Details, Details, Details

The idea of owning a boat is romantic.  In reality, there are more details than one would have ever imagined.  Leading up to the purchase, we had lists of questions for the seller, lists of boat parts to inspect, lists of projects to begin considering, and yes, even the dreaded list of lists. Now that we actually own Chapter Two, the details have expanded geometrically. 

 

Actually, it isn’t really all that bad.  Details notwithstanding, we had a perfectly wonderful first two days of beginning the huge move around the state of Florida.  The St. Johns River is a scenic and lazy river flowing north from the west central part of the state to its mouth emptying into the Atlantic in Jacksonville.  The river is a great place for a bass boat, or a pontoon boat, but no place for a 37 foot sailboat.  We never unfurled her sails; not so much due to a lack of wind as much as the need to follow the markers and stay in the twisting and turning channel.

Sailors always have a destination in mind, but the actual route to follow is influenced greatly by Mother Nature.  Sailors will sometimes wait in port for days for a proper “weather window” on which to begin a journey.  Chapter Two may not have a chance to do much sailing at all on her initial journey.  Once in Jacksonville, the route south will likely involve the Intracoastal Waterway, which is a lot like trying to sail on a river.  If the wind is favorable, we’ll raise the sails and take advantage, but in all likelihood, we’ll be putzing along under auxiliary power.  It’s alright with us – as long as we’re making progress. 

Right now, Chapter Two is sitting on a grassy lot in San Mateo, Florida, 250 miles from here, propped up with iron stands to keep her from falling on her side.  Once we have put a couple of fresh coats of bottom paint on her, and painted her new home port on her transom, she’ll be back in the river ready for the next leg north. 

 

It’s hard to predict just how long it’ll take us to get Chapter Two into her new home slip.  There’s an unbelievable amount of details involved in getting all of that worked out.  For now, the focus is getting her bottom tidy and getting her back into the blue.