Cruising Lake Harriet - A Sailing Resource

One of the things you quickly have to come to terms with if you sail on Lake Harriet is that that you have lots of ways to use electricity, and few ways to replenish it. The electric motor is the biggest draw, and the lack of shore power or a generator-equipped gas outboard rule out the obvious choices. That leaves you with taking the heavy battery home with you to charge, or solar trickle charging. With a solar panel and a little care, you can get through the entire season without having to remove your battery for recharging. Although you could mount it on the stern rail, or get a flexible unit that can mount to the cabin roof and be walked on, we figured that a inexpensive rigid panel, that can be used when at anchor and stowed while sailing would be best. This works great because most of the time, boats on Lake Harriet are at anchor and can be charging. If you were cruising full time, you might go another route. On our boat, we use the Coleman CL600 panel. For us, it's a good c

One of the biggest challenges faced by cruisers on Lake Harriet is the prohibition of Outboards. Because gas motors are NOT allowed by the city, you have to use an electric trolling motor. In almost any sense this is a compromise, as a typical 50-lb thrust motor generates the equivalent of about 0.75HP. For anyone used to having their boat pushed around with a 8HP motor, this can be daunting. In practice, however, it is rare when it becomes a problem on Lake Harriet, as we all go back to mooring buoys, which we can sail to. The size of the lake allows getting to the lee side in a strong blow. The biggest challenge is power management. The motor will be the biggest draw on your boat's 12V system, and a dead battery means either no way to get home, or no lights for the evening sail. You have for factor in how you plan to keep it charged. See this related article on power management HERE. . Regarding size, choose a 50-LB thrust as a minimum, and look at 24v as opposed to less effici