Big Announcement and Marina Life

We have decided to bring "Passage" home to Grand River, Ohio, in the the spring.  Therefore, we will be spending two months here at Legacy Harbour Marina before heading for the keys.  This will give us enough time to prepare and stock the boat for the long trip up the east coast.  Right now we are looking for a volunteer to drive our car and dingy trailer back to Painesville, Ohio, sometime before the end of May.  Any interested parties should contact us soon.

Cooper's Landing is part of Legacy Harbour Marina.  This is where "Passage" is docked with a variety of  vessels including five Gemini Catamarans:  two from Texas, one from Colorado, one from Sudbury, Ontario, and of course us. 

Sue and I have been frustrated in our efforts to finish waxing by the series of strong cold fronts and accompaning bad weather.

Usually a cloud line like the one above is followed by nasty winds and rain, plus the inevitable cold front.  One night as the thermometer approached 34 degrees outside, I awoke at 2:00 a.m. to discover that the reverse cycle heat had failed.  I found the coils well frosted, and an unidentified part had fallen from its mounting.  After placing the part in position and thawing the system, at 3:00 a.m. we fired the unit up.  Wanting to free up the reversing valve but not knowing what it was, I tapped on a few things and PRESTO!  We had heat!  Sometimes it's good to be lucky.

C dock is the happening place at the marina this year.  Seven boats have regularly met for Happy Hour at 5:00 p.m.  The addition of Wes and Sabine from the trawler "Wasafiri" should add two more regulars.  Wes and Sabine are prepping for a cruise to Panama.  Conversations have ranged from very informative to raucously hilarious. 

Run out of little cups for the White Russian Mousse shots at happy hour?  No problem.  Claudia demonstrates how to squeeze the frozen "shot" out of a plastic bag, which some found amusing and others yummy.

The marina sponsored a Christmas pot luck on the 16th that was very well attended. 

Before the festivities began,  John and Brenda on "Some Dream" presented Michael of "Dash" with a birthday present: a visor with some much needed hair on top.  Michael was excited; but not nearly as much as his bride Claudia, who found him even more attractive than usual.



Eric, the marina manager, welcomed us to the festivities and provided a ham and a cake.

Then we did what we do best.

Our last project was to replace the plastic Bosworth water tank selector valve.  We had replaced it with an identical one once before.  These valves have "o" rings which eventually let air into the water system.  Sudden strong splashes of water result.  

This time we replaced it with an Apollo bronze and stainless steel ball valve, to which I added two 90 degree elbows and half inch hose barbs.

Some modification of the mounting surface was required,  but the end result was a nicely installed valve which should last longer than the boat.

  

So goes our time in beautiful but chilly Ft. Myers, Florida.  Who know, some day soon we may even go sailing!  Sue and I would like to wish all of you loyal readers a Merry Christmas.