Ship Under Repair...

I thought it was gonna be easy to make all the "upgrades" to get the Algun Dia ready for live-aboard. But I'm learning the eternal truth that everything is magnified on a boat, including the time it takes to get things done.

For example, it took me over an hour to put up this tarp.

And that's the easiest thing I had to do.

Woodworking 101

The "new" hatch cover. Looks like it should: solid and shiny.









Fashioning a new front hatch cover from a piece of teak I stole from inside the cabin.

Carpenters have 3 rules: 1.Measure twice 2.Cut once. 3. Sand it until your arms fall off.










Adding some new teak trim.

TEAK: (teek) noun; wood trim that costs 10 times as much as the most expensive wood you could buy at Home Depot. You're looking at over $70.00 worth of wood. Ouch!!






Here's the old hatch cover. Notice all the screws it took to keep it in place. It gets alot of abuse since it's the main hand-hold when you're climbing into and out of the companionway.

Work Days...

The Teak on the hatch was loose, so I took it off....




"Looks like you got a little dry rot here, boss!..."

My New Home

The Algun Dia tied up at her new slip in the marina. The trip took us 6 hours, which may sound slow but is pretty fast for a sailboat. I think I'll take it all in and enjoy the rest of the evening, trying not to think about all the things I need to do to fix her up. There'll be plenty of time for that later. Right now it's time to turn up the tunes, grab a cold drink, and toast a truly beautiful day of sailing!

Coming into the Marina....

"Don't worry....they'll get out of the way..."

This is "El Morro" which guards the entrance to San Juan Bay.

I get my boat!!!!!

"Someday" is finally is here. I had to get up really early to drive to Fajardo (40 miles away) but it was worth the lack of sleep. We untied the docking lines on Algun Dia and set sail for San Juan, her new home. It was suprisingly calm, for the Caribbean, but the wind finally picked up when we were within sight of the harbour.

Now she's ready. New sensors and new bottom paint. The haul-out fees and parts cost me over $700.00 and the boat isn't even mine yet. Which reminds me of a joke:

You know what B.O.A.T. stands for?


Break Out Another Thousand!

Here's the ladder I was going up and down all day. Note the nails coming out on the left side.

Here the tranducer is now in place (in the thru-hull) and sealed up. Notice all the silicone I got all over the wires and everywhere else. Of course it was only 100 degrees inside the boat while I was working, but who's complaining?

Here's the thru-hull, which is just a fancy word for a hole in your boat.

I wanted to install new transducers (speed and depth meters) but first I had to get somebody to cut out the old ones. That hull sure is thick!

Here she is, "on the hard" because before you purchase a boat, you gotta get it hauled out and surveyed. Topsides looks good but underneath could probably use a little bottom paint...

Hello There. I guess introductions are in order. My name is Jim and I'm finally about to be doing something I've dreamed of for a long time: living aboard a sailboat. Sounds perfect, right? Well it's not all Margaritas and Sunsets everyday... that will come later. Right now, it's just alot of work. That's what this blog is about: The process of starting with just a dream and ending up with something a little more real. I hope you enjoy the trip! - Jim