Scott and I started 2019 without a boat and with no big plans to get another one. But just one month later, things changed drastically! In February we made the announcement on a very snowy day, that we had made an offer on “Our Happy Day” and were going to sea trials . I don’t think it really sunk in that the boat was ours until we picked up the keys after our trip to the Caribbean.
Before we got the keys to the boat, we went on an epic trip with our friends Ben & Maria cruising the Leeward Islands on the Star Clipper. That trip was so much fun, that the four of us have chartered a power catamaran next April in the BVI’s.
Scott and I were excited to get home, take possession and get to know the boat. There was so much to learn, as everything was completely different than our first boat.
Ports of call
Looking back at this year, we accomplished a lot on the boat. We visited Dock Street in Tacoma, Port of Kingston, Port Orchard and Port of Bremerton.
While didn’t do as many overnight trips as we had hoped, we did spend almost every weekend boating around Elliott Bay with friends and family.
Tracey & Cal 
The never ending project list
With the boat being 17 years old, it had some work that needed to be done. The project list grew pretty fast. First on the list, was getting new cockpit carpet and it turned out great!
The canvas needs to be replaced, but in the meantime, we repaired what we could.
Of course we spent a few months trying to tackle the “smell” and at one point thought our holding tanks were leaking. We ended up cleaning the bilges and they are still dry. Turns out we did have in-line filters for our holding tank vents that needed to be replaced. Hopefully, that does the trick!
Lessons learned
First on the list of lessons was for me to learn how to dock the boat. I’ve only practiced once on the yacht dock, but I hope to practice in our slip this Spring.
We also learned how to anchor! First we had to find out how much chain we had and then we headed over to Port Madison to have lunch on the hook! We plan on anchoring over night next year before we leave on our trip in April to the BVI’s.
Just getting to know the boat was a lesson in itself. This included how to cook using propane, changing out our water filters and engine maintenance. That is a never ending list. I would say most full-time boaters say it takes a year to really get to know the ins and outs of your boat.
We certainly learned a lot after we hauled out this past Fall. Scott and I had hoped to have done the work ourselves so we could learn more, but it ended up being too big of a project for us.
What a year it was
Overall, we can say we had a great year on “Our Happy Day”. Scott and I learned a lot and we created lasting memories with great friends and family. We are truly blessed that we have this opportunity – years ago we never thought we would be here.
Thank you for following us on this journey! Next year will be full of exciting things and we can’t wait to share them with you. Until then, Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to you and your families.
Cheers, Scott & Ally
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