“SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 2 AM TO 4 PM EDT FRIDAY…

The National Weather Service in Gray has issued a Small Craft

Advisory, which is in effect from 2 AM to 4 PM EDT Friday.

* WINDS…North 10 to 20 kt with gusts up to 30 kt.

* SEAS…3 to 6 feet.”

Whenever asked how long our journey will take, I say about 5 weeks, depending on the weather. We are now heading towards being a week behind schedule and we haven’t even left home. Hurricane Leslie is sitting out in the Atlantic making trouble. High winds and high seas and we’re going no where. All we can do now is wait, and continue with more preparations.

No matter what, we never seem to get everything done and are always in a rush. I’m sure organized people don’t have the same problem but it’s a constant with us. This extra week foisted upon us is giving us more time to truly be ready. Gradually we’ve been bringing our provisions onto the boat. Today we’ll bring some more on board. Mostly it will be non-perishable food items and clothes.

If there is good news the plumber stood us up earlier this week. He called Monday and said they wouldn’t be able to make it here on schedule but needed to reschedule for next Monday. That was the first assault on our plans. We were looking for a plan “B” when the Small Craft Warnings started popping up. Plan “A” was having the pipes drained in the house for the winter on Monday, then spending the night on the boat. We would then leave first thing Tuesday morning. The delay could have been much worse if we were without plumbing in the house.

I’ve been worried about how we can get all this onto the boat. Tim’s been worried about where it will fit on the boat. With the delay we’ve been able to make several trips out to load items onboard. Now that the larger items are already on Little Prince (LP) I’m less concerned. Where the rest of it will go, I have a good handle on, so I’ve been named the quartermaster. I always wondered what a quartermaster was, now I know. “The cave” as it is known, is a small berth a step down on the port side of the boat. If kids were on board, I’m sure they’d think it was a fun place to sleep. I don’t know of any adults who would feel the same. That’s where the bulk of our storage lies.

Today’s plan is to bring LP out to get fuel and up to the dock for the last provisions besides the perishables and ourselves. I’m not considering us to be perishable. The extra time will also allow us to get things more organized at home and onboard. We have no excuses now.