Northbound 2002, and more Refurbishing

After leaving Vero Beach on April 1, we made a beeline for Cape Canaveral, where a space shuttle was scheduled for launch on April 5th, weather permitting.

Along with three other boats, Mojo, Moxun, and Nauti RV, we positioned ourselves as close as the Coast Guard would allow to the launch site. The only problem... weather wasn't permitting. The shuttle launch was delayed again and again, and finally the launch window passed and an indefinite delay was announced. So, we pulled up the anchor and proceeded northbound.

By the way, the "steadying sail" you see is sometimes used on a trawler to steady its motion. We found it cut down a side-to-side roll a good bit when the wind and water wanted to make our ride a bit uncomfortable.

(This lack of luck with launches was repeated every time we tried to stop for a launch. We saw at least 4 launches from far away, but every time we got up close, the launch was delayed. Maybe it was us!)

After giving up on the launch, we went pretty directly to Oriental, NC, where we stopped for several months to refurbish Dory's paint and varnish.

Paint and Varnish

After cruising for a full year, the paint and varnish needed to be stripped and replaced, as this before and after picture attests.

Caulking the decks

The planks in a teak deck cannot be rigidly placed, as they flex slightly in use. So a rubber caulk is used between the planks to provide flexibility while protecting from the weather and salt water spray. Over the years, some of the caulk gets brittle, and needs to be cut out and replaced.

Our med student niece Tracy volunteered to spend a couple of days caulking the decks during her summer vacation.

For some reason, more of the (male) boaters who had walked past Dory without a glance when we were painting and varnishing seemed to stop and chat when we were caulking the decks. We can't figure out why -- it must have been the colorful masking tape we were using.

Haulout

Before heading south for the 2002-2003 cruising season, one final project was necessary. Boats accumulate barnacles. Boats sitting for several months, as Dory did while we were painting her and while we were in Texas, accumulate more. To deal with this, boats are hauled out of the water every year or so and the bottom is cleaned and repainted.

We took Dory to Bock Marine, about halfway between Oriental and Beaufort NC, for the part of the work that required a "haulout". This involves pulling the boat out of the water in a giant sling and setting her on the ground with supports to hold her upright. This allows access to the parts of the boat that are normally under water.

A boat out of the water like this is called "on the hard". When she was first pulled out, the bottom, the props, and the rudders were cleaned. Dory then had to sit on the hard for a couple of weeks to dry out fully before having her bottom sandblasted and repainted.

Above are before and after photos of the props and rudders during the haulout. (The growth took place in about 14 weeks, as we'd had the props and rudders cleaned in early July, when we had to pull Dory out of the water for her periodic inspection by the insurance company's agent.)

Wedding Bells!

We left Dory on the hard and drove to Dallas for our son's wedding.

The trip west was fairly direct, and we spent about six weeks before the wedding helping our son prepare to move, and also moving stuff we'd stored with him into a self-storage unit.

This also allowed us to attend several pre-wedding parties, and, of course, the wedding itself.

What a delightful trip, and a beautiful wedding!

On the return trip, we stopped in Austin and met with a dozen friends who had also worked in Saudi with us, and now returned to the central Texas area. From there, we visited other friends in Mississippi, and then traveled to the Albany NY area for a surprise anniversary party for Sue's sister and brother-in-law before returning to reboard Dory.

When we returned, Dory was still unpainted, as there had been too much rain for her hull to dry enough for the sandblasting and repainting.

That gave us the opportunity that every cruiser loves . . . the chance to live on the hard for a few weeks. The deck of your boat is 10 feet above the ground, the boat seems precariously balanced, there is no running water, and you can't use the onboard head (toilet).

Your access is via an extension ladder. Since we had boarded our dog Sandy, we had to get him on board when we picked him up. That was interesting ... we constructed a 20 foot ramp for him to climb up.

Those midnight trips to the marina rest rooms were even worse!

Even though we had air conditioning installed, we couldn't use it, because it requires sea water for cooling.

Finally, the weather allowed the sandblasting and painting, and the paint dried enough to put her back in the water. We relaunched Dory on Friday, October 18th, coincidentally one year to the day from when we'd finished the last of the projects and launched on our cruise the year before.

All in all, a very enjoyable first year living and cruising full time aboard Dory!