Yet another delay

We have decided that we won’t make Antigua Classics this year. The main stumbling block this time is Star Charger, she isn’t ready to make the trip as mother ship. 

Work on Guiding Light is going well, the top sides are painted and the boot top line is being applied by Gill.  The guys have primed the interior and are working on the structure for the sole boards. I am focused on the deck furniture, final bits that need cleaning and reinstalling.

In ten days we fly back to the U.K. for a month, hopefully the work will continue while we are away.

When we return our focus will be on Star Charger. We have to sail her up to Martinique to restart the clock on her stay here.  Hopefully that will be in April.

More news later…

Happy New Year, this is the year…

We now have less than three months to get Guiding Light sailing…and for one month of that we are back in the U.K. for medical checkups…

So this is where we are, all primed and ready for topcoat, and anti fouling. Mostly varnished, mostly polished…

The engine bed is in, the engine is aligned, just need to trim the prop shaft to size, fit the inner bearing and bolt it all together.  Then of course commission the engine.

Fit basic electrics, bilge pumps, lights etc

All the deck fittings need to be reinstalled, with backing plates where appropriate.

The mast needs rigging.  As does the bowsprit and bumpkin

Plus everything I’ve forgotten…

I will try and update weekly

 

Following my last post, life served us another curved ball!  I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s…a huge shock and something I’m struggling to really come to terms with. My motivation has dropped through the floor and it is a struggle to find the enthusiasm to do anything. However……

We are moving forward we have found a very nice and competent carpenter, Jeremiah.  Not a shipwright but between us we are getting there. Stephen is still with us, as is Krishna.  We have undercoated the exterior, and almost the inside, if only Kevin had stayed a few more days!  We have, thanks to Neil set in the beautiful new deck prisms. Jerry helped install the new stern tube, a difficult job as it was only 2mm greater in diameter than the previous one.  All the brass work has been cleaned and polished, Gill’s trusty Dremel was put through its paces again. The brightwork is being varnished by Krishna and Stephen. 

Next big job is the engine bed, we have Rob lined up.  Not looking forward to it, but hopefully it will be simpler than I think…

Hopefully the next blog will not take so long to write!

 A very sad note

I still can’t really believe it, but Zaka, our shipwright, died at the weekend.

Simon, Zaka Gajadhar, has worked with us for four years. Without him we would not have got this far.  Now, close to launch we have lost him.  I learnt a lot from him, not just about ship building.

At times he could be impossibly exasperating but it was always fun to be around him, we shared a sense of humour.

I knew he was not well, he hadn’t been for awhile but he kept putting off going to the Doctor. But I had no idea just how ill he was.  I am more determined than ever to get Guiding Light launched, we cannot falter now.

Our hearts go out to his family, he will be missed by many.

This is my favourite photograph of him, Gill who’s hand you can see had just found a sprung plank, Zaka in typical form laughed…and then fixed it.

The exterior

 The photographs show the huge amount of progress we have made... I failed with the video

Still a mountain to climb

July and still hopeful we will launch in the autumn

 

Well it has been awhile since I last put pen to paper, so to speak. 

Critically Hurricane Beryl was centred some 100 miles south of us. Disastrous for Carriacou, we have two friends there with seriously damaged boats. But we survived unscathed.

Things have been up and down here we are constantly falling behind schedule. We spend a lot of time redoing things that we didn’t get right first time!!

Fran, our paint lady is coming this week to discuss hull paint, so that’s progress 

Having said that I think we are still on track to launch in September.  Don’t get too excited, not finished but launched.  We can then let her take up before putting the mast in, hopefully October. 

After that is the interior, electrics etc….

I will post a video of the outside later this week

 I am feeling rather more confident now.  Things are moving forward at pace.  I just hope I can keep up with all the ancillary stuff.

But I do now have a skeleton plan.

Complete hull....last few rib repairs; tighten planks; fill unrequired through hulls; drill new through hulls;

caulk and paint...

Install engine 

Fit basic electrics:- Engine, bilge pumps, charger

Launch June 2024

Monitor for leaks while fitting out interior

Fit sun protection

Fly back to UK in August for six weeks... stress and pray

During September

Step mast and rig

Continue refit and learn to sail her

March 2025, leave St Lucia and sail to Antigua for Classics

What can possibly go wrong