Summer 2018 in Boston

After leaving Connecticut, our next stop was Boston, Massachusetts. John had gotten a job at a specialty hospital that started a month after departing Stamford.

It was a terribly cold and stormy sail to Boston with many days where we couldn’t move due to weather situations. We ended up dragging anchor several times in high winds and strong currents. We even switched anchors at one point but ended up switching back because it just got worse. A new anchor was definitely on our list by the end of this trip. We were overly excited to arrive at the marina where we would spend the next six months.

**Leaving Stamford, Connecticut**

**Happy to be headed north**

**Erik all bundled up**

**John’s attempt at staying warm**

**Harbor Seals in our anchorage**

**Block Island before the storm**

**A pretty fishing village**

**Plymouth, Massachusetts**

**Benny’s excited to see Boston**

Our time in Boston was probably typical of a tourist trip plus some fun sailing adventures added in. We walked the Freedom Trail, watched the 4th of July fireworks from the Boston Harbor, and took the boat out to do some whale watching (when John’s parents came to visit). We also tried out the local food, took in a Boston Red Sox game, got to see the Harvard graduates on their graduation day walk, made multiple weekend trips to the Boston Harbor Islands and Misery Islands (good places to escape the heat of the city), and visited surrounding towns by vehicle…one being Salem where we printed off a map to do The Walking Tour of the Great Age of Sail since we had recently finished reading Carry On, Mr. Bowditch (one of the boys’ favorite reads). This was one of the highlights of our Boston stay. We also ventured across the Canadian border to Niagara Falls for a long weekend.

**Salem Walking Tour****Super fun road trip to Niagara Falls, Canada****Trips to the Boston Harbor Islands and Misery Islands****Freedom Trail, fireworks, and whale watching****Trip to Gloucester, Massachusetts…one of my favorite places****Boston Red Sox Game**

There were quite a few changes that we made to our boat while in Boston. John replaced all of our heads (toilets) with brand new heads and new sanitation hoses. This made a huge difference in terms of flushing capabilities and smell. The years of charter use/abuse had taken a toll!

I retaught myself to sew since there were many items that were needed for the boat. John bought me a Sailrite sewing machine for my projects. I started simple with curtains for every room. I used outdoor fabric with blackout lining. The tracks that were already installed were still good, so we just purchased new hooks.

**A few of the new curtains…everyone chose their own fabric**

I also recovered the captain’s chair bottom and back. We have since replaced the foam on the bottom to make it even more comfortable. We purchased new foam and fabric to make outdoor (now complete) and indoor cushions (haven’t gotten up the courage for these just yet) as well.

**Old and worn out on the right, new on the left**

John spent several weeks setting us up with solar panels in preparation to spend more time at anchor/mooring instead of docking. We have three large panels that produce 345 watts per panel. We have had no trouble with everyday living as long as we avoid things like toaster ovens (now packed away).

**No solar on the top, solar installed on the bottom**

I had been wanting to replace the name on our boat since day one. The peeling was an eye-sore in my personal opinion. John matched the hailing port font and ordered new name stickers for the sides. Putting these on was a little tricky, but the end result was well worth the trouble. John spent many days buffing and polishing the boat beforehand so that the stickers would be on a clean, slick surface.

**Old name on the right, new on the left**

We were very much in need of a new dinghy. John had tried his best to save/repair the dinghy that had come with our boat purchase, but it was just too far gone. We drove to a local Highfield dealer where they had some previous year models on sale to make room for the newer models. We loaded it up, inflated, on the back of our truck and man-handled it down the dock to the boat. John decided to go with a PVC dinghy instead of a hypalon material. He figured that after the five year warranty was up, we could just get a new PVC dinghy and still be spending less than the hypalon dinghy with a ten year warranty. After five years, both would probably be needing some repairs anyway.

**Our new dinghy with no leaks**

The windows on our boat were sun worn and peeling. We taped and painted the white strip on the saloon windows and put dark tinting on the cabin windows. This not only improved the look of the boat but also provided better insulation from the heat in the summer sun.

**Front windows scraped and painted**

We did end up getting that much needed anchor just before leaving Boston and heading south for the winter. John chose a Rocna anchor over the Mantus anchor due to it being in one piece rather than two. After learning how to properly set the new anchor, it has provided us with more peaceful sleep at night…even when there are high winds and unpredictable currents. Not hearing our anchor alarm go off every two to three hours has been wonderful!

**Anchor upon delivery and installed**