Boston Boating Blog

Okay, I am not a fan of folks that create blog posts that say – “Sorry I haven’t updated in a while…” so I am not going to apologize.  Instead I’ll tell ya about what ‘we’ (the marina folk) have been up to as best I can and tell you we are all upset the season is over and we are all looking forward to the 2010 boating season.  (If you don’t believe me, I was convinced by Ryan to find a ‘count down timer’ widget to put on the blog that is counting down the days until April 16 – the day after tax day – to put the boat back in the water – check it out.)

So the big delay in the blog was after the Labor Day party I took off to Germany for 2 weeks for work.  It was a great trip.  The middle weekend I ran into one of my college roommates I hadn’t seen in 18 years – since college.  He and his family are living in Munich.  Chris took me around Munich and gave me a great tour and we got caught up – it was great.

The other season, come to find out, that a bunch of us are passionate about is the hockey season.

This year my friend Brian and I have a few seats to a bunch of Bruins games.  Ryan is passionate about the B’s and on Halloween Tony, Kathy, Ryan, Paul, Betty, Frank, Dale and bunch of other folks got a box at the Bruins.  They had a blast.

We will be looking forward to the Boston Boat Show this year.  It is always fun to look at new toys.  Rumor has it that Kathy and Tony upgraded already We shall see and are anxious to check it out.

Tony and Kathy held a great party at their house in NH for their daughter who is entering the Navy.  It was great to see them, they have a great pad, and a bunch of folks from the marina showed up and we hung out and had some FANTASTIC food.

Other than that not much is going on. Donna and I frequent our favorite Korean / Japanese Restaurant in Newton called Apgujung.  Jim is the bar tender there and he is super friendly and has become a good friend.  He even helped us celebrate Labor Day at the Marina.  I highly recommend checking out the joint.  Jackie, the owner is a great guy, always makes you fell welcome and does some great experimentation w/ Sushi and other dishes.

Steve and I are also working on Paul’s new web site for Reel Pursuit.  I am psyched to do it and I hope it lives up to Paul’s expectations, we want to make it great.

Donna and I are also redoing our kitchen, well I should say Donna is redoing our kitchen and I am sure it is going to be AWESOME.  If you don’t know, Donna is a kitchen designer by trade – the best in Boston I may add and is the Owner Operator of Venegas and Company.  If you need a kitchen in and around New England, its worth a trip to the Boston Design Center and check it out.

The marina Christmas party is in a couple of weeks and that should be fun.  We have a bunch more hockey to see.  I am planning on having folks over to watch the Olympics this year.  Olympic hockey is always great.

Well, I am sure there will be lots more news between now and the Boat Show – which is usually the start of the Boating Blog for the season, however not sure there will be many updates between now and then.  So, Merry Christmas, Happy Holiday’s and Happy New Year to all.  May it be safe and I look forward to boating and blogging next season.

Captain Steve K

Captain’s Blog – Stardate April 17, 2009

There it is, look at that weather post for yesterday.  Easily the best day of the season so far.  After a failed attempt last weekend – due to an torrential downpour, we postponed the boat launch until today.  I headed to the marina at 6:30 am, took a taxi to East Coast Flight Craft (where I have the boat serviced – and they do an outstanding job) where we would take the boat to Salem for an early launch on a high tide.

I happened to mention to Dale, great service guy at East Coast, that last year one of my trim tabs had stopped working, so in a jiffy, Dale did some troubleshooting and found the problem.  This put us behind schedule about 2 hours, but it was well worth it in the end.

We trailered the boat through Middelton and Danvers and launched the boat in Danvers.  Every thing went smooth.  Boat was waxed and looking sharp, it started right up when we put it in the water, I backed it off the trailer and was on my way at about 10:30.  It was warm, and sunny, and the water was nice a calm.  I brought the boat out the channel and after the no wake zone fired her up to about 2800 rpms and in no time flat was easily doing 30 knots.  I took the boat around to Presidents Row in Boston Harbor in about 45 min where I coasted in the rest of the way at about 10 knots and enjoyed being one of the only boats in the harbor.  I gave a call to Donna Julie, working in HER new showroom at Venegas and Company in the Boston Design Center.  I drove by the ICA, the New England Aquarium and the left side of the shoreline.  I put up all the ropes and fenders and called in to Constitutuion Marina on Channel 69 so see if my slip was ready to pull into.  It was, and with that I headed down the fairway and – all by myself, put the boat in to slip E 60.  I washed her down, powered her up, and covered her and we are now, officially ready to start the 2009 boating season.  Stay tuned for more updates and follow Captain SteveK on twitter for updates.

Posted by Captain SteveK

Okay, so I have gotten a lot of crap for not rounding out the end of our boating year. A lot of people have asked, “Where is the boat?”, “Did you take it out of the water?”… etc

The answer is yes, but not before one of the GREATEST boat rides ever of the summer. My sister, my wife and I made one last run to Stellwagon and let me tell you we saw some of the greatest marine life ever, including this HUGE Ocean Sunfish (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_sunfish). Here is Donna getting friendly with “Fred” as my sister affectionately named her / him / it…

As we got further out, we also saw a bunch of whales. In fact, my sister actually saw one jump out of the water and make the big splash while Donna and I were facing forward and missing the show. According to my sister anyway, the show was fantastic. We got pretty close to them as you can tell.
Donna also spotted a huge school of Tuna fish jumping which we weren’t as lucky to get so close too but it was amazing none the same.

We knew heading home that day, that we had one of the best days ever.

The next day Donna and I refueled the boat and headed North to Beverly where we would dock the boat one last time and our very good friends from East Coast Flight Craft would pick up the boat and store it for us over the winter.

Here is us getting ready to head North.

At least this is one guy I won’t miss this winter…

So that was our summer… It was OUTSTANDING. This winter we are really missing the boat.

Hence the title of this blog, Year End, Year Begin. What is it they say every “new year” “Out with the old, in with the new”? Well, you know what time it is? It is New England Boat Show time. That is right, January 12, to the 20th, the place where it all started a year ago is happening again.

My dad came up on Saturday and he and Donna and I walked around the show looking for that perfect vessel. We saw some interesting boats I will tell you.

Well, if you get a chance to make it to the show, maybe I will see you there. If not, I am sure I will see you in Boston Harbor – in April you can look for us, we can’t wait to get out there.

Oh, I also had a comment on one of my blogs from a guy in Florida who also owns a Cobalt. Thanks for the note. I will keep posting and hopefully people will keep reading.

Now it is time to sign up for my captains license…

Today I went out on the open seas with my friend Steve. I did not know this until today, however Steve is very famous. Steve has just been awarded a very prestigious award, from the Boston judges of news papers on his outstanding skills as a “witty dude”. Now, I have always known Steve to be witty, however, in this recent scare around identity theft, Steve came up with a very crafty title, in stead of “What’s in your wallet” (clever slogan from Capital One) Steve came up with “Who’s in your wallet!” I like that… but I digress…

Steve and I took a nice tour of the harbor of Boston and today I did something I had never done before. I went into Marina Bay, asked for a slip for lunch, parked and went to the restaurant and had a nice meal. I know, doesn’t sound like much but since my increase in driving confidence after my classes with Jim, I have a lot less fear about parking and going into places.

After our lunch, we toured around George’s Island and then back to the dock. Pretty easy trip today.

Tomorrow the weather looks fantastic! Updates to follow.

Okay, so it has been a while since I updated this crazy thing. It is one of those things, you start and you have the greatest intentions, but then you get busy, and well, you know…

So this summer we have done a TON of boating. We have spent over 200 hours on the water, 150 on the Donna Julie II alone and this week we are headed out on vacation. I am not sure what we are going to do during the week but for Labor Day weekend, we are headed to the Vinyard. I am excited about this.

This summer we have seen some pretty cool stuff. We were out in the harbor when the turned the Constitution around. We saw the 4th of July fireworks from the dock. We have also made some good friends at the marina.

We have seen some pretty amazing boats in the harbor as well. This is a photo of the “Turmoil” owned by the Founder of Lands End. This is a beautiful boat used for exploring. After one of our new marina friends did some research we found that this boat had circumnavigated the North pole starting in the Pacific Ocean. The only boat to do this since the early 1900’s. Additionally this boat carried a Hinkley Picnic boat as it’s run about. (Very Nice)

Also, as you can see, my dad made a couple of trips down and this time he did some “skippering” of the boat. It has been nice to have him down for a visit. He takes the train, I pick him up, we do some boating, catch a burger and then he catches the evening train home.

A few weeks ago this summer, I went to Knoxville, TN to see the launch of the new Cobalt 47. This is one BEAUTIFUL yacht. It has a ton of cool features such as the Zuse drive system, a “skyhook” connected to the GPS system and an in-board modular control system by E-Plex. And for just $950K this boat could be yours. No, I didn’t go to buy one, but I do hope at some point during this winter I can help the guys at East Coast Flightcraft sell one and perhaps make some commission $$$.

Also, it is getting close to the time when I can start my captain’s license classes. Who knows, maybe if I sell a company or two more, I can retire and drive the Ferry back and forth to P-town…

Aside from just more of the same – heading out of the harbor on some new adventure, it has been status quo. I promise to keep up the blog – especially during this vacation and as we venture off to Martha’s Vinyard this coming weekend.

Keeping it between the buoy’s this is Captain Steve signing off.

Great conditions as you can see.

Air Temperature: 78 Degrees
Water Temperature: 51 Degrees – wish I had my suit.

Donna and I took the day off and did some power lounging on our power boat. We had a great day – again!

We took a ride up to Gloucester and saw some more of the sites in the harbor. We also say some big fishing trawlers heading out to drag the ocean.

We also saw various other sites while in Gloucester – a nice old wooden boat being restored, the lobsterman coming in with a flock of sea gulls and a good samaritan towing someone in.

As we headed back to Boston Donna drove. She is really getting the hang of this whole captain thing and I am really getting used to relaxing.

We took some time and floated out in the open ocean and saw the sites. The Environmental Police came out and said “hi”. Two trips two boardings. We have some safe waters here in Boston.

I figured out how to use the GPS to tell me which course to follow. I knew I would figure it out.

During our ride, we confirmed the new arrival of the Donna Julie II. We are very excited for that.

We pulled into our slip at around 6:30, and again, we did a good job parking. Now that I am used to it, I am going to throw everything off with a bigger boat. Oh well. Practice, practice, practice.

Another great day on the water.

So, Saturday before Mother’s Day. We get up and go pick up Donna’s mom because we have an errand to do before the “ladies” go get their hair done. As we are riding to Middleton Donna’s mom asks, “Donna, may I ask you a question?” to which Donna replies, “Sure mom”. Gloria asks, “Where are we going?” – Donna and I look at each other and laugh out loud. Gloria loved the ride, but was very curious as to where we were going.

We are going to look at the Donna Julie II – a Cobalt 323 with a cuddy cabin. Our new home away from home, the new oasis. Donna and I took a trip to East Coast Flightcraft so I could get permission to upgrade our 282, which we have owned for whole month now… Yup, we are doing it. Here it is – out of the water…

There she is… We can’t wait. We take deliver in two weeks. Drive the Donna Julie to Beverly and take this one from Beverly back to Boston. Wow.

Now the ladies go and get their hair done and then Donna and I decide to take a ridge on the Donna Julie. Conditions are pretty good. I am now using a cool web site called Buoyweather.com. I can select the buoy in Boston Harbor and get the weather conditions. Here is the same details I use to type out (and the legend). Pretty good stuff. I am thinking of signing up for the service for even more detail.

We took a short ride by Spectacle Island and went to the entrance of Hull Harbor and turned around and came home. Donna did some more of here artsy photograpy as you can see…

Taking our picture together is always fun.

We were boarded by the Coast Guard who came on board for a “Safety Inspection” (quite frankly I think they were board and it was getting late and we were coming in so it was last piece of work before the end of a shift). You know what, that is a okay. That is what they are out there for and it was a good experience.

Next we took the boat into our slip and this time, I went very very slow and was very patient and I backed the boat into our slip very well. (I think I am getting the hand of this.

We cleaned up the boat, had a cocktail and headed home. Another GREAT day on the water.

Tonight our house is being shown so Donna and I decided to go for a boat ride tonight. I asked Sebastian (dock master at Constitution Marina) when the fuel docs close, as we need some fuel now. He said basically they all close at 4:30 and it’s now 5:00. We decided to stay on the dock and have some dinner.

I walked up to the hotel and on the ground floor they have a sandwich shop. I got Donna and I a couple of sandwiches, some chips and some beverages. Donna met some new friends – the ducks. She decided to name them David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez (from the Red Sox because the ducks seem to follow each other everywhere).

We hung out on the boat, did a little cleaning, had some dinner and then took a walk around the docks and checked out the other boats. We met some new friends (people this time) on A-Dock. They were just hanging out like we were, having some food and drink and just loved being on the water. Their boat is called the “Bad Puppy II” and they have two very nice looking Boxers.

Donna and I went back to the boat, shut it up and then headed for home.

Tomorrow Captain Mike is coming down to do the 30 hour service and Friday we are heading up to East Coast Flightcraft to look at the 323 – I am very excited about this. I am also looking forward to going for a boat ride soon.

Until next time.

Now, no one every said I was a rational dude. Today I called East Coast Flightcraft to schedule my 20 hour service (with 30 hours on the engines). I decided to speak to Danny, the owner, because he is a great dude and wanted to say “hi” and that I really appreciate all his help and that we really love the boat.

Danny asks how many hours I have on the boat and I tell him “30″ and he starts laughing, he knows we love it. Then he drops the bomb.

See, we bought the 282 – bow rider – as a day cruiser so Donna could get used to being out on the boat. Having the bow rider meant we may be able to bring more people. Well, so far, no one, has ridden in the bow while we have been underway (could be because it is still a bit chilly here in the north east).

Additionally, Donna and I have been talking that, if we had a cuddy cabin, we would sleep on it on the weekends and could even take it to the Vinyard now.

Also, during East Coast Flightcraft’s demo days I drove the 323. This boat had been purchased by a guy who buys a the new latest and greatest Cobalt each year and sells it at the end of the year. At the time I thought that perhaps Donna and I had bought the wrong boat. So, I mentioned to Danny that when this boat is traded back in, to please let me know and Donna and I would take a look at it.

So most of you now know where this is going. As I am speaking to Danny, he tells me that the guy had the boat in the water for a week and decieded to go bigger to the Cobalt 343 right away. This meant that this boat is now available. WOW. Also, Donna and I were chatting this weekend and thought we would definately upgrade next year. Now we have a delima.

We really love the ocean and being out on the water, so much so we want a cuddy.
The bigger boat would be even better for how we use the boat.
East Coast is giving me a great deal not only on the 323 but on traiding in my boat.

Last night Donna and I went down and sat on the boat and thought about the differences and what we would get with the other boat. It would be like a floating condo and we have always wanted property on the water. Now we would be in it. Also, you have probably seen in some of the blog entries that we have been looking a property to move to. The main reason is we have no outdoor space. With the boat, we have it, so it is possible that we don’t need to look for a new place, but who knows.

So, stay tuned – this should be an intesting saga. (Now I am really loosing sleep at night.)