Empty Nest

Well the Dove Saga is over. The nest was empty this week. I guess Momma didn't like her new digs after all. I kinda suspected that.

I am pretty sure I have mentioned that if I ever 'did it again' I would not start a boat project without decent covered storage. I think I need to amend that opinion. If I was to ever buy a boat again I wouldn't until I had decent covered and heated indoor storage.

I make this amendment as I look at my thinning-by-the-day-under-the-intense-summer-sun varnish trim on Jenny. The weather continues to be uncooperative to varnish and it wouldn't be where I wanted it even if I didn't have the little bird issue to contend with. I have decided that to maintain the boat in the condition I would like will require better storage options. My winter cover is nice but I am restricted in width by the boatyard rules so I can't get to the toerails while the cover is on. Even with a bigger cover the temperature and humidity hasn't been where I need it to be either. Of course a big part of my problem is that I am restricted to weekends only which is severely limiting my options. I really just have no time for wage earning work. My boat needs me.

I am really sick of boatyard storage even if I am in a pretty good boatyard. I think it is time to start searching seriously for a house for my boat. A house for myself would be nice too but I think that is out of the question considering what I have spent on the boat. I have gone this far for the boat's sake; I might as well buy Jenny her own house and THEN we will both be happy and content...

Fighting the heavy rainshowers, I managed to get some details done. A thorough washdown cleared away all the winter grime (and black sneaker marks from when I was too careless about my 'no shoes' rule). The cabin sole has a coat of polyurethane on it. The saloon shelving is completely installed and awaiting the cherry paneling.

and that is about it. Nothing really worth taking a picture of.

Heartless Landlord evicts young mother.

Apparently, many people know that mourning doves have two clutches of eggs every spring. Until this weekend I didn't know that.

Being the heartless cull that I am, I decided that I had had enough and it was time for momma dove to leave. I think she was quite surprised that I carried out my threat this time. She let me walk right up to her and almost touch the nest before she flew away with a few choice chirps for me that I can't repeat on a family blog.

I set the nest down on the ground figuring that would be the end of it but momma wasn't through with me. While I disassembled the winter cover, momma continued to fly around chirping and keeping an eye on me.

At the end of a few hours on Saturday I had the cover off.



On Sunday I came all prepared to wash the boat of its winter grime and start sanding and varnishing the toerails. Momma had other plans for me as I found her back on her nest where I had set it under the boat.



After a few tense moments we came to an agreement. I agreed to put the ladder on the port side and work on interior projects and thus not get the nest wet with hull washing, and in return momma promised to let me make all the noise I want inside and not give me those dovey eyes that make me feel so guilty.

So I used my time on Sunday to clean up the epoxy squeeze out from around the bamboo cabin sole. That took more time than I expected. The hatch covers sit pretty tight and the smallest amount of epoxy in the corners were keeping the hatches from sitting properly. After some boring detail work I realized that my router back at home would come in very useful. Using a quarter round bit I simply rounded the lower edges of the hatch boards which made the hatches drop into place easily. Sunday afternoon was for holiday socializing (my girlfriend made me go and be social).

Monday I was tied up with holiday guests for a few hours but I did manage to spend a bit of time cleaning up the sole and buying some materials for the final finish work.

So here is how the sole looks today:





So far I am pretty happy with the look. I have satin finish polyurethane for the bamboo and a close match of paint for the exposed bits of hull and hatch fiddles. I need to do a bit more fairing before the paint though. The hatches sit just a bit low so I need to build up the edges that they sit on slightly and I want to smooth the exposed hull surfaces as well before I paint.

The highest priority next week is to sand and varnish my starved toerails. Now that the sun is beating down on them I really feel the need to get them protected. Its nice having teak that can take the abuse but I would like to limit the abuse as much as a I can.

As I was leaving today, Momma Dove posed for one last photograph.

Momma's gone but ...

but baby Dove is being reluctant about leaving the nest.

On a positive note; my girlfriend is thrilled to have me around and available on the weekends. She has been getting into sea kayaking in a big way and I have been participating with her.

I have to say, considering the aquisition and yearly maintenance costs, you get a tremendous bang for the buck with a kayak. They are tons of fun and but a fraction of the cost of a small cruising sailboat.

Truth be known, I have purposefully avoided kayaks because I knew I would like them but I didn't want any more distractions in my life. I am busy enough as it is. Despite my best intentions I may be losing the battle. Kayaks are a lot of fun.

I have high hopes for some real boatwork next week. That's about it.

Baby doves are very cute

What can I say. The little baby dove is very cute. It must have hatched sometime last weekend as it already looks like it is about ready to leave the nest.

Yeah, I know...

Saturday, torrential rains, high winds, thunder and lightning. No boatwork.

Sunday, Mother's Day, visiting guests. No boatwork.

I checked on Jenny. She is doing fine but the cover is looking a bit flabby.

Momma dove was celebrating mother's day by sitting on her eggs. Any day now...

Evicted

So, I was away for one stinkin' weekend and I got kicked out.

Last weekend, I did something very foolish and crazy which was to rescue another Pearson Triton from being cut up. #385 needed a new home quickly and I couldn't let her die a horrible death so I have taken her in. I have no idea what to do with her.

When I started looking for an Alberg boat I found #385 sitting in my cousin's boatyard. When I asked my cousin about it he forbid me from investigating. The boat had come to the yard ten plus years earlier and had not moved since. The yearly storage fees continued to be paid promptly. He was not about to let that cash cow go. It was the easiest income he had. I had to look elsewhere for my Triton.

Unfortunately for #385, she was set in the corner of the yard and forgotten. She sailed in in apparently decent shape but was then left with the rig up and uncovered for over ten years. Ten years of New England snow and ice. Ten years of hot scorching summer sun. Whatever was good about the boat was lost. The decks are soft and to the point of being unable to stand upon. The deck and cabin skins are a maze of stress cracks. Water appears to have pooled up in the cabin. There is a nice blowout under the ballast pig through the bottom of the boat. All that is left is a disassembled engine, some ancient sails, and some bronze hardware.

The owner of #385 was finally persuaded to part with the boat and in the past few years has gone through a few owners with ideas of restoring her.

I knew she was in rough shape. She is probably rougher than I thought even. I have no idea what to do with the boat but I wasn't ready to let another Triton get cut up.

For now #385 is safe and is well blocked and covered. What comes next is anyone's guess.

And that is why I was away last weekend which resulted in my eviction.

You see, while I was busy saving the world, one Triton at a time, a young mother, very pregnant, was in urgent need of a safe place to raise her children. In my absence a nice quiet and safe spot turned out to be the top of my ladder that was left upright alongside the cockpit of Jenny.

Now my ladder is home for a young morning dove and two new eggs. I can't move the nest for fear of disturbing the mother into abandoning her chicks. I can't work around the new inhabitants because the ladder is only a few feet from where I need to be and frankly, my winter waist is still too big for me to fit comfortably through the fore hatch.

Anyone know how long it takes a dove to hatch her chicks and send them out on their own?...

For this weekend, at least, I think I will work on some other boat projects at home and catch up on some car and house maintenance while I am at it.

I have been stopped by 8 ounces of fluff that only wants a safe quiet place to raise her young. What can I do?