Posted by Monty
The national celebrations are over. The fireworks have flown, the burgers have been consumed, drinks have been quaffed, children and adults alike are tired. Everyone is getting ready to go back to work. So are we.
We have been back for over a week now. Our plan was to leave the dock on July 1 and start living "on the hook", experiencing what it is like as true live aboard cruising folk, while keeping the slip for a couple more months to use as a home base if we needed. I was also thinking this might be a good place to be in the highly unlikely event of a hurricane. Most hurricanes hit the Caribbean and Florida, that's why a lot of cruisers have to be north of a certain point during hurricane season, or their insurance will not cover and losses. We have a couple on our dock that left the islands for that reason, and keep a slip here for hurricane season. We all know how that worked out.
Unfortunately, we have placed ourselves at the mercy of the guy who is replacing our dodger and bimini (these are the cover for the hatch, which has a "windshield" in it, and the cover over the helm station). He is also replacing the cushions inside as well as the berth. He started this project before we left to do the Doctor(s) Thing, and I had high hopes that he would be basically finished when we returned. Alas, it was not to be. To be fair, it rained for something like ten days straight while we were gone, and he, as well as the rest of the country, took some time off for Independence Day.
So did we. I brought down enough ports to finish replacing them all. I have engine maintenance to do. We need to rebed deck hardware. (The recent storm put an exclamation point on the freshwater leaks.) We need to scrape varnish off of teak. I need to work on my spare outboard and dinghy to get them in shape to sell. I have done a few small things, (see the post on the TV) but none of the major projects have been started. We are just taking time off.
That ends tomorrow. The canvas guy is scheduled to show in the morning. Hopefully I can get the maintenance and the things that really need to be done at the dock accomplished. Most of what is left can actually be done on the hook, so we will try to leave for one or two night overnighters this week. I'm sure we will need to meet up with the canvas guy again, but if I can get a dodger and bimini, we can get moving exploring local waters.
I think we are ready.
We have been back for over a week now. Our plan was to leave the dock on July 1 and start living "on the hook", experiencing what it is like as true live aboard cruising folk, while keeping the slip for a couple more months to use as a home base if we needed. I was also thinking this might be a good place to be in the highly unlikely event of a hurricane. Most hurricanes hit the Caribbean and Florida, that's why a lot of cruisers have to be north of a certain point during hurricane season, or their insurance will not cover and losses. We have a couple on our dock that left the islands for that reason, and keep a slip here for hurricane season. We all know how that worked out.
Unfortunately, we have placed ourselves at the mercy of the guy who is replacing our dodger and bimini (these are the cover for the hatch, which has a "windshield" in it, and the cover over the helm station). He is also replacing the cushions inside as well as the berth. He started this project before we left to do the Doctor(s) Thing, and I had high hopes that he would be basically finished when we returned. Alas, it was not to be. To be fair, it rained for something like ten days straight while we were gone, and he, as well as the rest of the country, took some time off for Independence Day.
So did we. I brought down enough ports to finish replacing them all. I have engine maintenance to do. We need to rebed deck hardware. (The recent storm put an exclamation point on the freshwater leaks.) We need to scrape varnish off of teak. I need to work on my spare outboard and dinghy to get them in shape to sell. I have done a few small things, (see the post on the TV) but none of the major projects have been started. We are just taking time off.
That ends tomorrow. The canvas guy is scheduled to show in the morning. Hopefully I can get the maintenance and the things that really need to be done at the dock accomplished. Most of what is left can actually be done on the hook, so we will try to leave for one or two night overnighters this week. I'm sure we will need to meet up with the canvas guy again, but if I can get a dodger and bimini, we can get moving exploring local waters.
I think we are ready.