S/V Koinonia Weekly Sailing Log - The End Is In Sight (Wed Feb 21st - Tue Mar 5th, 2024)
Highlights this week: two week update; the end is finally in sight for all of the boat work in the yard; lots of good times with friends in SXM; moms and dads have a dinner date; the girls get haircuts; we host a cookout with friends at the yard.
Wed Feb 21 - regular school day; rainy and cooler today. Ben woke up in the middle of the night and had to remove the masking from the scuppers along the side decks to allow the water to drain. Yard workers arrived early and started working for about an hour but got rained out. Ben took the kids over to SV Quizami and Anthony went with Ben to run a few errands. Returned to Koinonia and picked up Amber and went to SV Quizami for sundowners and a chat. Amber made a meat pie braid with the leftover grilled chicken, broccoli and cheese. Kids started watching, “Driving Miss Daisy.”
Thu Feb 22 - regular school day. Ben woke up early to help the guys sand the primer on the boat. Learned that two of the guys who have been working on our boat from Dominica were deported on Monday due to not having work permits. Ben and the guys worked all day sanding the hull. The SV Quazami kids came over after school and played all afternoon. Amber made potato leek soup for dinner. Kids finished watching “Driving Miss Daisy.”
Fri Feb 23 - regular school day; Ben worked with the contractors all day today to mask the boat and prep for painting the topcoat with Awlgrip. Finished work around 4:45, then loaded up and went to hang out with the regular crew at Buccaneers.
Sat Feb 24 - late morning. Weather a bit iffy in the morning so no painting possible today. Kids met for a picnic at the field at 10:00 and the parents hung out for a bit, then SV Quizami kids came to spend the night on the boat. Moms and dads went for a nice dinner date at O’ Ploungeior.
Sun Feb 25 - beautiful day; breakfast with friends aboard “Koinonia” with pancakes, pastries, fresh fruit, OJ, tea and coffee. Cruisers church at the field at 9:30. Returned to the boat and made lunch. Amber developed a really bad migraine. Kids went back to the field to play with friends while Ben wiped down the hull to remove all the dust from sanding.
Mon Feb 26 - regular school day. Amber did laundry. We got off the boat for the day and Ben and the contractors worked to prepare the boat to paint. Rain threatened throughout the day, but we prayed and the rain went all around us, raining heavily, everywhere but in Marigot, where we were. Sandwiches for lunch, then the guys started painting. Kids played at the field in the afternoon. Two coats successfully applied before sunset. Ordered Chinese for supper.
Tue Feb 27 - regular school day; met with contractors and determined we need to sand the hull back at least one coat and paint again.
Wed Feb 28 - regular school day; Ben and the contractors spent the entire day sanding and preparing the hull to paint tomorrow. It was a very full day. The kids played all afternoon at the field, per usual.
Thu Feb 29 - regular school day; painted the boat today with three more coats of Awlgrip in the color “Aqua Mist.” Weather was perfect for paint and we had almost no issues this time with sagging or runs. The imperfections we did find will buff out easily. Kids played at the field after school.
Fri Mar 1 - dropped off an empty propane tank at Island Water World to get refilled then took the girls to get haircuts on the Dutch side of the island. Ben worked on the message for church on Sunday while eating breakfast at a nearby restaurant. The kids begged to go to Burger King, of all places, for lunch so we indulged them. On the way back home, stopped and had tea with our friends on SV Quazami. Then went back home and did a few small chores; Ben taped off the waterline of the hull so we can start priming the bottom. Got ready and went to Buccaneers for kid’s night.
Sat Mar 2 - Ben and Amber went to Island Water World to buy some supplies to start painting the bottom and pick up our propane tanks, but the propane guy still hadn’t returned the bottles. Went back to the yard and wiped the boat down and painted until we had to leave to meet friends at Simpson Bay Beach. Played at the beach from mid afternoon until dinner. Ate at the restaurant “Little Jerusalem” and had the most delicious shawarmas. Highly recommend! Kids spent the night with our friends on SV Quazami.
Sun Mar 3 - beautiful day. Went to the field for Cruisers Church and a new family joined us. Ben played Ukulele for worship instead of guitar this week. After church, we had a potluck on SV Quizami, then tea. Went back to the home and filled the water tanks. Weather looks good for painting tomorrow.
Mon Mar 4 - another beautiful day. The contractors prepped and painted the boot and cove stripes (accent stripes) on Koinonia today. Amber did a massive load of laundry at the laundromat, while Ben applied primer to the bottom. The yard manager went ballistic on the contractors, something he has become notorious for doing, so we are very motivated to leave the yard as quickly as possible. Amber joined to help with apply primer. A few more days of good weather and we will be able to finish painting.
Tue Mar 5th - regular school day. Pulled the tape and plastic masking off the hull today. Applied another coat of primer/ barrier coat to the bottom of the hull. Had a cookout at the yard with friends at 5:30. We had American chili cheese dogs and Danish hotdogs with homemade sesame buns, remoulade, pickles and mustard.
God Bless
S/V Koinonia