All The Rage

For the first time in two years, the Abaco Rage was hauled out of the water and in the boatyard for painting and maintenance on the boat and rig.

The crew had to wait for the forklift to arrive to put the boat back in the water on launch day. Dave made this cradle for the Rage to sit in while being worked on.

This is the heaviest boat that the boatyard retrieves and launches. It is quite a sight seeing in hanging from the forklift.

Then it was time to put the mast up, which is always scary. It takes about 6-8 guys to help lift and balance it, but then the forklift moved it with a single point lift. You can see the wood mast bending.

The tide was high, so they had a difficult time getting it to be vertical and at the right height to go over to the boat and clear the deck.

 Eric waited for the mast to be placed, so he could secure it below the deck.

Next it was rigged and the boom and prys were attached, but I have no photos of the process because I had to go volunteer at the lighthouse. All went well and there were no issues with tangles like last time.

Today there was a Rage FUNdraiser lunch at the park and I went over to sell T-Shirts for awhile. 

Some of the mighty crew volunteered also.

Tomorrow is the first day of the Hope Town Sailing Club's racing season and the Rage is ready to sail and WIN!

Progress

Work on our Abaco Dinghy is flying right along! Dave has all the floor boards and loose trim pieces painted coral.

The hull has been refastened with bronze screws by Heinz and Will. Originally they were brass, and in Ticonderoga we replaced the ones below the waterline with stainless screws. It apparently wasn't quite right, but is now up to par.

The transom has been puttied and primed. Dave has also strengthened the ribs inside.

We have retrieved the mast, boom, and rudder from storage and Dave has been painting them. The hull still needs to be caulked, sanded, and painted, but it will be in the water sooner than expected! Even the name boards are ready to go.

Dandy will soon be joining Midget of Abaco and Mac & Cheese...

Merry Christmas From Both Of Us

We wish all of our family and friends both near and afar a wonderful Christmas!

Christmas Village

For the first year, the Hope Town ball field has been transformed into a winter wonderland. What an awesome job Monica and her elves did, and what a lot of work!

There was a miniature golf gingerbread house...

Santa will be sure to arrive in none other than an Abaco Dinghy being towed by dolphins and flamingos.

This is where Santa will sit with all the kids at the North Pole...

While this big kid mails his letter...

A last minute shopping area complete with driftwood Christmas Tree...

 

Funnel cake, ice cream sundaes and sodas (love the names of the toppings!)...

And ICE SKATING at "Rockafisher Centre"! Synthetic ice sections and skates were shipped in for this attraction. The kids had a blast and most had never ice skated before.

  

All the proceeds from this three day event are being donated to the new community center.

The Christmas spirit did not stop at the village though. Other houses are decorated in town with this yard being our favorite and this blow-up really made us laugh:

The whole place looked like it was snowing with tiny projection lights, and it's hard to see but the big tree in the background is loaded with ornaments.

It really is amazing to think of where we are and where all the decorations and supplies had to come from. Add on to that all the work from volunteers to make these events happen. As the saying goes, "it takes a village!"

Our Latest Volunteering

Our candy striped lighthouse just opened up a cute little gift shop and we volunteered to help man it. The sale of items in the store will go towards getting the necessary repairs done on this famous Abaco icon...the last remaining hand wound kerosene kighthouse in the world.

 

The store is stocked right up and ready for customers, while Dave reads up on some of the history to help answer questions.

 

 The view overlooking the harbor is pretty nice too...

The opening was perfect timing as there are so many people here during Christmas week, all wanting to go up the 101 steps to the top of the light. Hopefully they'll also be stopping in the store to make some purchases. Every little bit helps "keep the light on!"

Christmas Is Coming

Things are changing here in Hope Town and it is getting much busier on land and sea. The harbor is filling up, as are the rental homes. In preparation for the holidays, the daily freight boat was packed with supplies. I'm not sure we have ever seen it this full.

Even our little local grocery store was stocked up more than ever. We took advantage and bought as much as possible, because suddenly the shelves will be bare with the Christmas crowds. You can imagine what numerous charter catamarans holding 10 people each, can do to the stores' stock, along with the renters staying in houses. At least it only lasts for 2-3 weeks, and then thankfully it becomes quieter once again until Spring Break.

Kayak Express Southbound

When we loaded up the kayaks and went Walkabout this morning, it was flat calm out. By the time we got to Little Harbour, the ocean swell was coming in and smashing on the rocky spit of land at the mouth of the harbor, creating quite surge, even inside the protected harbor. We didn't venture outside like last year, but it was still fun paddling around, and it sure was quiet!

 Famous Pete's Pub was closed today, so we had the place to ourselves.

Swim up bar? In our case, paddle up to the picnic table.

 

The Johnston Bronze Foundry was closed also, but they sure have great statues out front that were made there. 

Selfie with the caves in the background.

You can see how big these caves are with Dave in front of them.

Trying to take photos of the numerous turtles around is even harder than taking photos of dolphins surfacing! Oops, just missed this one...

We did find our first prize from the El Faro...a full mayonnaise jar! Seriously, quantities of items such as mayonnaise, Frontline, Snickers and M&Ms, and sealed syringes have been washing up on Abaco's beaches for the past several weeks. It is all coming from the freighter 'El Faro' that sank off the lower Bahamas in Hurricane Joaquin. These items that were bound for Puerto Rico are coming out of the containers that are deteriorating 3 miles below the ocean's surface. This jar missed the beach and floated into the harbor.

We wanted to go snorkeling at the reef in the Pelican Cays Land and Sea Park, but the surge and current was just too much to attempt it. You can see how much fun we had though, speeding along at 25 mph with the kayaks nestled across the back of the boat. Next trip will hopefully be back north again. Stay tuned..zoom zoom!

"Deck the Halls"

It's been a busy week of festive decorating. First, the sailing club for our holiday dinner...

The lighthouse (the lights were a tangled mess this year and we had to piece strands together)...

Will, our saving angel and Lucy the talking dog...

Night View...

The final product...the marina, lighthouse, and our porch.