This is totally a non-sailing thing but is a simply amazing act.

Our internet is sporadic here at the marina when the crowds come in. The wireless just cannot handle all the requests plus the incoming bandwidth is much less than it should be for a marina with 500 slips and a lot of kids with all the toys.

We have become intermittent bloggers as we cannot easily get bandwidth. Right now everyone has left and we are back on the air. Yea!

We went to the parade today in Douglas. It was a nice small town gathering and remarkably similar to our home town celebration only a bit bigger.

We got out sailing for the first time on Sunday and sailed up to Holland and then tacked to starboard through the wind to start the return journey. Wind speed was variable 5 -12 kts and we were doing somewhere between 2.5 & 4 kts up and back. Waves were in the 1′ range so it was a great trip. Going up we were about 30 degrees off the relative wind and using the main and jib only.

We left Inspiration bound for Detroit and a meeting of the Intelligent Transportation Society of Michigan. This was the not to be missed annual exposition and since I am webmaster I was there representing the press. It was a good event and we returned to home for a day or so to mow the lawn and other necessaries.

All sails are on the boat and we are ready to do some Lake Michigan sailing. Weather has been cool with a lot of precipitation so the water is higher on the Kalamazoo River where our marina is located. We will be back on the boat soon. We are bringing the Fein MultiMaster along to sand the counter top butcher block cutting boards. We did the stove top cutting board and then oiled it with food grade mineral oil from Walmart pharmacy. The results were sufficiently impressive that we want to do the two sink top cutting boards. The wood is hard maple and it looks great.

The marina called us last Wednesday and told us the launch was scheduled for the next day. We beat the launch crew to the site and were there for the launch and the stepping of the mast. This took about 3 hours total. Prior to startup we made a careful inspection for water leaks and all was go. We fired up the engine and it started immediately with no cranking. The river was running fast so backing into the river was a small challenge but we made it without incident.

We motored up river about a mike to our marina and slip. There was no wind to speak of and we were in the rivers eddy so it was straight into the slip. We slightly changed the way we are tied up this year. All lines are tied so that the loops are on the dock cleats and all we have to do is to bring the lines aboard and we will be off to Lake Michigan fun.

About an hour after arrival we noticed the bilge pump was cycling every 5 minutes. I looked into the bilge and sure enough water was coming into the boat. A brief inspection indicated it was from aft of the packing gland. A detailed inspection showed it was water entering from the packing gland area. We tightened it and the water stopped – thank heavens – a no high priced repairs had to be done. The KISS principle again.

We spent the night on the boat but did not sleep too well as I think we were over tired. Also we did not have the right bedding and elements necessary for a good nights sleep. Anyway, we are in the water and need to hank on the sails to be ready to go.

I have generated a new theme of Blue. I had to make a lot of changes to get it to display correctly. I also turned on comments so this will test that too.

I loaded the truck this morning with sails, salon cushions, ladder and Cetol Gloss. We want to give the bulwark one more coat of Cetol – gloss this time and load the necessaries on Inspiration before launch. It is much easier to park the truck right next to the boat that to haul the items 200+ meters in a cart to the slip site. We have to install the new Michigan registration numbers too.

This trip should just about complete all the pre-launch items we want to get done. Now for summer fun. The Kalamazoo River is on the wane again and down to about 8.5′ gage height so if it does not rain much more this week or next then the launch should go without a hitch next week.