Possibilities in Noank, CT

We were visiting Beth's family in CT and made a trip to Spicer's Marina in the quant village of Noank CT.  Beth is from Groton, CT and we lived in Noank together for a while early in our relationship.  We had our eye on a beautiful little Sea Sprite.  Dave loved this boat, price was good but Beth felt it was a bit narrow.  We are not in a huge hurry to purchase and it just didn't feel right.  This lovely boat sold at a great price, soon after we viewed it.

Seafarer

After the Wind Swept Lady experience, we found another Seafarer being offered out of Spicer's Marina.    It sounded like a possibility.  Price was low so there was some concern about it being a project boat.  Our friends, Sean Kelly, Manager at Pine Island Marina, and Peter Metcalf, Sailing Cowboy Extraordinaire, agreed to take a look at this boat.  Our fears were realized after one exterior look by Peter.  The boat was unwrapped and the mast was down.  The mast opening had not been covered.  There, most definately, would be water damage below.  It appeared it was under repair/renovation.  The price was low, but not low enough for a project boat requiring as much time, energy and money as this boat would require. 

The owner was a younger sailor living in MA.  He was from Noank but had found a job near Boston and realized he did not have the time to finish this project.  We bowed out of our interest in this vessel.

Wind Swept Lady...and the search continues!

It's October and the weather remains beautiful.  Dave subscribes to Good Old Boat magazine and receives email links to their online magazine.  I let him know when they have arrived but, mostly, we delete them.  Dave, however, reads the hard copies cover to cover.

We are training for the Mt. Dessert Island Marathon to be held on October 16th in Bar Harbor, ME. We've been planning this run for over a year after not getting into the 2010 race. We are excited for this beautiful run through Acadia National Park.  I travel to CT to visit family the week before the race. Dave plans to meet me on Friday October 14 for the long drive North.  Dave calls me to say he has received an email from Good Old Boat with an offer of a free boat.  We decide to contact the owner.

At the finish
MDI Marathon  10/16/11

Good Old Boat sent Dave this email message indicating that a boat owner in Michigan City, IN has a Seafarer 34 he is interested in finding a new home for:

Seafarer 34 free to a good home

John Bougearel is offering his 1973 Seafarer 34 for free to a good home. He has been unable to sell Seaquest and would like to see her moved to a new home and stored there before winter sets in. Seaquest is located in Michigan City, Indiana, at the southern tip of Lake Michigan.

He says:
A 2003 survey appraised the boat at $27,000, when it still needed a fix on the rudder and a fix on the starboard deck. Both those repairs have been done, plus a new headsail and roller furling system indicates the boat is every bit of good condition it was in in 2003 if not better.

The boat is now rigged as a sloop, not as a yawl. The headsail is new, the main is not new and is sized for a yawl, so a bit small for a sloop rigging.

The cockpit needs a sanding and repainting and there is a small soft patch on the starboard deck that I repaired, but need to sand a smidge and paint. With the boat on the hard since 2009, the diesel fuel needs to be removed and the tank cleaned/scrubbed. Other than that, she is serviceable, in great shape, and just in need of its regular maintenance. 

For further information and more photos, John can be contacted at: jb2@structurallogic2.com, 312-618-2290.

Here's wishing everyone a beautiful fall season!

Karen, Jerry, and the Good Old Boat crew

I contact JB but my emails are written as though I am Dave.  I ask for more photos and details about the boat.  JB provides everything and tells me that he is considering giving the boat to one of only a few candidates.  He says he will be making a decision within the next two weeks and asks if we wish to be considered.  Dave and I decide to drive to Michigan City to view the boat.  It was a beautiful day for a drive.  We got to Michigan City after lunch and met JB in the marina.  Wind Swept Lady was once a beautiful boat.  JB had let her fall into disrepair and it quickly became apparent that he may not own this boat outright.  It appeared that he, at the very least, owed storage fees.  We spent a few hours with JB, including lunch at a brew pub in town.  We let him know that we would be great new owners of this project boat but as soon as we got in our car we both admitted that we wanted nothing to do with this man, his boat and/or whatever was really going on.  Dave thought I should email JB to let him know we were no longer interested but I decided to wait to see what JB would do.  We never heard from JB again.

Interesting note; Dave and I drove to FL in January 2012 to run the Ragnar Florida Keys Relay Race. On our drive home we are 99% sure that we saw Wind Swept Lady on the side of the highway at a MVD weigh station/check point.  It appeared that it was being held there, possibly for being transported without the correct permits.  Seems like a dodged bullet if you ask me...

Finding our cruising boat...a journey in itself!

It's January 2012 and we have been searching for a sailboat for over a year.  Our plan of attack was heavily influenced by cost.  We wanted the best boat for the best deal.  We were considering project boats over turn key boats.  In November 2011 we made our last payment on our home.  It felt like perfect timing to invest in our second home, a bigger sailboat capable of taking us across wide open spaces of big water.

Initially our goal was to get into a bigger boat, 28-30 foot, for under $20,000.  Dave spent countless hours researching boats that fit this criteria.  He looked for full keel or modified full keel boats that had a reputation of being stable and seaworthy.  Features we were attracted to included deisel engine, roller furling, dodger, propane stove, oven and cabin heater.  We live in an old house and like the warmth of wood so we were attracted to boats with wood interiors.

Our search began in Duluth, MN on Lake Superior at the Barker's Island Marina where we looked at a three boats, a Cape Dory 28, an Islander 28 and an Islander 30.  The Cape Dory was a nice boat sitting on a cradle.  It was rigged for solo sailing with a custom full built in cabinet on the starboard side.  This feature made the cabin feel small and crowded.  We knew that Dave could take the cabinet out and reinstall a bunk but the boat was over budget and we had other options to consider.  We shelved the Cape Dory for now.  The Islander has a Saildrive motor.  Dave had read that you can't get parts for it anymore.  This could prove to be a problem.  In addition, the Islander is not a heavy cruising boat and felt very small for a 28-30 foot boat.  We were not impressed with it and have taken this boat off of our list.  

Next we drove North to Knife River Marina to view a 30 foot Columbia named "Yes Dear".  Dave and I both liked this boat immediately, including the name.  It was well taken care of and roomy.  It was cutter rigged with dual head stays (Dave liked that feature) and had a nice dodger.  The cockpit was rigged for fishing, not a huge selling point for us but just another sign that this boat was both used and loved.  Yes Dear has potential but is at the top end of our budget at $20,000. We looked at another Columbia 30 at Knife River but it was a project boat in disrepair.  We began to see the benefit of a turn key purchase.

While up North on this visit, we fell in love with the Knife River Marina.  It is a sheltered harbor with that classic North Woods feel.  It had a rocky beach within walking distance.  When we are lucky enough to find the right boat we hope to keep it at Knife River Marina.  We live about 3 hours from the marina.  Although it's a long drive, it would be just like going "Up North to the Cabin" to have a boat slip there.