2025-12-08 Cruising Update

Well, I haven't been out on the boat since late October. That is unusual for me, but sometimes it happens.

For the very few people that might be reading this blog here is what is going on.

This time of year, our area has the worst weather. When I was working full-time, I only had the weekends and vacations and holidays to go out. I would schedule a trip and unless it was blowing a hurricane I just went and dealt with the weather as it came. However, I have been retired for almost 10 years now and things are different. We have better weather apps, and I have more free time. So, I watch the weather closely and try to go out when the weather is good, i.e. little to no rain and little to no wind.

Frankly the weather for the last 2 months has been mostly horrible. Yes, we've had some good spells, but my boat is slow and not well suited for day trips. I usually need at least 2 days and an overnight to get in a decent trip.

Secondly, I am having some deferred maintenance done on the boat and that has grounded me for a time. I had to have a DC electrical panel replaced. It is the kind of maintenance we don't like - everything was working fine, but there was a breaker just dangling from its wires. The electrician said the breaker and the panel itself were too old to just replace the breaker, so he recommended replacing everything. That took some time and money and of course I could not go anywhere while that was going on.

And thirdly the City League season has started. I manage the league, and I have to be at every game. We play on Tuesday and Thursday evenings and on Sunday afternoons. That means that if I want to go out for an overnighter it has to be Friday and Saturday. And that means I need good weather for those 2 days. That rarely happens at this time of year.

The City League will take a 2-week holiday break soon and perhaps I will be able to get out for a couple of days and an overnight in between - we'll see.

And lastly, I am getting older. I just turned 75 and it is becoming increasingly difficult to run that boat safely by myself. I have no spouse to go with me, and there are darn few people in town that I would even want to spend time with on the boat in the winter. Most recreational boaters here don't use their boats in the winter. I know at some point in the not-too-distant future it will be unsafe for me to go out by myself. I dread that day, but I see it coming.

That's it for now.