After spending the equivalent of two months of our budget and then some in January, February's expenses were quite bit more tame. In fact since we had already purchased just about everything we needed to complete our projects we came in just under budget.
We wrapped up our River Trip at the beginning of the month and then re-stepped the mast and started prep for our big electrical project. We also flew home to visit family for the holidays and took a short ski trip over the holidays with some friends.
Raise the sails!! Woot woot, we’re going SAILING!! After installing two of our six solar panels, we fire up the engine to make sure Mr. Beke still runs, and we’re off the dock.
This one is bittersweet. On one hand, the battery upgrade is a smashing success. Kirk completes the installation of our new battery bank, and we now we have all the juice we need. On the other, our arch project is a complete and utter disaster.
We planned to complete TWO big projects while in Mobile, AL: 1) upgrading our battery bank & 2) fabricating a solar arch with dinghy davits. After much deliberation, we decided to DIY the batteries and hire out the arch fabrication.
Our boat wasn’t ready for full-time cruising when we bought her. This was perfectly fine; we’d rather add necessary items ourselves and learn them inside and out through the process, than pay for systems already in place that may not be exactly what we want, or are old and need to replacing anyway.
Even though the mast is back up and we’re officially a sailboat again(!), we’ve got a scary long list of boat projects to complete before we can leave the dock in Mobile, Alabama.
Many of you may be wondering "Where is your mast?!" I know this, because we've received a ton of emails, comments, and Facebook messages with that exact question ;)
Welp, it’s about time we get moving south, eh? With all the boat dramas from the last few episodes now behind us, we’re finally making miles south down the Illinois River. And good thing, too, ‘cause winter is hot on our keel.
Oh dear…This one’s for you dreamers out there who will one day become newbie boat owners, just like us. Take notes! Hopefully you won’t have to make these same mistakes. Last episode, we had issues with our centerboard, which were — surprise! — caused by yours truly.
