Monthly Archives: May 2014

Moving aboard a boat, any boat, for an extended period may be the ultimate exercise in “down-sizing.”  No matter how big the boat, it seems there’s never enough room for food, wine, clothes, beer, gear, rum, spares.  The Com-Pac 27 is voluminous for a boat her size.  But still, you’re talkin’ two adults and all their stuff inside less than 27 feet.

In the past, the most frequent pre-departure question has been “Where the heck does this go?” Thanks to the craftsmanship of Bruce Yancer, the situation’s reversed.  Now the question has become “And what goes in here?”

One of the virtues of the CP27 design is the number of storage areas.  Lots of ’em.  But the biggest are just open spaces into which gear gets tossed, swallowed and may never be seen again.  Mathews resident and former live-aboard Bruce-the-Shipwright knows that in such spaces, whatever you want is always at the bottom.  And he has the skill and creativity to make usable and elegant storage out of what once were a couple of Black Holes!

For instance, he fit two levels of wire shelves in vacant space under the bee-berth, then crafted a louvered teak hatch for access.  And now the formerly wide-open cockpit lockers each have a lower shelf sized to hold a large plastic crate and an upper mahogany shelf for the fenders.

The formerly open space under the cockpit now has roomy shelves on each side for stowing fender, outboard and other gear.

The outboard fits between the two fenders on the top shelf.  There’s room for the bosun’s chair beside the crate.  No decision yet on what goes into the crate.

Kate, however, knows exactly what goes on the new shelf in the galley locker under the stove: wraps and Ziplocs.

That extra little shelf frees up an entire galley drawer and makes those items a good bit more handy.  And the new teak fiddle (partition) under that will keep other stuff in that locker from shifting around so much.

Ah, the joy of simple pleasures!

Organization is one of those.  No where ashore is that pleasure quite as intense as on a small boat.  When the question is “What goes in there?,” it’s pleasure, indeed.

BTW…weather permitting–and the forecast appears favorable–departure now is planned for 1000 hours Wednesday, 21 May, with Quintan as escort and Onancock Town Wharf as the destination.

Steadfast out.

There’s still lots to do before we shove-off, mostly mundane stuff like packing gear and provisioning.  Kate’s agreed to ride the bosun’s chair up to the spreaders tomorrow–it’s easier for me to crank her up the mast than the other way around–to replace a bulb in the steaming light.  There’ll be a quick run to the courthouse at some point and passports need to be secured from the bank vault, that kind of thing, all of which should be manageable in time to hold to our planned departure on / about 20 May…weather permitting.  So…

Saturday seemed like a good day to bring together a few friends, bid farewell and celebrate.  Once most folks were here, good friend and former colleague The Rev. Ray Inscoe led the assemblage down the bank and out on the pier for a blessing of “the fleet,” i.e., Steadfast and the dinghy.  Ray performed a similar pre-departure ceremony in June of ’12 and that trip went pretty well so it seemed a good idea to have him repeat the process.

On board with the crew, Ray prepares to lead the blessing and a reading of the Sailor’s 23rd Psalm.

Saying good-bye’s the toughest part of the trip.  No, really.  Polishing, painting, packing, schlepping, unpacking, packing again.  Those chores are easy compared to saying good-bye to those one holds dear.  But as has been noted elsewhere and often, you can’t sail without casting off the dock lines.

Thanks to all for a wonderful send-off.  Be well!

The Sailor’s 23rd Psalm

The Lord is my pilot, I shall not drift.

He lighteth me across the dark waters.

He steereth me in the deep channels.

He keepeth my log.

He guideth me beneath stars of his holiness for his name’s sake.

Yea though I sail ‘mid the thunders and tempest of life, I shall dread no anger, for thou art with me.

Thy love and thy care, they shelter me.

Thou preparest a harbor for me in the homeland of eternity.

Thou anoints the waves with oil.  My ship rideth calmly.

Surely sunlight and starlight shall favor me on the voyage I take and I shall rest in the port of God forever.