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Sunday, February 20, 2011

Crew training

I have been very pleased with the overall conditions aboard Talos IV. Our furry crew (Tia and Louie) also seem satisfied with the bunking arrangements and rules while on board. The one thing I struggle with is the "Head" for Tia and Louie. They brought their luxury litter box on board, the last remnant of spacious ranch style living in California. This feline "Head" takes up a space equal to a Force 10 galley range. I am selfish. I want that space.

I researched the subject of litter and cats. I have decided to train the crew to use the "Head". This gets rid of the litter box, litter debris in the cabin and storage of litter supplies while cruising. I know the furry crew are too eager to be involved in all things. The training starts now.

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Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Seattle Boat Show

As we began the process of preparing for our journey north, the Seattle Boat Show seemed like the perfect venue to snag some deals on much needed equipment and other necessities. We were able to attend a number of excellent seminars and were able to acquire most of the items we needed. After spending about 4 days at the show, we walked away with all of the charts we needed for the British Columbia coast line, both in paper and electronic formats, a life raft, EPIRB, PLB and an assortment of other misc items. A great success! The next step is the installation of all this gear.

Condo Diversion


After about 6 months of looking at what seemed like an endless parade of homes, town homes and condos, we finally put our stake in the ground and purchased a condo. It is located on Lake Union across the street from Gas Works Park, with a fabulous view looking east and south over the lake and downtown Seattle. We closed on the deal in mid-December and moved off the boat and into the condo within a few days. The process was somewhat laborious, as we had 3 storage units with all our stuff. With the help of our friends Mark and Emma we rented a uhaul truck and made the initial move with all of the big items. The two of us then made numerous trips back and forth to storage. As I write this it is now early February and we are now settled in, the 3 storage units has been reduced to 1 and life is good. Our attention will shift back to Talos in a few days as we begin the process of preparing for our summer adventure north to the inland passage.