Making the best of it

Click photo for a sinking feeling

On the river this afternoon

Sadly, ceaseless rain and wind have doomed the Southport cruise. I called my friend Major and cancelled Tuesday night. Weather cleared briefly the next day, then went back to nasty and has stayed there. It's still sputtering rain with winds gusting to 30 knots. So, that was a good call.

Due to various calendar issues, the Southport trip won't happen this summer.  Next up is an excursion up the St. Johns River from Welaka to Sanford, FL, and perhaps beyond. My friend Paul will be aboard for that voyage. We are planning to leave in early June, and we're (optimistically) counting on  warm and sunny weather.

So, the month until then could be used to start the middle cabin rehab project.

The dashboard needs sanding and repainting. To do this, it will be necessary to remove the engine controls, the instrument panel and a number of switches. The compass, the depth sounder and the GPS bracket and wiring will also have to be removed. That's a lot of work.  It's probably more than can be accomplished in the 30 days or so before we head south. However ...

...I could start at the aft end of the middle cabin and work forward, leaving the dashboard work to some later date. The back-to-front surface prep and paint job would be doable in the time available.

I think I'll re-pack the trailer wheel bearings and think about it some more.