IT'S A DOGS LIFE
SAILING AROUND THE WORLD WITH SPIRIT OF ARGO
IT'S A DOGS LIFE
SAILING AROUND THE WORLD WITH SPIRIT OF ARGO
Boat maintenance and repair United States

Florida, Jacksonville – So what do you do during Hurricane Season 1?

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I get lots of people asking me what you get up to during hurricane season.

Well it is summer, hot and stormy, so you can not stray too far and you have to keep an eye on the weather.  One minute, there is not a breath of air, the next it is blowing a howly.

We have the second tropical storm of the season making its way north.  It is not predicted to make landfall in Florida, but those cruisers in the Bahamas might want to make their way to the mainland US.

Projected Path

So if we are not cruising, what do we do?

Well to be honest.  I do not get up to much.

Quinn relaxing

But I do get the humans to work on projects that have been ‘sorely neglected’ when we were sailing.  Just look at this picture of me and you can see that the cabin soul is due for more layers of varnish.  It is not my fault I drag on so much sand from the beach.

I have given the humans a 2 page list of general repairs that need to be done…and they have only a few months to source materials and get it all done….that is what they get up to during hurricane season.

So I got them working right after our company left.

worn varnish on hatches

The first thing I thought I would get them working on, now that they have stopped sailing about, is the exterior of the boat.  Tropical sun, sand blasting and wear and tear have left the varnish thin an non-existent in places.

The humans really embarrass me letting things get so bad
The humans really embarrass me letting things get so bad

Like all jobs on the boat, preparation is the key.

All the fictures and fittings have to be removed. You might want to take a picture of the 'orientation' just in case you forget which way they go back on
All the fixtures and fittings have to be removed. You might want to take a picture of the ‘orientation’ just in case you forget which way they go back on
Label anything that needs taking apart. As again, it will make it easier to put back together.
Label anything that needs taking apart. As again, it will make it easier to put back together.
We had to move the gas locker out of the way to get access to the stern hatch surround.
We had to move the gas locker out-of-the-way to get access to the stern hatch surround.
It is always a good idea to take any sprayhoods and canvas out of the way. They will restrict your access to the wood and probably get dirty and dusty
It is always a good idea to take any sprayhoods and canvas out of the way. They will restrict your access to the wood and probably get dirty and dusty.
I got the humans to remove the binimi top, but I let them keep the 'all over' shade canopy so they would not 'fry their brains out' in the Florida sun shine
I got the humans to remove the binimi top, but I let them keep the ‘all over’ shade canopy so they would not ‘fry their brains out’ in the Florida sun shine

 

Tape off around all the areas you want to work on, put up dust sheets to cut down on dust below. Don't forget to clear the area of running rigging and cover winches
Tape off around all the areas you want to work on, put up dust sheets to cut down on dust below. Don’t forget to clear the area of running rigging and cover winches
With everything prepared you can start using a heat gun to soften varnish and a scrapper to lift it off.
With everything prepared you can start using a heat gun to soften varnish and a scraper to lift it off.
Do not forget all the boards that fit into the hatches or cover the gas locker. A never ending supply of work!
Do not forget all the boards that fit into the hatches or cover the gas locker. A never-ending supply of work!
I supervise when I am not busy entertaining the kids in the Marina
I supervise when I am not busy entertaining the kids in the Marina

It is a tough job, but someone has to be the supervisor.  Although I am missing one of my workers.  One of the humans has escaped my work detail and run off to England.

Some one has to represent the family, because it is my Granddad’s 80th birthday.

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He would be very disappointed if one of us could not make it.

So would Nanna
So would Nanna
The whole family, well besides me and the other human, were there to celebrate together
The whole family, well besides me and the other human, were there to celebrate together
I am sure they are having a great time catching up after missing us for 2 years
I am sure they are having a great time catching up after missing us for 2 years
My human better enjoy himself, because my list of jobs 'waits for no man'.
My human better enjoy himself, because my list of jobs ‘waits for no man’.
It is nice to see everyone is doing so well
It is nice to see everyone is doing so well

It is nice to see my human having such a good time but now, especially as my company has left as well, I have been a little worried and staying close to my remaining human.  Maybe a little closer than she is comfortable with.

She was a little shocked to wake up in the night with paws hanging over her head
She was a little shocked to wake up in the night with paws hanging over her head
I just liked to be able to smell she was still there and had not left me too.
I just liked to be able to smell she was still there and had not left me too.

I am sure I will get ‘over it’ and start behaving normally.

Don’t think because I miss them that I am going to let up on the work!

Don’t forget the incredible deflatable either!

What a sorry embarrassing sight.
What a sorry embarrassing sight.

The list only gets longer!

And that is ‘just a little’ of what we get up to during hurricane season.

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