The first alligator of spring!

A few days back, a couple and their young child came down the dock, talking loudly (at least the youngest and most enthusiastic of the party) about "the alligator". Well, I hadn't seen one since I was a little fellow: one of my earliest memories (along with falling asleep to the sound of water under a sailboat) is a bunch of baby alligators under the bridge I stood upon in Florida. This one looked to be about 5' long (ok, 1.5 meters) and hung around for a few hours.

And this cute little 9" turtle likes to beg for treats when I hang out with my neighbor Clark on his boat...

Dad came to visit and stayed a couple nights.

He claims he very much enjoyed the boat... but he also said the same about my company, so I don't know...
Actually, very nice having him visit! I worried a bit about getting him onto and off the boat, but no problem.
And, after he left, I drove up to DC to visit my brother Peter and his family. Good fun... but I can only stand a city so long and left at about 3am, my favorite time drive the streets of our capitol. Maybe they will come visit me once there is a bit more space on board...

We've been trying to get a price on replacing the masts with aluminum, but can't get anyone to respond. I finally (after a couple weeks) got a reply today: about $25k.*gulp*
Also tried to get the name of the owner of a derelict boat here, the mast from which would fit mine nicely, but the harbor master will not tell me as that might lose him the rent of the yard space. *grumble*.
So.... I can try to find used masts, repair the wood ones, or some combination of these. Tomorrow I'll get going on preparation for the wood mast repairs. I'm actually relived: finally HAVING the numbers for the aluminum masts allows me to decide on my path and tomorrow I'll be striding down it with a lighter mind.

Speaking of repairs.. As a child, I read that black locust is a wonderful wood for boat building and a friend recommended it for the repair of my mast step and other decay after my previous blog post. The place he found is a four hour drive from here, but a local place in New Bern also has some and will deliver it tomorrow. Even better, the supplier is this really cool family mill and one fellow there has lots of experience building wood masts! Thanks for getting me going on this, John!

Cynthia arrives Monday and I plan on having the masts ready for us to work on. Tomorrow I'll complete peeling the fiberglass off the main mast and preparing for repair. I hope, hope, hope that we will be able to perform the repairs, seal the wood, and reinstall the masts before we need to leave about ten days later. When/if it rains, we will work on the interior.... and, speaking of that...

The moisture and scent of the interior is far better now that I bought a dehumidifier and fan and ripped out some decayed bits of floor, etc. My plan is to dry out and repair the floor, install new black locust joists, and install some pine plywood (well sealed with epoxy). Finally, I'll install some thin teak and holly to match the existing floor... eventually...probably... although it is very low on my priorities: first comes sailing and safety, close behind (or intertwined) comes comfort, then come various functional improvements, and (far later) comes beauty.... although I'll go for beauty if is also practical.