Odds & Ends

We can (almost) safely say that the big jobs on the boat are done. We are now busy with small projects to finish Melody off and make the living spaces even more comfortable for our travels. These are a few projects we have completed recently: 

1.       Cockpit Table - Rufus designed it to fold up neatly around the pedestal when we don’t need it and then fold out again when we want to have a meal or drinks etc. While we are still working on the boat we use this area of our morning meetings and for lunch time.

 2.       Signage - We decided to modernise Melody's signage even further. The old font had a funny twirl in the "o" which lead many people to think the boat was named "Melady". Vivian put together a selection and we chose this font, cleaner and less twirly than the last. This also gave us the opportunity to have our new UK Small Ships Registration number made up. We are officially registered to go international!

3.       Pulpit Seat - Rufus put together this simple seat in the bowsprit area for us. It's big enough for one or two people to sit comfortably and relax (as Rufus demonstrates in the pictures above). I can see this spot becoming a fast favourite for everyone.

 Kate

First published on offtheline.co.za

Stack Pack

The old blue main sail cover that came with the boat was on its last legs. Age, holes, sun damage and birds nesting in it before we bought it meant that we had no choice but to make a new one. 
This time we decided to make a stack pack instead of a just a cover. A stack pack makes our sailing lives much easier and it looks a lot neater, especially on our new boom!

Once again Rufus and I tackled this together as it was a first for both of us, as with the spray dodger, and needed a bit of teamwork to perfect. The team is super stoked with the result but hopefully the birds won’t like it as much as the old cover…
 
Kate

First published on offtheline.co.za

Day at the Office

After much delay, Kate and I finally built up the courage to redo the anti-slip on the walkways of the boat. It was decided that the previous effort didn’t prevent sufficient grip against deadly slipping. The combination of extreme motivation and fantastic weather made today perfect. We sprayed down the boat this morning, in preparation, and on return from our round abouts, killed the anti-slip redoing. In celebration we had a beer at good old Berties and enjoyed the beautiful evening.

Viv

First published on offtheline.co.za

Solar Power

We recently installed our brand new solar panel! Our ‘neighbours’ in Harbour Island, the Louw family, kindly gifted us this 110 watt panel in exchange for some work on their sails.

Once again our team’s knowledge, experience and skills saved us quite a bit of money. The panel needed a stainless steel frame to secure it to the back of the boat. A quote from a local manufacturer ended up being almost the same price as the new panel itself. In the end, thanks to Rufus’ background in the steel & construction industries, his sturdy custom design cost us a quarter of the quoted price (it also helps when the labour is free...).

The solar panel, together with the wind charger and smart power consumption, will provide enough electricity to run our lights, navigation equipment and refrigerator etc.

We would like to say a BIG thank you to Robbie Louw and his family for their generosity. This panel will make life on board a lot easier and safer as we travel the world. 

Kate

First published on offtheline.co.za

Boom Boom Boom

We have a new BOOM! We were kindly given an old boom by Mark Hatting a few months ago, unfortunately it was a little long for our main sail and needed a few repairs. Thankfully Nigel came to the rescue and to our delight our repaired, shortened and resprayed boom arrived last week, together with a spanking new gooseneck!

Now ain't she looking spif!

Viv

First published on offtheline.co.za