Warning; Although this post does have pictures, there are no exotic islands, beaches, parties, sailing, fishing, exotic foods, or adventures mentioned. With that disclaimer being understood, here's what's up in Gypsy Cat land:
Still "on the hard" (on dry land), and damn - it's hard on the hard. Boatyards just suck. They are dirty (and your boat gets FILTHY), noisy, dangerous (you go up and down a ladder to get in your boat, and there are sharp objects, chemicals, and machinery and power tools), and ours has tons of mosquitos, no-see-ums, and a pack of dogs that guard the bathrooms at night (they all bark, but the leader is a vicious, psycho mongrel). And did I mention it is HOT?! That's not all. I fell off the ladder yesterday. It was only a few feet to the ground, but luckily I caught my fall with my shin on a lower rung before I slammed into the pavement. It still throbs. If you want to count all your cuts, by the way, and forget where they are all located, there are a host of chemicals that can help you to locate them. Muriatic acid is one of my favorites. My fingers are being held together by super glue and duct tape (forget band-aids holding through degreasers, acids, rust removers, hull cleaners, bleach, wax, WD-40, silicone, etc.) Oh, how I dream of getting away from it all and sailing in the Caribbean...
One of the main reasons we hauled Gypsy Cat out was to put new bottom paint on her. Boats that are in the sea need anti-fouling paint on the bottom so that barnacles, algae, and such don't grow as quickly. And there are many anti-fouling paints (all of them VERY expensive - try $300 per gallon) with a very wide range of quality and ability to keep growth at bay. Here in St. Martin, you can get an excellent paint (by word of mouth only - it's on the down-low). So good, in fact, that it is the paint that the U.S. Navy puts on their boats. I did a lot of research and spoke with many people who have used it. Yep, if the Navy uses it, it is GOOD. But, it is hard to get. Our paint supplier ran out and we had to wait for it. That is why we are still not in the water. But, the paint arrived here today and we finally get our paint tomorrow!
So, what have we been up to while waiting for paint?
| Scraped, sanded, and cleaned the hulls, centerboards, and rudders |
| Taped and prepped for painting (we raised the waterline) |
| Removed the starboard centerboard and had it fixed (it was delaminated) |
| Fixed a deck-hull joint leak in the bow that we had for the last year |
| Put on a new rubrail insert all the way around (we got it in Florida a year ago) |
| Put in a "special" new through-hull that houses the waterspeed paddlewheel (our old one leaked) |
| Had Andrew put in a footpump seawater faucet in the galley (no more bucket washes in the cockpit) |
| Had Andrew put in automatic bilge pumps in each hull |
| Cleaned the bilges and tested for water leaks |
| Had the headsail repaired (it had a small tear and the U.V. cover needed attention) |
| Removed the rust, treated, and painted our three anchors |
| Put a longer chain on our main anchor, treated all the anchor rode, and marked depth intervals on all |
| Put on new rudder-to-outdrive lines and up/down rudder lines (not easy) |
| Had Andrew dismantle and service the winches (and teach me how to do it) |
| Sanded, scraped, Muriatic acid-treated, epoxied corrosion pits, primed and painted the outdrive |
| Cleaned out all the outside lockers, threw away stuff, cleaned and reorganized the contents |
| Removed all the hatches (they all leaked) and cleaned up and resealed them back in |
| Fixed several "blisters" underneath (but above the waterline) |
| Scraped out, bleached, and vinegared the rudder compartments (they were caked with shells and..?) |
| Cleaned (rust remover, hull cleaner, degreaser, rubbing compound, etc.) the entire boat (not cockpit) |
| Gave Gypsy Cat THREE coats of wax top, sides, bottom (the cockpit will be done when we get wet) |
Christine DID help if anyone that knows her might wonder. Not everyday mind you, and when she did, it was not without whining and complaining, bitching and moaning. One day, when I asked her what she was going to do that day, she replied, "What's there to do? We're in a boatyard!" Hmmm.... She wouldn't cook food either - she went on strike: "I decided that I am not going to cook anymore" was her announcement one day. And I was accused of being a dictator when I asked her to wake up late one morning. The good news is, is that Christine made 61 new friends on Facebook (she told me that today as I was cleaning up). The other good news is that I got everything done that I intended - and done RIGHT. Oh, yes, to Christine's credit she sanded the hull and waxed like a pro, AND she has resumed cooking (or at least heating up the food I bring home - ha ha).
Gypsy Cat is beaming!
More "after" pics after we paint. We relaunch in 2-3 days.
Happy one year birthday Gypsy Cat!
| January 08 |
January 09
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