Peacefuljourney

I always loved boatyard, all of them: The sound, the smell, the crowd working on their boat, just the feel of it. It’s a place where people with the same passion can meet and share it with someone.
I have spent the last 10 months or so far from those peoples, boats and the biggest talking I would have was what was a dingy. Not even 2 visits to my new boat and I got invited to dinner with nice people and talk about boats all night… With the gentle move of their boat on the water what else can I ask… I belong here.

In the same time, it’s where I was able to meet that nice feeling of sailors helping each other, and by all this I was able to find a new windvane for my boat. Thanks to Denis, which put me in contact with another sailor who had one for sale (Where I was only going 5 minutes pick up the windvane, and end up staying there 6 hours with a dinner planned for next week!).

It’s a old Aries which is in good condition, I’ve order a rebuild kit just in case, and plan to put it all apart and get it in A1 condition for doing some long passage. A friend of mine gived me his shop for doing so, this weekend probably!

Meanwhile I am working on my new home, which is getting there. The wheel is entirely removed (Now have to fix those holes), and started to check all the electricity… My main job is mainly removal of everything fancy and keep the boat simple.

I’ve started to build a nice place to have my tools always ready and store right… With plenty of storage well done for screws/bolts/electronics part/wire and all kind of spare parts. Been since I am on boats that I dream to have one big enough to do that!

Do I have to say I like my boat?

I went for the first time on the boat since I’ve bought it and what a beautiful weekend this was!

After removing most of the tarp, clean around, looking the overall shape of the boat, I have to say I am really happy with it. There is a lot of work to make it the way I want it for Offshore sailing but nothing structural really…

I’ve discover that sailor that sailed offshore for a long time, have strong belief of what their boat should be, and even if people try to change their mind it just doesn’t feel right… In fact it is true, it’s not in the middle of the ocean that you want to discover you are sinking or putting your life at risk because of someone else advice…

I’ve bought new batteries, 2x 6volts deep cycle which should get the boat started (As the boat have place for another bank like that, and one for the engine).
Here a few pictures of the deck all clean out!

I’ve made a few friends around, and I have to say it was nice talking boat and having the feeling of a boatyard… It’s been quite a long time I didn’t feel that…

Ahhhhh Winter!
What a guy can do while his boat is covered with tons of snow….

I do not much these day’s really, I think the best move is actually doing any move at all! Just pilling up money and pay some debt so I will have more finance when the season will start…

So no I have to say, I didn’t went to the boat since about 1 month, which is at 2h drive from where I live. I’ve started to rebuild my old Taylors 030 stove which I had on my last boat and I do love. I came in contact with the company and they actually sell every parts for it which is REALLY nice! I had this stove for free, of a Cruising friend some 8 years ago in South Carolina… I would not get rid of it for lot’s of reason and too many miles done with it!

I begin to make a list of what will need to be done on the boat, to have the priority straight… Boomkin & bowsprit the first as need to be rebuild, and then will be removal of the wheel… Meanwhile the top #1 is get battery! The boat battery are dead!

Any suggestions of Price/quality in the area or others?

It took some months to go over it….

The head is now clear and the desire of boat is back in my mind, a sailor without a boat is like a snail without his shell.

Merlou, the new Westsail 32 that I own is in really good shape. But like every boat is it made to the taste of the last owner. The Interior quite clean and bright does look a bit like a Ikea to me which I hope to put more wood inside/out soon!

The first owner installed a wheel steering, which I plan to take out to put back the original Tiller. After talking with Bud Taplin (The guy who build those westsail) the mainsail area was too big in the earlier model which made those hard on the tiller. Bigger headsail and reefing earlier make the boat a lot more balanced and easier to steer.

I will be heading to the boat this weekend and will take some updated pictures.

Have fun all, I’ve uploaded some pictures in the “Pictures” section.

Greeting,
it’s been a few months since the last post…

Time was needed to end some things in our head to be able to start other one… Time does help to heal and get over things. Joshua, the project which took 3 years of work was moved yesterday to the new owner. End of this project.

Yesterday, strangely enough in the coincidence, I’ve bought a new boat a Westsail 32 in good shape. The only lack may be the amount of wood on it, but after working so many years with wood all day I think all boat will do!

The website will slowly move toward the upgrading of this new home.

Wishing you all a merry Christmas.

Dear,
I know it’s been a long time since the last post and I know my last post may have bring a few questions in your head.

It took time to swallow the pill and be able to post it online, but for personal reason which I do not want to spread over Internet it is the end of the project.

All the gears from our last boat, the boat under construction, the wood and lot’s of equipment are now for sale. All offer considered so for those interested please contact me via Email at: stephane@peacefuljourney.ca

Wish you all a nice day.

Stéphane

Human nature is a fascinating experience.

We all want something, we all have our own perspective.
2 persons can see the exact same things so differently that they will argue to death for it.

Stability, benefit, rent, earning a living is now part of our routine. A big gear where everyone is in, and where you dare put your finger in it as it will suck you all up in a matter of seconds.

Routine make it look better, as doing the same thing again and again you actually do not see the time fly. 30 years goes by and you barely remember what you actually have accomplish with your life, paid materials most of the time.

Once a kid came, you learn to totally forget about yourself. The kid just have highly self-centered need which even with the best diplomacy will high jack your ship.

What’s the real purpose… We are such in a big oily wheel, that we do not know anymore. Publicity make us believe that we need the white fence and the new car which have… oooo… dare I say new features every year ! As we all try to survive, the same company work harder to keep the pressure on their product as they also want the pieces of happiness that he believe and was brain washed to.

Sadly enough, we reached a point where there is so much human we actually spread it as far as we can. The time is over where you’ve traveled to discover new culture, today everywhere around the world watch the same TV Show, eat the same food have the same dream. We brought the machine to a worldwide scale, and more there is people going toward the same goal, harder it is to swim against the current.

I guess it’s what we call evolution, or the acceptance of a imaginary goal…

Leaders always said that conformity help to dictate and control a crowd… Well…. they won…

Darn that life is filled with adventures and emotions!
You get it, the little pirate that Catherine was carrying finally get to see the light!

It was not planned as desired, everything started with a routine checkup and end up with lot’s of medications, surgery and days of suffering & resting. Catherine had a pregnancy disease which was getting dangerous for her and the baby, I won’t tell everything we went through but compare to that a crazy storm out there sailing is pure pleasure.

Everything is getting back together now, George-Emry (The little pirate name, Emry for the friends) doing fine and Catherine even if on heavy pain killer can now do things on her own.

I guess life is just like offshore sailing: Being always ready for everything while taking it one step a the time is the key.

All that said it’s a new beginning for the new family, we are slowly learning the new crew joining our team. I am already looking forward to bring him sailing so he can acquire his sea leg before the land one!

Stéphane, Catherine & Emry
(I will put a picture later on, as we just arrived from the hospital)

Have some of you bought the Wooden boat magazine lately? Have some of you noticed the beautiful picture on it? Yes you got it, it is our boat!

This sure motivate us to keep going. Routine is on lately: planking, planking, planking. Our helper left last week and I can do about 4 planks a week which is not bad. Considering the number of planks left there is 10 weeks at least before the end.

Baby coming up next month so we try to push before it show up.

Winter is nice, the month of the snow & calm. All tourist gone, the slow rhythm of back country under way, wood fire in every house and everybody talking about the weather.

Winter is also the season where it’s the hardest to get things done, sun going down at 3hpm, starting to work at -10celcius in the shop while it’s -35 outside chopping wood and frozen timber to work with.

But this time things are different, we have a additional crew with us which greatly help and motivate. Iko a traveler that wanted to learn boat building is with us since 3 weeks now. The sentence that 3 persons are a team is so true, the whole dynamic change and we get a lot more done.

The bilge stringer are now installed, those are 2 long board inside the boat to reinforce the “flat” area. There were quite some work as the first one done broke, and as the only place I could slide those parts in was by the transom. The planking need the transom to be higher to be completed, the transom can’t be completed because of the bilge stringer, the stringer can’t be completed because of reinforcement on the frames to do, which will need major fairing after all.

Now you can understand why it take us so long to be back to planking! The new batch of wood is here and will be reduce in thickness in about 2 hours, we actually only found 8/4 timber (2″ rough cut) but of nice quality. Having them recut will let us reuse the 1/2″ layer on top for other parts of the boat.

From monday we will be back on covering those ribs, with our team it should be lot faster!

Keep in touch.