Isle of Palms, SC

Thursday, June 1, 2017
32 48 243 N
79 45 371 W (About!)

Because of the 20 plus miles we squeezed in last night, we had a comfortable 50 NM to the IOP today. We expected an easy day, the forecast was good and we were very familiar with the route. As expected we arrived at the IOP by about 4:30 PM and enjoyed a friendly welcome from old friends at the marina. The only complication all day was hitting a crab pot in Charleston harbor - the first time we had actually hit one in 5 years.

We have this slip for June, and perhaps for another 2 weeks into July because the owner's trip has been delayed by generator issues. Some time this month we have to find another slip as we would like to stay in the area.

Today is Sunday June 11 and I am trying to bring the blog up to date. Once upon a time I thought that as I got older I would become calmer and wiser but next week I turn 70 and I do not feel either. In many respects the last 10 days have been stressful as we try and get the boat ready for sale. (We have another showing on Friday 16th.) And I find it hard to write the blog when I feel overwhelmed.

Seems that a common question our "prospects ask" is about Tide Hiker's air draft. (The reason is that there is a fixed bridge on the Cal-Sag canal in Indiana that only clears 19'1". Boats doing "The Loop" need to be able to clear under this bridge.) I measured it a few years ago when we had the solar panels installed, but I have lost the results. So I purchased two pieces of 1"by 2" by 8' from Lowes, screwed them together and laid them over the solar panels, with a piece of surveyor's string attached to one end, and weighed down to hang straight. Tide Hiker was rocking ever so slightly, so the result was 18' 11.5" plus/minus about 1/2".

Also, Tide Hiker is currently quite light, with only about 100 gallons of fuel and 200 gallons of water, so filling her to the brim with fuel (800 gallons) and water (400 gallons) would add almost about 6,000 pounds and lower her another 4" or 5". And that does not consider a reasonable beer stash!

Measuring our air draft

Deidre gets her injection on Tuesday and we have high expectations!

Saturday June 17, 2017

Tide Hiker with her party lights 

Its been a busy week with a potential buyer visiting on Thursday and my 70th birthday party on Saturday. Its Sunday now and I am pleased it is all over because today is our first "day of rest" for a while.

Monday July 3, 2017

We always seem to be busy. Tide Hiker is in great shape but there are always jobs. I finally found the leak in the mast and sealed it. Over the last few days I have repainted the dink "battleship grey" and she looks pretty smart. We have had a couple of really good (at least we thought so) showings, but no deals as yet.

The dinghy has been progressively getting a bit shabby over the last few years (it gets lots of use) and so I decided to paint it. I could access its starboard side when stowed on deck, but to get at the port side we had to lower the dink onto the finger and borrow a small boat to work from on its port side. The new paint looks great, but its quite gray, so now the dinghy now looks like a destroyer!

Cleaning and painting the dinghy - she now looks like new!

Last week (after a 10 AM showing) we jumped into the car and headed north for Cleveland. Spend barely a day with the kids and continued on to East Chicago where I had some business to attend to. Then straight back to Charleston - 2,150 miles in 6 days. The car averaged 27 MPG!

Our month at the IOP ended Saturday. We can drag it out to about the end of this week but then we must depart. There are just no local slips available so we have booked a slip for two months at a fancy place on Hilton Head ("Shelter Cove") and that should be fine. Kathy likes HH and is already planning a visit.

David and Jen and family arrived back in the USA last Saturday. They are moving back into their house, but their "specific" future is uncertain. They are now an ocean away from the nut case in North Korea, but sadlyan ocean closer to the nut case in Washington.

Tomorrow is July 4 and we are taking Kylie and family out into Charleston harbor on Tide Hiker to watch the fire works. We will stay at anchor overnight then return to the slip in the AM. I hope Audrey does not get sea sick!

On July 4 Kylie arrived with the two nippers by about 5 and by 7 PM we were anchored in a prime spot in the harbor. The heat was intense so I fired up the big gen and the a/c so that no one needed to over heat. Ended up running the big gen and the a/c all night, this was a first for Tide Hiker.

Eventually, they crashed.