Good Riddance

 Full Moon, bare trees

 

(to start of project)

The oaks are letting loose their leaves now.

Driven by the wind, they pour out of side streets and across the road like wash over a sandbar, sea foam scudding on a Spring Tide.

It’s a young wind, too, gusting into the 30’s toppled some trees, and knocked the power out for several hours earlier in the week.

That wind brought warm air from the South, though, and we had our first 70 degree day of the year yesterday. We celebrated by dusting off the grill, tossing on a couple of steaks, and dining under the stars, a full moon floating up through bare limbs.

 

 

Winter isn’t done with us yet, I’m sure, but its days are numbered. We’ve got daffodils showing color, and forsythia blooming. Sailing weather soon.

 

 

 

 

There are only a few pieces of wood left to add and construction is finished. Toe Rails and Rub Rails are the last pieces to actually attach to the hulls. After that comes the floor decks which lift out for cleaning, so remain separate components. Nothing left after that but hardware, paint and varnish, and finish work. That done, these boats can leave the basement for good, and I can finalize the rigging. All these things will take time and care, of course, and some of it is pretty tricky (there are a couple of pieces of hardware I’ll have to make, for example), but the list is very short now. Hard to believe.

Played with some mockups of the Toe Rails and Rub Rails to try shapes and proportions. I’ve planned all along to incorporate the Oarlock Risers into the Toe Rails, and I think that will work well.

 

 

 

 

I’ll start scarfing together the long rail pieces this weekend. Then I need to take a break for a couple of weeks, but after that comes the last big push to the launch ramp.

Woohooo!

 

melonseed skiff, mellonseed skiff, melon seed, mellon seed   

 

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