Misty Lady Thought and Comment

Tomorrow morning, I will drive up to Dundalk, MD (Baltimore area) to the marina where the yacht is berthed currently.  I will meet with the certified Surveyor and the Yacht Broker.  At 9:00 am we will start the process.  The surveyor will check and test every component on the yacht, from the bow to the stern and everywhere in between.  The yacht will be hauled (moved out of the water by a huge tractor with slings) and the survey will check the external hull, the fittings that are “through the hull”, the drive shafts, and the props for damage or faults.

Then once all of these things have been accomplished, the survey will move to the sea trial process.  The yacht will be moved back into the water and we will start the engines moving outward of the marina and into the Chesapeake Bay.  The sea trial can take as much a several hours but should only be about three to four.  Following the sea trial we will return to the marina, dock the yacht in her assigned slip and return her to the current owners.  I will then write a check to the surveyor and to the shipyard for the haul out services.

Within 24 hours the surveyor will provide me with a detailed certification of the existing condition of the yacht.  If all goes well no problem and we move forward with the acquisition, if not, the option to correct will be given to the owners or I will have the option of choosing to effect the corrections myself.  Adjustments of the purchase price may result.

But, we have faith that the yacht will come through all of the certification, evaluation and sea trial testing with flying colors.  See what an optimist I am?

More following the activity tomorrow, Thursday March 3, 2016.  Stay tuned.

 

We have made a total lifestyle change commitment.  We made a firm offer to purchase a power yacht and become live aboard people.  This is something I have dreamed about for decades and in the coming weeks we will realize that dream.

The photo above is a picture of our new water borne home.  She is a 54 foot Blue Water aft cabin yacht.  She has three cabins (bedrooms), three heads (bathrooms) and a salon (living room).  She boasts a full galley (kitchen and dining room), and a command bridge.  She has a 16.5-foot beam (width) and draws 4 feet of water.  Her name, following the renaming ceremony will be the Misty Lady.

Of course there are several steps necessary to get to that stage of being the relaxed, laid back folks who live permanently aboard a floating home.  We first had to make the offer and have the existing owner accept.  CHECKED!

Then we have to have a survey and sea trial for the boat and that is scheduled for Thursday March 3, 2016.  Will start the inspection at 9:00am and the process will continue through out the day, until around 5 or so in the evening.  Once the survey is completed, the inspector will prepare a report for us and it will list any areas to be resolved.  The report will further provide us with a statement of the components on the yacht that are in fine shape.  My son, Cliff and I will be involved with the inspection and will also be making measurements, taking photos and listening/watching the areas covered by the inspector and his assistant.

On March 7 our condo will go on the market and we are hoping that it sells quickly.  The funds from that sale will also go toward the purchase and activities concerning the yacht.

Most importantly, I have presented myself for membership in the Capital Yacht Club located on the Washington, DC water front.  This is where we hope to berth the yacht.

The yacht’s current name is Roving Retreat II and our plan is to change her name to the Misty Lady.  Changing the name of a marine vessel is not a simple task.  For one thing, one must hold a “Renaming Ceremony” where we toast the vessel, give a tribute to the GOD of the water, seas, rivers, lakes.  This ceremony must be attended by friends and supporters.  They must cheer the new owner (me) and tell the god of the sea that we have given a great ceremony with good food and drink.  We must pour at least a half bottle of champagne over the pulpit (anchor spit) with the contents flowing into the water for the benefit of Poseidon/Neptune and to beg his favor for fair winds and good seas.  Once the renaming ceremony has been completed, the new name of the yacht can be uncovered (it should already be painted on the stern and covered until after the ceremony beseeching has been accomplished.

What fun huh?

From this point forward, I will strive to provide an update on a regular basis of the progress toward the acquisition and decorating, along with a description of the voyage from the Dundalk area (next to Baltimore, MD) down the Bay to the Potomac and then up that river to our berthing at the Capital Yacht Club.

Wish us luck in all these endeavors.  We are going to need it.