Westerly Nomad Renovation: Another Milestone passed

So, the darkest hour is the one just before dawn. Just as I was beginning to despair of ever getting this boat sorted, things began to move at a better pace. The list seemed depressingly endless but the tasks were getting shorter and easier by the minute. The trick is not to dwell on how much there is still to do but to celebrate how much you have achieved.

Today, the boat came out of the hangar and we raised the mast. She she is covered in dust but still looking like the prettiest boat in the yard – and the good news is that rain is forecast so she should look even better next week.

There is still a lot of work to do – the washboards are at home being oiled, the cabin for example is a wreck, the rigging needs tensioning and new sheets and halyards need splicing BUT when the antifouling is applied and the fishfinding transducer is fitted – she’ll be good to launch and day-sail.

I Feel so good I have even shelled out a few pounds to buy nautical signal flag bunting so she can arrive at her home port dressed for the occasion. Best of all however, is the feeling that I did right by the old girl. She came from a farm covered in chicken poo but she’ll return to her natural element looking her best – not brand spanking new but more like a well loved Grande Dame of a certain age, with a lot of life in her yet.

Seaward