From 202 days to just 2....the excitement builds.......

This weekend brought the first spring like weather that has been long overdue.
At last, the garden comes to life, the chairs go out onto the porch, and the marina starts to spring to life!

We took advantage of the weather to go and see Olli  up at the dealership in Barry, prior to her mid week delivery.

Along for the ride came my Brother in Law, Andy, who knows a thing or two about boats. He used to build them......from scratch. 50, 60 and 70 foot dutch Barges with all of the toys for modern boating. Just the person to go over Olli for me to cast his expert eye over the engine room and all of the other systems on board.

I'm happy to say that she got a clean bill of health. Nice to have that second opinion and an unbiased view of her.

So she is serviced and ready to go.........they were polishing the hull as we left ready for transport and the upcoming season.

The boat decal is being made as we speak, by a superb group of guys from Speedpro imaging of London, (www.speedprolondon.com). They are doing a two layer decal in black and chrome which will look really sharp.

Bring on Wednesday, and the rest of the season. May the weather Gods smile down on us for the coming summer!

Time is a ticking......

 

So the time is getting closer, and our excitement is building.....

 

We visited the Marina this weekend to see what the slip was like and where it was positioned in the marina....and we are really pleased with our dock and slip allocation.

 

 

 

 

Louise likes the slip, and it brings home the size of the boat we have bought.....it's slightly longer than this finger!

 

We do however have a slight problem with our third crew member, she goes in for surgery tomorrow for a nasty cut to her leg....we need to get it waterproofed before we hit the water!

 

 

 

Hopefully she will be as good as new when we get to take her to the boat on the weekend after launch. She will, guaranteed , be chasing the ducks!

 

We look forward to meeting who is around us, and who is in the marina. I look forward to meeting Brian Jones, author of Dock Six Chronicles, a superb sailing blog who is in the marina and sharing a rum over introductions!

 

Just need the temperatures to rise a little now, and we will be all set!

 

 

 







The Wait is very nearly over........

So as winter finally starts to draw to a close, we look forward to D - Day.......May the 1st is the day that we splash the hull and get Olli into the water at the marina.

The weather has not been cooperating thus far, and we thought that an early May date to launch for the season was a good idea. But when the boating season is even shorter than the golfing season, what the hell.......

So we have secured the slip, signed a seasons contract at the marina, and picked up our local boating charts from Bridge Yachts in Port Dover. That finally completes the list for our needed supplies and safety gear......I think.

As ever excited, we went to the Beautiful town today as the sun was shining at last, and temperatures were about 16 to 17 degrees, but a whistling wind was coming across the lake......but being southerly, bought the warmth!

A walk along the beach and through the town showed that the town is coming to life for the season.

Then of course, we went to check out the Marina......even though it is still closed.

Give this 4 weeks, and the marina will look almost full!

I am looking to go visit Olli when she gets unwrapped and serviced so that i can double check that everything is done......once she is in the water, that's it unless we have serious issues and need a haul out......not what we are planning.

As ever, our third crew mate is excited at the upcoming summer.........or not.

Well, more as we get closer......the timer at the start of the post once read 208 days!