"Today is a Good Day to Drive!" .....Van-Go

Dave and Darlene stopped by with muffins and tea. We sat enjoying the start to a new day and decided to go for a morning cruise. We ended up out at the center buoy for Pictou Harbor. Right out there in the Northumberland Strait. Will turned the engine off and we just drifted. He suggest a good spot to sit would be the bow and Darlene looked at Kathy and said lets go. Life jackets on they climbed out the side window and worked their way up. Holding on tight Kathy enjoyed the first time sitting in the bow in the open ocean water. A speed boat went be sending a rocking wake but she survived. Darlene rocked back and thought oh I have to make sure Kathy is calm. The fish food ship came cruising out of the harbor headed for PEI. Dave was fishing and list a big one. The winds picked up and clouds we're rolling in. We started up the engine and headed back to port. It was a day of fishing. Another one wiggled loose of the hook for Dave and as Dave was pulling one in that Will got that f...

Roof got a coat of paint, cupboards stained and waIting for varnish, galley cart almost finished and we went for an evening cruise with friends. Do have to say that Kimball's Babe is looking and feeling good.

Went for an evening cruise and Will got out our Walmart special fishing box and reel. Ended up with a big ball of fishing line! But the cruising was fun. Went in and out of the dock a few times to practice docking. Galley cart is coming along. We even had our morning coffee at the boat today for the first time!!

It rained most of the day. Will worked between raindrops and almost has the galley cart finished. Kathy had a stomach bug so spent her day..well you know. But evening came and the sun peeked out. We went for a nice ride toward New Glasglow. The thing about going that way is that the channel is never narrow. There are markets on the water making it like a roadway. Red buoy to one side and green to the other. The saying is " red right returning". It means to keep the red buoy to you right if you are returning to port from a larger body of water. Not that you are returning where you came from. From the harbor there are a few ports and each has its red and greed bouys marking how to get in. Kathy steered for awhile. Steering a wide boat like Kimball's Babe takes some getting use to. You sight point is not the center of the bow but straight out from your vantage point. Our boat has hydraulic steering so there is no center point on the wheel. Small moves turn the boat. A big sw...

We spent the evening at the DeCoste Center listening to music Jimmy Sweeney came to Atlantic Canada from Ireland and entertained with old time stories and songs. Ardyth and Jennifer's music mixed the art of harp playing with traditional and contemporary songs. And our friend, John Spyder MacDonald a Pictonian troubadour with his spirited renditions of songs that bring life to the area's rich history. It was a wonderful evening!!

Will finished the raised section on the starboard side of the engine. It is removable so we have access to the hatch below where we will keep the spare water pump and spare starter. The raised area is our dining room. A table and chairs that can quickly be removed if access to the engine compartment is needed. We enjoyed a dinner there and it was quite comfortable. Notice our square dishes. That is a nautical thing. Most tables on boats have an edge raised all around and the plates don't fall off. You get to enjoy your square meal! Ryan came today with lots of hose. The power steering hose in Kimball's Babe had a leak. We had been loosing a quart a day!! Ryan tried to find fittings that could be put on the end where he cut off the leaking section but because the hose was so old they didn't make such a thing. Instead he replaced both hoses. An expensive fix at $4 a foot but best in the long run. He and Will pulled out the old hoses and pulled through the new ones. 39-foot e...

Out for an early afternoon cruise. GPS is fixed and running good, engine just purrs. Peaceful.

Busy working inside today. Staining the cupboards a nice oak. Check out the closing clasps we made to keep the doors shut as we ride the big waves. Will is building a raised floor on the far side to match the raised motor hood. That will give us floor space for a table and chairs even though we will have to move them to access the engine. We will just have to slide them to the side and raise the hatch! The roof is all screwed down and the seams epoxied. Next step there is to put canvas over it; in the "old" days that is how they protected and weather proofed the roofs. Today people fiberglass. Lexan walls are in place. They just need sealed. That involves taking off the outside boards and adding the seal chalking all around each one. We will be chalking with a marine grade stuff so it won't crack. Why you ask does the chalking not go under the Lexan? So you can remove the window if you need to!! Hope you are all enjoying your Sunday.

More plywood. More building. Will is on the roof adding the last two sections. Kathy is putting hinges on the cupboards. Gettin' 'er done.

We were getting ready for a sunset cruise, just the two of us. The big red balls, the fenders are tied to the dock since we flipped the boat around the other day. We stood on the dick and discussed how we were going to shove off. The spring line, the center rope that holds the boat from moving forward or backward was around the cleat with the stern line. So Will took it off and connected it to the cleat with one of the fenders. Kathy would release the stern line from inside the boat because of the wind. So Will released the bow line from the front and jumped aboard. Kathy released the stern line and was wrapping it as she always does on the back washboard so it is ready for docking. She looked up and saw the stern being pulled back to the dock. Will had not released the spring line. We didn't have our fenders on the boat and we were slowly moving in to the dock. Kathy pushed hard on the dock as the boat, all 13 tons kept moving of course. Today's lesson: just let the boat get s...

Egg plant was on so sale so Kathy fried up a few while Will put in the last sheet of Lexan. It is pretty cool stuff as you can saw and drill it. It is strong and very clear. Ashley came out with us for a nice ride giving her a different view of the Ship Hector where she works for the summers. Check out the shelves. They now are about ready for doors! Ryan stopped by and found our power steering leak. Should have the new parts in about a week. And he is going to put bigger cables from the battery to the starter to give us a better connection. It won't be long now!!