There are few things that I have come to dread as much as the season of Varnish.  We have owned this boat since 1999.  For each of those years I have spent a good deal time caring for the teak decks and the other teak above deck.  When we first purchased Bristol Blue she was covered with Cetol, decks and all other teak above deak.  I stripped all the Cetol off by the 4th year we had the boat.

I have used all the major brands of Varnish commercial available.  Some is thin as water others a thick as molasses, all of them have there own characteristic.  None of them satisfied my desire….which I have to admit is a little crazy, but some of them came closer.  My desire is to get from Varnish season to the next.

My failure is that I do not like Varnishing.  I do like removing it.  I am fast, clean and the end result is a nice looking piece of teak.  I am conflicted.  My husband, Ned really likes Varnish.  I want to make him happy.  I have been trying year after year to accomplish this objective.  Now that I am old, and kneeling is not a friendly activity I want this whole process to take as little time as possible.

He discovered a Varnish used by the French Navy while we were bumming around in Southern California waiting for the hurricane season to pass so that we could go back to Mexico.  The Varnish is called Le Tonkinois.  It is a linseed and tung oil based Varnish. It gives a rich, deep glow to the teak and you do not have to sand between coats.  I am smiling!  Re-coating  after 24 hours.  If you like a hassle free experience it is my suggestion that you give it a try.  Did I mention that you can apply it over existing Varnish with a lite sanding with 220 grit paper!!!! I am smiling again.  If you want to see how it looks drop over to D-dock #60.   Oh I forgot one thing, I will be putting on six coats per side this year.  I am determined to make it through to the next Varnish season.  Ever the optimist.

Half the boats have finished and some are moored at Bell Harbor

https://www.clipperroundtheworld.com/race/standings

The Port is drilling test sites in the marina parking lot in preparation for the restroom construction. In marked areas, cars are to be moved by April 21st.

In light of last weekend’s boat break-in (see previous post by Kristen), it should go without saying that we need to be more diligent in our personal safety. It appears nothing could have stopped the break-in on Solana on A-dock (if the bad guys are determined, they will find a way) but we can all do what we never thought was needed here at Shilshole…

• Lock your boat when you leave, even for a short while..most crimes are “crimes of opportunity”
• Keep your personal effects out of site (wallet, phone, keys, handheld instruments, hard drives)
• Inventory your boat-VHF, SSB, computer, personal effects with serial number, value, and keep in a separate place
• lock your dinghy and outboard to the dock or boat
• move valuable items on deck out of site or out of reach from the dock; remove snatch blocks from rail, cover electronics
• boat theft is rare but it does happen-keep your boat keys or battery switch key out of site
• keep your eye open for strangers on the dock or on your neighbor’s boat-don’t be afraid to ask who they are and what they are doing there…if they belong, no worries, if not, you may scare them off.
• don’t let people “tailgate” you through the gate. If they just want to “look at boats” send them to the office to get a pass

Of course, as always…”if you see something, say something”!  Call 911 for any emergency-medical, fire, sinking, burglary. Call the Port 24-hr mobile number (you should have this in your phone) 206-601-4089 for anything/anybody out of the ordinary-they will investigate and/or get the Port Police down to check out the situation.

It takes all of us to watch out for our neighbors, and liveaboards, by definition, have a much better opportunity to know what’s happening on a daily basis.

March 27, 2016 Solana, a sailboat near the end of A-dock was broken into: a computer, a make-up bag and some keepsakes were taken.
The security camera caught the thief as he made his access to A-dock.
The Port Police were called by the owners when they returned to their boat.
I contacted the marina office this morning for addition information.
Not much was learned.
I will ask the Port Police for more details tonight on the V-MAN NET AT 8 pm. The information I have gathered was given to me by a long time live aboard on A-dock. I trust his account as he spoke directly to the owner(s) of Solana.
According to the office staff an ax was used to break in to the boat.
Solana was securely locked the thief made a big mess of the companion way door and surrounding wood structure.

If you or anyone you know saw this guy on the wharf, in the parking lots or on the dock please contact the office or the Port Police. It is getting warmer and more people will be in the marina. See something, Say something, Please.

Solana did not deserve this.

Problems are part of starting anything. We are sorry to say we are experiencing some problems with signing new users up. Please be patient and hang in there. We are working on the issues.

Our Webmaster has recently changed the software that controls our registration of new members.  It will allow new users to register and establish a password, then log in.  As a new user you will not be able to post.  Your status can be up graded to allow post by an administrator.

I am optimistic about this change.

Small Lock Pump Out has been scheduled from 12pm March 14th – 7pm March 25th. This means all boat traffic will be taken through the large locks between these dates. Check here for details of locking through.

Just thought this would bring a smile to all you sailors out there. I caught this between the rain squalls yesterday.

Hello neighbors…thanks to all that showed up for Tues’ meeting where the Port provided restroom usage stats and concept layout drawings.  There were about 60 marina tenants attending.

Here is their website with the drawings…What’s Ahead for Shilshole Bay Marina?

If you have questions, comments or suggestions, you can send an email to the Shilshole Outreach mail box at Shilshole-Outreach@portseattle.org