Hello 2021!!!!

Although not a lot has been done since December I thought it was about time to get back to the blog in case you were wondering if I had given up on it. I’m still waiting for updates (and photos) from the marina on the progress of the bodywork and, by my calculations, their time is running out.

It looks like the province wide lockdown will be starting to be phased out next week which means we can head up to the marina. In a few weeks Craig from Canadian Yacht Tops will be meeting us in Wiarton so he can scan the floor of the cockpit for carpeting. We are most likely going with a product called Grass Cloth by Infinity. The colour is still to be determined.

This past Saturday Donald and I spent some time in the shop to get back into the swing of things. I know it isn’t the same as actually working on the boat but it is the next best thing.

We needed to make the second lounge chair for the bow so Donald began assembling it. This is the one that he will be matching.

The plan is to bring this one to our upholster next week so he can make both sets of cushions.

In early June we will be bringing the boat over to Craig’s shop in Lefroy on Lake Simcoe to get it measured for the new bimini. Craig will also be installing a removable canopy over the bow where these lounge chairs will be. We want lots of shade and lots of places to relax. I call them the Zones Of Relaxation. From the hammock on the platform to the lounge chairs on the bow we want to be able to offer several places for guests to be comfortable.

If you have been following the blog you might remember our hammock.

The Dinghy Davit system we bought offered accessories that would allow us to hang a hammock which we modified to also attach a canopy. We had attachments made up so we could connect into their arms.

Francois from The Dinghy Davit gave me the colour number and we had it power coated to match.

Donald also did some repairs on the existing curved backrest for the cockpit seating. This is a photo of the cockpit from when I first saw her is 2019. We have since had the seats and back rests reupholstered but never got to this one. It was rotten at one end and needed to be reinforced so we decided to leave it until the winter.

This will be taken to the upholster next week as well.

We removed the icemaker that was underneath the helm seating. It was no longer working and, since we are looking to simplify the overall look of the cockpit (and since we already had a portable icemaker in the galley), we decided not to replace it. In its place we are installing a pull out recycling bin. The front of which will be covered with the same panels as the rest of the cockpit. The blue bin to the right of the cabinet will sit in a cutout on the top of the box.

I finished the rest of the headliner panels that we have already fitted. The following photos show the process of covering them with fabric.

These photos show how I finished off the corners. The first few are showing the back side of the panel.

We still have to make the panels in the mid-berth and the vestibule and will do those sometime in May. From initial fitting to covering it with fabric each panel takes between 1 and 1-1/2 hours to finish.

We made the decision to change how we are going to cover the top of the transom. Last spring Donald made the caps (which used to be teak) out of Ipe and they looked great.

Unfortunately they didn’t work out the way we hoped so we have decided to go a different route. I took the pieces that Donald made and cut new ones out of Baltic Birch.

The plan is to cover these with fibreglass and then a 3M fairing compound. Once I get it all smooth I will then spray it with gel coat. Andy from the marina is mixing a batch for the body work and will get me a few litres for me. This way the cap for the transom will match giving it a more modern look.

We will be able to screw them down from the top. I will then be able to fill these holes with the same gel coat on site to cover them up.

That’s it for this post. I am hoping to have enough to update the blog in 2 or 3 weeks. I will keep this blog going all summer and will also be uploading videos to Youtube as well.

Spring in just around the corner!