We met Kristin and Kevin here at the marina. I was out walking the dogs and Kristin stopped me to see Gunner. They have a Weimaraner as well and its always such a treat to see other weims when you’re out and about. They’re not very common so many people are fascinated with them and want to know what breed they are. Pronounced “wym-er-on-er” these dogs are one of a kind. They have a very distinctive personality and many of them have the same mannerisms. It takes a certain kind of person to appreciate their quirky ways ;) If you’ve ever been around one, you’ll surely understand. Gunner has grown to be very crotchety in his older years but we still love him just as much – he’ll be 13 this March!

After initially meeting Kristin, she brought Kevin by the boat to say hello a few days later. They have a Y Flyer they keep here in Florida and Kevin has been sailing most of his life. We had no idea what a Y Flyer was, but the Y Flyer is an 18 foot (5.5m) sloop rigged racing dinghy designed to be sailed by 2 people. Sounds like a blast and something Peter and I probably should have started out with! Instead, we took the “sink or swim” route and bought a 42′ liveaboard sailboat with no sailing experience :S 

We thought it would be great to get the dogs together for a play date. Sadie is Kristin and Kevin’s female weim, not quite as old as Gunner but she is in her senior years. We had a wonderful evening a few nights ago over at their house for dinner and all three dogs got along great! We weren’t so sure how Gunner would do at first, but I swear he knows his own kind… it didn’t take him long at all to warm up to Sadie and make himself at home. Betsy got totally WILD and was SOO excited to play with another puppy friend inside a real house! Its been an adjustment for the dogs living on the boat and they sure appreciate a carpeted house when they get to visit one. They rolled around and played with toys all evening.

Saturday was another beautiful day out in Charlotte Harbor so we jumped at the opportunity to go sailing again! Our new friends were available and excited to come out with us and we’re so glad they did. It’s really fun to be able to take others out sailing with us and share the joy of being out on the water. Kevin taught us a few things about sailing a Ketch – his dad built one!! Now that we own a boat we can appreciate all the craftsmanship and attention to detail that goes into building a boat. It’s mind blowing when you realize all the little things that are done both during construction and later as upgrades.

We were  a little more relaxed and yet again more confident as we sailed across the harbor. Winds were up to 15-20 this time out but that didn’t scare us!! We were really FLYING at 7 knots!!! Wow that was a great feeling. We practiced reefing the mizzen and genoa, tacking back and forth, and adjusting the running backstays. We had plenty of speed with just the two sails up, we didn’t even bother with the main sail again today. It was just magical with the wind in our hair, sun on our faces, cutting the engine, and just listening to the sound of the waves and the wind sweeping us over the water.

On the way back we kept the sails reefed and had some lunch. I stopped to grab some sandwiches from The Trading Post before we left the dock. There were quite a few other boats out enjoying the weather and we were so thankful we were out there too! This was our third time out after purchasing the boat and there was one final challenge of the day. Docking has been a knot in my stomach every time, and we knew this day was a little gustier than it has been in the past. Coming into the marina through the channel was even a bit nerve wracking as we were getting tossed all over the place by the currents. We’ve got a 5′ draft and the channel is dredged out with a good 8-10′ clearance but you’ve got to really pay attention and make sure to stay inside the markers. We’ve been told “you haven’t been sailing in Charlotte Harbor unless you’ve run aground” – yikes! Hopefully we can avoid that!

The Captain did a FANTASTIC job docking, better and better every time. It took a few tries but Peter backed her stern-in again without any damage for us or the dock :) It definitely helps to have a few more available hands for grabbing a line but hopefully Peter and I will be able to get through it by ourselves next time. Cross your fingers!!

By definition, a maiden voyage is the first journey made after the shakedown. We definitely plan to do a few serious shakedown cruises before leaving Florida to make sure all systems are GO but Peter and I like to consider the sea trial we did in July to be our first shakedown. So, we would excitedly like to announce that our MAIDEN VOYAGE was on Sunday 11.17.2013 aboard S/V Mary Christine!!

We were so lucky to have our friends David and Jan from S/V Winterlude (commutercruiser.com) come out with us and “show us the ropes”, err should I say lines, for our first official cruise in Charlotte Harbor, FL. Thanks to Jan we got some great photos of our first family outing on our boat! The weather was perfect. It was sunny but not too hot. We waited until the afternoon when the winds died down to about 10 knots, then threw off the bow lines while Peter took the helm and guided us out of the slip. It seemed like only a two-point turn and we were on our way out! Easy. The engine purred and we motored out through the quiet marina towards the opening to the harbor. We got past the markers, pointed into the wind, set the autopilot and hoisted up the sails. The conditions were just right for us to get all three sails up without any trouble. We cut the engine and that was it… we were sailing!!!! It’s the most amazing feeling, we were free as the wind. Everything was so peaceful. We knew in our hearts that Christine was with us dancing up on the bow smiling back at us. All was perfect in our world :)

Betsy thought it was the coolest thing ever that our house was moving! We knew she would do great but this day just confirmed that she’s a natural boat dog, cruising around the decks like the little monkey that she is. Betsy was more than comfortable as we were underway and had no problem exploring on her own as we sailed along. She has excellent balance and we didn’t worry about her at all. The whole afternoon she made sure to stay alert where all the action was while scanning the water for birds and dolphins. Gunner did surprisingly well for his first time out on the water too! He was very curious about what was going on, but loved to be outside in the sunshine and he’s always happy as long as he’s with us. We tethered him up to the binacle in the center of the cockpit so he wouldn’t decide to go exploring like Betsy. His balance isn’t great in his old age and we don’t have the lifeline netting up yet so it would be easy for him to accidentally tumble overboard with the rocking from a wave if he were on deck. Once we turned off the engine he curled up in his bed and was rocked to sleep for his afternoon nap in the sunshine.

A few hours went by in the blink of an eye and it was time to head back while we still had some daylight. We neared the entrance to Burnt Store Marina and brought the sails down. Peter motored us back to the slip and did a fantastic job docking bow-in. We decided however that there was just no practical way to get the dogs on and off the dock in that position so we had to reverse out, spin around and re-dock stern-in. It took a few tries but we had a lot of neighbors standing by to grab a line and eventually we got it, damage free! We did learn which way this boat tends to walk in reverse, which is to the right. Now we know for next time, and hopefully it will be a little easier when trying to back in a 42′ drifing tank into a tiny little slip.

After we were all secured back at the dock, the puppies were anxious to get back on land to go potty and then hurry back onboard for their dinner. While the dogs ate, we grilled up some steaks, corn, potatoes and garlic bread and enjoyed a wonderful meal in the cockpit with Jan and David. What a wonderful way to spend a Sunday afternoon!!