Still working before sailing

Today Johnny B Good boat cleaners finished up.  What a good hire they were.  They cleaned the mildewed canvas, strata glass, cabin top, windows and all stainless.  The boat looks like sparkling new.  We can't say enough about how happy we've been with our experience with Whiticar Boat Works.  We are planning to put sails up after soaking the lines to rinse off the salt water.  Drew is also cleaning and waxing the whole dinghy and putting it in the water.  I cleaned all the windows and screens, filled the water tank with filtered water, and worked on the blog. 

Mazu was happy too.

When we had a little time we explored a bit of Stuart, Florida, home of Mack sails and  Hinckley Boat Yard, both with good reputations.

There's a River Walk and Sundays they have an open farm market with music in the afternoon.

stage

 River Walk along the St Lucie River

Also in downtown Fort Pierce at the Museum Pointe Park on Seaway Drive there was a flock of black skimmers - a life list bird I had never seen before.  Note the lower beak is so much bigger to skim fish out of the water as they fly low.

The flock of skimmers near a nice calm anchorage we might consider later.

Putting up the sails is a lot easier than wrestling them down, folding them, tying and squeezing into the bags.

Lines for the jib, main and staysil among other things in the cockpit.

Jib, the largest sail, part way up.   You can see no wind by the flat water.

Starting the top of the staysil in the slot for Drew to haul up the halyard.

Jib wrapped at dusk.  

New solar powered mini lights for the cockpit at night.  
Tomorrow there is touch up for the varnish - actually Bristol Finish - and boat yard worker tracing the problems with the anemometer.  We also bought a new one to try.
THEN, maybe, possibly, but probably not, Sat or Sun we set off - south.