I just authorized Spice Island Marine to begin some work on Enee Marie. They're going to do some fiberglass repair to the transom especially where it meets the hull, sand and fair the rudder, fill in the through hulls that were for the now defunct air conditioning, open the boat in November and clean her up, and, of course, paint the bottom. I still plan on returning to her in December/January to modify the anchor locker and to install the wind vane steering.
From there, plans split into a number of possibilities. If things go smoothly and fast I may have time to sail the boat to Antigua or even St. Martin. We'd like to stage from around there for the longer journey north in the spring/summer. Or, I could leave the boat at Spice Island and we sail from there. That only adds 2-3 days to a northley trip and would allow shake down cruise for Sue and I to learn the wind vane steering. Or, I could launch the boat and leave her on anchor with a company hired to keep an eye on her and to keep the bottom clean. This should be quite a bit less than storage in the yard but then she's in the water and basically unattended.
The installation of the wind vane steering means our dinghy davits are for sale. I'm also thinking of getting rid of the inflatable and 18 hp outboard (heavy!) and going with a rowing dinghy. Nothing to repair there! Anyone in Grenada or heading that way interested in either, let me know.
