Back to sailing!

Independence is back in Red Hook on her regular mooring and we have all the charter gear back aboard and have been out on a few daysails. The weather has been a bit soggy ... okay,  a lot soggy thanks to Tomas,  but the sun is out today and we think we are coming out from under the tropical lows and getting back to our normal gorgeous trade wind weather.

Everything is running so well, all the systems have had a thorough going over including engine (purring like a kitten), electrical (very impressive new panel), rigging, and all the cosmetics. I will always be working on the varnish but even that looks pretty good!

The bottom is clean and has fresh anti fouling paint  -  we made it to Hawksnest on the north side of St. John in less then 45 minutes last Friday!

So, come on down and let's go sailing!

Independence is in the water!

We launched on Wednesday, October 27th as planned; all went well, no leaks and no surprises.  It has been a very busy few days since then but the list has a lot crossed off.

The decks have new non skid paint, the fridge has a new compressor and is very cold, the electrical system has been tested and tweaked and works well - the new panel is very impressive- the engine is running like a top after its rebuild and the dinghy is ready to launch.

We have lots of cleaning to do tomorrow, and then on Monday we will put all the snorkel gear and cushions aboard and everything else that makes a boat comfortable and ready to charter ... Things like the makings of our rum punch, the trays we serve lunch on, the sun shower for rinsing off after time in the water and a myriad of other details.  Then, on Tuesday, we do our first post-haul-out charter with old friends who have sailed with us for years; it will be a great test run.

A major haul-out and refit is always stressful. I had nightmares that we were heading out on our first sail and I told Ray to raise the mainsail and I had forgotten the sails!!! Don't worry ...We bent on all the sails, which were   overhauled by our favourite sailmaker - Manfred Dietrich - and delivered the day after the launch, no more nightmares!

I still will have varnishing to do but the boat looks and runs great, we are thrilled with the results of this big refit and can't wait to show off Independence so come on down and lets go sailing!

Independence is out of the tent!!

It has been a long, hot few weeks but great progress has been made and our launch date is in sight, we can't wait to go sailing!

Independence is out of her tent and Hodgie did a great job, he is still doing some polishing and had to fix the mess we made of our boot stripe, we took out two through hull fittings that were in the stripe, you would think we would do that before the painter did his job but, oh no, we waited until after.  Hodgie was very polite but a little frustrated with us I think; he really has done a beautiful job of painting the hull.

All the interior work is 95% finished. We have a varnish production line going at the house to get all the trim ready to reinstall and we are ready to put the floor boards and the stairs back in. Getting from fore to aft inside now is a series of lunges, a good thing too as I haven't had time to get to the gym in weeks!

The new teak toe rail is oiled and installed and we are waiting on two new stanchions for the boarding gate; they will be done as soon as the post office delivers one more piece of stainless steel! Pieter has almost finished all the engine work; there are a few hoses left to install and it will be aligned once we are in the water.  The new fridge compressor goes in after we launch and that is when we will paint the non skid on the deck.

My last big project, trying to emulate Hodgie's talent only with a roller and a brush instead of a spray gun, is to paint the cabin and pilot house sides, the hatches and the water way. Our son Paul has a couple of boats in the yard as well and has volunteered to help me with that. All the sanding, priming, sanding and taping has been done so now we just have to dust and dust and dust again and then paint.

THE LAUNCH DATE  IS  OCTOBER 27, that is this Wednesday and we are on schedule, so we are getting excited.  Once the in the water projects are done we will load all the charter gear, snorkels and masks, fins and floats, life jackets and cushions and a myriad of other stuff and then we CAN GO SAILING AGAIN!!!!  We have a trip booked for November 3rd, still have 3 spots available, and will accept bookings starting on November 1st.  Can't wait, or did I already mention that!

Life in the Boatyard!

We are through our first month in the boatyard and projects are well underway.  For the last week Independence has been in a huge plastic tent waiting for the weather to be dry enough to spray paint the topsides.  

Finally, today is the day! I am waiting for Hodgie, our wizard of awlgrip, to call me and tell me he's done and Independence is gorgeous.  It is a little like having your car painted, if your car was 22 tons and 44 feet long and about 15 feet tall so it is a REALLY big tent!  So far,  it hasn't rained and we should be good, fingers crossed.

Once the tent is down we can get back on the boat and resume work on everything else.  The carpentry shop is going to redo the formica in the guest head (bathroom) and in the main salon and they will be replacing some of the wood on the aft cap rail. The electric shop will be replacing our old electric panels and doing some rewiring, the fiberglass expert has a few little things to finish up and then the machine shop guys will be doing some engine work. Once that is all done Ray and I will get to work painting the decks and redoing the non skid.  The list is long but we have another month until we plan to launch so, hopefully, it will all be done on schedule.

It sounds like someone else will be doing the work; that was the case with the paint job on the hull ... But everything else is our hands-on, with the experts doing the things that we can't. The idea of gluing and fitting Formica terrifies me, but for everything else I can be in there helping. I am a great wrench passer and gofer,  and when it comes to demo just turn me loose!

We caught a lucky break with the name board and the trailboards.  Mace McDowell who is known as Mace of Arts did the signs when Pieter had the boat yard and she was back for a few days, visiting  from Virgin Gorda, and managed to fit us in.  Once the plastic tent comes down I will get some pictures so you can see her wonderful work ... And Hodgie's, too!


It is very satisfying to get all these projects done but we can't wait to get back in the water and go sailing again!  Tentative launch date is October 27th so if you are thinking of coming sailing when you are in St.Thomas we'll be ready, willing and able shortly after that.

Hurricane Earl

I just wanted to let you know that Independence was safely hauled out at Independence Boat Yard in St. Thomas for Earl. Our house did fine too ... Lots of branches and debris to clean up and we have our fingers crossed that the lime tree will survive; it blew over and we hauled it back up -  fully loaded with limes!

Our new generator worked overtime. We lost power for about two days, cell phone for one day and Internet for a day and a half ... Scary how dependent we have become on the grid!

We are keeping a weather eye on Gaston but have opened up some of our hurricane shutters and are back to work on Independence, she has to be beautiful for her launch date in late October!

Come down to the Caribbean and let's go sailing!

Independence goes cruising

August 12th

Wow, what a great summer we have been having on Independence. Our daughter and the grandchildren were here for the month of July and we got them out sailing a few times. Marisa, who is now 3, is the youngest snorkeler, with the exception of her mother! that we have had on Independence. She took to it like a duck to water and by the time she headed home she was going with no flotation. An adult close at hand, of course, and we aren't sure she knew she was swimming unaided but we are so proud of her! Can't wait for next year when we will get Lea, now a year old, going!

The days we weren't sailing with them we were out chartering. Lots of families came out and we got some great drawings in the guest book. The turtles and rays were almost always at Scot Beach or Peter Bay and modeled for the art work!

We are off for a week, our guests always ask where we go on vacation because we live in Paradise. Well, we are going sailing for a change ... Hoping to make it as far as Anegada for a lobster dinner but no set itinerary, just like on our day sails! We will be back on August 19th and are available to sail on August 20th and 21st, we are booked on the 22nd and on the 23rd, and then we head to the boatyard for maintenance. We have a lot of projects planned and Independence will be more beautiful then ever (I am biased!) when we launch. I will try and post some updates on our progress.

We will be ready for bookings by the end of October so if you are planning a fall or winter getaway we'd love to take you sailing.

The Crew is on Vacation, back to work May 21st

Independence has had a great season! 2010 has been a great year for us so far and we plan to be in St. Thomas for the summer so we are hoping it will continue. Ray is in Puerto Rico for a few days of R and R, skim boarding and exploring the zip line possibilities at El Yunque - the rain forest- and I am in Ontario for a family wedding and reunion. Pieter and I are having a great time but no one warned us about the weather, it is freezing up here and all the temperatures are in centigrade so we are cold and someone says it's warming up to 20 degrees and it just makes it worse! Oh well, we fly home on Wednesday, May 19th, and it will be 85 of the degrees that I understand!!

The boat is getting some TLC, too. May has slowed down a little for sailing, so we have been getting some maintenance done. Things you can't see like some new batteries and an alternator and things you can like a revarnished toe rail. There is a list and we are working on it, in between going sailing so, as you can imagine, we are VERY glad to hear from people who want to go sailing ... Much more fun then polishing stainless and sanding teak!

We are going to be hauled out for boat projects, bottom paint, and the bulk of hurricane season from August 23rd until October 26th. If you are planning to be in St.Thomas before or after those dates we'd love to take you sailing!

What can you see?

Almost everyone who comes sailing on Independence goes snorkeling. Whether you are an expert with your own gear or a first timer, we want you to have a wonderful experience. We keep fins and masks in a variety of sizes from "small child" to "big guy" and take care to ensure a good fit. We provide noodles or ski belts for flotation and the mate is on watch or in the water ... Safety first!

What can you see? Our good friend Claudia on the term charter boat, Antiquity, took some great pictures and I wanted to share them with you so you would have an idea of what you can see in the beautiful waters surrounding St. John and St. Thomas. They were all taken in anchorages that we visit on Independence. I can't promise that you will see them all when you go snorkeling, but it will be fun to look for them!

Here is one of Claudia's photos. See the rest on the website for Independence and let's sail to a great spot and go snorkeling!

Happy New Year

Well, maybe it is global warming and maybe it's climate change but whatever it is, it's cold up north right now!! The weather in St.Thomas has been interesting too, warm and sunny thankfully, but challenging. We Virgin Island sailors are spoiled by the steady easterly trade winds, usually a little north of east in the winter and a little south of east in the summer. This Christmas season we have had gorgeous surfing waves out of the north and winds out of the south and west. It has made it interesting to find calm anchorages and clear water for snorkeling and we have had some fabulous sails as far up the channel between Tortola and St. John as Leinster Bay.

Christmas Cove on Great St. James has always been a great snorkle stop and the water has been so clear this holiday season that we have stopped there almost every day. The rays, turtles and starfish have kept our guests company in the water so, even though we would like the easterly trade winds back, we have had a great start to this winter.

Yesterday, on our way across Pillsbury Sound to the Cove, we had a very special treat. Two adult dolphin started chasing us and jumping and splashing in the surf just passed Steven's Cay. Anita Roth got a fantastic photograph of them and she has promised to email it to me and I will make sure it gets posted, it was awesome!

Happy New Year and when you get tired of the snow, come on down to St. Thomas and let's go sailing on Independence.