Watching the Weather (Channel)

Boaters know weather reports are important for trip planning, fishing and safety. A change in the weather can alter plans quicker than a bluefish blitz. With water temperatures in Boston Harbor still hovering in the upper 30's, our first trip of the season is still over a month away. However, a nice warm sunny weekend helps kickstart the season before Fishing Season; Boat Preparation Season.

Brave, Two-Part Epoxy-armed warriors enter the boatyard with power tools, wool hats, and maybe a sandwich. They hope their work will help add value and performance to their vessel, but more importantly convince Spring to get it's act together.

So as Wednesday turned into Thursday and Thursday turned into Friday, I was guilty of staring at green globs on radar maps and refreshing my web browser for the latest weekend forecast. There is still a lot of work to be done on the boat. Some quality time in the boatyard was in my immediate future.

I found the Miller Time still wearing its winter coat. The wind was whipping. My dog, Paulie (who isn't so sure about this whole boating thing), was tethered to the orange support post holding the boat.

The boat's hull was sodablasted last fall. Not only is this a cool word, but it is a way to remove years of bottom paint from the boat hull without damaging the fiberglass (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodablasting).

While it is effective, the process also exposes any flaws and imperfections to the hull. These flaws need to be fixed, usually by being filled with a thin resin or epoxy.

Unfortunately, it must be 60 degrees outside for the epoxy to harden after it is applied. It was not 60 degrees, nor would it be 60 degrees soon. So, my productive day working on the boat turned into a long lunch at Redbones.

The moral of the story: The weather, even when the boat is out of the water, will dictate your plans. And, always consider the Catfingers when sitting at the bar at Redbones.

Rites of Spring

The Christmas gifts we opened in December usually have to wait around for a few months, but the biggest present gets unwrapped in April.

We named the 34 foot Luhrs Sportfisherman the Miller Time. It spends about half the year out of the water, but it feels like much more. Its a labor of love taking care of this yellow-hulled beauty.

As New Englanders, we have to make the most of our time on the water. Before the first log entry gets written, there is a lot of work to be done on land. For a lot of people, its easier to write a check than it is to do the work themselves. For others, the anticipation of warmer weather and the smell of bottom paint is almost cathartic.

I hope to share some of the (dirty) jobs associated with getting the boat ready, keeping the boat ready and getting it ready for next year.

There was a time when I was able to fit in the bilge with greater ease, but I'm a little bigger now. I try to spend every free spring/summer/fall moment on the boat, weather permitting. Sometimes we catch fish. Sometimes we get skunked. Sometimes we look like we know what we're doing. The beer is usually cold. The bait usually smells. And, the fish usually win.

I dont intend on becoming the literary John Greviskis (from Ship Shape TV). However, I would like to share some pictures, some true stories and some lies told from the Miller Time. Hopefully, this can be an online logbook where characters will come to life and (some) secrets can be told. Maybe we can even learn something.