Well, it is that time of year again. The weather is becoming more and more favorable to sailing here in the midwest. There is one minor problem however. It has to do with that whole getting cold thing. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy Autumn. However, any outside projects that include paint or epoxy instantly get moved to the top of the list. One project is a windlass. Originally i was not wanting to install a windlass. Now that i have had some time to experiment with pulling in the anchor, the idea of having a boat moored close behind me in high winds and trying to haul anchor while powering forward at the same time makes me a little nervous. If i always had another crew member on board that would be one thing. singlehanding can make things a little more interesting. It becomes a point where a piece of machinery goes from being a luxury item to being a piece of safety equipment. The jury is still out.
The bimini hard top is coming along nicely. I did have to make a minor modification to allow more water flow through the drain tubes. I had too much trying to flow over the back of the bimini instead of through the drain holes.
I have also been working to finish up on some trim work that I have been delaying for some time. To form the trim I ended up turning the cabin into a spider web of shower curtains. It does get the job done though. I have the trim finished and only have one more coast of cetol to apply before I can mount them. Finally the boat is looking nice!
