A new chapter

2015 A new chapter in Bill and Judy's Excellent Adventure - a boat slip on the lake.

Seven years ago (2008), we were much younger people, it seems.  We all know that things speed up on the way "down hill."  Our Mac 26M, BoomBoom II, has afforded us friendships and camaraderie that would otherwise not have been possible.  Our trips out to Beaufort and Cape Lookout have always been a great time, rain or shine!  But each year we deliberate more and more on the time and effort to set things up to launch BB2, and we're aware that each year we make that effort less and less for day sailing.

Our new chapter begins with a slip at the Steel Creek Marina on Kerr Lake, the largest lake in North Carolina.  We've always preferred this lake to Jordan Lake.  Boat traffic on Jordan seems to get more frenzied and less "educated" (if you catch my drift) each season.  For the locals, I won't even begin to talk about the cleanliness of the water.  That is a whole other blog! 

The trip to Kerr Lake is 1-1/2 hours for us ... long but do-able.  The plan is to spend days at a time on BB2 now.  And now we just STEP ON AND GO.  How fabulous is that!  So our prep is a bit different -- what to bring and eat are the same, but now we will leave more things on board that will be used regularly.

AND THE NEXT STEP . . . 

Well, we did enjoy having our Mac in a slip.  STEP ON AND GO.  Can't beat it.  The 1-1/2 hour drive is a drag, but it is what it is.  As the summer rolled on, and the arthritis continued to make its presence known, I began to realize that my time on the Mac over the next few years would be limited.  For awhile now I am actually AFRAID of making my way up to the bow.  This is not how it should be.  Bill is fine with it all.  He makes his way to the bow with no hesitation.  But how fair is that, that all the heavy lifting is his to do. This is our retirement.  This is how we decided to do it.  We have decided not to move to the coast.  People in the yacht club talk about not only making yourself happy in retirement, but providing for your comfort.  I've come to the conclusion that I might have 5 more years of being able to get around on the Mac.  For two years now I no longer sleep in the stern berth (that I have to back into) ... just can't crawl out of that space in the middle of the night when nature calls.  It's only been a year since we have the A/C and heat working, and all that extra storage under the port side berth is so a newfound treasure!  Wish we had done that long ago.  But it's not enough now.  

Soooo, in late Spring of 2015, we found ourselves a Catalina 310. Five feet longer and 4 feet wider, she has a walk-around deck (now I can actually walk up to the bow), a forward cabin with a box-spring mattress, (no more sitting and pushing my way back or crawling on hands and knees to lay down).  Where the Mac was like camping, our new Cat is like a stay at a Hilton.  It's time.

The new BoomBoom II:

So wish us luck.  We will keep the name, Boom Boom II for our new Cat.  And sometime in mid-or-later 2016, we will be selling our wonderful Mac that has given us many years of happiness.  Bill has poured his heart and his skills into making our Mac comfortable and spacious ... you can view all the modifications using the side navigation.  And we have had wonderful times sailing with our NC Sail friends.  Now on to new adventures.