh Scarth:

Anchor Blocks are being installed. 5 of the 7 have been completed
Sheet Pile is going to begin soon
They do not work in temperatures below -20C due to risk of damage to equipment
There will be installed a 12" vertical pipe for the mast stepper prior to back filling around the Sheet Pile
The mast stepper will need to be re engineered to work with the new base and it is expected that a stay system will be used to support it. The good news is due to the location of the stepper, the guy wires should not be in the way.

I noticed some activity down at the site today. It was quite a shock to see a crane on the wharf - Last time I saw that there were boats too - but not today. I think they are getting prepared to begin the installation of the Sheet Pile (but I will confirm that).

Crane on site - Feb 15

Progress as of Feb 12. The end 1/3 of the breakwater is at
the final height and will extend, at this height, to the where
the pavement ends at the road.

Bruces Photo's

2007-02-15T08:56:00.000-04:00

Photo Update - From Bruce Tennant

2007-02-07T22:39:00.000-04:00

Not much news to report but thanks to Bruce for braving the cold to bring us some up-to-date pictures.

We have an RYC Board meeting scheduled for Sunday evening and there will be an update on the project provided at that time. I will pass on what I learn, via the Blog, early next week.

So the Shubenacadie Sam didn't see his shadow. I know sailors aren't superstitious so we don't need to worry about that anyway. Environment Canada did announce last week that the temperature was going to be colder in February, and "average" for the period February to April, so I guess that means March and/or April will be warmer than usual. Now, I took a look at Environment Canada's web site and they indicate they are right with their 3 month forecast between 45% and 50% of the time. I have also heard that the Groundhog is right around 40% to 50% of the time. Hmmm?!?

Looking at Kennebecasis & Mather Islands and the
Kingston Peninsula off across the ice.
Nice photo Bruce! The clouds don't seem real.

You can see one of the forms for the concrete pad
to the right of the worker

Behind the machine; that should be the finished
height. Wow, pretty impressive!

That should cut down on the waves and the wind.

What is the old saying? "Measure twice, cut once!"

Concrete Pad Installation

2007-02-01T15:40:00.000-04:00

There is some real work being done on the breakwater now. Have a look at some of the photo's provided by Bruce today. They are working on the concrete pads that will be used to eventually attach the floating docks to. Keep in mind that installing docks along the full length of the breakwater is another phase of the project. The plan this year is to install a few docks that will be temporarily used for loading and unloading. Of course, circumstances change so...stay tuned.

In the photo's below we see them working on the second of 7 pads. The light base has already been poured.

Ever so slightly, you can see the bales of hay at the
end of the breakwater. They are there to insulate the Pad
that has been installed as the foundation for the
breakwater navigation light

A form for the concrete pad. Note the rebar in the box.
It is there for future attachment points

Pouring concrete out here is a multi-step process

Once the concrete hardens, the excavator will place
armour stone around the blocks to further secure
them within the breakwater structure

Progress Comparison & J24's

2007-01-29T21:11:00.000-04:00

As you can see from the picture below, we've had to expand the scope of the photo's to include the end of the breakwater.

Oops! Thought I had left enough room when I started

taking pictures

Continued work with the Armour Stone

(click for a more detailed picture)

On a totally different note... I was at Poley yesterday (what a beautiful winter day) and ran into some old friends from the Shediac Bay Yacht Club - Jamie Storey and Paul Poirier. Some of you who sail on the RYC Cruise may remember Jamie. His family have been long-time sailors in Shediac and he has been a guest of Phil Pugsley at various times on various cruises. Paul is an old neighbour of ours from Grand Digue and sails a beautiful Tartan 3500, including taking a run with his wife, three kids and their dog, to the Magdalen Islands last summer. Jamie and Paul proudly told me that Shediac will be hosting the J24 Canadian Nationals this summer (August 3rd thru the 5th.) That should be some exciting racing! (Link to the web site)

Does anyone know if there are any teams or crew from the Saint John area headed to Shediac for this event? If so, post a comment or send an e-mail and I'll put their names on the Blog (and any other pertinent information - boat name, photo, etc.)

Photo Update - From Bruce Tennant

2007-01-29T20:30:00.000-04:00

A quick post of the lastest photo's from Bruce. As usual, you can click on the photo to make them larger.

The Bitter End - Armour Rock Begins

2007-01-25T12:28:00.000-04:00

So we've reached the 'Bitter End'! Not, in the BVI's I'm afraid, but the end of the breakwater. This should be a time of celebration! Now the delicate work begins of placing each and every stone in place as they work their way back.

Thanks for the photo's. How thick is the ice, Bruce?

So, should it be Armor or Armour? Can anyone help with that?

And in case you missed it, there was a Breakwater Committee update on Jan 18. (Click to Link)

Better adjust your waypoints for those foggy trips back
from Scouts Beach. Grey Rocks, Grey Fog, Grey Goose
- a recipe for disaster!

They have brought in the heavy equipment. Nice angle
of the photos, Bruce. That's a long walk out there!

Wanted: Man with a delicate touch!

I understand they built the pyramid's by hand. Judging
by the water temperature, that would explain why there
are no pyramid's on the Kennebecasis.

100 Meters - Jan 22

2007-01-23T10:43:00.000-04:00

So I guess that means I won't be getting back that tunbuckle that was dropped overboard when I was rigging my mast a few years ago!?!

100 m mark. 10-15 more meters to go.

They are having to spend time now moving the ice
out of the way so they don't bury the ice (and have
it melt later, causing all kinds of problems)

Pictures - Jan 17th to 21st

2007-01-21T23:00:00.000-04:00

Not a lot new since the last Project Update on Jan 18 (Link). Here are some photo's thanks to Bruce Tennant. Lots of snow and ice.

The black lump in the foreground is the silt boom

This photo was taken with a telephoto lens so
"objects are farther than they appear"

Don't try this at home. And you won't be able to walk
to the end of the breakwater when the project is
finished. There will be a pile of rocks all the way
out on top of this road, and a fence will be erected.

Look at the photo before this one, then think about
trying to back out a truck, this wide, when everything
seems white. But the driver probably think docking
a sailboat in a strong cross-wind would be a challenge
too. It is nice that everyone has something different
they are good at.

This picture is clearer when you click on it
(click on image for a larger version)

A Cool Project Update

2007-01-18T11:04:00.000-04:00

With everything moving along well, and in the interest of not damaging equipment, they decided not to work yesterday, and were still considering what to do today. A decision was to be made at 10:00 AM. (Update: Work continues on the breakwater today)

Thank you to Hugh Scarth for a comprehensive set of minutes from the meeting with Valley Excavation last evening. Here is the synopses:

The breakwater is out to 95 meters at this point. Of course the full length will be 120 m, keeping in mind that the visible length (above the normal water levels) will be about 114 m.
They are using the amount of fill that they expected.
The angle of the wharf is well within tolerance.
They estimate that the "completion of the core, crowning and placement of the armour stone" will take about 3 weeks if all goes well.
That will be when they continue work on the launch and haul pad and driving of the sheet pile. It is estimated this will take 2 to 3 weeks.
Consideration is being made for the placement and support of the mast boom.

A cold spell puts things on hold. The two week
forecast is for warmer daytime highs.

Pictures - Jan 10th to 15th

2007-01-17T23:00:00.000-04:00

Some photo's from Bruce Tennant. Click on any of them to see the full size.

First Armour Stone

2007-01-15T10:53:00.000-04:00

In the picture below you can see the progress as of 8:30 AM, today. In addition you can see the larger armour stone that has been placed on the west side of the wharf section (in line with power pole, between the first and second pylons - click on the photo for a larger view.) Eventually there will be armour stone nearly everywhere.

If anyone has any questions on the project, please feel free to leave a comment, and I will do my best to find the answer.

Wharf progress - photo taken from flag pole in front of club

(click on photo for larger image)

Visible Progress

2007-01-10T15:34:00.000-04:00

If you haven't been down lately, there has been a significant change in the breakwater's length as can be seen by this photo looking back to Dec 19, 2006.

Images taken from Rothesay Park Rd. (click for larger image)

Note: Photo added to Jan 7 "Council Meeting" post.

Just Photo's

2007-01-09T17:01:00.000-04:00

Wow, the Club is getting farther and farther away!?!

Can anybody figure out what the weather is going to do next?

Thanks for the photo's Bruce!

Council Meeting

2007-01-08T21:03:00.000-04:00

I understand the there have been large numbers of members of the club and members of the community down viewing the progress. But please keep out of the way of the truck traffic. They are a necessary part of the project and we certainly don't want to have any incidents!!! For those of you who are too busy or two far away to visit, we are pleased to provide you updates.

Rothesay Town Council Meeting:
According to the presentation given by Mitch Sanscartier at the Rothesay Town Council meeting this evening, 75 meters of the 120 meters has been completed out into the river. As mentioned previously, once the full length has been completed, the contractor will begin to build the material up and deliberately place the much larger 'armour stone' along the sides of the breakwater. Mitch, Hugh and I attended the Rothesay Town Council meeting this evening where we were presented with their previously committed contribution to the project. $50,000! That is a great way to start the year!

Hugh Scarth, Greg Colpitts, Mayor Bill Bishop and Mitch Sanscartier

Photo credit: KVStyle

Thank you to Bruce Tennant for these photo's:

Wharf Committee Update

2007-01-04T06:14:00.000-04:00

I was fortunate to be able to attend the Wharf Committee meeting last evening. It was a great opportunity to make sure things were going in the right direction, both literally and figuratively! The good news is we are!!

There have been a number of excellent questions put forward by various interested members of the RYC. I will attempt to answer the top questions. If there is something I'm missing, please leave a comment and I'll do my best to get to the bottom of it.

1) The height of the breakwater is lower now that it will be when it is complete. The reason for that is that it needs to be wide enough for the trucks and excavator to get out to the end. When they have reached the end, they will start to build up the material to the predetermined level. That level, by the way, is the same height as where the wharf (old wharf) met the asphalt.

2) We are going to extend out the full 120 meters!!! That is great news! Our ability to do this is thanks to the generous support of the Regional Development Corporation and the Town of Rothesay.

3) Part of the contract is to place Armour Stone around the Breakwater. There is NO Armour Stone in place yet. This will be done after the breakwater reaches the full 120 m. They do this stone by stone and plan to bring in a larger excavator. Murray, from Valley Excavators, says they hope to have a machine with a "thumb" on it to help "place" each stone.

4) The angle of the wharf as it extends into the river is correct. In Tuesday's post (Jan 2nd) there is a photo of two stakes that have been placed as a "range" for the centre of the extended breakwater. These stakes were placed there by Fundy Engineering.

So that is the update for today. And as I have suggested before, please leave any comments or questions by clicking the "comments" at the bottom of each post!

Another load of the smaller stone being dumped on Wednesday morning

A couple of photo's from Bruce Tennant taken on Tuesday

Happy New Year

2007-01-02T12:47:00.000-04:00

Updated Jan 4 - see below
Happy New Year to you and your family. 2007 promises to be quite a year for the RYC. A New Breakwater, 100 year celebrations and many new members will be hard to top!

The 2007 New Years Levee was very well attended. There were over 50 people in attendance. And there was a nice mix of new and long-time members there.

Thank you to all who made it down!

And thank you needs to go out to Michel Sanscartier for putting so much time into the preparation. And we always should acknowledge Sissy Scarth for her tireless committment as Social Director for the club.

A member inspects the work.

When I find out what these stakes
mean, I'll post an explanation.
UPDATE: this is a range for lining up the
construction - see Jan 4 post item #4
(click for a larger image)

Donna and Sissy enjoying the fireplace.

Odette and Gord, with the crowd in the background.

If anyone has any other comments or photo's they would like to share, feel free to pass them on!

Construction On Pause

2006-12-29T15:47:00.000-04:00

No work happening on the Breakwater this week. The plan it for the work to recommence on January 2nd. Judging by all the emails going back and forth, the wharf committee doesn't take a Christmas Break. It is interesting how much work needs to go on behind the scenes on a project of this magnitude.

(As always, you can click on any of the photo's for a larger view.)

The obvious slope is to allow for the trucks to back-out
on the breakwater and allow the excavator to work
as well. It is not the finished grade.

The barrier is up - no work on the breakwater until the
new year.

Now I'm glad my boat is out of the water! The 'lumps' in
the fore-ground are the silt booms piled up. Maybe
they're easier to move when their frozen!?!

Google Maps (Arial View)

2006-12-27T21:15:00.000-04:00

I hope everyone is not Turkeyed out!?! Lots of snow in Moncton so it looks pretty plain here in Rothesay. They're madly making snow at Poley Mountain - we saw the lights from the highway on our way through Sussex coming back from a day of shopping in Moncton and sliding in Memeramcook (parents and children, respectively).

Here is a recommended link to Google Maps of the Yacht Club.

http://www.google.ca/maps?f=q&amp;hl=en&ie=UTF8&t=h&om=1&z=16&ll=45.39185,-65.999379&spn=0.009117,0.022681

It provides a good view from the sky before the construction of the breakwater started. Do you see your boat? Your mooring? Can anyone tell what Year? Month? Day? this photo was taken? I'd be interested to hear your comments!

Also, please let me know if you have any trouble with the link. It works for me but I acknowledge it is rather long. If you want to leave a comment, click on "comments" at the bottom of each Post. To make it simple, it will send the comment directly through Blogger, rather than by using your email.

Note on your calendar, only 5 days to the Levy.

Plan View

2006-12-24T09:43:00.000-04:00

I've had a request for a view of what we expect the breakwater to look like when it is done. Here is a plan view of the breakwater project. (Not to be used for navigational purposes!)

Breakwater with existing floating dock sections
shown to the right. (Click for larger image)

Breakwater with artist rendering of extended floating
dock sections. Not necessarily to scale or final layout.
(Click for larger image)

Lunch Time Friday

2006-12-22T15:11:00.000-04:00

More activity on the breakwater. Photo Credit: Mike Brennan

From Bruce Tennant

2006-12-22T12:52:00.000-04:00

Some photo's from Bruce.

Visible Progress

2006-12-22T09:24:00.000-04:00

As things start to wind-down (or should that be wind-up) for Christmas we can see continued growth in the Breakwater. As mentioned yesterday, Valley Excavators has received permission to remove the silt boom, by the Department of Fisheries. According to Melanie MacLean, Habitat Assessment Biologist from Fisheries and Oceans Canada Bedford Institute of Oceanography, "Monitoring of suspended sediments has revealed that sediment levels in Kennebecasis Bay have not raised significantly as a result of the work being conducted by the Rothesay Yacht Club." That is good for the environment and good for the project.

According to Gordon Mouland of Fundy Engineering, not having to deal with the silt boom should help make up time that was lost in November due to the unusually high water.

Making progress - view from Rothesay Park Rd.
(click on photo for larger view)

Winter Solstice

2006-12-21T10:55:00.000-04:00

Only 6 months until summer. Winter arrives at 8:22 PM this evening but you would hardly know it. It was bright, calm and warm (0 degrees C) at the club this morning.

They were working on the silt boom this morning - see the motorboat on the right of the breakwater, below. A couple more loads of rock arrived while I was there.

Workboat removing silt boom.

Wait a minute - what's that in the water - a sea dog?

No, it is a body!

Actually it is Lorne Williams from Cores Dive. Cores Dive has the sub-contract to manage the silt boom. Today they were removing it as the is no longer an concern that the material being placed is will not have small particulate. Lorne was pulling the sheet of felt around the breakwater up and securing it to the floats with the yellow poly line so they can move it to shore.

Diver Lorne Williams - a pretty happy guy, considering
he is up to his neck in close-to freezing water!

But don't feel too bad for Lorne - he said he will be going south, with much warmer water, in the near future!

Pulling up anchors and pulling boom to shore.

Making Ice

2006-12-20T13:56:00.000-04:00

Not much change in the breakwater today. But as you can see the river is starting to make Ice.

Ice along the inner harbour. Note that the East side of the wharf

is encapsulate in rock. (click on photo to enlarge)

News from Town of Rothesay

2006-12-19T11:31:00.000-04:00

Congratulations to all who have been involved, directly and indirectly, in securing the funding from both the Town of Rothesay and RDC (Regional Development Corporation)!

That is $70,000 in the past two weeks! Wow!

The details on the $50,000 from the Town of Rothesay is in the Telegraph Journal today (Dec 19th). An article on the project, with reference to the $20,000 from RDC is in the Telegraph Journal yesterday (Dec 18th).

(Sorry, I don't have the expressed written consent of the paper to republish the article on the Blog. One doesn't want the media mad, does One?!?)

Looking at the work from Rothesay Park Rd.

8:20 AM, Dec 19, 2006

Week of December 11-15, 2006

2006-12-18T11:52:00.000-04:00

These are some photo's from Bruce Tennant from last week. Bruce has agreed to photographically document the construction process. Thanks Bruce!

Note the "boom" in the photo's below. I was out in my aluminum boat on Sunday morning (that's another story). Only after a closer inspection did I realize that these were not just something floating on the surface. It is actually it is a huge 'blanket' of felt that is suspended at the surface by the floats, and it extends under water to the bottom. It is resting on the bottom and weighted down by chain. If you are down there sometime, you might notice the water is murkier on the inside of the boom, versus the river itself. So that it why it is called a 'Silt Boom'

By the way, it was beautiful down there Sunday morning. It was -1 Celsius when I left the house at 7:30 AM, and the wind was calm. The water was cold but it is interesting to remember four years ago Odette, Ryan and I were skating on 12 inches or more of ice out here on Dec 25th!

Taken Saturday Morning

2006-12-16T14:08:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Mike Brennan. You can click on the photo to see them in full size.

This photo is looking North along the East side of the
wharf, where the black dock normally spent the summer.

This view looks down the river towards
Grand Bay (West). This is the face of the
wharf. We are now moving into 'new territory'!

First Posting

2006-12-15T10:03:00.000-04:00

As Mike Brennan mentioned on Wednesday, the work has started at the club! I will provide some recent photo's as the work progresses. Here is what it looked like this morning: