Category: Sailing 2023 – 2024

Day 4 is done and we’re relaxing back at the condo for our last night. We’ll be splashed in the morning (Friday, November 3) and by this time tomorrow night, we’ll be relaxing on Crimson Kathryn. It’s definitely been a busy few days but all the pre-launch jobs went well.

On Wednesday our weather changed, following the cold front you were experiencing. The temperature wasn’t too bad but the north wind made working outside a bit chilly. Even with the cool wind, it was a successful day with lots of jobs being completed. Mark finished the thru hull installation. He still has plumbing and other things to do for this job but we can go in the water on Friday and not be flooded (always a good thing). Mark also got the new hull zinc installed, touched up the bottom paint in spots and started waxing the hull.

I spent the day cleaning and organizing the interior of the boat. We vacuum seal any item that might be damaged over the hot summer months in Florida. Things like fabric items (sheets, towels etc), electronics and even kitchen items (like the coffee pot and kettle) get sealed away for protection. I emptied all these bags and stowed everything away. I spent a fair bit of time making sure the aft cabin was all ready for us to sleep in on Friday. The only areas left to clean are the forward head and a few spots I can’t reach because of the sails.

Thursday was another cool, windy day – always fun when working outside. I had a pretty low key day. I did some laundry first thing in the morning. I also got our new dock lines from the car and put all the dock lines in place for tomorrow. Mark did one more paint touch up on the bottom and completed about 80% of the waxing. It’s hard work waxing the boat by hand so by 2pm, Mark was too tired to continue. Instead, we did other pre-launch jobs. Mark re-installed the switch for the bow thruster (which we will definitely need to get onto the pier tomorrow) and we moved our forestay back out of the way so the travel lift can pick us up. Most boats are lifted with the bow out but because we are a ketch, the mizzen mast gets in the way of a balanced lift. We get lifted stern out – the main mast gets very close to the travel lift frame to balance the boat in the slings.

In the morning (Friday), we’ll check out of our Airbnb and drive to the boat around 8am. We still have that little bit of waxing to do but that shouldn’t take too long. We probably have a bit of cleaning up to do as well. Our sun shade needs to be folded and wrapped in a tarp. We have some wood that needs to be stored somewhere. But for the most part, we’re ready to get back on the water!!!

It’s been a very productive two days in the boatyard. We arrived at the yard around 8:30am on Monday and got straight to work pulling off our sun shade. As the cover was coming down, a frog came flying off, landing a few feet away from me. The poor guy seemed a little shocked but eventually jumped away. It was a super foggy morning which made the deck of the boat very wet and slippery.

The next job we tackled (once the cover was off) was washing the deck and the cockpit. The boat was dirty (as usual) but cleaned up nicely. By the time we were done all the exterior washing, the sun was out and the temperature started to rise. We quickly discovered one of the negative aspects of our storage location – it’s right next door to a company that does welding and other work and they run a fairly large generator all day long!! It’s so noisy that we have to yell to be heard.

The top priority pre-launch job is putting in a new thru hull that we are hoping will solve our water intake issues. Our engine is water cooled and we’ve been having problems with it overheating. This new thru hull should help with this issue. Mark began preparing the area for the new thru hull and in short time had drilled the hole.

For the most part, the interior of the boat was in good shape – a bit of mold in the usual places. I started the day in the aft cabin. Lots of washing with vinegar and pinesol. By the end of the day, we had made good progress on the thru hull and the cleaning.

Today (Tuesday, Oct. 31) we arrived around the same time and Mark started working on the thru hull. I finished cleaning the cockpit and put up the enclosure. Unfortunately Mark discovered we had the wrong caulking so a road trip into Jacksonville was in order. We found the caulking plus a few other items at a marine store and headed back to the boat.

It was another hot day but by the end, we had finished the most urgent part of the thru hull job. Mark had also repaired 2 weeping bolts near the bow and had removed the large zinc plate (replacement is waiting to be installed). I finished the aft cabin cleaning and got it all set-up so we can sleep there on Friday. I also cleaned about 90% of the main cabin so we can now sit on nice cushions!!

We ended the day celebrating Halloween with our fellow cruisers. Julia (Alizarin) and Jackie (on Soaring Eagles) organized a little get together in the lounge. There was food, decorations and great conversation. A very nice way to end a long working day.

After a wonderful summer in Kingston and Toronto, we’re back in Florida, ready to get Crimson Kathryn back on the water. Our journey south began early in the morning on Friday, Oct. 27th. We had a great border crossing and a smooth trip down to Defender Marine in Connecticut.

This is definitely not our usual route south. We made the Defender detour to pick up 200ft of anchor chain and other supplies that Mark purchased. We decided to make this trip because the shipping cost on that much chain is crazy! I can also tell you that putting 200ft of 3/8th chain in the back of your car gives a good test to your rear suspension!

We made good time to Connecticut and only really ran into traffic when we closed in on N.Y.C. We crossed over to the west side of the Hudson River and travelled south on the New Jersey turnpike until we reached our first night destination – Trenton, NJ.

The next day (Saturday, Oct. 28th) we were up early and on the road by 7:30pm. It was a lovely day for driving – bright and sunny. We started early so we could get through Baltimore and Washington in the morning (trying to limit our traffic exposure). It was a good plan and we had little trouble getting through these two busy cities. That day ended at a Holiday Inn Express in Florence, SC. This hotel was kind of in the middle of nowhere and we didn’t feel like driving too far to get some dinner so decided to go to this store called Buc-ee’s. To say this place was strange is an understatement!! It’s the weirdest, craziest store we’ve ever been in. I can’t even explain it – kind of a fast food place but there’s also clothing and souvenirs and a gas bar that has probably 50 pumps. As we were heading back to our hotel we laughed and struggled to find words to describe Buc-ee’s. Mark came up with Costco mashed up with a fast food restaurant!! FYI – the food was good!

We had a slightly slower start today because we only had 5 hours left to drive. Another great driving day with very little traffic. We drove straight to Reynolds Park (although we couldn’t get in to the boatyard because the gate is now locked on weekends) and arrived around 1:30pm. We had a great visit with Julia & Brad and Jane & Steve, before heading to our very swanky Airbnb.

Tomorrow begins the process of getting Crimson Kathryn ready for our sailing season. We have an ambitious season planned – hoping to get to Turks and Caicos! So let the fun begin!!