11/06/2010

It's the beginning of November.

We have tried to have our boat hauled to spend the winter on the hard several times by this point.

One time I got up to the slings and started to push them forward with our boat, in that it was too shallow. I was told to back out and as I did I could see the mud being churned up. We need about 5 feet of depth to operate and we were in a 5 foot tide which I guess was too close.

Another time, in order to be there on time for the haul out, which was to catch the tide in the AM, Jane & I spent the night on board. With the heater and a comforter it was quite comfortable. We got dinner and a libation at the club and then repaired to the boat. Even in this case we had a great time I can only imagine what cruising will be like.

The third time was the charm and with a 7 foot tide we were hauled. I took our boat out of the slip and did a left turn and headed down the fairway to the lift using just the forward & reverse on the engines and nudged into the straps.

From the groaning of the straps I wasn't sure that the lift would hold, but it did.

We didn't have far to go, maybe 50-75 yards and then a turn to where our boat would spend the winter.



Here our boat is being turned to back into our slot for the winter

Notice that our boat isn't very far off the ground, I think Bobby, the lift operator was a little concerned with all the strap groaning as well.

Fortunately there were several other members available to help once our boat was in her spot. There is a lot to do in preparing for a boat to be 'blocked'.

First, before our boat was hauled we got about 32 4X4's in 18" lengths from Glenn who had some old landscaping lengths sitting around. He marked them so they wouldn't find their way under other boats while I was waiting to be hauled myself. Some people just think if it is sitting there, it is theirs to use.

Second, we needed 6 jack stands. Ed provided those.

Third, we needed 6 2' X 2' square 1/2" pressure treated plywood sheets to go under the jack stands.

Fourth, I needed 3 15' length of chain to go under our boat to fasten between the jack stands to keep them from slipping out. I also needed another length of chain to keep our 8 foot step ladder from wandering off.

Now with all of the necessary items available at the spot where our boat would be for the winter and the boat arriving there the group got busy placing the blocks and the jack stands to get our boat level and supported for the winter.

Once the boat was blocked, everyone left to do the next boat.



Jane & I stayed at our boat and started organizing for removing the items, which was most of them, from our boat.

After doing that for a while we exited our boat, secured our ladder and went home.

We had plans for the next day to go to a location on the Chesapeake to look it over for the coming season.

10/24/2010

Keep in mind that I am writing this after the fact so I hope I remember all that has gone on. Jane will be reading this and filling in where I might have missed something so we will hope to get as complete a report as possible.

I will also be adding items to this blog including changing the name of the blog to coincide with the naming of our boat, as soon as we come up with one. We've had several great recommendations, but it's almost like naming your children, coming up with a name for our boat. More on that later.

It is now the 24th of October and we had planned a party to welcome our boat into the family. We had invited several 'boating' friends to join us at WEBC to see our boat and enjoy a little party. I'd made arrangements with the club for the party, got the club restaurant to provide food, the bar to provide drinks and the weather even helped by making it a nice fall day.

Up to this point I had tried to take Jane on a little cruise since the only time she was on our boat was up in CT when we took a little cruise before we purchased her (when the walk thru survey was done) but either the weather hadn't been good or there was too much wind or the like. I thought today before the party might be a good time for that little cruise.

Let me paint a little picture here. We are tied on the inside of the U, backed into the slip, which looks like all we need to do is to let loose the lines motor out of the slip, pivot right and exit the mouth of the U and down the river we can go. Let me enter here that the Delaware has about a 5' tide, a current that rips through the boat club and an inexperienced (in these circumstances) pilot handling our boat for the first time. For some reason, I also envisioned that our boat would exit in a perfect line out of the opening but each time I got lined up the current pulled me inside the U, upstream, until I finally realized that I would be exiting at an angle. I guess it wasn't too bad as the people who were watching, you know there always are people watching, only commented on the fact that WEBC is one of the hardest clubs to enter and exit from (except at slack tide) and there was also word circulating that I ran aground, which I didn't, at least this time.

We were tied in the slip at the lower left (on the inside) where you see a boat (actually in the space between the 2 boats on the lower left). The larger boat is on the outside.

It was a little trying getting out and time wasn't on our side but we got down river a little before, at Jane's insistence, we turned around and headed back to the dock. After the exit I wasn't going to try and get back in our slip so I aimed at tying up on the outside of the U (looking at the picture above I came in perpendicular to the big boat on the lower left).

As I was coming in, there is still a tide running, some of our guests were on the dock, some taking pictures, but all hands present turned out to help in the docking.

Once we were tied up we put out a little boarding ladder and guests came aboard. The following pictures show some of the guests going over the boat.


Mike looking down from the upper Helm Station



Mike checking out his pictures



Bob checking out the engines





Zeke and Jane in the Main State Room



Bob in the Main State Room





Jane coming out of the Main State Room

 



Jane & Linda sitting and enjoying a beer on the sundeck

 After touring our boat the group lighted onto the dock, milled a little and then headed up to the Club House for the food.

There was plenty of food and conversation and I must admit I spent a fair amount of time between our boat and the club house where at this point, most of the guests were. Every so often a question would come up or a comment made and it was back to our boat again.

Plenty of food for all



Great conversation

But as is always the case, all good things usually come to an end. The party broke up and all the guests went home.

At the end of the day Chadd & I were going to put our boat back in the slip but when I pushed him away from the dock I couldn't get back on so he brought her back into the slip.

Now we need to tackle the clean out and the clean up and get ready for the winter and the work that we'll be able to do before spring launch.

More to come.