IN THE YARD

Another year goes by...... which means for Nauplios - another trip to a boatyard, another lift out of the water, another scrub off, another coat of anti-foul on the bottom of the boat, another few repairs, another lift back into the water and we are on our way back up the coast of NE Australia on our way to the next country. 

Yayyyy

I must be honest, and I don't know what other boat wives/partners think of the yard, but it's not my absolute favourite place.

It’s hot, its sticky, it's usually mosquito’ey,  its (always) full of testosteroney blokes standing in huddles bonding over the Swarfega, talking about their engine mounts or whatever. 

Unfortunately, this is all part of the "glamorous" life we lead and the rough must come with the smooth. The boat must be lifted out of the water and the bottom cleaned/repainted every year. The sea is a hard environment, and this shows with the number of barnacles, sea life, algae, calcium deposits etc we see on the hull. All this stuff not only slows us down but could damage the boat if we left it.. 

My husband secretly loves the yard, however. 

For weeks before we lift out, he is super busy, making lists, doing research, ordering stuff, speaking to other boat owners about tools etc. 

We normally coincide lift out with a trip back to the UK, and I bet my Mum and Dad can tell when it's lift out time. For weeks before hand, they are disturbed from their 'Cash in the attic/Suduko/Nanna nap' with daily/sometimes two- or three-times daily deliveries from amazon. Thankyou Mum and Dad - we are massively grateful ❤️

So then, it's our actual trip home and whatever time of year it is, it's always Christmas day for the Sned when he gets to open all his parcels - he is so excited! 

FFS. It's usually some anodes, some electric wires, maybe a toilet pump or a water maker filter - etc etc. I'm just not feeling the same love... 

At the end of the trip, we then have the unenviable job of fitting all this stuff into our luggage to fly it safely halfway across the world, through customs and all the security cameras our baggage is subjected to. We have been held up/called back in many airports throughout the world with many a strange thing in our luggage. It's always fun. I think? 

So back to the boat and life in the yard....

Getting over jet lag and adapting to life back on the boat after having had the luxury of a full big bed, a proper shower with unlimited water, a normal size cooker and all the luxuries modern life brings, can take a while.

While I am potentially struggling with sleeping in a cupboard on the very small, thin, boat sized bed, having limited water, and walking across the yard to use the toilet and (quite often skanky) showers, my husband has a very different vibe. 

He's excited, he is energised, he is up and out of the boat at the crack of dawn, like a whippet - getting on with all the jobs, gossiping with all his new mates - the yardies and other boat owners.

There will inevitably be frequent visitors onto the boat throughout the day - some random guy from the yard pitches up with my husband to borrow a 10 ml spanner. That turns into a cup of tea/a beer/a chat/an hour goes by, and another day comes to an end. 

Then I get to hear the gossip about all the other boat owners and the workers in the yard. It's actually very interesting.... 

Lifting out and fixing the boat is quite a thing and can be fraught with danger. Imagine lifting 20 tonnes out of the water, carrying it across a road, or a few roads, in a sling, depositing it on blocks, leaving it there for a few weeks, doing paint jobs/repairs, then lifting it up again, taking it across the road, and quite unceremoniously dumping it back in the water?

Imagine the potential scope for error?

We have heard quite a few sorry tales of boatyard accidents over the years.

In this recent boatyard - our friend Miles, who has the exact same boat as us (Ovni 435) was in the most unfortunate position to have a huge piece of metal dropped from a crane onto the side of his boat. 

This caused a ginormous hole, requiring a lot of work to repair and get the boat watertight again. As he very graciously put it however - "what can I do?" "It was an accident" and “At least it was the boat, and not somebody's head" 

I do have enormous respect for these blokes hanging about in the yard talking shite - many of them, including my husband, do all their own work, then plonk their boat back in the water without a second thought.

My husband has pretty much done all the repairs which have kept our boat seaworthy and safe for over 10 years now 

If it was me, I would be awake at 03.00 wondering if I had put that last seal on the engine mount or whatever - but he seems to sleep well, so I will just follow his lead. (touch wood, cross fingers, cross legs, salute a magpie etc etc) 

This was our 9th lift out, and my (perfectionist) husband's best experience so far.

Here is a summary 

1. Hamble Point Marina, Southampton, UK - excellent, but an expensive place to hang around for berthing etc 
2. Algeciras Boat Yard, Southern Spain, Nr Gibraltar - Cheap but not very good 
3. Marina Rubicon, Lanzarote - excellent 
4. Marina Arrecife, Lanzarote - also excellent 
5. Carriacou Marine, Nr Grenada, Caribbean - excellent, but a bit mosquitoe'y 
6. Puerto Penasco, Sonora, Mexico - Cheap as chips, but hot, dusty and grimy 
7. Guaymas Marina, Sonora, Mexico - Excellent and cheap as chips and fantastic Taco's over the road....
8. Denarau Marina, Fiji - very good 
9. Port Bundaberg Marina - excellent excellent excellent - chandlery on site, cruisers kitchen, bus into town, excellent and professional service from the yardies if you don't mind the obvious B word, C word, F word (we are in Australia after all Sheila...)