Hard to believe, but it's been almost 2 years since our last posting on the blog! Well we've been up to an aweful lot, as you will see. We pulled the boat out of the water on April 19, 2011 in Hampstead, NC & drove home to sell everything we own so we could get back on the boat & continue cruising with no worries as Jimmy Buffet would say. That plan didn't quite work, so we decided to travel back & forth to NC over the winter to put our house-flipping remodeling skills to good use on the boat & then get back on it & continue cruising in comfort & new electronics euphoria.
Phase II became quite comfortable to live on after we replaced the walls, floors, counter tops, blinds, trim...... & of course new canvas & isenglass.
So finally on November 2, 2012 into the lift she went (see the shadow of it below) & we launched for our 2 week "shake down" cruise to get her on the right course SOUTH! After more than 18 months, we said farewell to all of the great people that we met in Hampstead.
We sanded (that would be me above), prepped, & painted the hull, decks (after 80% were re-cored) & the house. It was a brutal process!
We basically gutted the inside when we had to remove the starboard fuel tank that luckily sprung a leak while on the hard.
So finally on November 2, 2012 into the lift she went (see the shadow of it below) & we launched for our 2 week "shake down" cruise to get her on the right course SOUTH! After more than 18 months, we said farewell to all of the great people that we met in Hampstead.
The 2 overhauled Perkins 6-354 turbo diesel engines ran perfectly & got us to Myrtle Beach without incident. Luck would have it that Linda & Bill were visiting Matthew & Lindsay there & Stephen happened to be visiting Kendall in Charleston, so we all gathered for some local barbeque at the Grand Dunes Marina adjacent to the Grand Dunes Resort where Linda & Bill were staying.
Before we departed, Dave & Bill made sure the dinghy was running well.
From there we headed to Charleston, SC, which is such an awesome city. So awesome, Linda, Bill & Matthew decided to follow us down & stay on the boat with us. Kendall also joined us for some back deck relaxing. After 3 days of enjoying the restaurants, shops & sights of Charleston, off we went.
Then on to Dataw Island, SC where the sunrise was blinding, but incredibly beautiful.
After a stop in Thunderbolt, SC & an obligatory anchoring off Sapalo Island, GA we docked the boat in Brunswick, GA on November 14th and headed home for the holidays.
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