Best Day of a Boater's Life...

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I sold my Ranger Tug 21ec, "Lil' Green Tug", and then my Rosborough RF246, "Blue Heron", several years ago and have been boat-less since then. But that will soon change. The purchase agreement is signed for this 1979 Cape Dory 28, and she goes to sea trial in a week.

The plan is to ship it from Hilton Head, NC, to Punta Gorda, FL. I'll have it hauled, the mast un-stepped and then have it loaded on the shipper's transport only to repeat the process in reverse in Florida.

So many details to nail down with buying a boat! Picking a name was easy--she will be named after one of my first sailboats, a Hunter 33, owned in partnership with my good friend, Bill. Bill and wife, Linda, have a home a short 30-minute drive from Punta Gorda in Ft. Myers. The boat name will be "FellowShip II".

My friends and family are excited about the prospects for sailing on beautiful Charlotte Harbor.  I pointed out to my sister, Jan, and her husband, Neil, that Punta Gorda airport is only 4 miles from Fishermen's Village Marina where I hope to rent a slip, and Allegiant Air flies non-stop from their hometown near Indianapolis, Indiana, to Punta Gorda. Needless to say--there is an open invitation to family and friends to join me sailing in one of the best sailing locations in the USA!

I'm planning to blog about everything pertaining to sailing "FellowShip II". Stay tuned!




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Lots of Maintenance and Upgrades

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Been pet-sitting for my friends, Bill and Linda, in Fort Myers while she has surgery. (Good news—surgery was a success, and they should be headed back home in a day or two!) FellowShip II is only a half hour north up Interstate 75 in Punta Gorda, so I’ve been doing boat maintenance in the mornings when it isn’t too hot. I gave it a good cleaning above and below deck and sorted through lots of stuff in the lockers. I found a bag full of spare parts for the Yanmar diesel and also a nice tiller autopilot. I took the cushion covers to a laundromat and put them in two big front loading washing machines. Following Sunbrella’s cleaning instructions, I added bleach to the laundry detergent, and they came out looking brand new. I stretched them out on the dock in the sun to dry. I have learned the hard way to never dry them in a dryer to avoid shrinkage. There was some nice wood-slatted decking in the cockpit, but it was in one-foot interlocking squares that just wouldn’t interlo...
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