It has begun again

Well, I guess the new boating season is actually underway. I have, over the past couple of weeks, been buying some of the supplies that I will need. They divide roughly into two groups--the fun things and the necessary things. The fun things are new navigation instruments, binoculars, and so forth. The necessary things are cleaning supplies, varnish, emergency supplies to plug holes, and other things like that. I'm rapidly getting everything ready to go.

And I just spent my first couple of days up at the marina, going up on Friday and coming back today. I didn't get quite as much done as I had hoped. Late yesterday afternoon I was checking off more than expected on my ToDo list, even dipping into things planned for a week or two from now. This morning, however, I found that they haven't turned on the water out to the docks yet. That means no hose for scrubbing and rinsing, so I had to search for things that don't require large amounts of water. I'm factoring that into my plans for next weekend. According to someone working on another boat, they usually turn it on around April 15. I guess I'm at work on the boat much earlier this year, because I don't recall having to wait in past years.

Anyway, I have gotten some things done, albeit not necessarily either the most important ones or the hardest ones. One important thing is that I installed several new latches on the cabinet doors and drawers down below. So far, so good with them. I'm hoping that they will prevent everything from ending up on the cabin sole when we heel to port and then starboard while sailing. There are still a few problems. One of the latches is set too low to catch properly (the existing screw holes did not allow for any better). The drawer for the navigation tools is lopsided and does not fit correctly, which means that a new latch cannot help much yet. I'm not sure what to do about that.

I also completed a lot of smaller tasks, They all had to be done, but they don't look like much yet. Some bigger, harder jobs starting next week will be sanding, removing old masking tape and residue, and cleaning the interior completely are high on the list. I should be able to do them without much water, so that shouldn't be a problem. The week after, I'm hoping that the water will be on, so that I can scrub and wax the exterior. I will also contact the boatyard to get them to do a few things for me. Can't spend too much, though.

Launch date: the last Wednesday in April. Early this year!