The Deed is Done

I’ve given notice at work. At first my boss was tentative. His concern was that I was going to a competitor. There’s all that do-I-try-to-outbid-the-other-place-to-keep-him talk. I cut that conversation short by telling him my plan of sailing for a year. He visibly relaxed and expressed his envy. With a child in college and all of the expenses he couldn’t even think about a long vacation much less taking off for a year.

 

He’s a gracious loser. No way can he compete with floating about in a sailboat in the Florida Keys or the Bahamas. 

 

I mean, it’s a nice company but be real.

 

So now the next phase of the plan begins. I’ll be spending time doing final checks on the boat and then taking off for points unknown.

I've had so many people support me on this project. I can't thank them enough. It is truly a new beginning for me. 

The Clock is Ticking

I’m still counting the days.

The wind vane installation is going slowly. The fabricator has delivered the mounting parts but the fellow I have preparing the transom is taking his time. Well, that, and the weather isn’t cooperating. The boarding ladder had to be removed in order to fit the mounting bracket. I called on the fiberglass guy to come fill the holes and clean up the paint and now I have one coat of gelcoat in place and am hoping for a clear weather window for him to finish the job.

Once done, it’s off to the races to get the steering gear set up and dialed in.

I am getting so much support from neighbors. Three have loaned me books and travel guides to help with the trip planning. One has given me a copy of his trip log to Florida to use as a guide. Everyone is really enthusiastic and cheering me on.

I, on the other hand, am feeling a bit unsure about this whole thing. I’m not sure why but I’m becoming apprehensive. I suppose it’s the whole “journey into the unknown” thing but it has me bugged. I’m putting it down to “normal jitters about big changes” and moving forward.

This is what I’m going with: Here I’m living in the known world and no longer happy with it. Out there I’ll be experiencing new things and seeing new stuff and people. I really do believe it will be for the best. And hey; If I don’t like it I can reinsert myself into this place and try something else.

But I’m really rooting for liking it and continuing the project. I don’t know how long I’ve got. Do you? 

The Boat is Ready. Me, Not Just Yet

The boat is ready. I am not. For once she’s ahead of me and I’ve got to play catch up.

The only big thing lacking right now is the wind vane mount and that’s in progress at the fabricator’s shop. The other project I want completed is the leak in the lens of the forward hatch over the V berth. I have the materials at hand and some time to pull the old cracked and crazed plastic lens out and trim up a new one to install.

The inaugural trip offshore into the Gulf of Mexico was a roaring success. The boat performed perfectly and all of that money spent wasn’t wasted. My mentor and captain friend, Eudell Jiles, went along for the ride and coached me on the correct way to manage traffic in the ship channel, talk to the ships’ pilots and in general how not to be a pain in the ass to the professionals that work the Houston Ship Channel (HSC) for a living.  

The weather was picture perfect for a newbie. The HSC was flat, the wind and the tide was in our favor. Traffic was light. The Gulf was reasonably calm with winds about 12kts and seas 2-3 feet. Nothing broke, the engine purred contentedly down below and kept her temperature steady. We turned south out of the jetties about eight miles offshore and set sail for Freeport, TX 40 miles south down the coast.

While the motion of the boat was extreme for me, he was in his element. I could tell this was his payment for all of the times he helped me on this project. This guy lives for this stuff; tiller in hand, wind in his face shouting encouragement as I hung over the back rail and fed the fish.

Yep. That sucked. Of all the details to leave unattended, I forgot to get the motion sickness pills. In my defense, I didn’t know if I’d be affected by it. Oh, well. Now I know.

After a brief discussion about this going on another nine hours, we turned around and headed to the Galveston Yacht Basin for the night. We dropped anchor just after sunset and discussed the events of the day and what I had learned.

Now my appetite is whetted. I'm looking at the calendar trying to figure out when I'll be able to get out there for more practice. I've got only 20 weeks or so before the planned departure so I need to make the time to get offshore again.  

Not Everyone Was Working That Day

Biding My Time

Two milestones are rapidly approaching; my 55^th birthday and the final task on the boat. The last big project is installing the Cape Horn steering system.  Once that’s in place it is the jog to the finish line.

That will be the fun part. I’ll have to spend time sailing and making minor adjustments to the boat.  I know, I know. Tis a tough job but you know, someone has to do it. I plan a couple trips to Freeport and maybe the Flower Gardens 100 miles off the coast. Those trips will give me the offshore experience I need to begin making open-water passages by myself. Now that the wind and water are becoming more favorable for my part of the coast, I can make plans more reliably.

I’m toying with the idea of moving the departure date up by four weeks or so. Still chewing on that idea. While I don’t want to cut my training period short I’m getting the itch to get gone.

This trip is gonna be soooo cool! The plan is one year off to shake off old memories and hurt feelings and gain a new perspective for the next 30 or 40 years. At the end of 12 months I’ll reconsider; should I keep going or come back and reinsert myself into the matrix. 

Sitting here I don’t know what person I’ll be when that decision time comes. It will be fun to see.

Rounding Third and Heading for Home!

As the to-do list grows shorter and the months zoom by I am both eager and nervous about leaving. Focusing on the many details of getting the boat ready leaves me little time to just daydream about what it will be like when I arrive.

White sand, salt air, clear water and the cry of seagulls overhead are what I have to keep in mind. Venturing ashore to visit the village taco cart and chit chat with the locals is what I’m looking forward to. That and mixing with other cruisers that are happy to be where they are.

For now I’ll have to satisfy myself with reading the blogs and looking at the pictures of those already there.

Sitting here doing the math I find I’ll have enough to complete the boat projects and if I play my cards right I’ll have a dollar or two extra to put into the cruising kitty. Postponing departure to make extra money is not an option. I’ll go with what I have and work it out later.