Hurry Up & Wait

Today we will begin the search for our new baby's home.

Looked at marinas between Palm Coast and Ponce Inlet.  Only a few made it passed the drive thru the parking lot.  Here's how they stack up so far;

1. Halifax:  Clean, sturdy floating docks, location is great - close to downtown Daytona Beach. Kind of quiet, large with no pool. 
2. Inlet Harbor:  WOW, most beautiful view that we saw all day.  Clean, new floating docks, with restaurant and bar near by, but not on top of the slips.  Very small marina.  Most expensive of all that we saw.  Will significantly increase the "float" time when heading north.
3. Loggerhead:  Clean, new sturdy floating docks, location is good, north of downtown Daytona Beach.  Pool, restaurant and bar on the premises.  Best rates of all that we saw today.  Bar/restuarant really close to the slips and it might get loud or "old" after a while.  Seemed to e lots of kids running around looking for something to do.

We checked out the travel distance and time from home to St.Augustine, just to see if we wanted to look up there for something.  It's only 15 minutes further than Daytona and the Conch House Marina looks pretty nice on paper, so we will check that out next before settling on the order of preference.

Also looking for a mechanics and boating course to do over the next few months so check back and see what is going on.  I will be posting the boat specs, now that we are close to finalizing and we will begin to narrow down the list of potential names.

Seattle Boat Show -2011

First let me just say "What a Trip!"

Medford, OR
First stop in Medford, Oregon to visit a family friend...Bob. I think that the last time we saw each other was 30+ years ago.  Knowing we were going to be so close, just had to take a side trip.

OMG - WE DID IT!!!

Been talking with Trevor for several weeks; working up specs, etc.  Today, we actually signed the contract and sent him some real money!

How do we feel?

Excited, Scared and "What do you mean it takes a year to build a boat?", anxious.

Sea Trial - Vero Beach

As luck would have it, there is a NP43 in Vero Beach.  Owners Donny & Pat are kind enough to take us out. 

Spent about an hour in the ICW; 

• Boat handled a lot like we expected (much like a sail boat to maneauver). 
• Water was very flat, so did not get to see what a bigger sea would be like
• Great visability from fly bridge
• Pretty quiet in the salon while underway
• Bow/Stern Thrusters are a MUST - Donny made it look pretty easy getting in and out of the slip
• Very easy to get around between salon and fly while underway

Lots of good conversation about what features and options are must haves and which ones are nice to haves.

Still haven't been able to locate any negative press or negative reviews on the boat what so ever.  Trevor is either an awesome boat builder or a great master at managing the public message.  I'm beginning to think believe that he is simply an awesome boat builder.

Now We're In Trouble

November 2010

Well, after being home for a few days, we have continued to talk about this darn boat..... and neither of us are coming up with any good reasons why not to do this.  Let me rephrase that - I think we both can come up with a hundred reasons why we shouldn't do this now - but no one is saying them out loud. 

This is pretty cool - we might actually do this!

 http://www.northpacificyachts.com/

Annapolis Boat Show - October.2010

October 2010

Every couple of years we manage to find our way to the Annapolis boat show.  We look around and see what's new in the world of boating.  We have been out of boating for the past 10 years, but never have lost the passion for being on the water - you know how it is, if you have the time, you have no money and if you have the money, you have no time.  We were no different from any other working family, we were weekend warriors and our weekends were taken up with other priorities and at some point it just didn't' make sense to continue to incur the expense of being boat owners and not enjoying time on the water.  So we sold the boat.  Moved to Florida and have toyed with the idea of getting back into it for the past 4-5 years.   This time, we have struggled with what kind of boat to get.  We both still work - so for now we are still weekend warriors, but hope someday to do some cruising - my bucket list includes doing the great loop.

So we go to boat shows and fall in love with boats that we can't afford but would fit the bill perfectly, or find boats that are affordable, but don't really work for the long-term goals.  This trip to Annapolis was expected to me much of the same.  Good time in a great city with great friends, left dreaming of a someday boat.

Day 1  - Very Rainy & Cold - but the weather allowed for small crowds and lots of access to the boats.  Saw and visited the usual suspects, Sea Ray, Four Winns, Cruisers and Tiara's, then off to the trawler section (as I mentioned earlier, we are still conflicted as to what we want to be when we grow up) and drooled over the Grand Banks, had heart palpitations at the Krogen and Hampton exhibits and saw a new boat by North Pacific Yachts. 

Left the show - "ahhh there are some really nice boats out there"--- and headed to the Rams Head for a cup of coffee with Bailey's.

Day 2 - Much nicer weather and subsequently much larger crowds.  Spent quite a bit of time at the indoor show (crazy but we probably should have done this in reverse with the crappy weather yesterday), and made the circuit again thru the water show.  This time, we stopped again and spent some time on the North Pacific 43.  This is a really nice boat and seems to be reasonably priced.  I'm wondering what is the catch.  With the better weather, we were able to get some quality time with the owner and the builder both above deck and below, and boy I've got to tell you, so far I am impressed.  Right size, good quality, and price isn't too bad (considering).

Day 3 - Took in Navy football game and did some walking thru one of the greatest cities in the US and talked and talked about the NP43.  This was beginning to feel like the right boat for us. (uh-oh!)

Day 4 - time to leave for home and back to the real world.  Had a great time in a great city with some awesome friends.
Pix