We will continue to get the videos from this summer up on YouTube over the next couple weeks. But, in the meantime, I thought I would give everyone an update.
We hauled Bear at Sailing Emporium in Rock Hall, Maryland back on August 13th. We had shopped around looking for a do-it-yourself yard that was within an hour or so of Annapolis where folks could live aboard. I called every place on Skipper Bob’s DIY marina list and none allowed live aboards except Sailing Emporium. We have since heard that Herrington Harbor North allows folks to live on the hard while doing work, but they told me that was not an option when I spoke with them on the phone. Regardless, Sailing Emporium ended up being about a thousand dollars cheaper than Herrington Harbor. It also turns out that Sailing Emporium seems to be a wonderful marina with a pool, day room, great WIFI, nice showers, etc.
Bear on the hard at Sailing Emporium
After three days of furiously putting Bear away and cleaning her, we headed back to Peoria so that Margaret could get ready for the start of the semester. In Peoria, we are living in a friend’s house until next week when we will move into our apartment. Things here have been fine, but it is a poor substitute for life on the water. Margaret has been working long hours, and I have been applying for jobs and keeping up with the work that I already have. Next week, I have another interview for some contract work that, should I get it, will keep me busy working remotely through next June and help fill out the cruising kitty.
No matter what happens with the job situation, I will be heading back to Rock Hall sometime in late September or early October to spend about a month doing work on Bear. Margaret will be joining me for the Annapolis sailboat show weekend. The biggest project we have is putting the external chainplates on. Fortunately, we will not have to pull the mast to do this, but the job is still going to entail a lot of work…and is already making me nervous. In addition to the chainplates, we have a long list of other tasks that should get done over the winter. We will share those with you in a future post.
In the coming days, I am planning on making a few changes to the website, including moving it from WordPress to Drupal. Hopefully there will be no interruption in service, just a few more features and a bit more content. Stay tuned and please give us some feedback when the transformation occurs.