Sewing

The boys stayed out really late last night so I didn’t meet Jesse, one of the returning crewmembers till this morning. He’s also my new bunk mate oddly enough, hmm living with a boy.

I was sewing all day again today with Sveta, we’re almost finished with the fore topgallant, Sveta just has her bunt fair lead to finish. She also said that it should have been sent to the shop because it was the most beaten up sail, 70% of the boltrope had to be stitched.

Ryan and Dan worked on a wire splice; Grant painted the royal yard again and was down in bosuns. Brooke and Katie worked on the soft jackstay for the royal, they patch served them to make them stronger than just a piece of line.

Also, Katie some how managed to knock down a whole yard all by herself… mind you it was just resting on some plastic crates on the tween.

Rumors of the summer

This morning Robin told us about this summer and where we are suppose to stop, supposedly on our way up to Maine we might stop in, North Carolina, Baltimore, Maryland, then Maine, New Hampshire, maybe Boston and then to Rochester and through the Great Lakes.

Some people came by who might possibly buy the boat, Bob is out of money and he’s owned it for 10 years, so maybe we’d get more money. Also Bob is looking for a different place for us to winter next year, maybe the Nisan, Bahamas or Puerto Rico.

We got our sails back this morning as well, the jibs we just walked up but the main topgallant we had to use some tackle from the main course to bring it up.

Sveta and I are working on the fore topsail, Brooke and Katie on the Mathew Walker knots for the shroud lanyards. Dan and Grant sanded and painted the fore royal yard and Ryan is down in bosuns.

Spiffing up the boat

Since Robin was coming back today we spent the day making the boat pretty more or less. Deck wash, sweep and mop of the tween, touch up of the green paint, finish red on covering board and quick layer of black on the chain plates. Ryan also worked on more lanyards and Dan took off all the gear from the fore royal yard.

Key West

We were hopping while down in Key West to go sailing, but yesterday the weather was not that great and today we had to leave. We walked around more today, this time we took Mia the dog with us, went to Fort Zach and the Hemingway House.

Hemingway House.

Fort Zach.

Mia, Katie and Brooke.

Katie at the weird art thing.

Boat washed up.

End of highway 1.

Key West

Key West is really amazing. Great that Peter gave us time off for working really hard so we could come down and enjoy it. We walked around everywhere, since Katie lived there last year she knew lots of great places. The boys did their own thing while Katie, Brooke and I looked at the sights. Went to the Butterfly Graden and the southern most point, walked on the beach and looked at a really sweet old cemetery.

Cemetery.

A tree grew around the head stone.

Lots of puddles.

Street signs.

Where we stayed.

Blue Heaven.

Giant butterfly.

Katie and Brooke at the Southern most point.

Southern most point.

Oiling, Alfot and Key West

Another day up in the rig, but not for me, I had the do so I filled a few seams and then spent the day oiling some patches of the deck. Grant was on the fore top again, Katie re lashed the crinolines and did some whippings on them. Brooke and Kat checked the blocks for all the bunts and replaced them with good ones where needed. Ryan did some patch serving and tarring on the main and was on the foretop a little as well. It was my mom’s last day to see me; she worked hard the whole week she was here, helping all of us sand and clean. Some of the old wood from the foretop was laying around on the tweens and my mom being who she is wanted to take some home, to have a piece of the Bounty. Dan noticed and instead gave her a belay pin, she was really excited about it and I am too.

At the end of the day we all ran around to make sure we were all cleaned up on time because we were leaving for Key West tonight.

Brooke taking off the baggy wrinkle.

Baggy wrinkle.

Katie on the crinolines.

Katie on the crinolines.

Old life ring from Liberty Clipper, Katie signed it.

Aloft

Had a great day aloft, haven’t been up since we took down the fore royal, that was ages ago, we’ve been working on the deck for about two weeks. We spent at least an hour doing deck wash, rinsed everything down twice and then put fresh water on all the bright work. Kat and I went up together, changed a strop on the crow jack, took us awhile because the footrope was really horrible. Katie whipped the gaskets on the main and mizzen and then put new ray bands on the main topgallant, and check the other yards to see if new ones needed them. Katie and Sveta also relashed the back ropes on the main topgallant. Dan, Peter and Brooke went ashore for a few errands, got more red paint, returned the giant sander and Dan sent out a giant shiv to get new barring. In the afternoon I lashed a triple fairlead to the shrouds and then tarred four of them and continued tarring.

DONE! No more sanding!

Finally the deck is sanded! We finished the fore deck, got a coat of oil on in and did a bit of the covering board, we only had enough red to paint half of it though.

Michel Walker Knots

We’re still not done sanding! It’s nuts, stupid foredeck is covered in some goo and it takes awhile to get it off. We should finish tomorrow, plus we got two brand new palm sanders! Now we have two great ones and two kind of junky ones. Dan taught us how to make a Michel Walker knot, very easy to tie, but really hard to tighten up, dress as Ryan says. We’ll be making new lanyards for the main.

Mantees

More sanding, spent all day at it. Unfortunately we are down to one decent palm sander, but it’s not that decent because it sounds like it’s going to explode. Ryan was using one and then it smelled smoky and died on him, we’re almost done with the fore deck. Since not all of us were sanding some actually got to do something different for once, small jobs. We also got some new line to make new lanyards and Brooke and Kat jumped in the water when we saw a family of six manatees go by.

The after most section was just sanded, the middle has one layer of oil and the forward has about three layers.

Hauling the line of the stairs.

Grant accidentally elbowed Katie in the eyebrow.

Still not done

And again more the same, more sanding. There was more to sand back aft behind the helm because it was not worn out as much, there was one plank that had pine tar on it and didn’t want to sand. We ended up not oiling because we kept sanding, we only have the big sander for a few more days.

Day off, mini golf

With my mom visiting I took her out and showered her around to the few cool things this town has. We went to the library and then I got my passport photo taken at the place next to it and also got some camera cleaning things. Went to Paris café and then to the Norton Museum, the park around it has some really awesome trees so I climbed them. After that we walked around a whole bunch and ended up exploring a cemetery. Back on the boat we played a few rounds of murder in the dark.

Moooooore Sanding

Another day on the sanders. Sanded aft of the nav house, under the binnacle and in front of the helm. I was on the big sander for awhile and then Grant took over, Brooke and I were on the small sanders for the rest of the day. Kat was below decks again doing things to blocks and Ryan was working on more bungs and seams.

My mom came here today and it seemed to take forever for her to get her, and it was really interesting climbing back on the boat. Hope into the dingy, scoot over to the boat and then climb up the side and of course there are a few broken steps.

No more oil

Since we have no tours today we attacked the area where the brows usually rest, took them down and rigged the small boat next to the steps and the dock so we could get on and off if needed. Katie was on the lawn mower, Brooke and I on the hand sanders and later Grant joined in. Kat was doing more whippings, Ryan was doing seams and bungs, Sveta was working on her eyebolt. She got the eyebolt out the other day and now was prepping the wood so she could put in the new one, but she needs a bigger one because the hole is bigger now. Dan was up in the rig checking out things on Sveta’s lists, unfortunately his rig belt caught on a block strap and his belt ripped right off of him. His belt and knife sheath fell to the deck while his actual knife and marlinspike got hung up on the fore course lift, sadly his leather man fell into the ocean. Grant tried free diving for it but couldn’t go that deep, his scuba air tanks were empty.

Peter’s parents came by to see the boat as well, it was interesting to say the least to watch them get in the small boat and then climb up the side of the ship. Katie’s mom also came by to pick her up and take her away, Katie is going to spend the night with her at a hotel, she gets to get really clean! Everything went great until it came time to actually oil the deck of what we had sanded today…. We only had about a 1/3^rd of a gallon left of oil… so we couldn’t oil as must as we had sanded. We ordered oil the other day and it should be here today… just stuck waiting at the museum office for us to pick it up.

Bosun

More sanding and more caulking of more seams. Rule number one of fixing seams around here…. Don’t look, if you look more appear and you make more work for yourself. The deck is really going to be amazing when it’s all done, I can’t wait. Dan, the bosun, arrived to day, he seems cool.

Sanding

Another day of sanding and caulking seams, not too exciting but it did go by relatively fast. The deck is looking really amazing, only a billion more coats to go.

Crazy Wind

This morning we put on another coat of oil to the new parts we oiled yesterday. I caulked a few more seams that were left and then helped Katie finish off the half round. The wind really picked up today and was getting really crazy at lunch. Grant was in the rigging, Ryan and Brooke were doing whippings and Kat went off to meet up with her family. Ryan sloshed some cables; I tarred the main course pennant brace, Katie oiled some blocks and belay pins. Katie and I then oiled the chest of drawers in the heads. Sveta showed me how we’re going to sew on the fair leads to the sail, really interesting. Lastly we did a deck wash, it really needed it and it was really different because of the way the water ran over the oiled deck. Sadly Katie was manning the hose and got really soaked. We were going to stand watch through out the night because there were a lot of weather warnings, but we ended up not having to. Oh and Lynx disappeared in the middle of the night, they are over at the Rivera Beach Marina, had they been here they would really be smashing around.

Oil, half round, seams and blocks

Katie and I sanded the port half round and taped both sides; the whole boat has tape around it. Then I went to working on seams, Brooke revved the seam around the capstan before she left to take Josh grocery shopping and Ethan to the airport. Katie was down in bosuns working on blocks that I later came to help her on. Kat patch served and tarred part of the main course braces. Grant, Ryan and Peter worked on sanding, at the end everyone was oiling and on bubble patrol.

Day off

We had a good day, went around to a bunch of places. First we took the small boat’s motor to the shop and met up at Paris for brunch. It was great as always, the people know us and know that we’re usually there every Wednesday, this time they gave us free chocolate crepes. After that we ended up going to Walmart, no one really got a whole lot. Then to the park where we played Frisbee, then to mini golf; it was really fun, they had water around a lot of things so our balls kept dropping in. At a few of the holes we all hit our ball at the same time, one was down a ramp so they all raced. Next we went to a indoor flea market, cheap brika brack, but they had one great junk shop that had burner plates for the stove, the boat needs new ones badly. Lastly we had some Indian food.

Katie, Ryan and Grant.

Ryan climbing a tee.

Oiling and half round

Katie and I painted the starboard half round, wasn’t that hard, just tricky in a few spots. When we pulled off the tape it made our hands really green and it also slapped us on our arms so we have nice green streaks everywhere. Kat’s back still hurt so she sewed the sail all day. Grant helped Peter oil the deck, things kept getting stuck in it, not just hair and dirt but a bee. Brooke helped Sveta aloft, they were taking down the maine course braces so that the blocks and things could be serviced and Ethan finished up his projects on the shower and the grates by the helm. Was different work than we normally do, but a really great day despite that it was really windy.

We also got a new guy, Ryan, he’s worked on a few other boats, A.J. Merwald, Spirit of South Carolina, Adventuress and Sound waters.

Grant on bubbly patrol.

Oiling gear.

Grant and Peter enjoying their work.

Sveta fiddling in the rig.

Sveta, the ballerina.

Oiling the deck

Most of us spent the better part of the day caulking more seams in the deck. Grant finished up the column in the great cabin and varnished both of them, really great looking. Ethan painted trim for the shower and fixed a broken leg on the grate next to the helm. Brooke went with Peter to get the floor sander and after lunch Peter and Grant started sanding the starboard fore deck. Peter looked really funny, like and old man mowing the lawn, once it was sanded it looked really great, like a new deck compared to before. Spent a long time sweeping up all the sawdust so that nothing would fall in the oil. Then Katie and Grant started to oil with rollers and still had to be on bubble patrol with a brush. Peter and I ate dinner quickly and then put on another coat because the deck was really socking it up. Putting on the second coat was really tricky because we hand to lean out, I had myself wrapped around a stanchion while leaning out. The deck looks really amazing and I can’t wait for all of it to be done! Some things are going to be really tricky to get into; I for see some intense hand sanding.

Peter sanding.

All the seams we caulked marked off with tape, a mine field!

Filled crack with NP1.

Grant sanding the corners.

Brooke revving our more junk.

Ethan fixing the leg.

Brooke and Katie working on seams.

Peter and his used sand paper.

Brooke sweeping dust.

Lots of dust.

Katie oiling with roller.

Grant rolling on the oil.

Katie.

Grant picking out Brooke's hair.

Adding a second coat was tricky.

Sooooooo pretty!

The other side of the deck with its old finish, yuck!

Oiiiiiiil!