Sailing With Our New Sail Pack & Lazy Jacks!

After replacing our running rigging, it was finally time to pull out our sails & sail pack out of storage. If you've been following along, you know that we've been emptying our storage lately .. first the Tohatsu, then the dinghy, followed by the bimini, and finally .. the sails! This was an exciting time for us, as Nirvana hadn't had her sails on since somewhere around 2012. Had it been that long?! I had to look up old posts on this blog to figure out just how long it had been. The post from our last sail was written just after we put our house up for sale. As you could tell by the title and the post ... I had no idea so many years would pass by before sailing Nirvana again. After so many years, Nirvana would finally be a sailboat again, and hopefully we'd be sailing soon!

Ken and I brought the main sail and sail pack to the boat, and tried to remember how to add our sail pack. We weren't very familiar with our sail pack, as it was sewn back in 2012 and then, you guessed it .. put in storage. As you can see from photos taken after the sail pack was sewn, we had the seamstress sew slugs into the bottom of the sail pack. We have a loose-footed main, and decided this would be a good way to secure the sail pack to the boom. Knowing little about sailing, we hoped that our solution would work.

Here's a photo of Robin back in 2012, sewing our sail pack. Robin did a fantastic job! We were lucky to have her sew our sail pack (learn how we found her through another cruiser here), and even luckier to have won the Sail Pack Kit from Sailrite. My entry into the contest can be found here.

After sliding the sail pack slugs onto the boom, it was time to add the main sail .. or was it?! When trying to add the main, we realized that we needed to start over.  

We removed the sail pack and played around with the main sail for just a bit .. it's big & heavy!

We decided to slide the first slug of the sail pack onto the boom, then attached the main sail to the outhaul, then slide the remaining sail pack slugs into the boom. It seemed this set-up would work, but we still needed to insert a piece of 3/4" 40 PVC pipe to the pockets on each side of the sail pack and figure out how we wanted to set up our new lazy jacks.

When the sail pack was sewn, we had Robin add loops for the lazy jacks that Ken was going to make. Our sail pack has three loops on each side, starting 18" away from the mast. We then have another loop on each side that is 4' further down, then one last loop another 4' down.

With a total of two blocks, four stainless rings (cheaper than blocks) and random rope that we had for a trial run, Ken set up our retractable lazy jack system. Once he was happy with it, he added the permanent lazy jack lines. We didn't utilize all of the loops that we had sewn on our sail pack .. who could remember our plans from so long ago?! Here's a photo of our sail pack with PVC pipe and lazy jacks ..

 With our new bimini canvas, new bimini frame and new running rigging, Nirvana is looking ready for a sail. She has come such a long way in the past year! With all the projects we've done, we thought we were ready to add our head sail as well. But, after the rigger recently pointed out some areas of concern on our standing rigging .. we decided to take his recommendation and have all of the standing rigging replaced. This decision was not made lightly, as this meant a delay on sailing further South .. and more money!

So anyway, we could have added our head sail but since it would soon be taken down to remove the roller furler and replace the wire underneath .. we decided to take advantage of a beautiful day and try out our new sail pack and lazy jacks.

Ken and I were both excited and nervous to leave the dock! It had been almost a year & a half since we motored to the marina, and as I mentioned .. about six years since we'd done any kind of sailing on Nirvana! As we motored into the lake, it was time to test things out.

As recommended by many, we made sure that the lazy jacks were retracted and we pointed into the wind before Ken raised the main sail. The sail didn't catch on the lazy jacks, and the sail went up without a hitch. A while back we had the rigger install new masthead sheaves, so we were also giving the new sheaves a test. Ken said they did seem to make raising the main less difficult. So far, so good!

As Ken turned off the engine, we began to relax a bit. The sound of nothing but the waves and the wind against the sail was long overdue. It felt so good to be back on the lake .. on our own boat!

We wondered how it would be to sail with a sail pack, and with it "relaxed" along the boom (photo above) ... it didn't interfere at all.

We spent a few hours on the lake, tacking a few times and getting re-acquainted with Nirvana. Slowly, our anxiety was replaced with enjoyment and I couldn't stop smiling. We only had one sail on Nirvana, but we were sailing!

We enjoyed the day, and eventually released our lazy jacks before lowering the main sail. We weren't sure what we were going to think of our new lazy jacks and sail pack, but once Ken lowered the sail .. we were impressed! The sail flaked easily into the sail pack, and we didn't have to worry about anything more until we were back at the dock. It was so easy!

As we headed back to the dock, we started to get a bit anxious again. We often docked behind our house, which didn't have anything in front of the bow to hit. But now, we had to make sure we didn't come in too fast and hit the dock!

Luckily, we docked like a pro and had a big boost in morale after a great day on the lake. We couldn't wait to do it again soon!

After posting these photos, I realize that I don't have a picture of the full lazy jack set-up. Basically, there's a block on each side about 2/3 up the mast, then a stainless ring on each side that the line goes through, then another ring on each side that a separate line runs through & attaches to the sail pack. The photo below kinda shows what I'm talking about ... you can see the two rings on each side.

We thought we'd have to make some adjustments after testing things out, but so far we're happy with our current set up. 

We're looking forward to getting back out on the lake again, but Winter came early and we're currently experiencing rain, high winds and high temps in the 40's .. damn it. We're supposed to be in the mid-70's here in Louisiana!

With the current conditions, the rigger had to cancel replacing our standing rigging and we haven't gotten back on the lake. We also had to put other boat projects on hold, and we're hoping that we can get back on track soon.

Hasta luego .. until then. Mid-Life Cruising!

New Running Rigging!

After replacing our halyards & topping lift with new ones from Cajun Rope, we were ready to get rid of the ugly, worn lines on the rest of our boat. The photo above shows our new lines on the boom (outhaul & boom vang) and traveler, along with our new Garhauer double clutch on the port side. (Check out our $5 vinyl tablecloth that I've attached to our traveler! This prevents us from having to use our companionway boards every time we're in & out of the boat. It may not be canvas or pretty, but it works & we love it!)

You can see how worn our lines were on our boom and traveler!

Our new traveler lines look much better!

We also added a new main sheet and two Garhauer single clutches on the starboard side of Nirvana. Why two singles? Well, we had ordered a single clutch a while ago then realized we wanted another and it was too late to return the single clutch so .. two singles!

You'll notice in one of the photos above that our boom is down. That's because we also replaced the line inside our boom, called the "internal outhaul". 

Here's a photo of the internal outhaul line & block inside of the boom.

We also replaced our backstay with Cajun Rope ..

Now that we've replaced our running rigging, it's time to install our new lazy jacks & sail pack and replace our standing rigging. We weren't planning on the expense of new standing rigging, but after our recent rigging inspection we're gonna deal with it. Stay tuned!

Hasta luego .. until then. Mid-Life Cruising!

Cajun Rope - For Your Boat!

When we decided to buy new halyards, we took the advice of several folks and ordered them online from Cajun Ropes. We ordered two "XLE" 3/8" halyards .. one red & white (112') for our main halyard with a stainless headboard shackle, and the other blue & white (118') for our Jib halyard with a stainless snap shackle. Although Gary's prices were already good .. he gave us an additional discount in return for our review on his product.

After emailing Gary and receiving our order, we were very pleased with his customer service, pricing and product! Gary responded to our emails promptly, the halyards arrived quickly, and his work was well done.

We were so pleased with "Cajun Ropes" that we placed another order! We ordered a topping lift .. 115' of blue w/white 5/16" XLE with a stainless snap shackle, a main sheet .. 72' of white w/green 7/16" XLE with eye splice, 14' of red 3/16" Spectra Core, and 12' of blue w/white 1/4" Cajun XLE. Again, Gary was quick to respond to our email and we received our order promptly.

Shortly after receiving our second order, (another) Ken climbed our mast to install an LED bulb for our anchor light & replace our spreader boots. While he was up there, we had him install our new "Cajun Rope" halyards and topping lift.

Our new halyard holding Ken up the mast!

If you're considering ordering halyards, dock lines, mooring lines, shackles, thimbles, anchor lines, dinghy braids, bungee cord, or anything else you can think of .. give "Cajun Ropes" a try! The splicing was very well done, and the prices are hard to beat. Not to mention .. free shipping and a 5% discount if you "LIKE" his Facebook page! 

For future reference, "Cajun Ropes" will be permanently added on our "Products We Love" page. While we may get discounts on products, or even freebies, you won't see the product on our page unless we recommend it! We appreciate Gary's generosity and he's now part of making our dream a reality! 

Now we gotta get to work on adding the other "ropes" and sails to Nirvana!

Hasta luego .. until then. Mid-Life Cruising!

Two Months As Liveaboards!

It's been just over two months since we moved aboard Nirvana. Man, time flies ... especially on a boat!  A lot has happened the past two months .. good n bad!

While at the boatyard, we had a local rigger inspect our rigging, replace the mast lights with LEDs, and replace our three mast-head sheaves with upgraded ball-bearing sheaves ... this should make raising the main sail much easier! The inspection went pretty well, but he did find that our halyard "retainer" needed replacement, as well as our spreader boots & a shroud. He came back another time to replace the shroud & retainer, and we're hoping that we can replace the boots ourselves soon .. time to buy something to go up the mast!

After a couple of weeks of living at the boatyard where Nirvana had been for over a year, we moved to the local marina, which is so much nicer! Our "kids" came along for the ride .. no sails yet. It was a great day to be on the boat .. it's been way too long!

Our new home .. and only $150 a month! The first photo is from our cockpit .. what a view!

Nirvana's new slip .. notice our "cajun a/c".  The Bristol next to us sails to the Bahamas every winter!

Our first night .. so pretty. We're really enjoying the sunsets!

The marina's restaurant (really good) and Yacht Club ...

Nirvana under the moonlight!

We celebrated our 28th wedding anniversary by washing Nirvana and adding some much needed shade!

I wish that I could say that we've tackled all sorts of major projects on the boat and we've been "living the dream", but I'd be stretching the truth a bit. We're still working on wrapping our our businesses, and we've had quite a few unexpected things occur that were really tough to deal with. 

After leaving behind the boatyard and the two weeks of rain, we were starting to get in our groove until ... a tropical storm that brought even more rain a few weeks later led to a flooded rental! We were quick to deal with the damage, and luckily we kept our tenant. Around the same time we had a vacant rental .. and a ton of disgusting trash left behind. Again, we wasted no time getting the house cleaned and occupied with a really nice woman.

Just as we were finishing up our rentals, we were dealt with some pretty tough, emotional stuff. Friends of ours lost their teenage son in a car wreck and just earlier this week Ken's younger brother suffered a heart attack and did not survive .. talk about a shock!

This photo was taken on our dock of the kids at Summer Sailing Camp just seconds before we got that terrible call about Ken's brother .. life can change so fast. We were really looking forward to taking Ken's brother sailing when we reached his hometown in Florida. Our hearts are heavy .. Steve was a great guy!

Needless to say, the past two months have been challenging.  However, life is short and we try to make the best of each day. Not all has been bad the past two months. In fact, this past Father's Day we learned we're gonna be grandparents!  We're really excited, and the baby is due in February. We'll definitely be around for the birth of our first grandchild, so we're gonna have to figure out our travel plans when we get our heads cleared.

The photo below was taken on Father's Day with our daughter, son-in-law, and his parents. We all got together at our beach-town condo, and the two "fathers" found pacifiers with a cute little note .. what a great Father's Day! We haven't stayed at the condo since Father's Day, and haven't been able to enjoy the condo as much as we'd hoped, but we plan on making up for it soon.

Our little salon has a place for the special gifts from our "kids" .. a sun hat, a knife .. and a pacifier!

We've made new friends at our dock, most of them liveaboards. In fact, the couple docked next to us sail to the Bahamas every winter .. we've been picking their brains! We've had many sunset "happy hours" on the dock and on our new friend's boats. The folks on our dock have been amazing .. our "neighborhood" is pretty awesome!

We now do our laundry at the marina's laundry room, walk to the marina's bathroom for showers, and get our water from our tanks that we fill about every 7-10 days. These little inconveniences have been worth it ... but the heat is a different story!  It's been hot as hell in the boat .. even with our a/c window unit. Yesterday, our thermometer read 95 degrees at 6pm! We're looking into different options, as we'll be at the dock until the Fall and the heat & humidity have been brutal!

Nirvana is starting to feel like "home", and I'm anxious to bring a few sentimental items on the boat. However, Ken has to run some wires soon so I'm trying not to fill up the boat until he's done. As shown in the first photo, I have added a "sun" tapestry and burnt orange sheets to the salon to give our little place a sense of my style. We've also added a couple of gear hammocks for storage, a hanging shoe storage in the "head" for random items, and some Steri-lite plastic bins in the aft cabin for storing tools & spare boat parts. While our boat is considered tiny by today's standards, we've been doing pretty well with storage .. so far. We still have quite a bit to bring on board, so we'll see. I'm optimistic!

Cooking has been a challenge on board, and it doesn't help that I'm not fond of it! After several times of pumping the alcohol stove's tank in the heat and then finding a leak, we decided to ditch the stove! 

We decided to keep things easy and just order a 2-burner propane stove to use with our Omnia Stovetop Oven .. not so easy. Most of the stoves were too wide for our opening, and when we finally found one to order ... it had a propane attachment on the side that just won't work for our situation. We returned the stove, paid the shipping fees, and ordered a "drop-in" that is used in RV's. The stove is on its way, and our fingers are crossed! In the meantime, we're using a Coleman one-burner propane stove. We even used the Omnia for the first time last night and it worked great .. chicken & rice casserole!

Through trial and error, we also ditched the idea of using our 12v Engel as a freezer .. it was just too much of a pain to switch ice packs daily to try and keep our icebox cold. Plus, all we were freezing was the ice packs! It just didn't make sense, so we now use the icebox for dry storage and the Engel as our fridge. It's so much more convenient, and we don't miss the freezer. Ken was a little pessimistic at first, thinking the fridge wouldn't have enough room for our food .. it's just big enough and he's been pleasantly surprised. It makes a great coffee table too. Whew .. the Engel was my idea!

So, the past two months have been a blur and we're looking forward to better days ahead .. and hopefully cooler ones too?!  Time really does fly on the boat, and I've even lost 5 lbs. with all the extra walking I've been doing .. and sweating too! I'm hoping to manage my time a bit better in the future and start keeping up with blog posts again. It takes much more time to write a post than you'd think, but I miss it and enjoy documenting our life to look back at one day.

Hasta luego ... until then.  Mid-Life Cruising!