I came by land, leave by sea

By Sailor Keddy -
My days in Boston are dwindling. If wind and waves look good, I'll be out of here Tuesday or Wednesday of next week. I'm sailing to Newport to start my new job aboard Aquidneck for the summer, and I can't wait! It's been almost exactly three years since I came to Boston in a 16' moving truck. I don't think I could have ever guessed that my departure from this city would be via my own sailboat. My schedule for the summer couldn't be better: 4 days on, 4 days off, 3 days on, 3 days off. The daily pay, including tips, is actually very close to what I made sitting at a desk.

It's been a flurry of activity to get Winchelsea ready to go in time. I leave the dock tomorrow, I'll be on a mooring near Rowes Wharf for a few days, then I'll leave May 4th or 5th. Trouble is, I don't have that wind turbine up yet, and I haven't hooked up the solar panels, either. Not having a connection to shore means I won't have A/C power to my laptop, charge my phone or run the stereo. I'm also not sure how well the alternator on my engine works, but burning gas to simply charge my batteries is not something I want to make a habit. Other than that, shes ready to go! Maria mended my sails, the headstay should be back on today, I have the bow pulpit/anchor roller/bow rail system ready to go, I have all the chain for the 40 lb Navy anchor that came with the boat, I got the new manual water pump (I'll be able to cook and have water without electricity), the lettering is on the transom, and the new sail cover is on. I'll be getting the USB GPS reciever (to use my laptop as a chart plotter) as well as the depth sounder I ordered today or tomorrow.

Comments

Unknown said…
Scott,

Congratulations! It was a brave and bold move but one I doubt you will regret. Let me share a quote from one of my favorite writers, Mark Twain. It has often inspired me to act boldly. “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
April 29, 2010 at 4:47 PM
Unknown said…
Amazing! I didn't realize you would be heading out that soon. We got to meet up tomorrow.
April 30, 2010 at 1:08 PM
Christina Tobin said…
You made the right decision. Congratulations Keddy.
May 6, 2010 at 11:47 AM
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