The wind shifted in the night. All day yesterday it blew from the west or south, jamming Robin against the fenders between her and the finger pier. After the shift, she strained on her lines and leaned away from the pier, ardently held but resisting the embrace. Now, just before dawn, gray clouds race south. The forecast is for winds in the 20s, gusting to 45, all day. (Read More…)

Again the wind howls, and Robin heels to starboard at the dock. March is doing its lion thing, although the air temperature is tolerable here on Mill Creek. (Read More…)

Something is in the air this March morning. Something stirs the world in a different way. Dawn has come, and sunrise creeps forward, as always, just the other side of the horizon, out through the tree trunks and the sailboat masts, but it has not yet arrived at the marina. (Read More…)

There are two stainless steel tubes mounted overhead in Robin’s main cabin. They are meant to serve two purposes: as grab rails when you walk the length of the cabin in rough seas and as conduits to bring wiring to the forward cabin. I’ve found another purpose: laundry rack. (Read More…)

I’ll take a moment now to catch up on a handful of comments from folks who have read this blog. (Read More…)

I spent some time observing the second-best job on the water recently. It was a sunny afternoon with only a gentle breeze and temperatures in the high 40s. I had been holed up in Robin all morning except for one trip to shore. A barge that had been moored up the creek just beyond the Travelift was leaving, and I watched it maneuver around the sandbar at the mouth of the creek but paid it no more attention. (Read More…)

One of the pleasures gained by living aboard your boat — even part time, as is my case — is the intimacy you experience. You may have thought you knew your boat from your time aboard during boating season. But when you live aboard, you discover that there now can truly be no secrets. Eventually, you will discover every pleasure she has to offer — and every blemish. (Read More…)

Certainly spring is right around the corner. It was 54 degrees at 7:30 a.m. when I arrived at the marina, and although the heater is on inside Robin, the companionway hatch is open, too. (Read More…)

I like to wander among the boats up on the bank. In the shadow of their hulls, particularly at night, it’s like visiting a graveyard. I read their transoms as I would the engraving on headstones and wonder at the story of this boat’s life. What has that boat experienced? If they could talk, what tales would they tell? (Read More…)