They say that the two happiest day's of boat ownership are the day you buy your boat and the day you sell it. I can attest to the first as we've been very happy with our boat Makana since we purchased and launched it in summer of 2006. And since then Makana has safely carried us as far south as Africa and north to Maine. We've had wonderful experiences aboard Makana with last winter's trip to the Bahama's being one which we will never forget,
Last summer we spent our time cruising Penoboscot Bay and the many islands ending our voyage late Sept. in Southwest Harbor. Winter in Maine is not the place to spend on a boat so Makana was hauled out with all of us spending the winter on "terra firm" .
After being lifted from the sea Makana was carried a 1/2 mile inland and placed on the ground. It took the better part of a week to winterize the boat. In addition to the three diesel engines which had to be drained of water and filled with antifreeze there were the two heads, three sinks, two shower drain pumps, three shower heads, watermaker, two ac-heater units, fresh water tank and lines, salt water pump and lines, six bilge pumps, our 9.9hp outboard engine and all drains. The sails, sail covers, jack lines, lifelines, stanchions, safety netting, safety equipment, BBQ grill, propane tanks, flags, assorted lines, dinghy, kayak's and surfboard all had to be removed. Once everything was off the boat the cover went on and the catamaran was ready for winter.
Cat's don't hibernate, so Makana is in a suspended state sort of limbo waiting for the snow to stop falling so she can return to the sea.
Even though we still have well over three feet of snow in our yard I've began the process of getting the boat ready for relaunch. We just received a new annometer (wind meter) for the mast head as the old one broke, I ordered a new impeller for the port side head as the old one was ruined by sitting in vinegar for 3 weeks, (separate story), and contacted Interlux our bottom paint company which we used as the Micron 66 paint has not lived up to what was advertised and not worth the $275+ per gallon price paid. We've also got our Makana Tours & Charters website up and running, check it out at Makanatours.com
As winter fades and spring progress I'll update Facebook and this blog with the process of re commissioning the boat. A process which I've done several times and will document and take pictures of the process for all to see, if you have any ideas on how to improve the process let me know, anything to make the work easier is always appreciated, thanks.

Aloha,


Rick