Well we're on board. A board anyway :-). Our flights ( separate bookings on Alaska SEA-IAD, United IAD-STT ) went very smoothly. Only complication is that we checked a bag this time and the Alaska staff at SEA struggled to check our bag through until they got some help.
We got out of STT and to the ferry terminal with enough time to have a nice mahi platter at the pump room, then on to the 2:30 ferry.
Got our rapid test results and through customs, maybe 45 minutes total. Really not a hitch until we got to the Moorings base and found that they had not put us on another 3-cabin M4000 as Jenn had assured us, but a 4-cabin M4500.
Being that we are only a couple, the bigger boat with 4 cabins and 4 heads really has no advantages and my initial reaction was on the WTF side, but there was nobody around with the authority to make any changes.
The boat we are on didn't make the best initial impression with some dock rash at the stern. The idea of having to figure out another boat because they couldn't find an M4000 for us was initially irritating.
However, once aboard I can see how similar this boat is to ours... must be a comparable vintage too. 1000 hours on the engines. I have a meeting with a base manager tomorrow morning, but it could be that this is our best option. There is still the possibility that our own boat will be back in the water during the course of our 4 week charter and we will switch to that.
If you want, we will switch with you. We are 6 people so would do well with the bigger boat. We are on a Sunsail Leopard 40 (4 cabin). We have it from November 10-November 29. Not sure how they would do it but since we both basically own the same boat they might?
Thanks for the offer, but since it is also a 4 cabin boat it wouldn't be much of an advantage. I had a chat with the base manager and there is still a possibility our boat could exit the boat yard during our charter. We ended up going out on the 45. Actually quite nice and has a water maker and inverter. The inverter will come in handy since the boat wifi did not work and we ended up with a Renport unit.
There were boat issues to address that took us into the afternoon: the adhesive on one of the foward plexiglass windows had failed. The gas struts would not keep the forward lazarette open and I really didn't want that heavy hatch coming down on my wife as she retrieved a line or boat hook. Fridge and freezer drawers were partly off their tracks.
Once again, the depth sounder was not well set up... set to transducer with 0 offset, so "off" by almost 3 feet. That's probably one way these boats get run aground :-(. The boat briefer did not know how to check or set the offset.
The starboard genoa sheet braided cover has significant chafing, but after waiting around we finally left with it. If it gets worse we'll have to have the chase boat out.
As on some recent trips, the bridles that hold up the dinghy are tied with uneven legs so that the dinghy hangs at a significant angle from the davits. I don't know if this is deliberate, but I don't like it because it blocks more of the view off the stern and if the dinghy fuel tank vent isn't closed and the tank is full it can spill fuel. The dinghy motor looks brand new, but smokes a bit from extra oil they add for break-in.
Before leaving, we took a quick look at an L42 which was being prepped for its first charter. This would be a natural up-trade at the end of our contract if we are in a position to go that route. There is noticeably less headroom in the salon... the coach roof is kept low to make the (also shallow) sky lounge work. It feels a little forced on a boat that size, but I still find it an appealing if somewhat compromised feature. The boom did not look sky-high as it does on the 58. Notably less storage in the galley but an additional fridge (under helm seat) and separate extra freezer (to the right of the forward salon door where it takes up a lot of cabinet space). Eat less and drink more?
I had not appreciated until now how having 2 heads in one hull of a 40-45 ft boat means no room for a hanging locker at all.
We took a mooring in the Bight, maybe 1/3 full. Early afternoon about half the reservable balls at Cooper were taken. Looking forward to snorkeling tomorrow!
