Boat Maintenance

One thing that never seems to end on boats is maintenance and repairs.  Actually, it doesn't seem to never end ... it just doesn't.  Last week we discovered the anchor windlass was frozen up and just wouldn't budge, so it had to be removed and completely disassembled.  The insides were just a mess of rusted gears so its no wonder it wouldn't move.  Now after a couple days of soaking, scraping and several other methods of cleaning its about ready to be reassembled and remounted back on the bow where it can do what its designed to ... hoist the anchor!  The good news is I know so much more about our windlass now.

Back on "Whisper"

In case you haven't been keeping up with us on Facebook, we are back on the boat in Virginia.  We got back in July and have been busy with a lot of maintenance on the boat that was long overdue.  We were hauled out last week at Krentz's Marine Railway where we got the boat scraped and repainted and a new cutlass bearing installed.  They also compounded and waxed the hull so "Whisper" is looking pretty good now.  The photo above is right before we went back in the water so you can see what she looks like out of the water.  That's a 6 foot keel and a massive skeg-hung rudder.

We still have so more maintenance like fuel polishing, oil change, fuel filter change and water pump impeller inspection but we should be sailing soon.

The weather here has been not so nice.  First, it was really hot for a couple weeks running and now the temperatures have moderated but the air quality is terrible due to a fire in the Dismal Swamp which must be a over a hundred miles away.

Flooding at Home Last Week

Here are some photos of the flooding on our property last week.  We were very lucky since there were bad mudslides only a few miles away and about a dozen people were killed.

Visit to Koh Lanta

A couple weeks ago, we took a little day trip to the island of Koh Lanta which is just south of where we live in Krabi.  Koh Lanta is part of Krabi Province and probably the biggest tourist area.  There are actually two islands, Koh Lanta Noi the north island and Koh Lanta Yai the south island.  There is very little development and no accommodations  on the north island, but you have to pass through it to get to the south island which is much bigger and where all the resorts and beaches are located.  It takes about two hours to drive to the Koh Lanta Yai from our house which includes waiting for the two ferries that you need to take.  Once we arrived it was pretty much a sightseeing drive down the main road that runs the length of the island which is about 30 kilometers.  The lower half is less developed but well on it way; however, we still managed to enjoy the scenery and a typical Thai lunch at a roadside restaurant.  At the very end of the island, we found one of the prettiest beach where we took a brief walk and stuck our toes in the very warm water.  The picture above is from that beach which is appropriately called "Last Beach" or Hat Mai Phai.

Watching Field Hockey

Saturday we went to Newport News to watch Skidmore College play in the NCAA semi finals.  My old college roommate's daughter is a freshman on the team and has been a starter all season.  Her name is Kelly and she is #9 in the photo.  They played Bowdoin and unfortunately lost, but it was a lot of fun to watch and see my old roommate Larry and his wife Mary.  They live a small town in the Adirondacks in upstate New York and love skiing but also sail.  Hopefully, we can get them on our boat, either here in the US or in Thailand one day.

Today, we are headed back to the YMCA for a workout and then we'll start getting ready for a few days in Fredericksburg for Thanksgiving.  We're looking forward to seeing my brother Mike and his two dogs Pete and Liz.  Its the first time we will have actually seen the dogs in person and should be fun.

Starting to turn cold!

I think, no I know, winter is on the way!  Last night we had two heaters going and this morning it was 68F in the cabin.  That's fine but it was only about 40F outside and we know it will only get worse.  The forecast for the next few days shows highs of only the upper 50's, and after that who knows.  The good news is in about two months we will be back in Thailand and out of the cold.

In the meantime, we still haven't decided what to do with the boat while we are gone.  The choices are to leave it in the water here at the marina again or to pull it just before we leave and leave it on the hard for six months.  As with everything with a boat, there are trade-offs with both options.

Today, we are back on the boat after a trip to West Virginia last week to visit Dusty's sister Sandy and all the family up there.  We stayed at the lodge at Tygart Lake State Park which was very nice and not too far away.  The choices for lodging are pretty scarce in that part of the state so we felt lucky.  The area has been hit very hard by the recession and a lot of businesses that we in operation a year or so ago when were last up have now closed.  There is a lot of natural beauty but its a tough place to work and live.

Update time

Well as many of you already know, we have been back aboard "Whisper" since the 1st of September.  Unfortunately, its just Dusty and I sans Chewy and Poco.  We had to leave the birds in Thailand with our friends since the rules to bring the back into the U.S. are so stringent.  At a cost of about $1,000 per bird, we could have brought them back but they would have had to spend the first 30 days in quarantine in one of only three facilities ... Miami, New York or Los Angles, so we decided it was best for all that they stay behind.  We miss the terribly but they are in good hands and doing fine.

We are here through the holiday but will be going back to Krabi on January 18.  Right now it seems like a long time but I'm sure the time will fly.  Its hard to believe we already been here almost two months.