T minus 6 hours to departure

Sunset Island is nearly buttoned up for the summer.  The dinghy restoration is complete.  We conducted an inspection of the standing rigging including a trip to the mast head.  C'est la Vie's water line is rising towards the boot strip as we load on provisions and possessions.

T minus six hours to departure.

The only uncertainty is our next destination. Our hope is to leave here in the afternoon and make a 110NM overnight crossing to the Tortugas.  Making the crossing overnight will allow us to approach the Tortugas in the daylight rather than arrive at a often crowed anchorage ringed by reefs & shoals at night.

Unfortunately a small craft advisory remains in effect between SW FL and the Dry Tortugas.  The rain and winds associated with the weekend's frontal passage have abated, but the swells linger.  We anticipate the small craft advisory will be dropped this morning, but the seas will be lumpy.  The primary factor now is the winds.  The wind direction is good - the predicted north winds will place us on a broad reach.  The issue is the wind speed.  The past couple forecasts the wind speeds are trending downward.  This morning's forecast for waters beyond 20NM offshore is for winds 10 knots or less.  If the seas are lumpy then a bit more wind would aid in smoothing out the ride.  Light winds and lumpy seas are not a comforting combination.

We will post an update on our plans prior to casting off the dock.  Now back to packing.

Dinghy Restoration Complete

After the christening, initial launch, and puttering about in the river on Saturday, we identified the appropriate locations for Segundo's oar locks.  Next we experimented with how to best stow her on C'est la Vie's foredeck.  This process resulted in the realization of some of the compromises required when carrying a hard dinghy on deck.  We anticipated the loss of working deck space and a limited opening of the vee berth hatch.   Occluding the dorade vents if the wind is on our bow and shortening the arc of the windlass handle were two unanticipated compromises.   I walked away from the test fitting feeling frustrated and questioning if we should return to the Porta-Boat.  But, alas fitting cleanly on deck is the Porta-Boat's forte.  I'll give Segundo the summer to display her finer qualities before dismissing her.

We installed two sets of oar locks one set aft to balance Segundo when two people are aboard and a second set further forward when rowing alone.

Next we addressed oar storage.  Using a hole saw we notched the amidships bulkhead (see image above.)  This allows the oars to  rest smartly in the hull while stored on deck our while in use.  The cleat & line are used to secure the oars.

 
The Honda Outboard gouged into the finish on the exterior transom so we added a star board pad to limit further damage.

During the test fitting on C'est la Vie we discovered that the steel eye bolts on Segundo's stern would scratch the decks and had the possibility of cracking the glass in foreward hatches.  We removed the eyes and replaced them with line of a similar diameter.

Segundo is a boat so being true to her nature the projects will never cease, but this now concludes the restoration.  Here is a link to the photo album documenting the process - Dinghy Rebuild - 2012

Now it is time to go play for awhile.

T/T Segundo on the water at last

On Friday I completed the finish work on the dinghy rebuild - installed the bow & stern eye bolts, installed the water tight hatch in the bow; added the FL registration numbers, and waxed the hull.

Despite  thunderstorms rolling across south Florida on Saturday we launched  the pram and christened her "Segundo"

Segundo is Spanish for "second".  Anne and I settled on the name b/c this is the pram's second life and it is our second dinghy.  Once the celebration ebbed and the bubbly was imbibed, Trish and I took her out for a test drive in the Barron River.

I still have some minor finish work and tweaks (i.e. install the oar locks, install a pad for the motor mounts, replace the metal stern eyes for rope eyes.)  She is a boat so I guess this means she will never really be done.  The next big step will be to figure out how to store her on C'est la Vie's foredeck.

High winds and thunderstorms are forecast for the Gulf waters through Sunday so we have a couple more days to continue prepping for our trip.

A shiny, pretty thing

We applied the second top coat this morning and now have a shiny dinghy!

Despite a few passing showers during the day today, I believe we have a good finish on the hull.  We used Interlux Brightsides for the topcoats.  I have used both Interlux Brightsides and  Interlux Perfection coatings on different projects in the past.  Perfection is a two part finish with durability that far surpasses the single part, polyurethane Brightsides.  For projects that can be completed in a controlled environment or that will see heavy wear go with Perfection (i.e. refinishing the dinghy oars.)  For most large, outdoor projects, I lean toward Brightsides for the simplicity and I find it easier to work with when temps are above 80F (which seems to be the norm anytime I begin to paint on a boat project.)

When temps exceed 80F I typically thin the Brightsides around 10% by volume with the Interlux 333.  I then use a short nap roller and a foam brush to tip.  When working in warm temps this is a two person job.  It is also very important the project area be in the shade.

 
While I'm on a roll with providing advice... If you plan to operate a motor vessel of any size in FL it must to registered.  This means that it must be titled.  I discovered that there is no honest way to title a dinghy that was built by an unknown person at an unknown date at an unknown location and was then given to you by an in-law that found said dinghy in a barn in New Hampshire and was generous enough to drive it down to south Florida. The staff at the DMV office were very helpful with the titling process.  In the end I declared that I constructed the dinghy (shhh don't tell anyone.)  I then had to provide receipts from the building process.  Fortunately I was able to scrounge together enough receipts from the rebuild to satisfy the DMV.    
The moral to the story is to hang on to your receipts if you ever build a vessel that you hope to title.

Musings on the non-linear progression of projects

The past few days have consisted of painting concoctions onto the dinghy only to then sand them back off.  My progress measured by the increasing grit of the paper 80 grit, 120 grit, 220 grit.  Today the dinghy restoration took a  leap forward - Wahoo!

I completed the interior painting and installed the seat (pictured above.)  Anne and I also applied the second coat of primer to the hull (pictured below).

If weather and schedule co-operate we will roll and tip the two top coats on Wednesday and Thursday.

My projects increase in complexity as my patience grows with maturity.  Thus far in my life the complexity to patience ratio appears to be a linear progression.   I wonder if the day will ever arrive that I am accurately able to estimate the the time such projects will consume. My current system is to double the time I initially estimate, but this equation is consistently turning up short on time.  As I age and my projects grow in complexity should I continue to increase the multiplier for time allotted?  Hmm,  If this is true I better go ahead and get the big projects done before I pass a half century.

What of the non linear progression of projects?   One day is devoted to 10 hours of sanding where progress in measured in grit.  The next day progress is a apparent as a face lift on Yoda. Guess it's best to just accept the way of things and celebrate the days where progress is measured in fair hulls and dinghy seats.
    

Working full time on the dinghy restoration

Despite sporadic rain showers on Saturday, I've been able to plug steadily along on our dinghy rebuild project since we returned to Sunset Island.



My efforts have gone primarily to fairing the bow compartment (pictured above) and to fairing the hull including the newly completed keel (pictured below.)

The hull and interior fabrications are now ready for primer and I'm ready for a shower...

It pains me to pay a hefty price in time and money for epoxy and fillers that end up a dust in my leg hairs.

Terrestrial Logistics

After spending the last five days on the road or in the air, we are now back on Sunset Island with our car and non-boat based belongings awaiting our arrival in Beaufort, NC.

We departed Everglades City last Monday afternoon Anne driving our vehicle and myself in an NCOBS' Van.   Destination one, Seafarer Marine, Ft. Lauderdale, FL to stock up on supplies and materials for summer boat projects.

We arrived in Beaufort Tuesday evening.  Wednesday, Anne caught up with friends and searched for a summer rental while I completed some OB work.  Both Tuesday and Wednesday night we thoroughly enjoyed celebrating our Beaufort homecoming with friends.

Thanks to Jeff A. for being a wonderful host and allowing us to crash at his place.

Thursday we deposited our car and gear in Beaufort, and drove westward in the NCOBS Van.  We visited with my family and some longtime family friends on Thursday evening.

A couple early morning hours of driving on Friday and we arrived at the NCOBS Office in Asheville, NC.  By mid morning our friend Luis was shuttling us south to Greenville / Spartanburg airport (GSP).  Our Friday the 13th flight was uneventful and Trish's car, pre-stashed at the Punta Gorda Airport by my parents a week earlier, allowed us to completed the journey back to Sunset Island.

Ahh - the simple life of cruising is fraught with complex logistics.  Perhaps when we commit to living aboard full time these complexities will diminish?   Perhaps it is just the price to be paid for the more quiet, peaceful times on the water.

A bit of progress on the keel and a frenzy of packing

Between packing up Outward Bound gear for summer programs and attempting to figure out what we need to pack for a summer, maybe more, on the the boat; we did mange to complete the installation of the keel on our dinghy project.

We used a combination of thicken epoxy and wood screws to affix the strips of red oak.  A single 3/4" thick strip, intended guard against wear, runs the length of the hull.  From amid ships aft the depth of the keel increases to nearly 4".

We still have some finishing work to do on the keel before panting the hull.