Buckhorn Yacht Harbour
Another Overnight at Buckhorn Yacht Harbour
44°32’43.1484″N, 78°21’3.4200″W
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Catherine writes:

Wally went below deck this morning to take the fan belt safety shrouds off the front of the engines so the alternators and fan belts could be accessed by the mechanic.

Wally at one of his below deck workstations

Each engine has a protective shroud over the fan belt and alternator area. You would not want to be working close to these engines when they are running without the safety cover on.

Starboard engine with safety shroud off – before fan belt and alternator were removed

He also took the shrouds up to the Kawartha Propeller Shop to see about having some welding done on them (a bolt bracket on each one needed a small repair).

Engine safety shrouds going for repair

John Fuderer, the owner said no problem making the small repairs and he showed Wally around the impressive shop with its huge range of sizes and kinds of propellers. This is an extremely clean and super organized shop that serves customers all over Ontario and further abroad. Wally plans to bring Belisama back here this fall to get work done on improving the performance and efficiency of our boat’s propellers.

Kawartha Propellers Owner John Fuderer – photo copied from their website

While Wally was dealing with that, I tried to line up the decal with the boat name on it to place on the transom. It took some effort measuring and fiddling around to find the best location as it had to be done on the swim platform while the boat was bobbing up and down with all of the boat traffic going by. We settled on a location, but it was too rocky to do the final placement, so we have to wait for a quieter day to officially name the boat.

When I was back in London in early August I bought a bolt of Sunbrella fabric to make new exterior covers for Belisama’s windows and doors. I brought the fabric and my trusty sewing machine back to the boat with me when I returned to Midland with Valerie and David. Since we were going to be here for a few more days I  decided to try some sewing. I unrolled the bolt of Sunbrella at a picnic table that had plenty of space to walk around. It was windy so I tried holding the fabric down with cans of beans but no go.

Catherine’s work space – a bit of a difference from Wally’s eh!

Wally suggested using masking tape so that was brilliant and worked very well. I’ve cut out a lot of fabric over the years but never had to deal with windy conditions. I managed to get two large pieces cut out and Wally helped me get the sewing machine set up. Unfortunately, the fabric was too thick and wouldn’t feed right into the machine so the straight line sewing I had hoped to do was very wavy navy.

Catherine’s essential machinery is much more portable than Belisama’s

After consulting with the internet, I realized that I need to get a walking foot or even feed foot for the machine similar to what quilters use. I won’t be able to get one of those in Buckhorn anytime soon, so I have to roll up the fabric and pack up the sewing machine as the sun was fading. I’ll look in Peterborough or might have to wait until I get home which is disappointing, but I guess that will be added to the winter project list.

Cheers!