Did you know you can actually feel really drunk from a complete and sustained lack of sleep? No alcohol required! Think of the savings! Our last 5-day push was borderline impossible and somehow we achieved enough of our goals that we were able to keep our appointment with the crane to put Leela back in the water. The night before the splash saw us in the shop until 5 am. The night before 4 am. And the one before, at 3 am. Oh, and the one before 2 am. We managed to complete as many projects as possible that were much easier to complete from the comfort of the weather protected shop. Once again we had help from our friends to meet our deadline and even the marine contractors in the shop chipped in to see Leela splash on time.
The list of last minute projects included two new coats of bottom paint, new green trim paint, caulking between the teak planks in the cockpit, rough-in of the sound system, completing the new plumbing system, filling the new diesel tank with the old diesel we had kept from the old tank. New zincs, re-install prop shaft, stick on new Leela logo, etc, etc, etc.
Tuesday morning May 26th saw us scrambling after less than 3h of sleep. The yard manager told me they would pick up Leela at 1:30 pm. A big thanks to Dave and Annette, our boatyard friends, who came in to lend a helping hand at the 11th hour. We were literally still throwing things on the boat as they were starting to move Leela. It was quite the sight to see our 22,000 lbs darling Leela hanging from slings. And then she splashed! There was no actual splashing involved because they do lower the boat very slowly into the water. I would never have thought this could be an emotional moment but it was. The sum of the previous 7 months worth of work, quitting jobs, the highs, the lows, and there she was, back where she belongs.
The first thing the yard guy asks is for us to check through-hulls and such to see if anything was leaking. A quick check and everything was bone dry! They then proceeded to remove the slings re-step the mast. A tricky process with all of our electrical wiring needing to be snaked down the compression tube but it all went well. And before you know it, the crane is gone, and then you are with your boat, a mast with half-connected rigging and boxes of tools and such scattered all over.
Saxony and I spent the rest of the day slowly re-attaching the rigging to the boat. Making sense of the mess of things we literally threw on the boat during our race out of the shop. I say slowly because we could not move very fast. We were mentally and physically completely exhausted. Our backs, knees and hamstrings were destroyed. I felt like a 90-year-old man. But through it all it was magical. Something about being on the water is very relaxing and soothing. Colony Landing Yard allowed us to spend the final night at their dock before we had to clear out at 7:30 am for their first boat haul-out the next morning. Of course, we slept through our alarm and I ran out half-naked at 7:28 am to start the diesel engine to get us out of there on time. We motored 10 minutes to the Squalicum Harbour marina where the plan is to spend 6-7 days while we do a final push to Vancouver to move out of our apartment, deliver the Cabin back to my Cabin partner in Vernon, host a boat re-naming ceremony and finish off a myriad of smaller projects which will be easier to do with power tools.
Wow guys. Surreal how much you got done in so little time! I have cockpit envy. Cheers to you for and amazing summer!!!
It was one of the biggest pushes of our lives for sure. Cockpit looks magical right now (see video coming shortly) but will fade to grey quickly. If only there was a way to keep perfect teak tan colour with no work! 🙂
What a wonderful collection of photographs to add to your photo album – priceless!
Thanks Peter. I can’t wait to see you in Victoria. We are still in Bellingham battling final projects and two stubborn leaks. Grrrr! Still we solved 95% of them so we’ll take the battle on!