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| Comocean at rest in her Semiahmoo slip. |
Our boat, a Catalina 42' sailboat named Comocean, is sitting at anchor in Drayton Harbor just off of the Semiahmoo Marina. We are preparing ourselves and the boat for our long-planned adventure. On September 1 or 2, weather permitting, we will pull anchor and head to Neah Bay located on the northwest tip of Washington. From there we will head south, sailing about 100 miles offshore, to San Francisco Bay. Later in the fall we will head to Baja Mexico.
We started this progressive change of lifestyle over 10 years ago when we bought Comocean. The plan was to put her into charter to help cover her costs and have the boat mortgage paid off in seven years. While that was happening we lived a "life by design" (an audio book I highly recommend). Every decision was directed towards the goal of selling our house, moving onto our boat and sailing in the San Juan Islands and BC in the summer and the Sea of Cortez in the winter. We would both retire sometime in our late 50's. As it turned out Greg was given a "golden hand shake" and he retired at 57.
Instead of one big traumatic push at the end, we slowly down sized and shed our belongings through yard sales, eBay and gifting. I really liked my home in Sonora, California and its 1/2 acre and, prior to this paradigm shift, thought that I would retire and grow old there - spending my days gardening, crafting and volunteering in the Sonora community. I had some very nice antique furniture that I really loved. When the decision to live aboard was reached I sank into a deep depression that lasted a few weeks. I agonized over my "stuff" - my family heirlooms, my antique furniture, my beautiful clothes etc., etc.
I had read that a lot of marriages go on the rocks because of sailing. Usually one partner is nuts about it and the other not so much. They can't figure out how to compromise and they go their separate ways. Fortunately, we both like sailing - only I really liked my house too. Now, like most people our finances are limited. Greg has a steady retirement income and I have a little in IRAs. I was faced with a question: If I didn't jump of board, so to speak, might I find myself left behind on the rocks? Then I thought - hmmm - bag lady or live on a yacht, bag lady or yacht? Didn't seem like a hard question. So here I am.
Disposing of a life time of stuff can be fun. Giving something really special to someone who will treasure it is even more fun.
We purchased a slip at the Semiahmoo Marina in Blaine, WA and moved aboard Comocean in March of 2008. The first two years we spent most of our time tied to the dock. During that time Comocean was transformed into a well equipped offshore home. All the work was done by Greg (except little things like welding a piece of stainless steel or having an instrument face fabricated). We added four solar panels, new Standard Horizon 12" chart plotter, new radar, AIS, forward-facing sonar (to avoid hitting sleeping whales and partially submerged cargo containers), wind instruments and we fully enclosed the cockpit. We had a new head sail and spinnaker made (Greg wanted to do this himself but I convinced him that they were too big to tackle in the little space we had). The interior received an improved hydronic heating system that was routed through the closets to help keep down mold. Greg built a watermaker from scratch. Its pieces are tucked in amongst things in the engine compartment. We now have the ability to produce 40 gal per hour of very clean water. Additional cabinets were built over the pullman birth. A freezer was installed under the settee to ensure a good supply of non-canned vegetables and meat; ice cubes were a nice bonus. Lastly, I got my ham license and Greg installed an ICOM M802 single side band radio so that we could have email while underway and receive the all important weather faxes.
We also invested in offshore safety items. We tried to save some money on an offshore life raft by buying a used commercial Switlik 6-person life raft. Didn't do enough research. It would have cost more to do the required repack than to buy a new one. So we donated the Switlik to the Sea Scouts and bought a new Revere life raft. We also purchased a McMurdo EPIRB. I don't want to be floating out there for months living on dew and raw fish if the boat sinks.
There are still things to do, there always are, but the really important stuff is done and its time to go.
