Looking Back - Spring Prep: Bubble Hatching, Rigging & Dinghy Prep

Sitting here in Boston Harbor on a 89 degree day, this past winter feels like a VERY distant memory! It seems New England just sort of skipped over spring again this year we went from 40 and raw to 90 and humid - whew! Though we, for one, are not complaining. This winter was one for the ages for us. I swear I was showing signs of PTSD (see photo right) after surviving this FRIGID winter aboard in Maine. I never trusted that the weather was actually going to get nice again, I kept waiting for the temps to drop and the snow to fall. Whew, I am so, so happy that summer is here (though I still have a heater ready to deploy in the aft cabin, just in case!)

I promised that we'd revisit all the preparations done this spring for this sailing season. We both admitted that we got A LOT later start to the prep this year than last, mostly because this was the winter that would never end! It was cold, rainy and cruddy most of spring, so cold that we needed our heat on! Our minds were not even thinking sailing so, needless to say, we were delayed. Finally in mid-April the weather gods were with us on a weekend and we hatched from our bubble. Once again, nothing felt better than taking the knife to that plastic shrinkwrap that encapsulated us all winter and springing forth into the sunshine and seabreeze! Becoming a boat again instead of a wrapped up floating apartment! 

We also had a professional sailboat rigger down to the boat for a looksee. We never had a rigging survey conducted and we knew our standing rigging (the mast, the stays, chainplates, etc. all the things that help hold the mast up) was a bit worn. Paul, the rigger, did tell us she was showing her age, OK, but old. He suggested that before we cast off to the islands we should consider putting on a new rig, we are starting to save up to do that this Fall/Winter. It's a lot of money and a big project but there's nothing more important than your rig on a sailboat, no one wants to deal with rigging failures "out there".  

B.O.A.T. = Break Out Another Thousand

We (stupidly) left our dinghy in the water all winter and she was a little worse for wear. The engine was happily kept aboard but the boat was covered in an array of very interesting species. The wiggly, squirmy wormy things were moving around and not excited to be seeing sunlight. Armed with a scraper and some magic elixir from the dollar store I set to work. It came out SOOOO clean and sparkly, I was quite proud of my handywork. 

Tim then set out to do some outboard engine maintenance with our boat neighbor Brendan's help.  Some lube, some oil filters and a wiggle and waggle and the old Evinrude sprung back to life! Of course after a day of dinghy work the boys had to try them out so they zipped across the river to Martingale Wharf while I walked over the bridge. We sat at the outdoor fire pit and enjoyed the view we knew we'd be leaving soon. 

Casting off into the Piscataqua River 

The boys did have a 'hiccup' on their way back across the river due to water in our dinghy's gas tank. We've since bought a new 6-gallon tank and the problem's resolved. 

We spent a lot of spring also soaking up all the things we loved about the place we called home for the last 8 years before moving to Boston - hitting our favorite bars, cockpit cocktails, dinner with friends, loving on this little seaside town. 

Friday seisiun at The Press Room - always a favorite 

Great nights with friends at favorite bars, Rusty Hammer 

Portsmouth just takes away your breath away sometimes...reminds me of NOLA...

The obligatory Portsmouth Tug Boat Photo 

Saying goodbye to great winter boat neighbors aboard "House Cat", Celie and Jennings, they're anchored up in Great Bay this summer! 

Late night beers in the cockpit with the Naval Shipyard off our bow 

There's more spring projects to report on...NEXT UP...Ground Tackle Upgrade. Stay tuned...

Winter Projects Completed!

Well we narrowly escaped a late season Nor'Easter yesterday and though it was QUITE a bumpy, rolly night aboard we were so thankful for NO SNOW! Winds topped out with 55+mph gusts in the middle of the night but our crew was safe and feeling quite secure. So much has changed in a year, we've all become a lot braver and more comfortable with the sounds and feelings of big winds. Not too complacent because aboard a boat, complacency leads to disasters but we were aware and alert, and secure. 

All that being said this NEVER ENDING winter is carrying on - we've come up with a new vocabulary to describe our exhaustion, frustration and outright hatred for winter. We are hoping the temps will finally get above 45 (they haven't since October) this weekend so we can start to prep for our move south. We're hoping to burst forth from the bubble next weekend and get to work on prepping the engine, rigging the sails, scrubbing the decks and on and on. We're hosting our own 'Fare the Well' party under the bubble this Saturday so we can say goodbye to our fabulous Portsmouth friends. We're planning a make-your-own painkiller bar, chowder in the crockpit & many great friends packed under the bubble. 

Last year's Bubble Party - we topped out at 20 people under the bubble! 

We've also been checking some things off our to-do/improvement lists. Winter is a great time to accomplish those projects in the cabin, our living space because the decks and rigging are inaccessible due to the bubble. We had a few major things we wanted done this year mostly involving bathrooms and plumbing. Tim admitted that he never realized just how much plumbing he'd be doing living on a boat. 

First up...Aft Bathroom Improvements.

The aft head is right off of our bedroom and it's the main spot we use. I'd wanted to improve it since we moved aboard, make it a bit more personal and 'spa-like'. This was the first "improvement" project that we've done that was simply aesthetic. Up till now we'd done a lot of maintenance, upgrades, updates and necessities, this bathroom project was our first beautification project. I was the project lead and I had a very specific inspiration in mind. So here's the before...

Blah - all white and BORING! 

YAY for improvements! 

First we installed a bead board headliner on the ceiling

This was a big change for Tim who's typically the project lead on things, this was my job, start to finish and my vision. In order to paint we had to do a lot of wall prep. The walls were originally plastic and used to wick off water since there was a handheld shower attached to the sink. We have built a full shower in the front head(see next story) so we disconnected the shower operation in the aft bathroom. There was sanding, two coats of primer and then finally the paint. I'm not the most thorough or patient painter, lucky for me Tim is. He was just short of a pushy superintendent making sure I did everything perfectly, blue taped impeccably, didn't have any 'holidays'. Needless to say, there were some tense words while I crammed into a bathroom with a wet paintbrush and there may have been a schmear or two on someone, including a furry someone's tail. 

My vision...Sun, sand & sea...

Found these great turquoise Ball jars & used plumbers' clamps to mount to the wall 

We removed the old sanitary treatment controls
and it left a big hole, so I got some color coordinated
shells & a perfectly sized basket to fill the hole

New towel ring & painted frame of my sunrise
from Byron Bay, Australia 

New faucet, so much better than 2 handles
less scalding of faces! 

Perfectly coordinated bath mat & the best addition
a TP holder! Hadn't had any TP holder before
so dry TP is quite awesome - it's the little things!

My turquoise accent wall with a sea fan and sea star as decoration, late afternoon sun streaming in

FRESH WATER PUMP UPGRADE 

Staying on the faucet/plumbing theme we were forced to replace and upgrade our fresh water pump. The system that takes the fresh water from the tanks and pressurizes it to come out of the faucets. It's quite clutch because without it we don't have any running water. The old pump was from 1983 - we were 3 years old when that thing was installed on Zephyr. The old pump was also incredibly loud, sounded like jack hammer and with Tim getting up every morning at 5:15AM a quieter pump was quite appreciated. 

This little pump holds a whole lot of power and necessity 

The tools & the plumber extraordinaire - another Saturday, another project!
Note the headlamp - key for any engine room projects! 

NEW KITCHEN FAUCET...

Another pet peeve since we moved aboard was our kitchen (galley) sink. It was another sink with 2 separate handles rather than one mixer. This led to water waste and often scalded hands from the hot water running before the pump turned on to pump cooler water. The mixer is key! One thing we learned...faucets AREN'T CHEAP! We couldn't believe how expensive these things are. Though the interactions with staff at Home Depot or Lowe's is always interesting when they ask where we live! We know new galley faucet isn't exactly important for sailing performance but it is something that makes living aboard so much better. 

Contorting  to screw nuts with multiple wrenches at the ready. 

The new sink faucet - the other pump to the right is a salt water flush system that we use when
cruising to save water while doing dishes and the other nozzle is our drinking water. OH -and HI TOBY!

And last plumping improvement...AN ONBOARD SHOWER! 

Since we've moved aboard we've packed up all our stuff into bags and trekked up the docks to the marina shower facilities. Though it hasn't been awful on those 2 degree mornings with slushy snow it's not the best. When we decided to build an on board shower we wanted to build something a bit more substantial than the typical boat shower which normally involves a hose with a small shower head coming out from the bathroom sink - so you shower over the toilet and soak the entire head. Though not terrible, for living aboard full-time we really thought we'd like to have something a bit more like a shower in a house. The more we can make living on the boat comfortable and soothing the less likely we'll grow frustrated and move onto terra firma and the shower was a serious part of that. 

The project started in October when we pulled out the forward bathroom's toilet, opening up more floor space for the shower stall and then the project doubled and then tripled in size. We ended up plumbing a full mixing valve with full shower controls. We had to buy a specially designed shower curtain tracking system and upgrade the sump pump (the drain that you push to function once you're done showering). We joke that this shower is approaching $1,000 in parts! But boy does it feel amazing to shower in your own home! To roll out of bed without having to put on boots, coats, hats, scarfs, to walk up to the shower is a thing of glory. Now, don't fool yourselves, it's not some luxurious spa like experience - it's still a "Navy Shower". Water on to wet yourself, water off, lather up, water on to rinse off, water off and you're done! Water conservation is still vital aboard the boat and only something that we have to get better at as we set off to go cruising. But you realize that you don't need a 45 minute shower to feel fresh and clean, 5 minutes is plenty. Just another awesome life lesson living aboard a boat teaches you - you CAN live with less - in this case, water. 

We still want to 'beautify' this space with some paint and teak accents 

The $75 shower curtain tracking system & "State of The Art" shower curtain

So now, the winter of cabin projects starts to come to an end the spring of sailing projects starts back up! There's NEVER an end to the work on a boat but we LOVE it that way! Constant challenge, continuous improvements and lots of satisfaction in our abilities. Next blog post - our Spring to-do list! Until then...it's time to celebrate! 

Preparing to Move

So one of the best things about life aboard a boat - moving to new 'neighborhoods' now and again. When we're full time cruising in a few years this will be commonplace but until then we're in a seasonal switcheroo process here. This weekend we'll be moving from our winter marina in Kittery, Maine to our summer 'home', the Wentworth Marina in New Castle, New Hampshire. We spent last September and October at the Wentworth and we're REALLY excited to get back there in full season. Not to mention the tennis courts, pool & tiki bar and dockside restaurant - yea, it's high living! Plus, going sailing is a lot easier because we don't have the mighty Piscataqua with it's crazy current and tides to contend with. 

Yes, this is pool at the Wentworth - Hello Summer!

We're going to miss Kittery - the great stores and restaurants and the wonderful community we came to love at the Marina. We are NOT going to miss the constant construction noise from the Memorial Bridge project or the boat wakes knocking our home around. Our boat neighbors who do the switcheroo as well say the Wentworth is like the country and Badgers Island is like the city...so, we're excited to get back to the country! 

Of course in preparation to move there's a lot to be done. Sure, it's not like packing up a whole apartment or anything but it'll be the first time the boat's gone out since we moved her in the beginning of November. Though we don't have to 'recommission' the boat like most New England sailors are doing right now we do have a lot of systems that still need checking and double checking. Plus the ridiculous web of dock lines that have been built through the winter winds and storms will FINALLY be untangled and cast off. 

The ever growing check-list

The Windlass that needs fixing

Newly painted anchor chain

And as with everything so far since we bought this boat in September, we're learning so it's taking twice as long. On Wednesday after work we focused on our anchor. If all else fails (i.e. our engine dies, our sails won't go up) we have to have a functional anchor to toss to keep us from drifting away or ashore. Plus we plan on doing some overnights at anchor in the coming weeks. We hadn't yet pulled out all our anchor chain and rode (rope section) to see what we were working with. And we wanted to mark the anchor rode so that when we pay it out we know how much we're letting out. So armed with a tape measure and yellow paint we laid out the entire 300 feet of chain and rope along the docks and marked every 10 feet with bright yellow paint. As with almost all projects so far, we realize we need to buy new chain and rope - the salt corrodes. And our windlass, the mechanism on deck that winds the anchor chain back aboard, needs service and potentially more parts. B.O.A.T. = Break Out Another Thousand. Ah, boat ownership...

New Outhaul Car for our Main Sail

Looks like we'll need some new chain!

On Saturday we'll rig the boat which we're excited to do and to learn since the last time it was rigged it was done by the previous owner. Then on Sunday with our friends from the marina, at slack tide, we'll set off for a sail and end up back at our new summer home. We're marking the beginning of the season - HOORAY! As we get into this, our first season on the boat, we're expecting to learn A LOT more and inevitably have to fix/replace more things -- this will be our 'shakedown season'. The time to figure out what's working, what's needing fixing and what we'd like to upgrade. We'll get to really learn our boat and we couldn't be more excited! 

The Captain/Plumber/Electrician/Woodworker

Though we are spending some (read: a lot) money and lots of manpower hours on fixing, tweeking or replacing things we both LOVE it - it's our boat, our investment, our home. Things that are being replaced are now things we know are new and when it breaks, we know how to fix or replace it. There's not a better feeling than having a problem, assessing the problem and then fixing the problem. Tim is masterful at this - he truly is a man of many, many talents. His ability to take something apart, learn how it works and fix it is remarkable. This dream of living aboard and cruising could never be reality without Tim's skills. Tim's patience while I VERY slowly learn things should also be commended. Unlike Tim, I'm a lot less practical in my skill set so it takes me a lot longer to understand the workings of something -- but my bartending and cooking skills are pretty key at the end of a long day working on the boat!