Little Italy

Our energy and motivation levels were pretty low today. I started the morning with sewing a patch on a pair of desperately needed work shorts and taking advantage of a good internet connection on the boat. But after getting another coat of paint on in the head I was done. Mike had a list of stuff he wanted to accomplish but nothing was coming together for him as well. We had plans to head into town for more errands and got a few things done but it felt more like a trudge. We did accomplish the most important one though…getting pizza makings for tonight! As we were returning to the boat, the skies grew darker and we just made it back before the rain fell. It was perfect, enough to make a cozy atmosphere but not enough to find its way inside the boat. It was also perfect timing because it helped stopped those guilty pangs from not wanting to work. We just lounged and enjoyed the sound of rain on the decks while I read and Mike played Solitaire on the computer. I eventually got motivated to make pizza and I have to say it was the best one so far! The Godfather, pizza and red wine… our own little Italy in the middle of a boat yard in Turkey!

Just Another Day

We survived our first night without falling in the bilge…or dropping anything valuable in the bilge! Today we continued to work on the head, we’re really happy that we started this project our first week. Last night I was going through the cupboards and consolidating our emergency supplies which Mike replenishes every year. And of course the metal behind the cupboards was dirty and rusty and needing a new coat (or several) of paint. I was also able to get some Sikaflex on the inner windows seals and do a final fit on most of the trim (a project started 2 years ago almost completed!). Mike also made some good headway on plumbing the toilet. He spent all afternoon grinding the thru-holes into larger ones (the fittings that allow water/waste to enter/leave the boat), which was a slow and dirty job. It just felt like a really busy day and we were pretty wiped by the end. But were able to find the energy to take a very needed shower, lounge on the day bed and watch the first half of Godfather II. There sure is a lot of Italian spoken in that movie, which is really noticeable when you have a bad copy and don’t have subtitles!

Don't Fall in the Bilge!

In the midst of all this work and projects needing to be completed before we can go in the water, we decide to get our floors redone (yeah Steve, it wasn’t a joke). Our reasoning is that it would help to improve to look of the cabin immensely because the current wooden flooring is chipped, scratched and covered in paint drips. And in the back of our minds we’re always thinking about re-sale value. Another reason is that we really like Ishmail and he offered us a good price on the job. Not sure how good of a reason that is, but too late now! Today Ishmail came to take our floors away. I wasn’t really prepared for this and especially not the fact that he was taking all of the floor boards with him. I think Mike could see the panic in my eyes and he thought I was going to run. It didn’t help when our neighbor asked us seriously if we were going to stay in a hotel. No floor boards means that we don’t have anything covering our bilges and so we get to step on the wooden braces that are every few feet. If you miss then you fall in the bilge. Kind of like hop-scotch. But actually it ended up not too bad because we were able to place some various wooden boards in the high traffic areas. And the door to the head fits perfectly in the salon. We also dropped the table to make our big day bed which is really cozy. We just have to sometimes yell “left! left!” (my job when Mike was driving in Cyprus to remind him to stay on the left side of the road) when we get out of bed or walk in the dark! Other than that, today I went around and fitted the varnished trim into the windows. I was also able to cut some old foam into pieces so they could act as insulation for the head. The ‘ceiling’ was just the steel deck and some flimsy panels. During the day the steel would get really hot to the touch and just radiate heat down into the small head. It often felt like a sauna in there so happy that those old foam cushions came into use. After a beer in the cockpit (and an unintentional meal of peanuts) we skipped dinner but settled on the day bed and started a new movie marathon….The Godfather!

Floors...

...now no floors

The Drama Continues...

We could still see Uli’s mast from our cockpit this morning and knew he never made it in the water. We gave him a call to check in and he stopped by on his way to the airport a few minutes later. He told us how the angry worker had talked to the travel lift operators yesterday and told them not to put him in the water because he was a ‘liar’. For some reason the travel lift guys listened to him and so after all of that work and stress the boat just remains hauled out. Uli had some contact with the office about this whole mess but didn’t really have the time to sort it out because of needing to catch a flight. Mike and I also felt it was important to talk with the office about our concerns because this guy seems like a time bomb. So we headed in and talked with one of the lovely (and stylish) young women who work in the office. She had spoken with Uli and was aware of the situation and us being witness to the interaction. She said she will pass it along to her manager. Apparently, there have been previous complaints about this guy, and he may be banned from working in the marina any longer. We returned home feeling a bit bad about everything but continued on with work to only be witness to another unfortunate event. The workers from Demir (the shop below us) were on the boat next to us. It’s a very expensive sailboat and they were continuing the job of removing the steel structure which had been previously built around it so they could tarp it off and protect it…from people like us! I had been watching them yesterday and told them to be careful as one guy was standing on a one inch wide piece of steel about 15 feet in the air trying to unbolt a large piece above him. Well today I was on deck and the same men were at it again. This time he was on a ladder which was supported against one of the steel beams (if you can call it that). Unfortunately, the steel beam wasn’t welded in place as he thought and gave away. There was this moment where his ladder seemed suspended and then started to fall out from beneath him. There was nothing he could do because he couldn’t jump or else we would fall on a pile of rusty steel pieces. So he clung to the ladder, and good or bad, our boat (and his head) broke the fall before he hit the ground. He had a bit of a goose egg on his forehead and appeared a little shook up. Also a contusion to his leg but overall he seemed ok. And as he was falling an older worker tried to jump out of the way of flying metal but got hit on his ankle and foot. Again, nothing seemed punctured or broken and they both seemed to have luckily escaped worse injury. We tried to play nurse but their co-workers were taking pretty good care of them. After lunch they were all right back at it again, only this time another guy on the ladder. I think the one who fell was done with that job for the day! Right in the middle of all of this a marina employee came by and told us that the office wanted to see us again. So we made our way back and were informed that the marina manager wanted to speak with us. We have to say that it was a bit like being called into the principal’s office and telling our version of the fight in the school yard. But we also took it seriously and really wanted to convey our concerns about this guy’s very obvious anger issues. We weren’t really sure if the manager took us seriously since he laughed at times, but he did tell us that he was most likely going to kick this worker out of the yard. And to make it feel even more like school when we walked out through the reception area there was the worker sitting with his head down waiting to speak with manager as well. And it only continued when later in the day as we were walking to the store we ran into the manager and the worker on their scooters. They came over to us and the marina manager said “Apologize to them!” so the worker told us he was sorry, shook our hands and then also tried to slip in that he wasn’t at fault. The manager was obviously done with our drama and he stopped that conversation quickly and they rode away. We do feel badly about him most likely losing his job. Maybe the whole thing was just a simple misunderstanding. English is both their second languages, and perhaps it was just a simple miscommunication that led to their conflict. I’m sure they both honestly thought they were right, but the workers reaction was way out of proportion to the situation. I have also thought back to the book “The House of Sand and Fog” and my imagination gets carried away. Maybe the worker has a personal situation going on where the money is really important or necessary for him which caused the frustration and anger. Or maybe he’s just an ass after all. But the whole thing was unfortunate and is hopefully behind us now.

Drama

The day was pretty uneventful…until the late afternoon. Our friend Uli was trying to get his boat ready to go in the water because he is flying home to Germany tomorrow. He was a bit stressed trying to get everything done before the travel lift came for him, especially getting the bottom paint on, and his worker wasn’t too reliable. In the late afternoon he stopped by and asked Mike to give him a hand with bolting his wind vane to the transom. Mike happily headed over and I stopped by a few minutes later. His worker had shown up and gotten the paint on and was asking for his money when I arrived. Apparently there was some disagreement between him and Uli about how much was to be paid. The conversation became heated and the worker was getting flat out angry. Things came to a head when the worker picked up a stick and advanced threateningly toward Uli. I let out a yell and Mike ran over to Uli’s side. The guy backed down, but left with threats to find Uli at the airport and to “beat him”. It was a bit tense. As it turned out, the guy returned later that night and put a scratch in the new paint job. We don’t want to say who was right or wrong as we know nothing of the agreement or interactions of these two, but advancing on somebody with a stick is not the way to solve things. The episode did put a bit of a damper on things, but regardless we returned home to Indy and proceeded to grill up some yummy burgers, enjoy a bottle of wine, and watch a bad copy of a really dumb movie (again, Mike’s choice!). If you haven’t seen the new ‘Wolfman’ yet, don’t bother!

A Shaky Start

This Sunday wasn’t off to a good start. This morning was the “Boat Jumble” held by the cruisers in the marina. Even though it was just a yard sale of sort we heard it could make people a little ‘agro’. Despite the start time of 9:30am most people felt the need to set up at 7:30 or 8am for the early birds or to get good deals themselves…and we were one of them. Mike ran off the grab ‘Herbie’ so we could load up some of the heavier items. And once we got to the site there was a bit of a stressful vibe going on…and for why again? And it didn’t help that I got yelled at by one of the other cruisers for taking the car from them. At one point I ended up walking back to the boat because it really wasn’t how I envisioned spending my Sunday morning. But decided to return, thankfully to a less stressed (and apologetic) husband. In the end it became sort of enjoyable and was fun to place faces to the boat names I always here on the VHF. And the beer that we snuck in Mike’s coffee cup helped a bit as well. We also ended up selling a good portion of our stuff but still stuck with a few items. However, Mike did make a bit of an impulsive purchase. A bimini (shade cover) for the cockpit. OK, we are looking to get one, but this one might be a bit small. We are hoping it can be modified, but if not the material is worth the money we spent and we can use it to make covers for rails, dorade boxes, etc on the deck. But we did end up spending more money than we made. After the boat jumble, we were both pretty tired but had the car reserved to go into town for a grocery run. We couldn’t really blow it off because we were having our friend Uli over for dinner and had some pretty bare cupboards. We managed to get that errand done and then came back and took a nap, it is Sunday after all! After a little more varnishing, we cleaned up the cabin and started preparing dinner. It ended up being a very enjoyable late afternoon and evening…cool temperatures, good music, making a yummy dinner (chicken and vegetable kabobs!), drinking wine, a semi-clean cabin and someone else besides each other to talk to!

Our table...at 8am...1.5 hours before it started...

Before...

...After

3 Years Ago Today!

There is continued progress in the head…shower is now plumbed! But geeze, how many things have to happen before it is completed?? Besides that it was a pretty uneventful day. We took a bottle of wine over to “Meander” to say thanks for helping us raise the mizzen. They in return shared the bottle and we lamented over the joys of owning steel boats. But also had some good conversation about other travels which was a nice change from boat talk. Oh, we also dug stuff out for the ‘Boat Jumble’ tomorrow morning and hopefully we will be able to unload some stuff that is just taking up valuable space. But what was fun was reading back through our log tonight from when we first bought Independence. We did keep a bit of a journal and it was fun to be reminded of those first days of haul out in Cyprus. It was also fun to look back at where we sailed to that first season. And we discovered that Mike’s mom Judy and step-dad Kirk met us in Rhodes, Greece 3 years ago today! That really felt like the beginning of our “fun” adventures with Independence and so happy they were able to join us and be a part of it!

A Perfect Day

That is what Mike is calling the day…and I have to agree. We were able to wrangle up some more hands to help us raise the mizzen and it went smoothly and quickly. By 11am it was up and secured which let us relax and enjoy our work the rest of the day. By late morning it was already starting to get pretty warm and I was able to talk Mike into putting on his swim trunks and taking a stop at the pool on the way to the store. Today there was no one there and although it was a bit cooler than yesterday afternoon it felt incredible. We managed to make our way back to the boat and continued to have a productive (and really fun) day. While I was starting on varnishing the window trim, Mike was setting up the BBQ! We marinated some chicken, made up some greek salad, stirred up a gin and tonic and had a great dinner in the cockpit. As Mike was grilling one of the workers from the shop below us was gesturing how good the BBQ smelled. This was from a man who always gives us big smiles and likes to wave and say “see you!”. So Mike ran down the ladder with a piece of chicken to share with him. A few minutes later as we were in the cockpit eating and listening to music we hear someone coming up the ladder. He had bought us a bottle of Pepsi to say thank you. It was very sweet and we asked him to join us but he replied “no English!” and quickly retreated back down the ladder! It really was a perfect day with feelings of accomplishment and promise. We are now looking forward to a mellow weekend with a little break in between the real major projects.

Again, trying to figure out the best approach

Success again!

All 44 pieces...

Beach or Pool?

What a gorgeous sun filled day! It was perfect working weather and I tried to make up for a couple of lost days. Well, that is with a pool break in the middle of the afternoon. Mike took a trip into town for some odds and ends and by the time he came back I was hoping for a break, preferably involving water. The cabin gets pretty warm when the sun shines with out the shade from our dodger. So I put on my suit with thoughts of heading to the water…beach or pool? (And this is where any sympathy I may be getting will end:) Yes, that is a picture of the pool here at the marina. It is pretty awesome...and that's a view of the Mediterranean in the background!) Of course as soon as I got off the boat I was much more comfortable but didn’t let that stop me. I opted for the pool and it was heavenly, hardly anyone there and the water was perfect. Cool and refreshing. And progress continues with the head…Mike got the sink and faucet plumbed! And also hoping the get the mizzen raised tomorrow. Mike is going to put a call out on “the net” tomorrow morning to seek help…kinda like a barn raising I guess. But it should make for another interesting day.

I deserve a dip in the pool, right?

Ouzo is Good Medicine

…and also thank god for Tylenol PM because Mike and I (Mike maybe through osmosis or lack of my tossing and turning) slept through the night! We woke up to sunshine but it was short lived. The forecast called for scattered thunderstorms today and it didn’t take long until the first one rolled through, and then the next one…and the next one. It made for moments of chasing pretty big leaks (lots of dish towels and bowls) and gave an overall feeling of dis-jointedness (is that a word?) to the day. Mike would often run outside to work while the sun would make an appearance after one storm only to be chased back inside by the next wave of rain. We passed power tools from the cockpit to the cabin pretty frequently today. Since it was a hard day to paint and varnish my motivation quickly washed away with the rain. Also the state of the cabin was a bit of a disaster. I should have just gone to the library or taken the computer into the aft cabin and watched a movie. But found myself just sitting at the table not really knowing what to do. I feel guilty if I am not working or “contributing” but need to realize that it’s ok to take a time out or have an off day. And this ‘head’ project is taking way too long….more painting, more sealing, more wood work, not to mention plumbing until things can be put in their final place. Mike (and myself later in the day) made a little progress but it was slow going. By late afternoon we were done and drank our regular afternoon beer. But that wasn’t quite enough so I pulled the bottle of Ouzo out of the cupboard. It did the trick and helped relieve a bit of the stress as of late. The only bummer was that after watching all of those LOTR movies I fell asleep about half way through the last movie! But Mike says we can just watch it again...
And an added note: Today is the one year anniversary of my new foot! And it’s pretty remarkable what a difference the surgery (foot reconstruction) has made. I can now go up and down the ladder dozens of times a day with no pain. Also just walking on the decks, in flip flops, squatting (you do a lot of squatting while working on a boat) is now easy and pain free. Anyways, I just wanted to give it a little mention. The only problem now is trying to keep sunscreen on my scars but I will take that any day!

It Only Takes One

The mozzies were after us last night! After going to bed at 10:30pm I awoke at 12:30 to the sound of a mosquito buzzing in my ear. At 2:30am Mike awoke and joined me in the hunt. It’s the middle of the night and we’re lying there wide eyed with the light on trying to kill a tiny little mosquito. But we got the sucker(!) and then attempted to drift back to sleep. It was fitful after that but we managed to stay in bed until 9am which is kinda late for us, well for Mike that is. We were then off to town for another day of errands. The day was successful in getting many of the things we needed…including some Velcro to help improve the effectiveness of our mosquito screen! When we got home we had a visit from Ishmail, our “family carpenter”, who dropped off our new cockpit table! It’s beautiful and we can’t wait until the boat is in a place where we can put it up. In the summer we always eat outside because the cabin gets way too hot. It will be nice not to have to eat on our laps, it makes us feel a bit more civilized. We also got some trim for our windows (And guess what? All 44 pieces need to be varnished!). I continued work on the head and Mike got some epoxy putty on the plate he welded which was all followed by beer and peanuts in the cockpit. Another dinner of beans, the Turkish version of Nutella for dessert and LOTR then off to bed with hopes of sleep….hopefully the Tylenol PM will help with that.

I Don't Like Mondays

Maybe the weekend was too much of a get a way because I found myself having a very hard time getting motivated today. I was also feeling a bit under the weather and low energy. I managed to get a little painting done but that was about it for me. Mike on the other hand was super productive and got the new plate for the mizzen mast support welded in place. It looks fantastic and his welding gets better and better. As for the evening, we continued watching our Lord of the Rings marathon (Mike’s request) and hit the sack hoping we get another good night of sleep.

A Sunday in Bodrum

Ahhhh……we awoke slow and rested. We both slept peacefully through the night and it felt so good. After no rushing, we made our way downstairs to the outdoor patio for a traditional Turkish breakfast of sliced tomatoes and cucumbers, olives, cheese, hard boiled egg and of course fresh baked bread. We enjoyed the view, the cool morning air and the chatter of the Turkish families on holiday around us. We then took a leisurely walk down to the beach and through the historic (to say the least) town. We started by dipping our feet into the crystal clear waters of the Aegean for the first time this season. The air and water were still a little cool but it helped us recall past memories of jumping off the boat into bath like water and can’t wait until we can immerse our whole bodies again! We then followed the boardwalk along the water’s edge with a view of Castle of St Peter jutting out into the bay, past endless cafes and shops, as well as fishing boats with the fresh catch of the day and eagerly awaiting cats.
We decided we had given Hasan enough time to sleep in and gave him a call. He was on his way into town to pick up his girlfriend at the bus station who was making a last minute trip Datca. He shared with us that they had been fighting all night on the phone but when we met them at the café it looked like anything but fighting. They are obviously pretty smitten with one another but working out some kinks caused by long distance and stressful jobs. After some tea and relationship advice (…it was asked for!) we decided to go our separate ways for a bit….I don’t think it was her idea to take a 5 hour bus ride only to hang out with us.
While they went to “fight”, we went to find one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. We took a lovely walk up a narrow cobble stone road through houses and gardens to find the site. It is the tomb of King Mausolus of Halikarnnasus (now known as Bodrum). It was a grand and ornate mausoleum (get it?) designed by himself and his wife Artemis around 353 BC. It stood 180 feet tall and was topped by a large golden chariot and horses. It was partially destroyed by an earthquake in the 14th century and then the stone was taken by the Knights of St Johns to build the Castle of St. Peters. All that remains on the site today is a large hole at the level of his tomb. The most surprising thing is that for being one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World we were the only tourist there. A refreshing experience from past visits to ancient sites.
To continue our tourist experience we had to get the obligatory ice cream for our leisurely walk back through town. After more sitting by the water’s edge we rejoined Hasan and his girlfriend (I am going to call her Dahlia because that is what her name sounds like…to me anyways) at a nearby café. They informed us that they are no longer fighting and looked every bit as in love as before. We enjoyed a cold beverage and chuckled while watching Mike being harassed by the waitress. And lesson learned, don’t say thank you as the surly waitress is setting down your change because she will assume it is her tip (50%!) and run!
We had offered to drive Dahlia back to Marmaris to shorten her trip on the bus and the time to leave was quickly approaching. The four hours they had spent together in the past 2 weeks was clearly not enough time so Hasan opted to drive with all of us to Marmaris. He would wait with Dahlia for her bus to Datca and then get on a bus himself to only return back to Bodrum late that night. Now if that’s not love then I don’t know what is! On the drive back we took a shortcut through some quiet roads and villages. I saw such a picturesque scene…late afternoon light shining through the olive trees, two women in traditional Turkish dress and a little girl sitting in the tall grass. They were laughing and having a picnic with black and white spotted cows perfectly placed amongst them against the bright green sea of grass. It looked like a painting. So peaceful and simple. We also stopped at the most incredible field filled with vibrant red poppies. It was a just a lovely Sunday afternoon being enjoyed by everyone.
After our good bye to Hasan and Dahlia at the bus station we headed into town to grab some dinner before driving back to the boat. We had a great meal (despite spending a ridiculous amount on a bottle of wine) followed by sharing some baklava next to the water front, then falling asleep while watching a movie in bed. The day could not have been more perfect or rejuvenating.

The view from our room

Hasan and 'Dahlia'

Our site was the top right

The site now

Road Trip!

What the heck is up with our sleep still? Sorry to keep groaning about it but it’s getting kinda ridiculous. Mike went to bed at 8:30pm and was up and out of bed at 2:30am. I didn’t go to bed until after midnight, still awake when Mike got up and then tossed and turned until the morning. For me, it’s like I can’t turn my brain off. I have these obsessive dreams that go on and on and on...and on. But hopefully tonight will be better since we will be sleeping off the boat. After a morning and early afternoon of work we jumped in ‘Herbie’ for a road trip to Bodrum to see our friend Hasan! After a few errands in town, we made our way over the mountain towards Mugla where there are groves of fragrant citrus trees lining the road which meant numerous fruit stands along the way. We couldn’t resist and stopped at one to buy some snacks for the road. As we ate our oranges and dipped our fingers in a mason jar full of honey we continued up and over the next mountain. It was a gorgeous sunny afternoon and the views were beautiful…stunning Marmaris Bay, sun dappled pine forests, pastoral villages and farms, groves and groves of olive trees.


As we were driving and getting further away from the Euro influenced coast we could see more of what most of Turkey is probably like. The tractor carrying a family into town, a shepard sitting on the side of the road tending their flock, a man leading his heavy laden horse down the road. It was a nice glimpse into the rest of Turkey and makes us want to see more.
We made our way into Bodrum in the early evening and went looking for Hasan. He gave us some general directions which led us out of town. We ended up meeting him on the road and he told us we would be having a BBQ at the boatyard where he is working and temporarily living. After a brief stop on the dirt road to take in the view of the Aegean Sea we made our way down to the yard.


As soon as we entered Mike said “Listen to those grinders.” and we both thought “What? We just drove 2 ½ hours to spend the evening in another boatyard?” But no fear, the night was relaxing and pleasant. The work in the yard quickly ended and the air became still and quiet. We were also able to get a sneak peek and tour of Hasan’s work project.


A 129 foot steel hulled sail boat that is probably 2/3 from completion. It was impressive to say the least. It has 10 refrigerators, a Jacuzzi tub on deck, and is (will be) completely computer controlled. You could be on your laptop on the other side of the world and open and close hatches, start engines, watch live video of who is doing what where… The only bummer is that we didn’t bring the camera in to share some pics with you all. But if anyone out there wins the lottery we know how you could spend some of that money!
We were then treated to a delicious BBQ by Hasan and his co-workers Cetin and Mustafa.



We ate as the sky grew dark and warmed ourselves by the fire fueled with teak as the night grew cool. Since Hasan had just finished up his 84 hour work week he was a bit tired. And after realizing he was talking with his co-workers about who may give up their bed for us that night we quickly made our way back into town to find a pansiyon. We stumbled upon a charming place and made our way into the twin beds with a good night’s sleep on our minds!

Repeat

More of the same today…painting, varnishing, grinding, cutting, welding and then repeat.

Another day...

Today was much less climatic than yesterday…thank god. Mike spent his day getting to work on the area around the mizzen. After cutting away the deck plate, to no surprise, the box was full of rusty flakes. But good news, the steel structure which is supporting the mast is still intact. I spent the day painting the head and finishing up some varnish projects. For some reason, we both kinda thought the head would be ready to use after Ishmail finished up his work. But then all of the wood either needs to be varnished or painted. It was a long day and a combination of poor sleep, paint fumes and grinding/cutting made us pretty exhausted by evening time. After a dinner of leftovers it was off to bed.

Crazy from the paint fumes!

Mizzen Drop

So you’d think that after a couple of weeks, my sleep patterns would have found some sort of normalcy. Yet I still find myself awake at odd hours. This morning I was unable to fall back asleep, so I got up, made a hot cuppa strong coffee, and while Serena continues to saw logs I try my hand at this blog thing. It’s been mostly her writing so far, with an occasional input here or there by me, so now it’s my turn.
But where to begin? This whole boat is such a long continuation of pieces, parts and projects that all bleed together… today’s project actually started last year. I think Serena has mentioned previously how the boat got the better of me last year. 10+ hour days, six or seven days a week, for three solid months with seemingly little progress is enough to discourage most anyone. It definitely left me feeling defeated and deflated. The big issue last year was rust (apparently, steel boats rust. Maybe you’ve heard?). Rust cropping up in places that you’d never expect it, or areas that show no outward sign of corrosion. Where did it all come from? I could blame the previous owner for a lack of maintenance. I could blame the surveyor for not doing a thorough enough job. I could blame myself for being too blinded by the imminent realization of my dream of having a boat in the Med. Trying to assign blame to someone really wouldn’t change anything though, would it? Instead I’m choosing to look at it as just my turn. This boat is 25+ years old, and some of these projects we’re doing won’t have to be done for another 25 years. A bunch of things have come due and we’re the ones who own at the time. Kind of like musical chairs.
Anyway, where was I? Oh yea! Rust. So three days before I was supposed to leave for home last year (I had already pushed back my departure date by a week or so in hopes of finishing up some other projects), it rained. Not unusual, but this time there seemed to be more than a little bit of water streaming into the aft cabin from the ceiling panels. A little investigation revealed that the fittings that take the wires and cables that run up the mizzen mast through the deck to the electric panel had failed. Or I should say the fittings were fine, it was the steel that surrounded the fittings that had failed. A little poking and prodding and soon I had a two square inch hole and a bunch of other really thin, corroded material surrounding it. This was within an inch or two of the mizzen, and it was clear that the metal plate under the mast itself would have to be replaced. Cool. No problem. I got three whole days! Actually, I was nowhere near as optimistic as that. I was done. I whipped up some epoxy putty, slathered the whole area in it, and called it good. Hopefully it would at least keep the rain out.
Fast forward to this year and the continuing masochism. Now that the dodger is out of our way and we have a relatively clear run of the decks, it is time to deal with the mizzen mast. It seemed a pretty straight forward process. Use the halyard on the main mast to lift the mizzen, have a couple of lines to control the swing, and Bob’s Yer Uncle! Since I had never done this before, and it was just the two of us, we thought it best to enlist the help of a friend and co-steel boat sufferer, Uli. Now Uli had dropped a mast before so I was eager to have his input. His approach was entirely different from mine. Instead of using a line from the top of the main to lift the mizzen, he wanted to use a line from the top of the mizzen, via a cantilever, to control the descent. Uhhh…ok! My biggest concern with that approach was being able to control the side to side swing of the top of the mast. We had control lines tied at the spreaders (about half way up the mast), but the best angle, and therefore purchase, that we could get on them didn’t seem like enough. But ah well, you’ve done this before, we haven’t, so we’ll defer. It was when the mast was at a 45degree angle, careened off to the port side, and looking to make a not so soft landing on top of the building behind us (which is a repair shop that was working on a new mast. Would you call that foreshadowing?), and Uli asked if we had insurance that I started to wonder if this was the best approach. But it was too late to retreat now! Onward through the fog! I would have closed my eyes if I weren’t using them. As it was I couldn’t spit by the time we were finished, but somehow we managed to end up with the mast in a mostly horizontal position. Its head was indeed on the repair shop’s roof, and this brought us a tirade of sharply spoken Turkish from one of the women who work in the office. But that and some doubtful/questioning looks from the shop workers were the worst of our injuries. Some more finagling and line wrangling allowed us to move the thing so it’s entirely lying on our deck. Man! That sucker is way bigger than it looked standing up!! The spreaders now have most of the cockpit, and our gloriously clean-run decks are no more, but at least I can fix the plate beneath where it was standing. Of course, putting it back up will be another story. Although… I hear that Sloops are all the rage!

Trying to figure out the best approach

At least it's down...well partially anyways

This shop is coming in handy after all!

Kinda ironic, bringing our old mast down with a bright and shiny new one RIGHT BELOW US!

Ahhhh... success!

See... Serena does have a mast in her cockpit. Our friends have dirty minds:)