WInter Won't Let Go

I guess it is still just February, but it sure would be nice if winter would let up some.

It has been fairly cold this last week and the snow is accumulating again. Just more incentive to leave it all behind as soon as possible.

But just when you think it is never going to end, we got our annual visit from the Cedar Waxwings, dining voraciously on our mountain ash berries.

If they can survive through the winter, I guess we can too.



Note: Apparently work on the boat is progressing smoothly and I expect a more thorough update in about a week's time.

Long Drive and Big Money

No, this is not about golf!

After what seems like years of searching, I have found someone who says they can put a real autopilot into our boat. For those of you who are not boaters, you probably have no idea why we would want one. For those of you who are boaters, you probably wonder why we don't have one already.

Basically, having an autopilot on a long passage is almost a must, as no-one wants to hand steer for weeks on end, 24 hours a day. Up till now, we have used a "wheel" pilot (just a motor and belt that drives the steering wheel). These types of autopilots are generally not able to handle a boat the size of ours, particularly under sail, and we can confirm that that is the case. We want a more powerful, below deck. autopilot with lots of powerful hydraulics and smart software. The problem has been that this boat has very little room in which to mount such an item, and everyone who has looked at it so far has been unwilling to attempt it (or in some cases even look at it). I certainly did not have a clue how to go about it either.

Enter the folks at Nanaimo Ship Yard ( http://www.nanaimoshipyard.com/ ). They actually came and looked at the problem and instead of running away, they came up with a plan. And they said they could start work on it right away (pretty much unheard of in the marine world).

So, not to let this opportunity slip by, I rushed back to the boat and we immediately moved it to their docks where they will have more of a problem ignoring it. They offered to put us into one of their slips free of charge for as long as it takes, so that should be some incentive for them to get it done. (Pictures courtesy of our good friends, and fellow boat trash, Barry and Hazel)

The big money comes in with the cost of this miracle from heaven. Lots of labour and custom fabricating. Plus the fact that if I have a working autopilot I would also like a complete set of working instruments to go with it. Chartplotter, Radar, Wind instruments etc. So I have dropped the whole project in their laps.

They want the boat for a month and we really can't stay on the boat in their marina, so we made a hasty retreat back to Edmonton. This is where the long drive comes into play. Not having gone that way for a couple of years, we elected to take the long way back via highway 1 and Banff. Who knew that a town like Revelstoke would be completely booked up with Snowmobilers and Skiers to the point that no accommodations would be available within 150 km. So it was that we found ourselves driving the usually scenic Rogers and Kicking Horse passes in the dark - the only company being the non-stop semis going the other way on the twisty, treacherous two-lane road.

So the short version is that we are in Edmonton for at least a month and will hopefully be going back to a boat fully prepared to take us anywhere when we return.

Exciting Times

The boat show was OK. Not a lot of boats in the water for the floating part, and mostly power boats which are of little interest to us sailors. Of course, we still boarded a few to see how the other half lives (we are not envious or anything).

There were lots of booths at the indoor part of the show, with lots of ways for us to spend our hard-earned money. We didn't actually spend any at the show, but did get some good ideas for what we will spend it on next.

Apparently the idea of going to the show on a Thursday was not very original because it seemed that half the people at our marina made the same trip that day.

Once back on the island, we immediately went to the local chandler to spend that previously mentioned money, only to find that the guy we wanted to talk to was at the show in Vancouver. So now we are waiting patiently till next Wednesday when he should be back. Meanwhile, we are getting some boat projects done and generally enjoying the much improved weather. It is still chilly but seems wonderful when the sun is out. Hardly any rain, which is always good on the coast. Doing lots of walking to take advantage.

The excitement came today, when one of the boats (about 3 boats away from ours) caught fire. The firemen arrived with three fire engines and long hoses strung down the docks and made us all get off the docks till they had it under control. Appears to have been more smoke that fire but still pretty disturbing.

The harbour patrol showed up with their boat and a huge Canadian Coast Guard hovercraft zoomed in as well. Quite an impressive response, including sending a diver down to check out the bottom of the poor burning vessel.

When it was all over, the boat does not look to bad from a distance, but the interior is sure to be a write off - lots of smoke damage. Fire is probably the most common disaster for boats here in the winter, with people leaving heaters running for days on end while they are not here. When we are gone, we make a point of leaving nothing but the battery charger running, but we still worry.

Frosty Welcome

OK, it is winter on the coast too.

Temperatures hovering around freezing during the night and rising to 6 or 7 degrees during the day is not exactly balmy. The frost on the docks in the morning can look quite pretty but is treacherous to walk on.

Early morning walks to the washrooms are an adventure all to themselves. From what we have heard, we have actually missed the worst of the winter - lots of fog and snow and such. Can't say we are too bummed about it. We have had quite enough of winter in the last month in Edmonton, so we have paid our dues.

The boat seems to have weathered our time away quite well, although it looks a little neglected. We feel a bit sorry for it at times.

Now that we have been on board for a few days, running a small electric heater and the diesel stove occasionally, the interior is at a comfortable temperature and we are feeling more at home.

We plan to visit the Vancouver boat show in a couple of days, where we can drool over all of the goodies we would like to have. We will see just how much will power we have. Very little, I suspect.

This trip will be first for us, as we will not be taking the car. In the past, it seems that we were always in a hurry and drove everywhere, sometimes at ridiculous expense. Now that we are sort of retired and have more time, we are learning to take it slower. In the case of the boat show, we will walk onto the ferry and use public transportation to get us to the show venue. How novel.

In case you are wondering, these people are some of the typical boat-trash that haunts our marina. Notice how they try and lull you into thinking they are normal human beings with their friendly non-threatening appearance.