Tight Schedule - Bound for the Keys

After the euphoria of owning a boat again began to subside we realised that we now owned a boat and trailer that both needed a heap of work. To add to this we had come up with a new plan for the sweet little Seawind 24! The Florida Keys were calling!........ actually the Northwest winter also had something to do with it. We decided to get out of Washington area before winter really set in which meant a hectic schedule for getting things done; 10 weeks...... plus 2 for giving notice at our jobs and packing up/selling our junk. We intend living on the boat so we need to get rid of anything that doesn't fit weight or size wise.

One thing that really pleased us was the good quality of the workmanship and materials used in the construction of this Seawind 24. It was built in Australia in 1983 and is still in excellent (although dirty) condition.

Enough gabbing, time is not waiting.......... Here we go!

 Looking pretty rough!

Week one: Pressure wash the outside
                  Replace all fenders, dock lines
                  Measure trampolines and running rigging
                  Clean inside right hull

Got this done and decided to make our own tramps, we did this once before so felt we had the skills.

Week two: Remove engine
                   Replace impeller
                   Change gear oil
                   Order carb kit
                   Order tramp netting
                   Clean left hull

All done, netting (UC Silver 42mm BK 20ply Knotless Netting with Dyneema®) on the way from Net Systems . Teleflex Marine carb kit ordered from Amazon.

Week three: Fit first trampoline
                     Buy new fuel tank and fuel lines
                     Install carb kit and start engine
                     Buy and install new running rigging

We got all our running rigging from Rigging Products of Portland OR. Great people to deal with. The engine fired right up and runs great.

The new tramp gave us a boost.

Week four: Fit next 2 trampolines
                   Fit engine
                   Assess all trailer repairs

The new tramps look really good and feel good to walk on.

The boat is cleaning up good.

Week five: Check safety gear
                   Do our first sail

We took the boat out of the marina for the first time in 14 years. There wasn't much wind but the purpose of our trip was to get an Oregon Police inspection as the boat had no HIN #. This went off without a hitch and we caught some wind on the way back so actually got to sail our new baby.

 The first of many trips

The Oregon Police were really efficient and professional

 



Week six:   The Trailer.......
                   Purchase and fit:
                   New axles
                   New wheels and tires
                   Disc brakes
                   Coupler and hydraulic system

This was hard work but the trailer looks a lot better. It needs to be reliable for our 4000 mile trip to the Keys.

Week seven: Fit fenders
                     Safety cables
                     Weigh the trailer

The trailer weighed in at 1450 lbs which will put the boat and trailer weight at about 3000 lbs.

Week eight: Trailer inspection

The trailer inspection went ok! Even got a "nice trailer" from the officer. There was a tense moment however when he measured the width, and remeasured the width and then measured again and then called the other officer over and discussed it. I was sure that it was in limits, we even had an inch and a half to spare on each side. All was ok though and we are now ready to haul the boat out.

Week nine: The Haul out

We needed to move the boat 8 miles from Steamboat Landing Marina to Camas/Washougal Marina to haul out as this looked like the most suitable ramp for our trailer. A nice westerly wind had been blowing for days but of course on the morning we moved the boat it was dead calm so we had to motor all the way.

My good friend Ben Coleman and I motoring to Camas

I spent the night on the boat at Camas/Washougal planning to haul out at first light so that we would have the whole day to take the boat apart and tow it away. The Harbor Master, Mark Hamrick, at CamasWashougal Marina sure made us feel welcome. A nice marina with good facilities and very friendly and accommodating staff.

Tied up at Camas/Washougal Marina

 

Hauling a seawind 24 out is a little different to other boats as the trailer first has to be expanded to 16 feet wide and once the boat is on some careful driving is needed to move it to some level ground so that the mast and beams can be removed and the trailer collapsed back to 8 feet. This move was done with no problems and we started dismantling the boat at 10 am.

Out the water for the first time in almost 20 years!

Lowering the mast on the Seawind 24 turned out to be a lot easier than we ever imagined. We took our time making sure the mast and boom were properly triangulated and then used the main sheet & blocks to lower it.

The mast is down

The boat came apart real easy, the hardest part was working out where to stow everything and tie it all down. The trailer went back together with some effort but no real hangups.

Week ten: The bottom

We pressure washed and sanded the bottom and were really pleased to find no osmosis. We thought for sure there was going to be a few surprises but other than a couple of scratches she was clean. Seawind Catamarans sure did a good job when they moulded this hull all those years ago. The weather has become too cold and rainy to do an epoxy barrier coat so we plan to do that and the antifouling on the way to Florida when we get into some warmer climates. Winter has arrived in Washington State,.......... time to go!

 Next week the marathon to Marathon begins! We are planning our departure for 30 October 2012 and expect to take 2 weeks to get there.