The First Few Weeks of May

The first couple of weeks of boat ownership involved prepping, cleaning, painting, fixing, and dreaming.  I good friend of mine offered me dock space at his creek which connects to Manahawkin Bay, NJ.  That was incredible news as I didn't have to trailer the boat every time I wanted to use it.  I could keep the boat in the water.  It's an hour away and only 25 minutes from where I keep my camper.

The biggest job was bottom paint.  I took the boat from this;

to this;

My wife chipped in and we cleaned up.  The boat had been sitting in an asphalt place for over a year.  It had been covered so the dirt and grime were limited to the outside of the boat.  The insides were clean and just needed a good wipe down with disinfectant and some carpet cleaning.

Then I blew about $500 at West Marine.  I bought life jackets, flares, 1st aid kit, a chart book of NJ waters, a boat hook, Some epoxy, cleaning solution, and who knows what else.  (I'm actually writing this a month later when I decided to start the blog.)

I rushed to try to get everything done because my wife and I were heading to Florida to visit my father for a week.  After my return I intended to launch the boat.