Cruising is exhausting. I have to keep track of birds, dolphins, other boats, dogs on shore and bridges. Kristina and Matt let this all pass by without keeping watch.
Sometimes it’s all just too much for me, and I need a place to crash. If the boat is bouncing around too much, my favourite place is in the cockpit. There’s a spot I fit perfectly. If I’m in here, Kristina doesn’t insist on tethering me (unless it’s really rough, but then I don’t mind.)
When it’s smooth out, Matt lets me drive. My owners put a new back on the helm station seat this year, and I can lean into it without falling through. Much better than the old seat. I’m pretty sure they upgraded this feature just for me.
“Steer to shore,” I said. “Can’t you smell the squirrels?”
The first week underway after leaving the boat on the hard for the summer is a bit hectic.
After making sure all our sails and engine were in working order, we sailed, motor sailed and ran on the engines alone.
Taken in fall of 2010, but the mooring field looks exactly the same.
Someone had to go up here!
We traveled from St. Augustine, Florida to Vero Beach, Florida.
While travelling, we docked, anchored and moored.
Above, we are on a mooring ball at Vero. Now we are running our power off the genset and the solar panels. We like to test these systems before we go offshore and while we still have easy access to parts.
Writing while cruising seems like a dream come true. And mostly this is the case, but there are pros and cons as there are with most things in life.
I enjoy having time to myself without distractions. We often go days without Internet access, which frees up time. The temptation to check how many people have read my blog, if my agent has sent me an email, or – and I hate to admit this – check Facebook disappears. My phone never rings since I don’t actually have a phone. J
On the flip side, the difficultly comes when I want to research a topic. At home, I can do this any time I want. Underway, I have to wait until we have a decent connection with enough bandwidth to be able to search. I am less active with other blogs and don’t tend to comment as much, so sometimes I feel like I’m missing things.
Each year in the Bahamas we find the WiFi access improves. I use my Kindle for email, but can’t really do much else with it on the Internet. At least I can stay in touch with family, usually on a daily basis. I start to worry if I haven’t connected for a while.
Internet gets removed as a distraction, but other distractions get added while we are sailing. If something is happening on the boat that needs attention, I might have to stop typing mid-word. There’s no time to finish a thought.
One evening, I was alone on Mattina after dark and having a productive writing session. The winds picked up, changed direction, and it started to rain. So while I was writing without distractions, I was keeping an eye on the GPS. It gives us our exact position and would let me know if Mattina started to drag. A little bit of tension and stress doesn’t hurt (I don’t like to be alone in a storm after dark on the boat – did I mention I was alone?), but it does mean I’m not 100% focused on writing.
Every ten minutes or so, I walked around the boat to check our position and check other boats in the anchorage. The risk of being dragged into rises with the number of boats in the anchorage. All ended well, but I probably wrote fewer words than I would have if the weather had remained calm.
Would I trade Mattina for any other place to write? No way.
Before we left the dock, I helped Matt get the sails rigged. We started early, just as the sun was coming up. Matt and Kristina wanted the sails up before the wind picked up. I guess it’s not great to have full sail up when the boat is tied to the dock.
I tried to tell Matt what the fastest way to get this done was, but he never listens to me. I know how the sails to go on, he just doesn’t understand dog speak. Plus if he was faster, I would have the trampoline back.
Hard at work at dawn.
Our first day on the water was cold and Kristina was overprotective. She made me wear my harness and tethered me to the cockpit just because I kept trying to go lie on my trampoline. How embarrassing. The other dogs don’t have to wear a harness when they’re on the Intra-coastal waterway.
I think I’m a little bored.
But best of all, I saw my first dolphins and barked at them. I had to let them know I’m the boss.
Seven days working on Mattina on the hard, followed by one day launching, and then another seven days commissioning gets her ready for traveling south.
Mattina hanging in the travel life always makes me nervous. The crew at St. Augustine are professional and take their time, and we launched safely.
Mattina in the air: this is just not normal.
Early mornings are a great time to get the sails up before the wind starts blowing. The sails are stored below during the summer, protecting them from sun and wind damage.
We hoisted the Genoa first.
Rigging the genoa is easier than the main, so we start there. Gives us a sense of accomplishment.
Next up was the main.
Happy at the dock with the main sail on. All battens checked, no sail damage and lines are in great shape.
The engines are maintained, the dinghy is operational, the fridge and freezer are keeping food cold, the BBQ is keeping us fed, the genset and solar panels are giving us power, the SSB is picking up Chris Parker (weather network), the Wi-Fi antenna is allowing us to access the internet, the water pumps are pumping, and we’re just about ready to leave the dock.
We won’t test the water maker until we are farther south and into clearer water, but I know it will work.
Next step, untie the lines and start heading south.
I’m a happy dog. Mattina is in the water. I barked the whole time we were in traveller lift waiting to set sail. I was just too excited to contain myself. I couldn’t control my behaviour and jumped off the boat right as Kristina and Matt were letting the lines go. Alas, the dock hands were too quick. One of them grabbed my harness and lifted me back on board. I don’t know what I was thinking.
Now that we’re in the water, Kristina and Matt aren’t on a deadline and I get more attention. I’ve already had three walks today!
To celebrate, I rolled all over my trampoline. I love my trampoline.
Does it get any better than this?
Then, I ran below and played on the bed. I’m not allowed to do this, so don’t tell Kristina, but sometimes a dog just has to express himself.
Oh Oh. I don’t know how to remake this bed. I think someone will notice I’ve been in it.
Before I blog, I want to say I’m thinking of everyone affected by the hurricane and wish them my best. We were lucky to be in a spot that Sandy missed.
So it may look like Matt is doing all the work, but that’s only because I took all the pictures. I just wanted to point out I worked hard too.
We arrived at the marina in St. Augustine on Wednesday and have been working hard to get ready to launch (yesterday – we are now in the water).
First up: Open of the boat and check she’s dry. Yup – very dry, making us very happy. We ran a de-humidifier over the summer to help.
Next: Wash the marina dirt off the boat.
Rub a Dub Dub, a Man, a Woman and a Dog in a (I won’t say tub) Lagoon 380 S2.
Once the boat was clean, we waxed the hulls.
After that, it was on to maintenance. We prioritized things that need to be done while the boat is out of the water. We won’t put the sails back up or deploy our safety gear until after we launch.
Matt changing the gear oil in the sail drive, maintaining the props and changing zincs.
We hired marina staff to paint the bottom of Mattina. We scrubbed the dinghy and painted its bottom with the same bottom paint used on Mattina.
The last step: Check thru hulls are clear and working.
Today is the day we’ve been waiting for. We launch this morning and then we move on board.
Wednesday is my day to post about cruising, but in respect to those who are suffering from Hurricane Sandy, I decided to post something different.
I’ve been watching the footage and here is what I see: The kindness and bravery shown today was incredible.
A rescue worker carries an elderly woman from her home and takes care to keep her purse dry. A small thing, but I’m sure it was important to her.
Rescue workers help a man get to their vehicle and help him get his two dogs in the back. They didn’t leave his pets behind.
The bravery shown by the coast guard unit who rescued the people from the HMS bounty is amazing. They went out to sea in dangerous conditions that threatened to down their helicopter, and they saved people lives. In their interview, they were humble. I can’t say enough positive about the coast guard, both Canadian and American. I spend half my year on a sailboat, so this really hits home. This is Bravery with a capital B.
Today’s event made me feel good about the human race. There are so many amazing people out there.
Even though I wasn’t put in harm’s way by the hurricane, I want to thank all the people out there who helped others.
I’m in Florida. Bad weather is coming, but we’re in a safe place. It’s hot here, much hotter than Winnipeg, Manitoba.
We left Winnipeg on Sunday and arrived in St. Augustine, Florida on Tuesday night. That means I spent 3 days in a car. Booooooring.
Kristina seemed excited that we crossed 9 States. All I saw was the inside of the van, a few trees, and hotel rooms.
So what can I say about Florida. That grass is weird and makes my feet itch.
I’ve got a nice yard for the week while my owners stay in a house. I get to chase squirrels, and they are inside and very tired. Too much work on the boat for them.
So what’s a dog life like in a boat yard, you ask. The rocks hurt my feet. The ground smells of odd things. I mentioned it is hot, so I either spend my time under a boat, and anyone’s boat will do, or I hide in my boat. I let my owners have the starboard side, but the port side is all mine.
Notice the Canadian Flag towel? Kristina puts it down for me, but I never use it.
The boat yard people are very nice and they like dogs. Me especially. Because I’m so cute, you know.
The draw back – I’m down from 3 walks a day to 2. What’s up with that? I can’t wait until Matt and Kristina are finished ‘working’ on their boat, launch it, and I get 3 walks again.
I get lifted and carried a lot. The boat is up on the hard and I need help getting on. Matt’s very good about it.
Matt giving me a lift.
There’s a mean dog on the boat beside us, and I had to snap at him to tell him to leave me alone. Now he just stares at me. It’s a bit awkward.
My owner’s bring ice to the boat to keep my water cold. The house has a fridge that makes ice cubes. Heaven for me. I love ice cubes. I never get any while sailing, so I’m having as many as I can right now. Once we’re under way my owners are always talking about power consumption and say we can’t have an ice cube maker.
Soon, the boat will be in the water, Kristina will put me back to the top of her priority list, and I can keep watch for dolphins.
Some days are bigger days in life than others, and today is one of them.
After a long drive from Winnipeg, Manitoba to St. Augustine Florida, Matt and I have arrived at our boat. MATTINA is a Lagoon 380 S2 and has spent the summer on the hard.
Where does the name come from? MATT and KrisTINA.We put our two names together, but wait! There’s more. Mattina means morning or beginning of the day in Italian. And my mom was born in Italy. With the start of every new day, there’s an opportunity to start a new adventure. So the name MATTINA seemed like a good fit for our boat.
Mattina in the Exumas (2011 – 2012 Season)
We’ve owned MATTINA since July 2009. We’ve sailed her from Delaware to the Bahamas and live aboard during the winters.
Our dog Farley keeps us company. He has his own blog on Friday’s so if you want to see how a dog does sailing, Friday is the day.
Mattina’s Summer Home
So now the work to get ready for the season begins. We decommissioned her last spring and we found in her in great shape this fall.
Today we start the commissioning process. This is our second boat, and over the years we have created a large spreadsheet to keep us organized. We go through each line item and get our lovely boat ready to hit the seas. Checking off items on the list is somehow very satisfying.
Our launch is scheduled for Halloween. So the question is, can we get everything done on time?
This week is the week for changes. Over the summer I don’t blog about cruising, but during the winter, well that’s different. My new schedule for posting is:
MONDAY: Writing
WEDNESDAY: Cruising
FRIDAY: Dogs.
You may have guessed that writing, cruising and dogs take up a big part of our lives. I hope you enjoy the posts and if you are out there cruising, I’d love to hear from you.
Kristina Stanley 