May 27, 2013

After a busy time getting the boat ready for summer storage, we hauled out on April 13th. The final jobs were finished and we climbed into the Volvo by 1 pm, ready for our long drive. This year the traffic wasn’t quite as heavy as we had experienced last year. Little did we know that early April is not a great time to leave Florida, due to the large number of snowbirds doing the same thing. But we made good time and arrived home on the 14th to the welcome comfort of our own bed.

But, it was very, very cold on Ontario. It was so cold that Murray jumped at the chance to assist a friend who was bringing his trawler back from Fort Meyers, FL. There were three guys aboard and they motored north as quickly as they could, making approximately 80 miles per day. Murray had never experienced the Okeechobee Waterway and, other than dodging waterspouts and thunderstorms, thoroughly enjoyed the time. They saw many alligators, ospreys, manatee and herons as they passed through 4 or 5 locks and crossed the lake. From Stuart, the end of the Okeechobee Waterway, travel was through much more familiar territory, traveling north on the Inter Coastal Waterway.

Friends own a house in Beaufort, SC and I arranged for the guys to have access to their dock. They were lucky to land on a Wednesday and enjoyed the special dinner deal at the bar/restaurant next door. As time came close for a crew exchange, Murray called friends near Oriental, NC and arranged to visit their dock as well. The trawler captain, Dave, stayed aboard while Murray and Trevor abandoned him. Dave’s wife, Brenda, and Trevor’s wife, Joan, were the new crew. The trip is ongoing and the vessel should reach Ontario by early June. But they will press on, through the Trent-Severn Waterway and into Georgian Bay. What a huge number of locks they will have traversed by journey’s end!

While Murray was gone, I picked out tile, granite and paint for the bathroom renovation that will start soon. Our master en-suite bath currently has a small walk-in shower and, in place of a tub, there is a storage cupboard. That cupboard will be removed and a large walk-in shower installed. I have found a deal on a sliding glass door and am pricing faucets, towel bars etc etc. Very shortly we will start the demolition. The new vanity and upper cabinets will be finished by early July and installed soon after.

Now, I am making plans for our road trip to Newfoundland this August. That file folder is growing as well as I garner info from the internet, maps and guide books.

So, between Murray’s trawler adventure and our plans for Newfoundland, that gives us the title of “ Hard Aground, Sometimes “ .

Stay well and enjoy life.

Heather & Murray