May 2004

We're FINALLY tossing off the docklines and heading up the west coast! In less than 48 hours we'll be leaving "our home" for the past nine months as we permanently leave San Diego for our trip northward. The 'to do" list is down to only 5 or 6 items and one of them is to enjoy a delicious dinner at the Star of the Sea tomorrow evening.

If you've been following our updates, you may be thinking, "they were going to leave in April, what happened?" Well, difficulty with one little project turned into 5 weeks in the boat yard having work done on the boat. In March while I was in Michigan, Gary was having a new wind transducer installed on top of the mast; however the existing wiring didn't cooperate and it was decided that we would need to pull the mast to accomplish our goal. Now that wasn't too bad as we already intended to have the boat pulled (taken out of the water) and the bottom repainted, so we could pull the mast at the same time. Soooooo we moved the boat to a boat yard on Shelter Island, near downtown San Diego and work began..and Gary's mind started working overtime. If the mast was coming down, it was probably a good time to replace the rigging (the wires, etc. that hold up the mast), and since we were doing that, we might just as well paint the mast too! So a 24 hour job turned into 3 ½ weeks in the yard. For 3 of those days, the boat was sitting on a cradle and we had to climb a 10' ladder to get on & off the boat and we couldn't use any water. The rest of the time, we were tied up next to the 150 ton hoist that started working at 7:30 a.m. everyday. Finally when the work was completed we started off to our marina only to discover black smoke coming out of the exhaust! So we turned around and went back to the boatyard. It was discovered that due to a closed valve, sea water had been sucked into the engine and contaminated the oil..this all involved 7 more days at the boatyard and multiple oil changes. But the boat is now in tip-top shape and ready to go exploring!

As we get ready to leave our marina for the ocean, I have some bittersweet thoughts. We've made some good friends during our stay here and it's hard to say goodbye. Some have already left for more exotic spots like the Marquesas and New Zealand, others like the two young Danes we met at our stay in the boatyard have already hand-steered across the Atlantic in a 28 foot sailboat and are beginning a new adventure by sailing in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River. Others are based more "permanently" here as they continue to prepare to follow their dreams. It's hard to leave people who have become a part of daily life, but that's part of this lifestyle we've chosen. We're looking forward to new friends in new ports and staying in touch with old ones!. Our new address is #2408 411 Walnut Street, Green Cove Springs, FL 32043. That is our mail forwarding service & we'll be getting mail about once a month. Feel free to communicate with us with a card or note. We'll also be checking our Yahoo email every couple of days, so that's still a good way to stay in touch.

We'll be back in Michigan in July for Kate's wedding and hope to see some of you then. We hope you enjoy this quick update. We'll try to update you as we travel north and have more "adventures".

Enjoy today!

Dorothy, Gary & Murray the Cat

© Copyright 2004
Last updated on January 15, 2005