Tag Archives: USA

Grass Growing – Isle of Hope, Georgia, USA, July 23, 2026

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Grass Growing – Isle of Hope, Georgia, USA, July 23, 2026

Literally.  I think this is the longest we have been in one spot for quite some time.  In the last month we did spend a weekend in Jekyll Island, Georgia visiting my parents and another week in Columbus visiting our daughters (and wedding dress shopping which was exciting!).  Other than that, we have been hanging out working on the boat.  For anyone not familiar with the Georgia water, it is the swampiest we have ever been!  The weather here is pure humidity and the water is thick.  Since we have not been moving, we have started to have plumbing issues.  This is Ron’s least favorite fix.  He can but let’s face it, no one likes to fix a toilet that doesn’t flush since the through holes are clogged with barnacles!  In addition to that, our AC filters have started to clog which means it is Africa hot in the boat and an immediate fix is necessary with weather that is 100% humidity and a heat index of 104 degrees!  Our poor air conditioner is on its last leg, and Ron was able to keep her going.  Ironically, in the Bahamas we don’t use air and the only time we do use the AC is when we are on the dock in places like Georgia or Key West.  Other projects Ron has been working on include an oil analysis which showed we have minimal leaks and that will require new seals and exhaust elbows.  He has ordered all the parts, and it will be an engine day here very soon. 

We have both been feeling a bit stagnant and although we love the boating lifestyle, we have been yearning for a trip to break things up a bit.  So, we started a new plan.  For the rest of hurricane season, we pretty much have something that falls in the middle of each month, and a big trip does really fit into our calendar.  We just made it back from 10 days away in July between Columbus and Jekyll, in August daughter #1 is coming home from Spain.  This will require another trip to Columbus to ensure we get to see her and then in September we get hauled out to fix the recent boat damage from getting hit as I described in the last post.  October starts with the prep and provisioning for our next cruising season and early November we are off again to the Caribbean.  That means any new travels we imagine cannot happen until we return.    

Now for the new plan…speaking of Africa hot…we just applied for a volunteer opportunity to in Malawi.  It is an incredible opportunity and we are thrilled.  Keep in mind we have just applied and are not accepted.  Let me elaborate.  Elefence International is a non-profit who partnered with Wildlife Action Group and protects people, elephants, and the environment.  They work to build fences around nature reserves, have a team of rangers who enforce poaching laws, and keep villages and farmers safe from any damage the elephants may cause.  This has helped increase the safety of the villages, protect and increase the elephant population.  If accepted, we would spend 3 weeks in Africa initially helping the camp there and potentially helping build the fence reducing human elephant conflict.  This is just as exciting as it sounds and a place neither of us has been able to adventure to before.  Ron’s experience with living off the grid, engineering, auto mechanics, and generally jack of all trades could provide great value to the team there.  I on the other hand could help the office, marketing, and the school kids there.  I think it would be a blast, and I encourage you to review their site for more information.  They also have a very interesting blog which is hosted by my father and describes the journey he and my mother took just a few years ago.   

https://www.elefenceinternational.org

Getting It Up – Marathon, Florida, USA, March 20, 2025

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Getting It Up – Marathon, Florida, USA, March 20, 2025

Still sitting on the dock in Marathon, Florida we finally finished the rigging replacement and solar arch!  It has been about 6 weeks since we took possession of the boat and the list of projects has been long but is now complete.  The crane showed up and the mast was put back up today.  It took four guys to wrestle the boom and main sail back on and I am glad it was something we did not have to do ourselves.  Our amazing rigging guy Anthony did a great job from Onboard Rigging.  Thank you.  He was a lot of fun to work with and I think Ron really enjoyed the process more than expected.

Game hanger in off grid living.
This is not scary at all.
Always a group project.

Since we have been in the keys for nearly 6 weeks and simply in Marathon for 3 we have had a chance to make some new friends from Dockside Bar & Grill, where the $2 beers were great!  First off, the bartender “generator” & her husband were a lot of fun, then there was Mark and Rick, our two Michigan friends and fans.  Rick comes down for 6 months each year and I think Mark is a sheriff here.  Each time we went there the banter once he found out I was a vegetarian got intense and then when he found out I was an OSU graduate it got even worse.  By the time we were ready to leave I had a little going away present for him.  I found a t-shirt online that I simply had to have.  It said “Meet Dick, Dick is a Michigan Fan” then on the back it said “Don’t be a Dick.”  I wore this to Dockside on our last night just to even the score on all the references I took to bacon and OSU.  Anyway, we had a lot of fun with these two and now have two new friends.

Once again, per our nomadic lifestyle, it was time to go.  Our project list is complete and a weather window to make the jump has presented itself, so we are going directly from Marathon, Florida to the Berry Islands, Bahamas.  It will be our second longest sail, 198 miles, and 32 hours.  It is also our first test sail with the new rigging and solar.  We are leaving on Saturday Morning. 

Survey and Sea Trial – Key West, Florida, USA, January 27, 2025

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Survey and Sea Trial – Key West, Florida, USA, January 27, 2025

It’s our first day back on the water for the survey and sea trial of “Greenlights.”  That is the name of the boat we are looking at.  She is a 2018 40-foot Leopard.  It is a 3 cabin, owner’s version and for only being a couple feet wider and longer than our prior Mariposa, quite spacious!  Captain Ron did a lot of homework and got us the best surveyor in southern Florida – Jonathan.  Not only is Jonathan a good surveyor but he is also a rigger and will do our rigging inspection as well today.  He started out the survey by simply going through the boat and testing every single system looking for any issues.  We have formally put in an offer which we would have a chance to edit before a final agreement can be reached.

Johnathan doing his thing.

The upsides and why we like this boat are the layout is much bigger, there are low hours on both engines and the generator, she has never been chartered, majority of the upholstery work has already been done (except the dinghy chaps), She is a Leopard and not a Lagoon (which is know for having major issues to its bulkheads), we have a front door and wider decks which will be safer in stormy weather.

Thanks to Jonathan’s diligence, here are the main issues we found: 

  1. It had a grounding early on in its life and had both sacrificial keels ripped off and repaired. Thankfully they were repaired properly.
  2. She needs a new bottom job.  This is one of Ron’s least favorite things to do but this should be better than the last one he did as it only needs a light sanding this time and a couple coats of bottom paint which we can do ourselves in Key West.
  3. Several windows in the kitchen are starting to delaminate.  We had the same issue on Mariposa and it is a known issue on Leopard boats.
  4. While it is equipped with a propane stove and oven this is something we will take out and switch to induction.  We are also going to replace the grill with the same Weber one we had on the other boat.
  5. The batteries are lead acid batteries and not much solar.  We will immediately invest to upgrade her to lithium and eventually add more solar when we get somewhere Ron can weld up a solar arch which needs to be added.
  6. The dinghy is old and in poor condition.  It does work and you never want the prettiest dinghy on the dock, but we will essentially drive this one for the first year and plan to replace it soon.  The good news is Ron is happier with the Yamaha engine since our last dinghy had a Tohatsu he hated.
  7. Our generator and both fuel tanks leak. 
  8. The water maker was pickled so we didn’t get to test this and are going on the honor system for this one.  I am glad it has one we are just hoping it works.
  9. The radar doesn’t work properly.  Ron is hoping he can fix this by cleaning up the connections, but we need to be prepared to replace this if necessary.
  10. There is no life raft on board which we will need to purchase to go offshore.
  11. The standing rigging needs a lot of work and was the biggest surprise we found.  Essentially the rigging needs completely replaced before we can even raise the sails.  Having lost one boat to being demasted, this replacement is at the top of our list.

We made edits to our offer based on the new information from the survey and now we wait to see if they will agree to lowering the price to cover the issues we found.  The overall process is much like buying a house.  It is nerve racking, and the pushy owners made it as difficult as possible.  So, while we were waiting for the final survey document from Jonathan, we headed back to Jekyll Island to visit with my parents again.  After a week and a half, I think they were ready for us to go!  Thankfully, we got through the boat buying process with all the paperwork and wire transfers completed and we pick up the boat February 10th. 

Ron found a place to store the RV in Brunswick, Georgia so we spent a few days at Mom & Dad’s cleaning it out, waxing the exterior, and wiping down the inside with vinegar.  Whew!  Changing homes again takes quite a bit of work!  We ended up dropping off the RV to storage and picking up a rental car in Jacksonville, Georgia.  On the morning of the 10th we said goodbye to Mom & Dad and drove the 10 hour trip to Key West to pick her up!  Mariposa 2.0 here we come 😊.