A Cold Winter in Maryland

As everyone knows, this winter was unusually cold for a Maryland winter.  The West River, in the Chesapeake Bay (where Abake is kept) froze.  We broke down and bought a bubbler to keep her from getting damaged.

We didn't get that much snow -- just a couple of snowfalls that worried us a little.  But, we would go check on her (and shovel a path on the pier to Abake, who is in the 2nd to the last slip) and she would be A-OK.

We thought we'd show you a couple of pictures of the marina this winter:

The ice creeping toward the dock

Ice at the dock

The bubbler is just a small motor with a "fan" blade that is lowered into the water near the hull.  The motor is turned on and the blade spins, circulating the water around the boat and keeping the ice from forming.  This is a picture of the effect:

Bubbler working

The river was frozen so much that for the first time in ages, we saw an ice boat sailing along across the frozen water.  People were even out standing on the ice on the river!  We didn't think it was THAT frozen, but thankfully no one fell through.


With Mike working during the winter, Jenny kept plugging away on cushions.  She feels that pictures would be boring here, so when the last cushions are done, a whole blog will be written about the cushions.  Suffice it to say that as of now (mid-May), 9 of the 16 cushions are done and foam for the 4 in the aft cabin are on the UPS truck as we speak.

So what else do we do in the winter?  Well, Mike shops on the web.  Our outboard motor wasn't big enough (6hp four-stroke) to get our dinghy planing, so he found a wonderful deal from a place in Delaware (which has no state sales tax) that gave us a discount for picking it up.  It's a Tohatsu 9.8hp four-stroke.  It should get us up on plane!

Since it was near Rehoboth Beach, we took advantage of an unusually warm and sunny day in February and went for a drive to the beach.  Also, Mike was able to taste his first Thrasher's French Fries!  They are an institution at the Maryland and Delaware beaches, so we indulged.

Forward Head Plumbing

We're catching up on our blogging about previous work, now that we're getting snowed in for a bit.  Last year we had purchased an Electro Scan waste treatment unit for the forward head.  It is categorized as a Type I marine sanitation device that treats waste and allows it to be flushed overboard in areas like the Chesapeake Bay.  There are some areas that do not allow any waste discharge, so yes, we still have holding tanks.  But when we are allowed, we flush overboard, thus not continuing to fill our waste tanks.  Hey, no complaints!  The big ships do it!!!

The head (toilet) that was already on board remained in place, but the output was re-routed to pass through the Electro Scan device.  This involved finding a place to put the unit that was not in the way in the forward head.  We decided to install it underneath the floor of the sail locker, which is just forward of the head.  (If you're confused, the "head" refers not only to the toilet, but the actual bathroom, too.)  The existing 33-year old tank was removed and the Electro Scan was installed.  A false floor had to be built for the Electro Scan unit.  And, while we were up in the sail locker, it got a new paint job. 

Electro Scan installed

False bottom shelf for Electro Scan

Sail locker painted

More plumbing was done in the forward head:  There was a shower pan (and a hand-held showerhead) already on Abake in the forward head.  Because we didn't want any showers draining into the bilge, Mike installed a pump and control for the shower sump.  Now, if we take a shower indoors, the water drains from the shower pan through a new hose to the pump, and is then pumped overboard via the sink thru hull. 

Readying for Winter In Maryland

As we mentioned earlier, we are in Maryland for the winter.  Because we had planned to be South, in warmer waters, we hadn't made plans to haul Abake.  Regardless, we decided to leave her in the water and haul her in the Spring or next summer for some bottom work.

To to prepare her for the winter, the usual anti-freeze was abundantly used (engines, heads, water tanks).  And because she had not been hauled in a while, Mike wanted to check the through hulls to ensure that nothing crusty had grown in them.  So, he took a plunge with a scuba tank in October. All looked good and she got her bottom scrubbed.  Well, at least one tank-full of her bottom was scrubbed.

Mike cleaning the sides In Oct.

She also had not been waxed for a while, so her entire topside was given a good cleaning and a coat of wax in November.  Luckily, there were some warm days.  It not only protects the fiberglass but also means that the snow will slide off of her easily this winter.  We also left the dodger in place and covered it and the cockpit with a tarp for the winter.  In the past, on Namida (our Westsail 32), we found this to be a challenge:  keeping a tarp in place while she was on the hard.  Maybe it's our location or the fact that we haven't had strong winds from the wrong direction, or maybe we just secured it properly this time, but the tarp is holding up well and remains in tact .  The way it is set up, it makes it easy to walk in the gunwales and crawl into the cockpit and down into the cabin.  We will have good access to her while she's in the slip this winter.  Doesn't she clean up nicely?

Waxed beauty

Waxing in November

Fast forward to our first snowfall accumulation and we are pleased that the tarp is holding up.  We are currently predicted to get more snow (up to 6") at the time this is posted (Jan 21), so the tarp engineering will be tested further.

First snowfall (in January)

So while it snows and gets cold, we work on other jobs inside.  For instance, we had purchased a MaxProp (a feathering, 3-blade propeller) for Abake about a year ago.  It was a good price, but needed to be refurbished.  So, we sent it to MaxProp for refurbishment.  You can see here that it looks close to brand new!  When Abake is hauled in the Spring/Summer, we will install the new prop and give it a try!

Refurbished prop