2020 In Review

Looking back on 2020, it seemed to me I did more planning, fretting, and "getting ready to get ready" than I did any doing. But that isn't necessarily true. Despite, or perhaps because of,  the extraordinary circumstances of 2020, we accomplished a good bit on Gardens of Fenwick. In roughly chronologic order here's what we got done:

Name Boards 

New Hinged Tiller

Hand-painted Registration Numbers

New Running Rigging

New Splicing Skills: Soft Shackles and Continuous Loops

Main Mast Lever Lift (Concept drawing. Seems I don't have an as-built-and-installed photos)

Boat Stands

Lazy Jacks

Mizzen Mast Slot & Plug

SUP Paddles

Two-Piece Kayak Paddle

Outboard Seats

"Front Row" Viewing Platform (at the west side of our place) and Two (newly built) Adirondack Chairs

Les Cheneaux Islands Get Away

Stove Box

Cooking & Baking Experimenting: Taking inspiration from the Great British Baking Show, we tried new recipes for Breads and Clangers. From exploring the Internet, we've begun playing with Curries. And in a moment of weakness, I decided to bake Fruitcake, which turned out nicely.

We are looking forward to 2021! 

Book Stack

Small Craft Advisor has been sharing photos of readers' collections of boat related books. Thought I'd share my Stack with SCA but due to 'technical difficulties' I wasn't able to attach a photo to an email to SCA. 

So, here it is: my Book Stack:

Not as large a collection as some - but I forgot to include my Swallows & Amazons series and Good Little Ship (the story of Arthur Ransome's own boat). 

That thicker black book near the bottom of the stack is Dutton's Navigation and Piloting, acquired when I attended the USCG Academy in the late 60s. When I left the Academy, for some inexplicable reason, I kept Dutton's and left Bowditch's The American Practical Navigator. Over the years I've thought about that choice - and wish I had both books.

Stove Box?

 Whatever happened to the stove box I described in over a month ago? 

It has been finished. Nothing great about it, just a simple, functional, plywood box to hold a camp stove, a base for the stove and a couple propane cylinders. 

Some refinements to think about over the winter months: wind screens and a tie-down to hold it in place while underway. 

Shouldn't have taken 4-and-a-half weeks to complete.