Life on a Sailboat

What is it like to live in a small space with your first mate? First off, it's cozy!  Plus, you have to avoid the "ogee that would be great" but where do you put it and how often will I use it. Chris and I are pretty lucky this season, living in a marina is totally different than being out on the water.  Nettles Island is a wonderful place.  We have a home here but we rent it out for the Winter Season and this allows us to stay on our boat and go places. But this year, we have lots of repairs to do.  Some were small and others, well it takes time and patience. But we are almost done taking care of them and getting ready to go.  Because of the time restraints in getting repairs done, we decided to stay in Florida and do The Florida Keys.  We visited Homeland Security as our Cruising Permit expires on Jan 31, 2013. We told them what was happening (re repairs) and we were lucky that our boat was made in the USA.  This helped out alot.  So they extended our Permit to the end of May. At that time, we must surrender it and reapply next fall.  Hopefully the Rules will not have changed again.......just have to wait and see.

Here is a picture of a beautiful sunset on the ICW, calm and still.

Our Small Space

This is the galley.  I have a 2 burner Propane Stove....it hidden there in the corner.  The counter top slides right over, thus more counter space.  Is that not what every women wants!  Over the years, Chris and I have made lots of improvements. The old fridge and freezer were taken out of commission and we replaced it with a smaller super efficient fridge freezer.  The only thing about that is the freezer portion is tiny and one must learn to live without ice cubes.  We usually have this filled up with chicken.  I have a 2 stainless steel sinks and a water purifier.  We drink from our tanks (we carry 125 gallons) so no water wasting.  But you can always fill your tanks for a price at a marina.  Back in the far left corner is our bunk.  It is under the cockpit so space is limited and watch your head.  We do have a queen size bed and it is a lot of work just get those fitted sheets attached without bumping your head.  Like I said cozy.

This is part of the Salon or Living Room.  Yes, we have a TV!  It is a Smart One but we do not have Cable or Satellite.  Armed with a Hard Drive of Movies (thanks Luke and Terry) I place them on a Flash Stick and insert into back of TV.  Sit back and enjoy the show.  Comfort is always necessary. So, earlier this season, out I went Thrifting......lots of pillows were added for just a couple of dollars.  New blinds needed to be made as the sun ate away the others.  Baskets are always needed to hold bread, fruit and other small bits and pieces.  We built our book shelves many years ago and they have been such a plus.  Never can you have enough story books on hand, but everyone has an ipad or a kindle to read.  We like the good old fashioned hold the book and read kind.  Across from here we have our table and a round couch, more shelves and pillows.

This is the end of our couch and looking at our Navigation Centre and the Head.  We have an EPBIRB handy just in case we have to ditch, satellite sirrius radio, the control systems for our Solar Panels, Batteries, VHF Radio, SSB Radio, etc.  There are places for charts, big huge flashlights and manuals for everything on the boat.  The Head is a small space but very efficient.  We changed out the shower head to better model to ensure that one does not get scalded.  We do not always have hot water (only if we are plugged in at a marina or the engine has been running). Always nice to have a quick shower after a long day out on the water or your mate smells like macaroni.

The V-Berth or Better Known as "The Garage".  No, it is not the "Man Cave" as I have stuff in here as well.  In our first years of sailing, this is where we slept. There is a Closet or Hanging Locker just around the corner to the left. And behind the door is another storage cabinet.  This is our dresser.  Under the mattress is all kinds of storage spaces.  So long term planning is needed as you then must haul everything out to get underneath.  Chris stashes his beer here and those extra rolls of TP, Paper Towel and those extra spare parts. Cans of lube, electrical bits and pieces and Starboard.  We store our ditch bag here but with our life raft under the kitchen table. Extra Life Jackets, Cockpit cushions and of course, tools.  Lots of thought and organization.  Under that bed is our main water tank too!

Heading up into the Cockpit.  Our Beneteau has lots of room here.  Tables swing out. Our Cockpit is wide open to the air but our Bimini is starting to look it age.  Lots of sun and salt.  Our wish list a new dodger, bimini with an enclosure.......got one estimate.......ouch!  So with a couple cans of waterproofing and keep looking for a better quote.

Well that was a quick tour of our floating home.  When we are on a tilt, all things must be battened down.  Can't have spillage.......lost a coffee pot that way and Chris does like to put the rail close to the water......oh that racer.

Life is Grand!  Well it's off to the Village Grocer to see if that VHF Radio has arrived! Until Next Time.

2012-2013 Sailing Season

We have now been here in Florida for a couple of months. No Keys is sitting in a marina.  We had a long list of "To Do's" but also "The Wish List".  No Keys is getting older and the sun and the salt do take it's toll.

No Keys weathered well in Indiantown, despite the hot and very wet summer.  Mold, mildew and black slim was what had to be washed, scrubbed and disinfected.  We were lucky, some boats held all the rain water and had flooded areas.

We enjoyed American Thanksgiving @ Indiantown. It was a week of lots of activities from dingy races, grape stomping, great music and catching up on acquaintances from past years.  We motored No Keys down the St. Lucie River, through the locks.  The weather was cool and crisp and the inter-coastal choppy, we stayed on a mooring ball for the night.  Early next morning, with long johns on, mitts, we set out to take No Keys to Nettles Island.

New 65 foot bridges crossing the St. Lucie River

There has been a lot of cold fronts sweeping through the US and Florida but there also has been some great days.  Albeit staying in a marina allows you to Explore.  So, besides boat chores, visiting friends and sailors, time is quickly passing.  It is always amazes me who you may meet today.  Nettles Island is full of interesting people, some are just day transients and other have been coming to this area for years.

The beach here on Hutchinson island is wonderful.  If you like shelling this is the place! I have not taken my camera out and about yet!

We are waiting for a few boat parts to come in, such as our marine VHF radio.  We think it got hit by lightening.  We checked wires from the top of the mast, and then had the radio tested.......off to the manufactures to be repaired.  Next good challenge, our engine panel.  We have no way of knowing if your oil temperature is too hot, no alarms and the tachometer decided to pack it in.  So after hunting around, we found a place and purchased the upgraded model for our Westerbeke.  More problems, this is suppose to be a plug and play but......as all good ships age, technology grows.  So now we need a new regulator and double check all the wiring that was done 10 years ago... Bring on the Experts!!  Have to wait though.......huge boat show and everyone is very busy.  But we have a date to get our repair and installations done.

Well the experts came and went. We did get a new regulator and learned a few things about our house and starter batteries and tidied up the wiring again.  As for the the New Engine Panel, well it had to go back.  Money refunded and we reinstalled the old panel.  Plus sign, some of the gauges that we wanted were cheap and easy to find at the Marine Liquidators in Fort Pierce.

Another problem cropped up, the hot water heater.  This is a system that is a treat.  We usually only get hot water when the engine is running.  I have my handy dandy whistling kettle.  It helps to get that greasy food stuffs off your dishes and when you want to wash your face.  We did the troubleshooting, found the faulty parts and voila, they arrived today, so need to install the new parts and see if she works.

On Monday, Jan 28, 2013 we have the annual but not so annual - Blind Dinghy Race!  We put the dinghy down and moi did a couple of practice runs, but not blindfolded.  We will practice again tomorrow.  The trick is giving good instructions to the captain of the dinghy at the time. Yes, we have to switch and Chris has way too much confidence. Once the challenge is over, we have a DJ to play us some tunes and of course awesome finger food!!!

We are busy doing our last minute checks and chores.......VHF arrives on Tuesday!!!! Finally!!!  Once that has been installed and tested, it will be time to go on Thursday.

Our Plan........head down the "ditch" - the Intercostal, and head to West Palm Beach.  We have family there and it is always a treat to catch up.  After that Miami and finally The Keys.

With so many delays, that is the Best Place to Be for the remainder of our sailing days this season.

I'm a Ray!  Got to see and Awesome Aquarium!

The Fish that Got Away!!

Well as we travel South, having the internet will also be a challenge. But Leaving It All Behind is a great thing!! Destress! Laugh and Love.