Santosha Project Day in Merrickville

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I decided to stay at the marina for a couple of extra days to complete a few projects. Simple stuff first & then on to the tougher jobs.

First on the list was to install the new pantry curtains that Catherine made. They went on in a snap & look great!

Next on the list was to install a new power cable for the Garmin chart plotter on the flybridge. Thankfully the connection point was very close to the upper helm station so this job went pretty quickly too. I mostly use the sonar setting on this device so I can “see” bottom & the depth of water.

It’s a good compliment to my Tiki Chartplotter.

Finally on the list was to reinstall the aft deck cleats on the port & starboard sides of the boat. They had to be removed when I was having the deck repaired & could not be put back on until the bottom of each fitting was trimmed a bit to accommodate the higher level of the new decks.

Steve Flewitt, the owner of Aylings Boatyard was kind enough to trim the fittings for me in his shop. These fittings are made of heavy stainless steel so there was no way I could trim them with any of the tools that I have on board.

I’m glad to have that job done because it is tricky to secure the stern of the boat when I am going through the locks.

Reinstallation setup:

Job done!

Next in the list… oh yes, a big G&T to celebrate my accomplishments!

Cheers!

On the dock at Aylings Boatyard in Merrickville

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I left London around 7:00am on August 15 & was back at the boat at 3:00pm. It was a pretty easy drive except for the stop & go traffic through Toronto. I don’t know how people can do that day after day!

Shortly after I got back to the boat a new neighbor arrived for an overnight stay at the marina.

“Dolphin” is 60 feet long, was built in New York City in 1929 & has been owned by the same family from the Montreal area ever since she was launched!

Needless to say, Dolphin attracted a lot of attention & was the subject of many photos. I would have loved to have had the opportunity to tour the inside but the Captain of the boat asked admirers to respect the (on board) owner’s privacy.

If I ever win the lottery……

Cheers!

Home in London

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It’s hard to believe but I had been away from home for almost 2 months! Catherine had planned to come & spend some time with me on the boat but she was held up due to “competing priorities” – primarily Emily’s move to her new apartment, painting the living room & bedroom, followed by an epic adventure with Ikea furniture!

Emily needed furniture for her new place so she & her mom went to the Ikea store in Hamilton & Emily bought pretty much everything she needed from that store. It was supposed to be delivered a week later but there were multiple delivery appointments set up by Ikea only to be missed with no explanation from them. Very frustrating. One week turned into two, then three & four. At that point we were all very frustrated!!!!

Finally the furniture was delivered & Catherine & Emily started assembling. They got a few pieces done but there was a lot left to do. So I decided to come home for a few days to lend a hand. It was also a good opportunity to visit with Catherine’s mom Jeanne & some of our friends.

The next few days involved a lot of unpacking, reading instructions & assembly.

Its all done now & looks great. Nice shopping Emily!

And now, back to the boat where I have a number of small jobs waiting for me there too.

Cheers!

Docked at Aylings Boatyard in Merrickville

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This morning I headed to Merrickville because I needed to go back home to London for a few days & my car was at Aylings Boatyard in Merrickville. Also, I can only leave the boat at any particular lock for two days in a row, so that requires me to go to a marina where I can tie up the boat for as many days as I want.

Going from Smiths Falls to Merrickville required me to go through 2 locks in Smiths Falls, a triple lock at Old Slys, a single lock at Edmonds, another single lock at Kilmarnock and then 3 more locks in Merrickville.

On the way to Merrickville I went past this fixer-upper. Right on the water! I wonder if I can convince Catherine to take a look at it with me? 🙀🔨

I ended up traveling in a group through all the locks with 4 other boaters. Once you are set up in each lock you have some time to chat with your “neighbors”. Jeff & Deidre were on my port side through each lock. They were looking for a marina to stay at for the night & decided to go to Aylings as well. Once we were securely docked I went aboard their boat “French Toast” for a quick drink & some gamming before hitting the road to London. French Toast is a beautiful 41 foot Sea Ray. Twin diesels & lotsa room on board this baby!

I left Aylings around 5:00pm & arrived back home in London at 1:00am. It was a long day but I was glad to be home.

Cheers!