Nancy and I got tired of throwing good money after bad on the Tumbleweed Too so went into Savannah today and picked up our new one. Be sure and read the spec's on her.

 



 



We decided to name her "In Our Wildest Dreams", just because!! Can you believe 155 feet long with a mast height 195 feet? If I were the owner, I'd want everyone to know and probably wouldn't try to keep it a secret. Nope, I believe we'll stick with our 34 foot Tumbleweed Two, even though lately she's become a mystery ship. Yesterday I was working on putting a panel cover back on and I took out 2 screws, laid them down and still haven't found them. The other day, we came back to he and the windlass had drawn the anchor chain up tight. I loosened it and while sitting here this morning, I heard the winch running and went out and the chain was tight again. Maybe this has something to do with our battery problem.

The carpenter here at Hinckley's was going to make us a new hatch cover that was broken one day. It's about a 12 inch square piece of acrylic. Maybe an hour to take it out and re-install. The quoted us a price of $750.00 and said we wouldn't even get kissed!!!

A few days ago, we learned we needed a new exhaust pipe and Hinckley's was going to have one made from stainless steel here in Savannah. They came by and said, by the way, it'll be $850.00. WE went onto the Catalina Direct web site and found the same stainless steel exhaust pipe for $250.00.

The running joke around the boatyard is no matter what needs to be done, it's a $1,000 bill. Unfortunately, I beginning to believe it's no joke.

Oh well, enough bitching for now. I guess it you can't afford it, don't do it!!

We did have a nice afternoon strolling the riverfront in Savannah. We rode the bus into town so we also saw some of the outlying area. Many beautiful old homes and several squares where they have created small parks for the neighborhoods.

Ah, cooler weather seems to be in the forecast for the weekend with possible rain. Maybe we can get out and enjoy the surrounding area a little more.

Nancy has put the first couple of coats on the teak I sanded and it is really looking nice. She has posted a few pictures on her blog and I'll try to get some on mine a little later today.

I think that next week things should start to come together and the boat will be in good working order and also will be looking good.

We hope everyone has a great weekend.

93 degrees, 90% humidity, 105 heat index!!!!!

Another day in "paradise" (Savannah, GA) begins!!! Trying to refinish the teak on the outside of the boat and they're predicting 50% chance of rain for the next several days.

When we found out we were going to be here so much longer, we decided to add on!!!

Nancy spent the morning redoing some of the Gel-coat. She actually got a little on the boat!!!

 

It has been a hot, humid and needless to say miserable day here in Savannah with the inside boat temperatures reaching 95 degrees. That's with the A/C set up they gave us.

 

We've been sanding and washing the boat's teak and I hope in a few days to be able to post some pictures of the refinished product.

 

 





These are pictures after the sanding was completed. It should really look nice with a couple of coats of Cetol on it.

I just had to share this comment left by my friend Jerry, who lives in MT and travels via RV quite a bit: "Here's a few ideas on how to pass the time and deal with the heat: Mojitos; Elephant Riders; Scotch; cold beer; and if necessary, an air conditioned bar."

Actually, there is a little local bar and restaurant, Tubby's, just down the road from here. They have a frozen Margarita and a frozen Daiquiri special all day long.  It's a short bike ride down and a long bike carry home!!!!

Great idea, Jerry. Maybe we should slow down and enjoy the "finer" things Savannah has to offer.

Well, we learned today that even though the rudder should be here this week, we'll probably be on the hard another 2 weeks before all the work is completed. I hate to say it, but Savannah, GA is the last place I want to spend 2 more weeks. I had hoped to be back on the water before July 4 but it doesn't seem likely.

We'll spend the next 2 weeks finishing the cosmetic repairs to the boat, such as filling a few holes with gel-coat and refinishing the wood. Hopefully, the maintenance repairs will be completed ahead of schedule and we'll be cruising north again before too long.

It's been very hot and humid here and we're stuck in the middle of nowhere. Cabin fever is setting in!!!!

We did have a great view of the "Super Moon" last night.



Not a great picture but it's the best I could do.

Well, another Sunday and another day of working on the boat. We spent Saturday morning out picking up supplies so we could spend Saturday afternoon, you guessed it, working on the boat!!! Today, Nancy is putting several coats of Mop and Glow on the hull, which I cleaned again the last couple of days. I just finished removing the rotten wood known as the eyebrow and if the teak dries, we'll may spend the afternoon sanding and getting it ready to refinish. Tomorrow morning, another upholsterer is supposed to come by to estimate new cushions for the salon. We're not sure we'll be here long enough for him to do the work but at least we can learn the amount of material and get an approximate cost. Then, maybe have it done a little farther north. I'm beginning to believe we could have built one from scratch given all the time we've spent working on this one. I'll try to downplay the work we do, in the future, and hopefully before too long I'll have pictures of the final project to share. Unfortunately, most of the money we're spending on her here will be below waterline where no one will see. This , of course, is the new rudder and the bottom job.

If you missed it, you should check out Nancy's last post. She has some nice pictures of the "Super Moon" and the effects it has had on the tides here in Savannah. As she mentioned, Friday night the tide came into the work area of the Marina and completely surrounded out stilted boat with about 1 1/2 feet of water. It was a little strange to know we were on the hard and yet we were surrounded by this high tide water.

For many years now, folks I met my first year out RV'ing at the north rim of the Grand Canyon and I have celebrated the monthly arrival of the full moon. While working at the North Rim, several of us would go to Marble Canyon Overlook, build a fire and camp overnight enjoying the view and the full moon. Each full moon, we silently toast our "friends both far and near and to life as it should be lived".

I hope each of you have a great "Super Moon" and enjoy life to the fullest.

Well, we learned that we probably didn't damage our rudder by grounding. Both the marine repair manager and the insurance company said the rudder had to have been in bad shape when we bought the boat. As you can see from the pictures below, there is considerable "old" damage showing. It was just our luck the rudder didn't last until we could sell the boat at the end of our trip. Still not certain if the insurance will cover part of the cost of a new one or not.

The marine mechanic also figured out our exhaust fume smell. As you can see, we have a good size crack in the exhaust pipe. Thankfully, it can be fixed!!

 

The boat being on stilts reminds me of a patient in the hospital. You can see all the life lines (A/C &

Hoses) running to her.

 

 

I guess the moral of our story is don't ever buy anything off the Internet without going and personally checking the item out first. Pictures can be very deceiving!!

We'll have been here at Hinckley Marine Works for a week tomorrow afternoon. TW2 was hauled out on Monday and the insurance rep didn't get by until yesterday. We originally thought it would be 2 - 3 weeks after we ordered a new rudder before it would arrive. The marine repair manager said tonight that he has found one that he may be able to get here in 3 - 4 days. So, we might be up and running a little sooner than we though. Hopefully, we'll get a few other repairs done as well as a bottom job before leaving here. Living on the boat while it's up on stilts is a lot like living in a tree house.

Below are a few pictures of the boat being hauled:

Well, once again, time has flown and I haven't posted here in quite a while. Since it's easier for me to do my own blog than to try and share one with someone else, I'll be posting here in the future. I'm still aboard the Tumbleweed Two, at least for the time being, So, in the future, I'll be doing my posts here. If you want, you can still visit Nancy's posts at the old blog site we provided, But, mine will be here.

To bring you up to date, we arrived in Thunderbolt, GA, just shy of Savannah on Friday evening. Our rudder is broken and it appears that we will be here for at least 3 - 4 weeks, The boat was hauled out on Monday morning and we are now living "on the hard". This means we are up on stilts and we're now living in a tree house. Fortunately, we can continue to live aboard while they work on the boat. We also plan to have some other issues we have with the boat taken care of while here.

This is now Wednesday and so far they have dropped the rudder and pulled the exhaust pipe out., checking for an exhaust leak. Nancy has had an upholster in to see about having the salon interior redone. We'll plan to get a bottom job and maybe a transmission seal replaced while here. We'll also be doing a few things to tidy her up ourselves.

Following are a few pictures I took while coming through the river in GA. Many people told us we should bypass this area by going on the outside because it was difficult and boring. We didn't find it to be that difficult and it was so beautiful that after a while it did become a little monotonous, But, it was still very scenic and very pretty.

 

These markers are called "routes". If you line the two up as shown in the first photo, the guide you though a narrow channel. You just have to be careful not to follow the too far or they will run you aground.

 

 

The off white toward the bottom of the picture are oysters. I just haven't found out if these are edible or not.

 

The "old" south!!! 

 

 

How the other half lives, This is just shy of Savannah, GA.

 

 

Stay tuned for more!!!