When we arrived at Danish Marine at noon on Thursday, Yahtzee was hanging from the travel lift slings waiting to be dropped in the water. Her sail drive and prop were back together and the new seals were doing their job.
Porter was eager to get back aboard after an extended stay ashore and when the boat was in the water, we climbed aboard, fired up the engine and tested the drive: powering in forward and reverse was smooth, Yahtzee was ready to go.
Jill and Magnus were waiting at the Portland Yacht Club to catch our lines and it felt great to be back on the boat as a family, albeit briefly. That night I gave my talk at the Portland Yacht Club, which went really well. It was an honor to speak there and I met some wonderful folks afterwards.
On Friday we got a few projects done around the boat and I went down to Peter’s floating home to grab our freshly painted dinghy. The paint job turned out better than I thought it would and Hornpipe looks pretty sharp sitting on Yahtzee’s deck.
My mom, dad, sister and nephew George arrived in Portland on Friday afternoon to spend Mother’s Day weekend with us, which meant that as soon as we were back home on Yahtzee, we were off again.
The eight of us had an awesome weekend hanging out in downtown Portland and the weather couldn’t have been any better to explore the city, take the three boys to the splash park, celebrate three exceptional mothers and more. As a bonus, my dad is joining us for the trip to Astoria and then the Oregon Offshore Race to Victoria.
While our time off the boat in Bend and Portland was not what we’d envisioned while planning our trip up the river, we are well aware that in cruising, you can’t really make hard and fast plans. In the end, we got to do things that we wouldn’t have otherwise and spent time with some our best friends — which is priceless.
And even though hauling Yahtzee out was a hiccup in our adventure, the boat is better for it. With a rebuilt sail drive, new zincs, waxed topsides and a clean bottom, Yahtzee is ready for the Oregon Offshore Race and a summer of cruising in British Columbia. We’re on our way!
