Almost halfway there.

We’re four days away from completing 50% of the offseason.  Pegu Club will be splashed during the week of April 28th, and it can’t come soon enough.

Since we installed the tarp we’ve been driving down to the marina every two weeks to check on it, but it’s been too cold to do any work on the boat.  Installing the new thru hull and seacock will have to wait until the temperatures warm up enough for the epoxy, and we’ll also have to wait for warmer temperatures before we can take the wood off for sanding and varnishing.  So what have we been doing?

The halyards and sheets need to be cleaned, so I learned how to tie a daisy chain.

After that they went into a pillowcase (one at a time) to run through the washing machine on gentle and hang dry.

We cleaned the mainsail and jib in the backyard before winter set in.  The clothesline came in handy for the initial drip dry, and then we turned our living room into a sail loft before folding them and storing them in the basement.

There are always plenty of nautical books to read in the house – everything from navigation to Chapman’s to tips on full-time cruising – and local cruising guides as we think about this year’s vacation.

We’ve also been spending a lot of time watching YouTube videos of people who are out there cruising full-time, living the dream.  We call it sailing porn.

Finally, we’ve been learning how to use the GoPro that my Uncle Dan sold us – he gave me the special “niece discount” which was very cool of him!  Jeff and I had been talking about how we would like to get one and make some videos to document our adventures, and Dan just so happened to be thinking about selling his, so it worked out great.  Look for some action-packed sailing videos to come this season!