Winter in the North Country

It has been a very busy summer for Trefoil's crew. After 3 weeks at home in July, working on the yard and flower garden, we returned to Trefoil on her cradle at Van Slooten Harbour Marina in Port Henry, on Lake Champlain. We had decided to proceed with the bottom job, and we were prepared with the necessary materials: Soy Strip to remove the old bottom paint, a Festool sander/vacuum borrowed from our friend and fellow sailor Jim Morris, 5 gallons of epoxy barrier coat, and 2 gallons of bottom paint, along with brushes, rollers, Tyvek suits, etc. This was a major undertaking: the Soy Strip worked well to remove the majority of the old bottom paint, the sander was a fantastic tool to use, and then we faired, sanded, faired and sanded again a number of spots on the bottom (not one blister, however!). Finally, we applied 6 coats of Interprotect 2000, and 2 coats of bottom paint. Also during this time, we had a new arm made for the centerboard; Dick installed this and made sure this time that he wedged it in with some King Starboard, to prevent it from ever backing out again!

Trefoil was re-launched on Friday, September 3, and after 2 days of rigging, we set off for a week's vacation on the lake. We had a wonderful time, visiting some of our favorite anchorages: Kingsland Bay, Valcour Island (Spoon Bay), Shelburne Bay, Burlington Harbour, and Westport. Several of those days we were in the company of our friend Larry, who was also on vacation that week aboard his O'Day 30. Kim and Pete on their O'Day joined us on Valcour as well. While in Kingsland Bay, we spotted a familiar looking boat: it was Leonard and Lynnea Rosner, whom we had met in Charleston this spring! We enjoyed chatting with them and hearing about their trip north from Charlston.

On September 19, son Emil and Michelle, Ceiarah, and Noah joined us for a day on the water. The weather was perfect as we sailed to Cole Bay, had lunch, and then powered back to the marina. This past weekend we had a great 2 day trip with good sailing again. On September 24, we saw some more friends from the winter: Peter and Claudia Hornby, whom we had met in Florida, live in Plattsburgh. They drove to Port Henry and we enjoyed lunch together and a visit to the nearby Iron center Museum.

Now it is time to store Trefoil on her cradle for the winter. We have decided to stay home this winter, do some winter hiking and cross-country skiing, as well as some projects at home. Trefoil will travel again to other destinations, but the crew is ready for a landlubbers' winter!

Travels aboard Trefoil to be continued.....