A2C goes to Bed for the Summer

Our final week in the islands provided us with a lot of wrap-up chores and anxiety regarding putting our boat away “on the hard” for the next 7 months. Earlier, we made arrangements with the boatyard to secure a spot for us so that our insurance would remain in force through the upcoming hurricane season. So, we expected a pretty seamless transition from the water to the land when the time came. Unfortunately, that sense of seamlessness was over anticipated as we found one hurdle after another until we finally got he boat hauled two days before our flight time to Panama.

We had never visited the boatyard prior to arriving there on the Sunday prior to our scheduled haul day of Tuesday. So as we approached the inlet to bring the boat into the marina for dock time prior to hauling, we found it extremely primitive and wholly unusable for us to do any comfortable prepping on their docks. We therefore decided to return to anchor back at the other end of the island at a snug spot we had spotted earlier in the week but had yet to enjoy. Preparing one’s boat for land storage means a lot of different things to different people. Our insurance underwriter had approved our storage plan which allowed us to keep our sails hung on the boat but wrapped securely with lots of line to assist in keeping any extra wind from unfurling the canvas and causing related damages. So we started of our prep with lots of line going around and around the sails, closing up any space where a bird might like to crawl into and make a messy nest. We then had to remove all cushions and bags that could fly away o a storm and place everything indoors. We also removed the acrylic side windscreens and stashed everything inside.

We also decided to change the oil in each engine so they wouldn’t feel neglected as they sat unused for the next seven months. Doing small mechanical things like that make one feel like they are preparing the boat for the next season as well. As per our owner’s manual, we then drained all the water out of our holding tank and topped off the fuel tank. Suz kept busy cleaning like a crazy woman to help reduce the likelihood of bugs wanting to make home sites inside our boat. After finalizing the prep work we headed back up to the marina to get hauled and placed on land and strapped down for the off-season. We arrived at our assigned time of 10:00 AM and as we were waiting on the dock for the travel lift to haul us out and transport us to the land, we noticed a large day tour catamaran circling the outer harbor looking like they wanted to come in to the dock. As is a rather small marina, there was only one space on the dock for any vessels. Before long, the dockmaster came to our boat and asked if we wouldn’t mind untying from the dock and leaving the harbor for a half an hour or so to allow the tour boat to unload their passengers who had appointments with a slew of tour busses awaiting their arrival. Reluctantly, we moved out of the harbor and waited for them to do their thing and then reentered and tied back up, still waiting for the travel lift guys to come for our boat.

At 1PM the travel lift guy came to the boat and told us they were heading to lunch and that we would be the first boat lifted after they returned in an hour or so. You guessed it; it was nearly 4PM when they hooked up the cables and lifted us clear of the sea and onto the land for our summer storage. As they drove the bog lift with us hanging below to the spot they had picked for our storage, they measured the spaces needed to dig into the earth to allow our keels, propeller shafts and rudders a place to be out of the dirt. After they finished digging, they placed large truck tires around the perimeter of the boat and lowered A2C onto the tires to rest out the storms. By now, we were bushed and headed back to town to spend our first night ashore in our rented AirBnB unit. It felt wonderful to have the luxury of LONG hot showers again and we took full advantage of that opportunity.

The next day we returned to the boat to complete our prep chores and were all done by around 2 PM. During that last day, they came by and finished up they tie down of the boat and we made the necessary arrangements for the off-season care and maintenance for our boat. We headed back to our apartment and enjoyed a swim and hot shower before completing our packing for the trip onward to Panama. Now we can only hope mother nature and the good Lord above (or whomever is in charge these days) that our boat will be safe and sound when we return next November to splash her and continue our sailing adventure. In the meantime, we have arrived in Panama to begin our 6-week sit in the mountain area north east of Panama City. The home we will be staying in is quite lovely and very modern. It is owned by a fellow who grew up in Greeley, Colorado, has a tech company based in Boulder and works remotely from his homes in Florida and Panama. We are anxious to see what Panama has to offer us and already are finding it very pretty and not as hot as we’d expected. We will continue the blog through our Panama sit for those wanting to see what we find of this place. So, stay tuned, and cross your fingers for the good ship A2C for the upcoming hurricane season.