Moved to the Farm

This past week has been especially busy - preparing for out-of-town family and friends to arrive for our wedding celebration - so not too much boat work has been done.

But we took advantage of having strong, young out-of-town family (and local friends) being here to put Gardens on a trailer and move her to the Farm. Thanks to Donna, Jim, Scott, Todd and Andy for all their help on Friday.

The plan included turning Gardens over and setting her back on the (modified) building platform. Unfortunately, the weather, timing and - what was that other thing? - our wedding kept us from completing the plan. We'll figure that part out in the next week or so… and then get on with fairing those planks and painting the bottom.

It was a wonderful weekend.

Rudder Installed - Everything Fits!

After too many days of working in fits and starts (incorrect fasteners one day, no drill another, and so it went…) on the rudder, everything came together this morning… And, it all fits!

The rudder stock will come off the transom so I can varnish it and work on the hull.

And, speaking of the hull, plans are developing for moving (weather permitting) Gardens to her new home and turning her over next weekend!

Musings on a Color Scheme

What color should Gardens be? This is a personal choice and needs no explanation or apologies but, of course, that won't stop me from musing about Gardens' intended color scheme.

I don't consider myself a contrarian but I don't particularly like white-hulled boats - even "traditional" boats. Hence Karen Ann's (a Storer Goat Island Skiff) color scheme.

Now it is true that the Goat Island Skiff is not a traditional boat, although it does have an "cute old-timey look" to it (I heard those words at a small boat mixed fleet regatta - I had the only lug rig - summer before last).

The Pathfinder is more traditional looking (to my eye) than the GIS and some beautiful Pathfinders have been built with drop-dead gorgeous white hulls. But I like color and, with a name like Gardens of Fenwick, I believe her colors ought to reflect her name.

For reasons that are now somewhat obscure, I thought a dark blue hull with a white sheer strake, mahogany trim and a light gray interior was what I wanted. But… what garden ever looked like that? My current thinking is something like this… and, please, bare with me… Gardens will have a green hull with a yellow-ish sheer strake...

The light - white looking - color on the car is really a pale yellow. A more yellow (but not bright) is what I see for Gardens. (As an aside, it is amazing to me that the 57 Ford sheet metal is so plain when compared to the 57 Chevy's sheet metal. No wonder the Chevy is a classic and the Ford is just an old car.)

So, I envision a light, bright (but not neon bright) green hull, with a light yellow sheer strake, mahogany accents, a cream/buff/tan-ish interior and bright yellow (leftovers from the GIS build) foils. The spars will add a richer golden yellow while the white sails add yet another color to Gardens' pallet. Pennants flying from the mastheads offer opportunities to add another touch of color.

This is, of course, not cast in stone as I absolutely, positively reserve the right to change my mind up to and including the time I hold the brush and roller in my hand!

We'll see what happens...

Rudder Assembly

The rudder assembly is done (except for the cosmetics of varnish and paint)!

I didn't get things quite right for the pintles mock-up - but close enough to see that the gudgeons are lined up correctly and the darn thing is going to work. The whole thing will be disassembled, varnished and painted as need be, reassembled and put away for the winter.