After leaving her with the good hands at AYB, Chesapeake, Va. , we are back aboard Subject to Change. We spent the winter months at home in Texas hoping to avoid the harsh cold along the eastern coastline. We survived one of the hardest freezes the Houston area has had in years, but were still grateful to be there rather than bundled up on the boat. So now we focus on the cruising ahead of us.
This is the first experience we’ve had winterizing a boat. We had heard great things about Atlantic Yacht Basin and so far we believe all the positive comments. The people here have been great. While we were gone, we had them haul the boat for a bottom job and had the hull compound waxed and polished. They have also been reworking the bracket that holds our satellite dish and radar. Ill give more details about this later. When we arrived at the boat she already had fresh water in the tanks and the diesel engines have been commissioned. The A/C (read this as heat) units started right up and we were soon toasty as we settled back in.
The boat is still in a slip under cover. Once the electronic work is finished we hope to move the boat out to get more light/sun. Can you tell that heat is important to me. The same cold front that roared through Texas just after we left caught up with us and winter returned to this area. The temperature has been in the high 30s at night and low 40s during the day. Anyway, a bit of sunshine on the boat would be nice. Also, since a major job of mine before we get moving is to add a few coats of Awlwood to the exterior teak, I need to get into the light so I can see the wood better.
This will be our summer of the north. We will be in this area through the end of April when we attend the American Great Loop Cruising Association (AGLCA) Spring Rendezvous in Norfolk. We’re looking forward to learning from others who have gone before us and meeting other cruisers who have plans similar to ours. Once the rendezvous is over we will playing in the Chesapeake for a month or so. We have tentative plans to visit Cape Charles, Onancock Creek, Crisfield, Smith Island, St. Mary’s, Solomon’s, St. Michaels, Annapolis and Baltimore before moving out of the Chesapeake. After that we’ll take the C&D canal, travel outside NJ to NYC. We want to spend a few days in NYC since Tim has never been there. Then it’s north on the Hudson to just north of Albany, west on the Erie Canal to Lake Ontario, north on the St. Lawrence to Montreal, west on the Ottawa River to Ottawa, then take the Rideau Canal back to Lake Ontario. This year we will leave the boat for the winter near Brewerton, NY in late September and then head for home. Want to join us? We always love visitors. Especially those who come with good stories.
Back to the modifications we’re making to the satellite/radar. We have to change the current configuration of satellite/radar because we will be cruising under some 19′ fixed bridges and our current air draft is 23′. The current configuration has a tower on top of the arch. The satellite dome is mounted atop the radar on the tower and the anchor light stretches above them both. AYB is making a platform that will lower the radar and place the satellite dish aft of it. The anchor light will be on a ratchet that will allow us to lower it for bridges. This is an old photo that shows the tower mounted on the arch. I’ll add a pic of the modified configuration once it is completed.
