Life on the hard
Since we’ve been over the whole boat buying process, I want to tell you about what it’s like to live on the boat. Most specifically, I want to tell you about living in the boat on the hard. Right now, it’s like living in an RV at an RV park except we aren’t able to use everything that our boat is equipped with. We can’t use the AC (because its water-cooled and we aren’t in the water), dishwasher, washing machine, or showers and the sink use is limited because grey water just drains right overboard. On the hard, the galley sink is useable because it drains through a hose into a 5 gallon bucket that must be dumped frequently. We are able to use our own toilets which is nice. We get those pumped out once a week by the same company that maintains the port-o-potties at the end of the dock.
Here’s a few things you should know about the yard: 1) it’s right next to the Port of Palm Beach, and there’s a cruise ship line that operates out of the port (more on that later) 2) the port is a 24/7 working port, so noise is always coming from there 3) on the other side of the yard is a marina 4) there is a “clubhouse” 6) across the inlet is Peanut Island.
I’m sure you’re wondering what the problem with the cruise ships are. It’s not the noise or the sight, those really aren’t that big of a deal and it’s nicer to look at the ship than the containers behind it. These are old ships and they don’t show it in the facade so much as in the exhaust. It smells horrible, the smoke that comes off of it is outrageous (it fills the yard and the marina next door and lingers), and along with the smoke comes soot. These little black dots of evil float in the air and stick to everything. It doesn’t just stick to the outside of the boat either. It comes in and gets on the cushions, floors, counters, basically anything sitting out and in our cabins. Little dots of soot on our bedding and if you leave your closet open it’ll get on your clothes. It’s like a pest that you just can’t get rid of. If you’re a little sweaty from the heat of the day, it’ll stick to you. There is no escape. Even though we have to deal with that, I won’t write off the cruise ship in it’s entirety. It does make a nice sound barrier and visual block for the port, and overall it isn’t that bad. There’s some occasional beeping and other “working sounds,” but it isn’t close enough to be intrusive. It’s sort of like living by the train tracks.
About the “clubhouse,” it’s not really a clubhouse… obviously. The chandlery, as I’m told it’s called, is the building at the entrance of the yard where you check in, schedule haul out times, buy products, etc. Well, on the back of the building is where the bathrooms are. Mom calls it the “clubhouse” to make herself feel better, plus she can never remember chandlery. This is where the showers are. Of course, there’s a men’s and a women’s restroom and inside each is a sink, two stalls, and one shower. It’s clean enough, but we still don’t walk in there barefoot. When we go to shower we put on our shower shoes (just some rubber flip flops) and take our bag with all of our shower stuff, a change of clothes, and a towel. There are hooks in the shower where we can hang our towel and bag while we shower. I personally have two bags: one smaller one with my shower necessities in it, put inside a bigger bag that holds my clothes and after shower items (like a comb and lotion). This way I can take things out one by one while I shower and I don’t have to put anything on the little rack in the shower or on the floor, I have a thing about that. Like I said, its not too bad. Yeah we have to walk across the yard to take a shower, but we get to take a hot shower.
If you aren’t familiar with Peanut Island, it’s a tiny peanut shaped island that is right in the middle of the intercostal. It only takes a few minutes to walk around the entire island, it’s a really pleasant walk. We’ve taken our dinghy across and hung out on the island, throwing a stick for Stella and playing in the water. It sounds sort of juvenile, but it was really a lot of fun. If we didn’t want to take our dinghy out there is a shuttle that runs back and forth from the marina to the island. I believe it costs $12, and if I’m not mistaken that’s round trip. Being there reminds me of being at the lake back in Colorado. In the sunshine, listening to music and playing in the water.
Speaking of the marina, it’s nice to have right next door for a couple of reasons. There is a restaurant there, called Rafiki Tiki. It’s an open air, seat yourself restaurant with good food and the ambiance is fun. We like to go on walks to stretch our legs and get off the boat a little and the docks are a really nice place to do so. The boats are nice to look at and generally the people are really nice as well. Some people are more chatty than others, and when someone does want to talk it’s nice to be able to ask them questions about life on the water (especially if they are on a sailboat, and most specifically on a catamaran).
Overall, living on the hard isn’t all that bad, but it does give us some incentive to work through this refit as quickly as possible to get back in the water and really start living the cruiser life. We are actually going to go eat dinner at Rafiki Tiki tonight and are about to head out. So cheers and I look forward to seeing you back here on Sunday.
Stay tuned here and on our social media for more updates on the refit!
Thanks,
Syd