La Mia Vita Sul Lago

Update

2014-05-28T12:35:00.000-05:00

Quite a lot has happened since this time last year. We obviously didn't go to the East Coast as planned, but we did take a six week vacation, hitting a few different major ports.

We started in Washington Island where we stayed almost a week. It was our second time visiting and we really love it there. The island itself is absolutely gorgeous. Even after visiting twice, I don't think we've seen everything. The marina owners at Kapps are so kind, too. It's great to just sit at the restaurant and chat with them. I'm sure we'll be back again this year.

From there, we went to Beaver Island. (I'd never actually heard of it before we decided to visit) The water here was incredibly clear. When we were going to the marina, I was worried we would hit bottom, even with eight feet below us. It was insane. This island was a lot larger than Washington Island and we definitely didn't see that much of it. What we did do was take an insane bike ride to a gross beach as suggested by the tourist center. It really didn't feel like we were on an island while we were there which is pretty cool.

Then we went to Mackinaw City where we stayed for three weeks. We got to go and do a lot in Mackinaw City. There were far more options for shopping and food than the other cities we visited and I thought it was most like home. There were a couple other cities pretty close- we actually biked (16 miles) to Cheboygan and back (another 16 miles) on gravel. It was difficult for sure but I thought it was fun.

While in Mackinaw City, we visited Mackinac Island twice. The first time we took the ferry and brought bikes. However, after biking around the entire island (and having someone WALK RIGHT INTO ME) and having lunch, we decided to call it a day. There were so many people you could barely walk down the street! The second time, we took the dinghy. I believe it was about 6 miles. The way there was great! We had following seas, maybe 2-4 footers. The returning trip wasn't as fun, but pretty entertaining. After a couple hours of ferry crossings (they throw a huge wake since they refuse to use trim tabs to get their bow down) the waves were 4-6 with the occasional 8 footer. I had to turn the pump on 3 times to get water out, but it was awesome. We probably could have died or something, but we didn't.

After Mackinaw, we hit a few other Michigan ports while heading south, Charleviox, Leeland, Pentwater, South Haven, and Benton Harbor, before heading back across.

We moved out to the boat for the season this past weekend and have already faced some problems. A large one was the battery dying, so the port engine would not start. We did get that fixed last night, though. Mina (parrot) and Sully (tortoise) both really enjoy being back out here and have been a lot more active recently which is of course great.

We plan on spending all of this summer up in Green Bay. We're leaving for that on June 8th, so hopefully the weather cooperates.

Cassandra

Review: Rust-Oleum Counter Transformation

2013-05-04T14:29:00.003-05:00

We recently put the boat back in the water. We were rather disappointed as we wound up going in a month later than last year. All the pets are out here too and enjoying it for sure.

We wanted to redo our counter tops in the kitchen since the old ones were original! That made them 30 years old!

We heard about the Rust-Oleum counter transformation and thought we would give it a try. It could bring life to our old counters for a fraction of the cost of purchasing all new counter tops! The color we picked out was Pebbled Ivory as it went best with the teak in the boat. Rust-Oleum describes it as "Light and dark brown specks against an attractive ivory base give Pebbled Ivory an appeal that will delight any cook. It works best with black appliances and wood cabinets as these will pull out the colors and add continuity and excitement to the kitchen."

Sadly we didn't take pictures as we went, but the basic process was as follows.

After taping off the counters, we started by sanding the counter with a provided sanding block. This left small scratches in the surface so that it could absorb the adhesive better.

Next it was time to apply the adhesive. This has to be done in small sections and you have to sprinkle the chips on as you go. We did the counter in 3-4 sections with one person painting on the adhesive and another using the chip spreader to throw the chips at the counter.

We then had to wait 12-24 hours and apply the top coat after sanding again. After 4-6 hours we had to score and remove the tape so it wouldn't be permanently stuck there.

h it?

Overall we are very pleased with the kit and it worked very well on our counters. We will probably be vacuuming up decorative chips for a while still, however.

Have you used this kit or a similar kit before and how was your experience with it?

Dinghy Paint

2012-11-20T13:13:00.000-06:00

Days down- 0

Our dinghy is pretty old. We bought it with the boat, although it isn't as old as the boat is. We wanted to paint it, since it was looking pretty bad, even after scrubbing for hours, and it was starting to wear in some spots.

Originally, we thought it would be funny to paint it yellow, so then we could call it a rubber ducky. However, this brand of paint didn't make yellow- just red, orange, grey, white and black. We needed 2 cans anyway to be able to cover the entire dinghy, so we decided we would paint below the rub rail black, and above the grey accent white. In between the rub rail and the acent, we would paint black and white checkers.

The paint comes in 2 parts- a base coat and a top coat. The base coat was very thick and we wound up having to thin it even more than what they said. We also found that once it starts to dry you can't go over it again or it will just clump up. The moment the paint touched the rubber it already started to dry. Originally we were mixing the paint with a plastic spoon, but we found that it actually started drying on the spoon. Eventually, we found that getting very little paint on the brush, dabing it, then quickly spreading it out as quick as possible worked best for application. On the bottom of the dinghy we only did one coat, but we did 2-3 on the top, and did extra coats where it had blisters.

The top coat went on a lot better. For the bottom, we ultimately did 2 coats. Since the base coat was grey and we were painting the top white, we had to do 4 coats.

The checkers inbetween were a royal pain. We had to cut squares from the tape and line them up perfectly, even after that, some paint still leaked and we would up having to go over it again.

Ultimately, the paint was very expensive, but if $300 will save a $4,000 dinghy for a few more years, then it is worth it.

No Paint- Just Tape:

Base Coat on Bottom:

Top Coat on Bottom:

Top Coat on Top:

Checkers:

Almost Weaned

2012-10-07T10:19:00.001-05:00

Days Down- 0

Mina, my parrot, was recently moved down to one feeding per day, but hasn't even been taking the full 80ml. A couple days ago, the store faculty started offering her only 50ml and she hasn't been taking that in whole either. So, she is almost weaned and will probably be coming home soon.

Yesterday, she had to have her wings retrimmed as she was jumping off my arm and actually getting hieght. (Which isn't allowed lol) If she can fly, she is more likely to get hurt.

Now, we have to get her a cage for at home. Then, over the winter, my father will build her custom cages for the boat, so they fit with all the angles of the boat.

Nothing has changed with our trip plans, but we have been going through ALL of our storage and closets- trying to see what we can donate to Goodwill for tax write-offs. Plus, what doesn't fit on the boat will be left there, and that means we would have to rent a storage facility, seeing as we are most likely renting out our house.

My dad is also going to work on a lot of stuff over the winter, so we have more storage space on the boat. He's going to take out the racks in the liquor cabinet, so he can put his Kitchen Aid there, then he will make the casset cabinet deeper, so he can put the liquor there. He is also going to store stuff under the floor, through the hatch that let's us see the water level. Hopfully my brother and I will get a larger closet out of this somehow.

-C

Portsmouth, VA Winter Weather

2012-09-23T19:49:00.001-05:00

Days down- 0

So last week, we moved back home during the week and are still coming back out Friday night to Monday morning. It is getting cold, even more so with the cooler-near-the-lake effect. Honestly, boating all winter long next year sounds horrible. I mean, fall and winter are wonderful months, but the boat just doesn't stay that warm. Both are fine at the house, because it actually gets warm inside with out threatening to hurt the AC.

Living in Wisconsin I grew up with snow every winter. I don't really think you can actually classify it as "Winter" without atleast 1 major snowfall. I get that snow can be annoying- waiting for plows, shoveling, dangerous driving conditions- but, it is definetly fun, and can be super pretty.

Well, I looked up the averages for temperatures in Portsmouth, Virginia, where we currently plan on wintering next year. It says the average low is 32. Water freezes at 32. That means there won't really be snow, just sleety mess. Also the record all time low it -3? That's rediculous. Ours, which happened in the same year, was -31. That's 28 degrees different! Whatever.

We've been visting the parrot lots, as much as possible. We decided that we would build a custom cage for her (we haven't and don't plan on getting her sexed, we are just going to assume it is a girl, if she starts laying eggs, we'll know she's a girl and if not, that she is a boy) for on the aft deck, as well as a sleeping cage.

-C

Parrot

2012-09-16T10:35:00.000-05:00

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We just put a down payment on the bird yesterday, and it will be coming home in 3-4 weeks, since it isn't weaned yet.

We go and play with it as often as possible, and multiple times when it is fidgeting on my lap, we will let it perch on my father's arm (which it isn't doing too well at yet) and it will poop. This is definetely a good sign, because it means that it doesn't want to go on my lap.

We don't wan't to get it sexed and are just assuming it is a girl. We named it Mina, which I was told means blue sky.

Since she won't be coming home for another monthish, she won't get to see the boat until next year, which might be better, because then she can't get attached and won't be confused with the change of enviornments.

Personally, I think my dad is just as attached as me, even if she tries climbing up him.

-C

New Pet Possibility?

2012-09-09T19:01:00.005-05:00

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Currently we have a sulcata tortoise, Sully, (who has a blog here) and a hedgehog, Rosie. Sully is now 4 and we have had her since she was a baby, and Rosie will be 1 tomorrow. Sully is kept on (and has free range of) the aft deck. She has a dog house which she sleeps in at night, but enjoys walking around and looking out the clear doors. She doesn't mind the motion and just walks around, following the sunlight all over. When we are traveling she gets to be up in the bridge. Rosie is kept in a cage in the master state room and isn't very fond of traveling.

Recently, I decided I wanted a parrot (not to be cliche with pirates and all). However, we aren't quite sure how it would really do on the boat while we were moving, the local store not knowing if the have an inner ear for balance. But, we played with a blue and gold macaw today anyways, and we really liked it. They aren't sure quite how old it is, since it was found in a box late, since most of the eggs the birds had been having were no good.

Hopefully we can get it soon and get it ready for the long trip ahead of us (assuming it wouldn't mind the motion)!

-C

Trip

2012-08-30T11:03:00.002-05:00

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I didn't really explain the our "trip" in the first post.

My family owns a boat. A 44' Viking from 1983 to be more exact. This is our 3rd boat, 5th year boating. We started on a 23' Jet Boat that we kept on the Chain of Lakes in Antioch. After that we moved up to a 34' Sea Ray, which was the first boat we kept out here, on Lake Michigan.

Last year we took our Sea Ray to Port Washington, Whitehall, Grand Haven, and Saugatuck. Which was the first major trip we actually took. After that, we had crossed Lake Michigan 3 times counting bringing the boat to Kenosha, Wi from Michigan in the first place.

While in Saugatuck, we met up with the person who sold us the Sea Ray, and he tried to sell us his boat. After buying the Sea Ray we had become pretty good friends with him and his wife and we talked to them quite often. In the end, they gave us an offer we apparently could not refuse and the bought the boat from him.

This year, we took the Viking to Door County. We were traveling all throughout Door County for 2.5 weeks. Recently, friends of ours who own a boat in the same marina as us asked if we wanted to accompany them accross the lake to Grand Haven, seeing as they'd never crossed before. Of course we said yes, but decided we would go Monday with them and stay until Wednesday, and let them finish their vacation on their own. Of course, the waves did not agree with that and we were stuck on the side of thate lake until Sunday, we did go down to Sagatuck on Thursday, however.

For a while my parents had decided that they wanted to circum-navigate when they retired as well as do the Great Loop. So when my brother and I decided we would do online school this year they figured it would be so much fun to go down the Mississippi in August and store our boat down there. Recently, however they have been talking to people whose slip is behind us about doing the Great Loop, and they told them the Mississippi is extremely boring, and that we should go through the Great Lakes instead. My parents appreciated the advice and completely changed their plan. Thankfully, they also decided to wait until June of 2013 to start the trip.

Now, we will stay in Kenosha until June 15th, then move through the Great Lakes and Eerie Canal until we get to the East Coast, and spend the Winter there.

-C

Planning

2012-08-27T10:29:00.002-05:00

Days down- 0

My parents have been deciding major details on this trip whenever possible. (Including in between confrence calls for work, all of which are held on the boat).

They already have decided everywhere we are going, how long we are staying there, how much gas we will need, and how much it will all cost. But, if you ask them what you're having for dinner that night you're acting ridiculous. It's only 3:00, they don't plan that far in advance! Whatever.

Their planning does help me in way, however. I can find where there are stores and things to do in each area. Not that there is much. The first place to a have a decent drugstore is Rogers City and that is 2 months into the trip. Even at that, there is 1 CVS. That's it. No Walgreens, no Rite Aid, no Target, not even a single Walmart! Plus, why does the name of a city have the word city in it?

But obviously I should be optimistic because by September 18th, 2013 (1460 miles, $17520 later) we will be in the Atlantic Ocean. Which is exciting because it is somewhere that is away from our house, friends, and everything we grew up with? Also, traveling across the country will look great on a resume! It means we have some life experience. Obviously being stuck on a boat for 3 years with my parents is life experience, NOT!
This is all assuming that we make it to where ever the heck we are going alive, and the boat doesnt wind up at the bottom of some body of water.

We'll see. Maybe someone will randomly decide Washington Island needs a Target.

-C