Tuesday October 30: Back in the Water!!

Painting the primer after first sanding all of the sides.

While I continued working on the inside of the boat, Steve moved on to the next project: painting the cabin sides of the boat. This hadn't been done since we first bought the boat back in 2006.

It was something we really have wanted to get done but a good time/place never really was there. Seemed this was a good time!

Step one: sand all of the surface area on the sides of the cabin from the walkaround deck up.

Step 2: paint a coat of primer for the Brightside one part paint we were going to use.

Painting the cabin sides.

After letting the primer dry for a day, Steve sanded and wiped down the areas that were primed.

Then it was a two person job. I rolled on the paint and Steve 'tipped' the paint with a paint brush. Hence the name: roll and tip!

Works well and the first coat was done.

Cleaning and recoating the prop.

And so were we. I guess I should say I was done. Steve went on to work on the prop.

First wire brushing and then recoating the prop with bottom paint. It seemed to hold up well - keep the barnacles from growing. Probably not the ideal coating for a prop but for our purposes it worked well.

We were back to the boat bright and early today with a scheduled launch time of 10 am.

Ready to be lowered in!

The travel lift was actually there 30 minutes early but we were ready for them! It was supposed to be in the higher 80's today so I think the guys wanted to get an early start.

I don't blame them :-)

It's always fun to watch the boat be launched - no matter how many times we have seen this :-)


Thru hull fitting open: check

Start engine:  check

Water exiting the exhaust: check

Ready to put it in reverse and back away!! This is an engine that hasn't run for 6 months. It's a diesel. I love diesel engines. Turn the key and it starts.

Since it was early yet, we decided the mast might as well go up.

Steve started the process by attaching the stainless steel stays to the top of the mast.

We actually remembered to make sure the mast lights all worked (they did!) before raising the mast. Made that mistake once - try not to repeat our mistakes :-)



Next was for Steve to lift the mast as I pulled on the lines attached to the top of the mast. Once up, I hold the ropes (easy to do!) until Steve attaches the lower ends of the stays where they belong.

How fun to be back in the water!!

We returned to the condo for lunch. I stayed and Steve ended up going back to the boat and putting the second coat of Brightside on the starboard and front side of the cabin.

Did I feel bad that he did it without me? Not even close ....

Tomorrow, finish the port and aft sides and the painting is done.

Canvas to put up and we'll be pretty much ready to go. Probably Friday, maybe Thursday. Doesn't really matter - especially since we'll hardly know what day it is anyway ......

Saturday October 27: Back to Florida

Trevi is still not very big!

We arrived back in Port Charlotte, FL on Wednesday after having a few last days with Matt and Wendy in San Diego.

London -    10 months old

And a day to drive to LA to visit Becky and her puppies! For a change we were around and able to help her with a project. Doesn't happen very often so we took advantage of the day.

Mostly it was Steve and Becky working while I got to play with Trevi (2 months old) and London (10 months old).

Someone had to watch the dogs, right?!!

We airbnb'd a condo for the week - 10 minute drive from the boat.

It was a lesson we learned well a number of years ago - don't try to live on the boat while trying to work on it - especially if it's after the boat has sat for a while!

So nice to be able to come 'home' and clean up and relax after a day at the boat.






It's always a gamble when we leave the boat for 6 months as we never know what condition the boat will be in when we return.

And apparently we still don't know what to do to avoid the dirt and mildew ......

Somehow we were not expecting what we found - the outside of the boat was super dirty. And this is with the boat under cover. Maybe next year we'll try leaving it uncovered????




Regardless, Steve made great progress Friday by getting the flybridge and sides from the walkaround deck up cleaned up.


What a difference when he was finished!

Meanwhile, I worked inside wiping down the main cabin - using a knife to clean out between the slates in the cupboard doors. All of the mini-blinds will be taken down and cleaned but that may wait until we get to Banana Bay.


Today Steve tackled the sides of the hull. Using dishsoap, lots of muscle power, a brush and a long handled microfiber scrubhead, he was able to do both sides of the hull. He said this boat gets bigger every year :-)

Definitely not a fun job .....

I continued inside focusing in on the aft cabin after finishing up the main cabin.

Are we having fun yet???





What a difference after two days of work!!

I swear if this boat doesn't kill us, it will cure us:-)


I neglected to mention that we actually acquired some new skills while at Matt and Wendy's - we took a class on making clay things on a wheel!










Lots of fun - mugs, bowls and cups. Wendy will pick them up for us as we ran out of time to do the glazing. No problem - we'll be back out there in December.

More fun stuff? Becky will have her first on-screen credit as a co-producer of iZombie!!!!

Although she has been involved in many shows (working with her former employer Warner Bros current programming) this will be her very first on-screen credit.



We're so excited for her and can't wait until the first episode (of the 5th season) of iZombie - it won't be until 2019 on the CW network. We will be watching and taping!!!

Friday October 19: California and Hawaii

This fall has really all been about the World Championship Ironman race in Kona, Hawaii. Ever since our son-in-law qualified for this race (by finishing high enough in his age group in a regular iroman to win a slot to this race), our plans revolved around being at the race to cheer him on.

Somewhere in the mass of bodies is Matt!

Matt swam 2.4 miles ...

Biking through downtown Kailua.

and he biked 112 miles ...

Practice run through the lava fields of the Big Island.

and he ran 26.2 miles ....

all in 85 degree heat and sun ...

and he finished in 10 hours 47 minutes!!!



















And his in-person support team cheered him on: Linda, Wendy, Steve, (Matt), Randy and Cindy. Many friends and relatives were also 'watching' and cheering him on through the internet.

Matt pointing out his name on the banner listing all 2,500 racers!

It was fun knowing he was one of the elite 2500 racers who came from 82 countries from around the world for the 40th World Championship Ironman here in Kona.

Not a bad looking group of supporters - given that it was 4:30 in the morning the day of the race!

Randy, Cindy, Steve and Wendy (missing from photo) did masterful jobs of being actually at the race and cheering.

I was the designated driver to get them downtown and back to help lessen the amount of walking and the frustration of finding parking.




The rest of the month on the west coast was spent - well, I'm not quite sure HOW it was spent! Lots of beach walking for Steve, lots of reading for me.

We were able to connect with Karen and Craig - friends we first met on the Trent Canal a couple of years ago. They live in San Juan Capistrano - about an hour north of Matt and Wendy's home.

And we met Becky's new puppy, Trevi, and were able to see London again. Both cute dogs :-)

Trevi

London

Trevi on the left (3 months old) ....


and London on the right (now about 10 months old).

Becky with Trevi and London

Hard to tell the size difference but this gives some idea :-)


















We finally return to San Diego tomorrow and then back to Florida on Wednesday. We have a week to complete jobs on the trawler before Yesterday's Dream scheduled launch on October 30. Will update next week as the progress continues ....

Friday September 14: Fenelon Falls - Where Did the Summer Go?

Linda, Wendy, Lois, Cheryl

What a good time to be in Orillia and plugged into power - two of our 3 days there were cold (high in the mid-50's) and rainy.

So we sort of did some hibernating either on Guppy or on Deja Vu.

We arrived on Saturday which was the nicest day of the three and just in time to head to the Chinese place for lunch :-)

Lois had to be home on Sunday so Cheryl's sister Wendy drove over from the Midland area to pick up Lois and take her home. It was nice to be able to spend some time with her before they had to leave.

Sunday and Monday (especially) were just plain nasty days. Whatever happened to the summer-like weather of a couple of days ago?

Cheryl, Peter and Steve

Randy and Cindy drove over from their home to spend the afternoon Monday - and of course drive us to the Chinese place for lunch since it was rainy and cold.

Peter ended up walking but he was definitely dressed correctly for the walk!

It just seems ridiculous to have to have these kinds of clothes when boating!

Tuesday we finally headed out but not before riding to the Community Center for breakfast. For whatever reason there is a definite lack of breakfast places within biking distance from the marina. Not sure what's with that.

Peter and Cheryl had left by the time we returned. They were turning back and heading home toward Georgian Bay. We headed across Lake Simcoe to return to Fenelon Falls and put the boat away.

The rain had passed on but the clouds remained and were supposed to be with us throughout the day. And they were! But the wind was mild from the NW - perfect for the 20 mile run across the lake.


Steve kept noticing the leaves that are starting to turn - taking it as a sign that it really IS time to get the boat put away for the winter. I think it's already snowing in some of the northern areas of Canada!


We spent the night above the liftlock at Kirkfield with the sun finally making an appearance just prior to it setting.

It wasn't that long ago that it was light until after 9:30 or so. Now it's about 8:30 or so that it's almost dark. The promise of a nice day tomorrow was the forecast - we'll see. ....

The forecast was right on. It was going to be a nice last day of traveling!



Of course that was once the frost from overnight melted away :-)

We passed a workboat along the way - not a common site even though their work is evident along this stretch of the system. The guys were busy cutting away dead trees that had fallen into the waterway. It's quite narrow through some of the passages in this area so the removal of the debris is really needed.




Finally! The end of this stretch is in sight! The speed limit has been 6 mph for a good part of the way since we crossed Lake Simcoe.

It was a perfect travel day for our last day out. Wind was minimal out of the east and the sun was bright and strong.

 It was the perfect day to be on the water :-) Balsam Lake was perfect!

Last lock of the season was Rosedale, cross Cameron Lake and we pulled into the entrance to the canal leading to Fenelon Falls lock.

The place was empty! We headed to our favorite spot (near the Chamber of Commerce so we could get internet from them) and headed up for a late lunch.

By the time we returned, the docks were packed!! Mostly with houseboats - maybe a special end of the season rentals?? Not sure.

It was now Wednesday - we were due to take the boat to the marina on Friday. Two days to enjoy the end of summer and to get the boat packed up and ready to put up for the winter.

We winterized the water system (which means adding pink antifreeze to the water system and pumping it through the water lines), septic system and added stabilizer to the fuel system.

Steve rode the bus to Lindsay (about 25 minutes) to pick up a car this morning. I took Guppy to the marina. We were good to go! The marina will pull the boat, winterize the engine and outdrive, and shrinkwap the boat. Good for our arrival next spring :-)

Drive to Cleveland tomorrow, spend a few days, fly to California to visit the kids, then travel to Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii to cheer Matt on as he competes in the World Championship Ironman competetion in Kona. He has worked so hard for this achievement

Friday September 7: Swift Rapids

And so Thursday about 1 or so we spotted Deja Vu in the lock at Port Severn! We were packed up and ready to head out behind them!

Peter, Cheryl and Lois (Cheryl's Mom) were aboard and ready to spend a few days traveling with us on the Trent.

The first night we planned a short day of 8 miles to Big Chute - the marina railway.

We knew of a place for breakfast at the marina nearby - important things first :-)


It was a fairly nice day but somewhat overcast but no rain predicted so that in itself made it a nice enough day.

With Deja Vu in the lead, we set off. Very little wind - just a beautiful ride through the lower end of the Severn River.

We passed one log with seven turtles out sunning themselves. Always fun to see.

Not much other wildlife around though.

Approaching the Big Chute from the bottom gives a good view of the rise over which the carriage will take us.







The lock staff loaded Guppy on first and then Deja Vu.

With a large boat like Peter and Cheryl's, the front of the boat sits on the floor of the carriage and the aft end (with the props and rudders) hang over the back of the carriage.

The straps are then used to keep the boat balanced in an upright position.

Once over the hill, the carriage then enters the water until the boat is again floating. Start the engine and off we go :-)

It didn't take very long to get in and get settled - Guppy on the left and Deja Vu on the right in case you can't tell which is the 28 foot boat and which one is the 43 foot boat :-)

Docktails followed by dinner on Deja Vu. Peter, Cheryl and Lois kindly had us over for dinner as a 'thank you' for helping Lois move into her new house. It was great to be able to help - meeting more of Cheryl's family and see others whom we'd met in past trips.


Steve was entertained by the dump truck  which backed onto a barge and left a large amount of dirt.

Wonder which island it was head for ....

Quiet night and cool morning.

The water is still fairly warm and the cool overnight temperatures produce a mist over the water.

Off for breakfast - hopefully it will warm up by the time we get back!

Which it did nicely! As we approached Swift Rapids lock and dam, we were amazed to see the amount of water coming over the dam.

Two weeks ago there was almost no water coming over! It was really something to see.

dam two weeks ago

Two weeks ago the large concrete "chute" could easily be seen.

We ended up with nice spots on the wall above the lock. Peter knew there was a firepit here and fortunately the marina at which we had breakfast sold firewood! Way better than searching through the poison ivy infested area around the lock!

Steve was enjoying his opportunity to cook ashore and everyone took advantage of the sunny warm day enjoying sitting ashore reading.

The fire was GREAT - but no marsh mellows though. It was a great evening :-)

And another great sunset .....

On to Orillia tomorrow.