What Cruisers Want To Know About The Bahamas

This is not usually the time of year most cruisers think about going to the Bahamas. But this is the time of year that a few adventurous cruisers know the anchorages will be a whole lot less crowded and the marinas will be offering deals. What got me thinking about the Bahamas was a presentation that Susan and I recently gave to the MTOA (Marine Trawler Owners Association) in Stuart Florida for their Southern Rendezvous. This year the Rendezvous was held at the Hutchinson Island Marriott Beach Resort & Marina. MTOA functions are well-attended and this one was no exception. The presentation covered some of the important questions that cruisers heading over for the first time ask.

Preparations.
To get to the Bahamas, the boat and crew need to be prepared well before the departure from the U.S. First and foremost, the boat must be ready for an open-water crossing of the Gulf Stream. Make no mistake, this is a serious transit and should not be taken lightly. A full complement of current safety equipment needs to be on board and in good working order. The usual equipment, such as flares, signaling devices and flotation devices, to name a few, are a must. Good communications equipment is also essential. Unless you are in sight of another boat, at some point, the VHF and cell phones will not help in contacting someone should you need help. An HF radio is a very good option.

The crew needs to be prepared as well. Are some prone to seasickness and will this be their first crossing? If so, are there seasick remedies on board. Nothing is worse than a debilitated crew when you need them. If specific medications or prescriptions are needed, be sure to fill all of those beforehand. Does anyone on board have any special needs that might not be available in remote areas of the Bahamas? All of this needs serious consideration and should be addressed well before heading off.

Provisioning the vessel is another daunting task. Many items are cheaper to purchase in the U.S. and much easier to find. Other items are cheaper in the Bahamas due to government subsidies. Any special dietary requirements should be well-stocked.


What Should I Know?
The big questions are, where should I cross, what weather is best to cross and can I get cell phone service in the Bahamas? In years past, the big questions included, what direction should I take to cross the banks, where are the best anchorages and where can I get provisions? Now everyone wants to know about cell phones and Internet service. Is that what cruising has become? How do we stay online and still be able to call home? I did my best to answer some of those questions, especially for the several boats that planned to cross for the first time.

Where Do Your Cross From?
That depends on where you want to go. If heading for the Abacos, the best place to leave might be Ft. Lauderdale. Many cruisers cross over to West End from Lake Worth Inlet. While that is the shortest distance, you will have to take a heading south to go east, and since West End is slightly south of Lake Worth you will actually be working against the Gulf Stream and you don't want to do that. The Gulf Stream is a river of water that runs from south to north between the Florida coast and the Bahamas. The currents can run from 2 1/2 knots up to 4 knots. Going against the current will slow you down and make the trip longer. But if you take advantage of the current, you can get a boost in speed and cover a longer distance in less time. Lake Worth to West End is about 56 miles, while Ft. Lauderdale to West End is about 69 miles, but can be done in less time. Of course, this also depends on how fast your boat can go. Likewise, it is a better run from Ft. Lauderdale to Freeport rather than Lake Worth. The same applies for transiting to Bimini or Cat/Gun Cay. Miami is a much better angle to cross, and Key Biscayne, even better.

What is the right weather to cross?
We have often sat behind Key Biscayne for days waiting for the right weather window to cross over. If I can offer any advise on weather to make the crossing, it can be summed up in three words. Wait, wait and wait. We had the opportunity to spend some time with Bruce Van Sant (Gentleman's Guide To Passages South) and he gave us some excellent advise for making the crossing. (Special note: as of 03/09/2012 Bruce let us know that he is putting out a 10th Edition.) Wait until the weather forecast is appropriate and is the same for at least today, tonight and tomorrow. That means a good forecast for at least 48 hours, with no fronts or significant changes in wind strength or direction. Crossing the Gulf Stream can be anywhere from uncomfortable to downright dangerous if attempted under the wrong conditions. A crossing should never be attempted with winds out of the northern quadrant and over 10 to 12 knots. Even 10 knot northerlies blowing for a couple of days will make for a very uncomfortable ride. Also, allow 24 hours for the seas to lay down after a northern blow. A north wind against a strong southerly current can make for some nasty seas.

So what is the right weather? Ideally, southerly winds in the northerly flowing Stream are best, as long as they are not blowing too hard. Wind and current should be running in the same direction. But as we all know, as boaters, ideal almost never happens. What you will find more most often is easterly winds, and occasionally westerlies. As long as these are light to moderate, you can make a safe crossing and still be fairly comfortable. For sailors, this means motoring all the way over in east winds. We much prefer a crossing that would have us motoring, since it means light conditions. Typically, we would leave from behind Key Biscayne at around 5 a.m. and cross over onto the banks in the early afternoon. This puts the sun behind you when arriving in the shallow waters of the banks and gives you better visibility to read the water for depth. Once you have crossed the Gulf Stream, unless you have a very fast boat, you will spend several hours crossing the banks to get to your first destination. Slips are available at West End and the marina at North Cat Cay if you get caught with the weather changing. But those marinas are very expensive and you could get trapped for several days, unable to go anywhere. Again, depending on boat speed, it can take another day to get to the Berry's, New Providence or well into the Abacos. That is the need for a full, two day weather window.

Clearing into the Bahamas.
The current fees for entry into the Bahamas for a boat and crew is $150.00 for a boat up to 35 feet and $300.00 for a boat over 35 feet. The boat is issued a cruising permit valid for 8 months. But the crew is issued visitors visas that technically, by law are good for 30 days. After the 30 days, your stay can be extended. But there are some rules. You must apply for your extension two days before your time is up, and not sooner, and there are specific locations where you can apply for an extension. But as with all things in the Bahamas, this is not always the case. Bahamian Immigrations Officers can, if they choose, give you a visa for 90 days or even 120 days. Where you check in and which Immigration Officer you get will determine how long of a stay you will get. Remember, this is for the crew. The check in fees include a fishing license. It is also important that there be both Customs and Immigrations Officers at your check in. If only a Customs Officer is present, you will only get 30 days since that is all they can legally issue. The best places to check in to get a longer stay are Bimini, Nassau, Chub Cay, West End, Port Lucaya, Marsh Harbor, Freeport or Georgetown. Extensions will not exceed 8 months.

Can I use my cell phone in the Bahamas?
Believe it or not, this is the biggest question I get when discussing cruising in the Bahamas. Verizon probably won’t work and neither will Sprint. Both use CDMA technology which is only supported by BTC in Nassau (for the cruise ship passengers I guess). AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM, as does most of the rest of the world. To have cell phone service in the Bahamas, you will need an unlocked quad band GSM phone. Verizon does have "Global" phones that use both CDMA and GSM, but they will be locked to Verizon. The reason the phones must be unlocked is to allow the purchase and use of BTC Sim Cards. With these Sim cards, you will be able to make calls within the Bahamas with a Bahama's phone number and make and receive calls from the U.S. and elsewhere at a fairly cheaper rate than you might pay in roaming charges should your cell phone from a U.S. provider work. These unlocked phones can be purchased in the Bahamas or in places like Walmart in the U.S. Additional minutes can be added to these Sim cards as needed. You can also rent phones, but this adds the rental charge to your phone expense. To use cell phones in the Bahamas, you will need to be close to a cell tower. Beside major cities like Nassau, Freeport and others, cell towers are located in the Exumas at Highbourne, Staniel, Black Point, Farmers and Great Exuma Cays.  Outside of these areas, you can probably not count on service. The Abacos do seem to have better coverage.


Internet Service.
You can get connected in the Bahamas in many areas, but again, the remote Cays will not have WiFi service. There are several paid services available in many populated harbors, and you can pay as you go for a day, week or subscribe for longer service. This will be expensive compared to what might be found in the U.S., but if you must get online, it is worth it. Don't count on high speed connections equal to broadband. And don't count on always keeping a connection. Free WiFi connections can still be found in some areas, but these are few and far between and should not be counted on. You should also take care in protecting your WiFi connections, and see our post here on some ideas to protect your computer. Internet Cafes are still available in larger settlements, and you can carry your laptop and connect or use the Cafe's computers. Care should be taken to keep your computer dry, especially if you are out in your dinghy. Care should also be taken when using secure sites or transmitting personal information at Internet Cafes.

It truly amazes me that these are the subjects most new cruisers are now interested in prior to their first time in the Bahamas. In previous presentations, folks wanted to know about the availability of provisions, what the best anchoring spots were and where the best snorkeling places could be found. We always had questions about the best course and time to cross the banks and where the really shallow passages were. But things have changed quite a bit and cell phones and Internet Service are the topics of the day. My how times have changed. We have touched on only a few of the things boaters need to know to head over to the Islands. If anyone has any additional questions, you can post them in the Comments section and we will be happy to answer them as soon as we have another WiFi Connection. Good luck, stay safe and above all else, have fun.

                    Update, November 22, 2012 from explorercharts.com

Cellular Phone /Sim card/Data update

Published November 22, 2012 | By Lost Marbles

BTC is now updating their information for all accounts on file (or not on file) with existing cellular phone users, and requiring existing users to sign a new terms and conditions agreement.  If you, like we used to do, just purchased a SIM card from whoever had them for sale, they will no longer work until you visit the BTC office and register the account.  In order to purchase a new SIM card for BTC you must now show photo identification.  So on entering the Bahamas your phone might not work until you visit their office with the ID and if you have been putting money on your account to keep your number active you will still have to go into a BTC office before your phone will work after December 1, 2012.   This applies to data sim cards also.  Here are links to the new terms and conditions and the application for prepaid service pages.  If your phone doesn’t work when you arrive, don’t panic, it is probably due to this new policy.
http://www2.btcbahamas.com/Policies_Procedures_and_Complaints/pdf/BTCGeneralTermsAndConditions.pdf
http://www2.btcbahamas.com/Policies_Procedures_and_Complaints/pdf/applications/WirelessPrepaidServicesOffering.pdf

Be sure and read our follow up post on what to do once your in the Bahamas.

Trying To Get Down The Chesapeake Bay

Our first attempt to get off the dock and get underway was aborted, once again due to a lousy weather forecast courtesy of the NWS. I don't mean the forecast was for lousy weather, instead it was another forecast that did not come close to actual conditions. There were hints that we should probably postpone our departure, but since we have been tied to the dock for so long, we ignored the subtle hints. The forecast winds were to be 10 to 15 out of the northwest and indeed they were. But much more 15 then 10 and the gust were 20 and increasing as the morning progressed. Eventually the gusts reached 25. The hint we ignored was the fact that the tide on the Chesapeake would be incoming most of the day. This put a north flowing current against a wind blowing from the northwest to the southeast. Any time there is wind against tide or current, the seas are considerably larger. That was the case as we headed out of the Magothy and into the Bay. We had pretty big swells rolling right onto our beam, making for a very uncomfortable ride. Beam seas in a trawler are worst case conditions. A quick decision was made to head back to the slip and try again tomorrow. As we turned to head back, we had seas breaking over the bow and splashing up on the windshield. We were only 30 minutes out, so after we turned around, we were back in the slip in another 30 minutes. But even that was no fun at all and we always say, if it ain't fun, why do it. The wind continued all day and began to ease up late in the afternoon. Forecast for the next day was light southerlies at 5 to 10. We'll see.

The next morning we indeed had light winds as forecast. Even though all of the buoy reports said west winds, the NWS insisted the wind was out of the southeast. As we set out, we marveled at the difference a day can make. We THOUGHT smooth seas would be the order of the day. Our destination for the day would be Solomons, Maryland, some 46 miles south of the Magothy. As the day progressed, it was obvious we were making excellent time and would reach Solomons at around one in the afternoon. We decided to look at the situation as we neared our goal for the day and maybe continue a little farther on to make up for our lost day. With light winds and a small chop, we were averaging about 8 knots for our speed.

We were indeed early at the mouth of the Patuxent River, so we decided to continue on and try to make Deltaville, Virginia before dark. According to our GPS, our ETA would be about a half hour before sunset, quite doable unless something changed. And of course we are out in the Chesapeake Bay on a boat so things did change. As we crossed the intersection with the Potomac River, the swells and wind waves began to build. Even though the wind was still only about 10 knots and finally from the southeast, one would think a storm was raging. The farther south we progressed, the bigger the waves and of course since they were on the nose, we were slowing down considerably. It always amazes us how relatively benign conditions on the Bay can become so uncomfortable. The decision was made at around 7 p.m. to head into Ingram Bay and find an anchorage for the night. Our ETA had changed to after sunset and was falling later as our progress slowed. The breaking waves over the bow all the way up to the flybridge also made the decision easier. The wind was still only about 10 knots out of the southeast.

Once in Ingram Bay, the seas flattened out considerably. We usually anchor a little north in the bay in a hook on the south side. But this time we decided to try a new anchorage and turned to port and entered Mill Creek. This is a very nice and well-sheltered creek so we were glad we made the choice. As we were coming in, a small trawler was coming out and there were already a couple of sailboats anchored for the evening. We ran into the creek for about a mile and dropped the hook not too far from one of the sailboats. For the first time, out new Manson Supreme anchor did not take hold right away. Our normal practice is to drop the anchor where we want, and then to back down slowly until we reach about 800 to 900 RPMs to be sure it is set. This time we dragged quite a distance and if we can not set the anchor we know we have to haul it up and try again. That is exactly what we did and we moved a bit farther back into the creek. This time the anchor took hold right away and we settled in for the night. The creek was very lovely, but the odor from the menhaden plant across the bay was pretty bad all night.

The next morning, we were up at 6 a.m. and under way by 7 a.m.. As we left Ingram Bay, it was apparent that things had actually gotten worse since the afternoon before. The bow was virtually out of the water part of the time and then would come crashing down in the swells, making our progress extremely slow. Add to this the millions of floats on crab pots and the situation got tense very quickly. I shudder to think what would happen if our prop was wrapped by one of these lines and we became dead in the water. Not in these seas. The large swells hid the floats until we were almost on top of them. We quickly turned back into Ingram Bay to lick our wounds and rest up until the weather would give us a break.

Listening to reports on the VHF, it was apparent that things were not going to get better anytime soon. And we were only 15 miles from our destination in Deltaville, Virginia. A marina stay for the next few days seemed to be in order so we called Buzzard's Point Marina for transient space since we were familiar with the marina. They had room for us so we headed into the creek at Reedville and proceeded to tie up for a few days. The weather reports will not allow us a window to head down the Bay until Friday. Susan has some work to do in Deltaville, which is not too far away, so it is not a total loss. If we are able to leave on Friday, Norfolk will be our next destination.

Extended Use Tank For A Honda Generator In 4 Easy Steps

One of the pieces of equipment on our to do list is a generator. We much prefer to anchor out when cruising and at times we can get weathered in for days. During those extended stays we still like coffee in the morning, still have the need to recharge the batteries and like to watch TV. All of this uses power and we have been using our handy Honda 2000 portable generator until we can have a more permanent installation. The Honda will handle most of our power needs, with the exception of the air conditioning system. But that suits us just fine for now. One of the things I don't like to do is to fill the built in tank every day when the generator is in constant use and for long term when charging that batteries it might mean shutting the generator down, filling the fuel tank, and starting it again. It is also hard to fill the tank without spilling gas on the deck, especially if the boats gets waked. So, the need for a remote extended fuel tank. To build one of these only takes a few inexpensive fittings, a fuel tank and about an hour of your time, at the most.

The first thing that I did was to buy a spare cap for the built fuel tank in case I messed up doing this, or if I wanted to run without the extended tank. I found it locally for $15.00 from a Honda dealer in the area. Next was to get all of the miscellaneous parts. We decide on a 3 gallon tank instead of the larger 6 gallon since we don't run the generator that much. We already have a 3 gallon tank for the dinghy outboard so this could also be used as a spare. We also decided we wanted to be able to use the same fuel line as the dinghy outboard so we would not have to carry different fuel lines and again it could do double duty. To accomplish this we would need the attachment fitting that would be the same as on the one on the dinghy tank and on our Johnson Outboard. The two fittings totaled about another $15.00 and then another $4.00 for a brass hose barb. The plastic fuel tank was another $25.00 (please read this review before purchasing Moeller fuel tanks). The assembly was pretty easy.

Step 1.
Remove the inner workings of the fuel cap and drill out the center to fit the connector. Be careful to not drill the hole too large. It should be slightly under sized to allow the fitting to be screwed into the plastic cap.

Step 2.
Fill a thin amount of epoxy around the threaded base of the fuel line fitting inside the cap and screw on the female brass hose barb. Allow the epoxy to dry and them replace the rubber gasket inside the cap. The hose barb may or may not be needed but it makes the connection fitting stay in tight and I beleive it will help to draw the fuel into the generators built in tank.

Step 3.
Install the second connector fitting into the fuel tank.

Step 4.
Fill the fuel tank with gas, fill the generator built in fuel tank with gas, connect the fuel lines and start the generator. Be sure the vent on the fuel tank is open. That's it.

It is very important that the cap be completely sealed. If any air can leak at the cap, the generator will not pull fuel from the extended tank. As the vacuum builds up in the internal fuel tank for the Honda, it will pull fuel from the extended tank. Mark the generator tank so that oil will not get added to it by mistake like the outboard tank. The Honda does not require a fuel/oil mix. The Honda will now run for a much longer time and annoy your neighbors for hours.

There are many variations for doing this, using a 6 gallon tank, installing only hose barbs, putting an inline filter in the fuel line. But the basics are the same. This should work just fine for us until the permanent genset is installed.

Changes In Attitude

Susan and I have both given our two weeks notice to Waterway Guide. Our time working there was always to be limited since we knew we wanted to get back on the water and do some cruising again. And that is just what we intend to do. We have always said our plans are written in the sand at low tide. Beach House is not completely ready, but what boat ever is? We have finished a number of projects and feel we can comfortably get back on the water and finish what needs to be done while enjoying the cruising life once again. And what is cruising if not repairing your boat in exotic places? We have a few posts planned for the next couple of weeks. We just finished a presentation at the Marine Trawlers Owners Association Southern Rendezvous in Stuart, Florida. The presentation was on cruising the Bahamas and maybe that is what gave us the itch again. I plan to do a complete post on the presentation; I am working on it now. And, we are making a remote extended fuel tank for our Honda Generator to hold us over until the permanent genset is installed. I will post the how-to on that as soon as it is finished.

Then, look for our cruising posts once again. I can't put into words how excited we are to be back out there and underway instead of tied to a dock and a desk. We look forward to some new cruising experiences and revisiting some of our favorite areas. We are going to start posting some different information other than what we have in the past, although that will be included. We will be adding some new stuff and maybe more in the way of videos. I think it is really going to be interesting, so do come back and check in from time to time. And Susan and I are working on a very special project that we feel will be a real plus for our fellow boaters. So lots of good things are happening, and if you see our yellow bimini out on the waters near you, give us a big wave or even better yet, a shout on the VHF. We look forward to seeing you all out there soon.

Splash Time But Not Spring Time

Soooooo much is going on right now that we sometimes wonder when we will ever get anything done. But the biggest project right now is over, and that is getting the boat splashed and settling back aboard. The new bottom paint and boot stripe look great and we have received some positive comments around the yard on the changes and how great the paint turned out. Getting splashed is just the beginning for us this next week or so.

The prop and rudder look pretty snazzy painted with the Pettit Zinc Paint. The zincs are all in such great shape that we did not have to replace any before the boat was launched. And in the marina we are in, this is a good testament to the electrical work we have done inside the boat. I don't expect a lot from this paint, although there have been many at the yard that swear it works very well. We will have to wait until next fall to see, but after the total failure of the HawkSpeed we applied last season (we are still waiting to hear from the manufacturer), we figure it can't be a whole lot worse. The Chesapeake will also be a good testing ground for the ablative paint.

No matter how many times we have the boat hauled, the time in the Travelift is always a bit anxious. It is one of those situations you have no control over and have to depend on someone else. The boat was lifted early to allow time to paint the bottom of the keel and under the spots where the support pads were. We have had the marina relocate them for us in the past and painted the spots well in advance, but the additional charges don't justify the extra time and we don't see any difference if the paint goes on a hour or so before launch than if it is done the day before.

All went well and the boat did not get dropped. Once it was in the water, but still in the slings, a complete check for any leaks is important. Especially the new thru-hull in the aft head. All of the underwater valves are opened and checked for leaks in the valves and the hoses. The dripless shaft seal is burped to let any air out and make sure there is water in the bellows. Ordinarily this would also be the time to start the engine. But this time, because we were forecast for temps in the 20s for the rest of the week, we decided to walk the boat into the slip and leave the engine winterized. The slip was only a half a dozen down from the Travelift pit. With everything looking good, the straps for the lift were lowered and I could here the sigh of relief from Beach House as she settled into her natural environment.

The marina staff helped me manhandle her into her spot. It took a few minutes to get the dock lines situated and the fenders in place. We still had not raised the mast, it was a bit heavy for just Susan and I, so we waited until we had a few friends available to help. I still need to devise some way for us to easily lower and raise it if we plan to do the Great Loop. That is on my list. In the meantime, the next few days will be pretty hectic moving out of the house we take care of over the winter months and getting settled back on the boat. Then the projects can start all over again. It seems to be a never ending cycle, but we know that the day is coming when this site will be full of cruising tales and not so much work. The light is out there.

Red and Blue and Teal

I can't put into words how good it feels to know that Spring is just around the corner. The trees are beginning to sprout new buds and the grass is showing just a hint of green. That means it's close to getting the bottom of the boat wet, too, and that requires bottom paint, finishing the paint on the boot stripe and the few other projects that are below the waterline. And as you can see, Susan is not having fun right now. I will explain a little later where the red and blue and teal come in.

We have been using a hard bottom paint for about as long as I can remember. This season we are trying something different and going with an ablative.  Our choice is Micron CSC and once the red paint is scuffed and the bottom is prepped, we will be using the black color. We have another few weeks before we have to get the bottom paint applied.

The weather is not cooperating in getting the boot stripe finished either. We put three coats on and the third coat turned out badly because the temps dropped to below 34; the dampness caused the Awlgrip to blush. So it is sitting now waiting for a couple of days of no rain - we seem to be getting it about every three days - and temps to stay above 50 degrees. Oh, this is where the red and blue and teal comes in. The original boot stripe was red, and at some point, a previous owner painted it blue. Now, in the Beach House tradition, we are painting it teal to match the name graphics and some additional accent stripes we plan to paint later.

The head discharge seacock was the last of the 30 year old valves that we had not yet replaced. The intake, which strangely was right next to it, had been removed and relocated last year. We fiberglassed in the old hole but had not yet painted the area, planning on removing this last antique. It had to be cut out with my trusty sawzall and needed some additional fiberglassing and sealing with epoxy before the new bronze seacock was to be installed. At the same time, we replaced the head intake hose and cleaned up some of the old plastic pipe that had been left over from a previous installation of the holding tank.

With the new valve in place, it was fun re-installing the discharge hose for the head. These never go back on the hose barb without a struggle, so it requires a pot of boiling water to stick the end in until it softens enough to slide over the barb. A generous coating of dish soap on the barb and inside the hose helps lubricate everything to make it easier. The trick is to hold the hose in the hot water just long enough to soften it up without overdoing it. Everything receives a fresh coat of paint, and all of the hoses below the waterline are always double clamped. It really looks much better now that this small job is done. We feel better with all new seacocks under the waterline.

Our experience with the HawkSpeed paint for the rudder and prop was a complete failure. When the boat was hauled last fall, most of the prop was bare and the rudder had spots missing with some barnacles on the painted area. The rep from Sea Hawk Paints finally came to look at it, but we have not received a report from him yet. It will be interesting to see what the report reads, since Sea Hawk pulled the paint from the market right after we applied it to our prop and rudder. This season, we are going back to a coating we used several years ago with some success. It is a spray-on zinc coating from Pettit called Zinc Coat Barnacle Barrier. It worked for us as well as any other coating we have used on the running gear and much better than the HawkSpeed. It was a bit of work getting the HawkSpeed off the prop and rudder to get it cleaned up in preparation for the new paint. The Zinc Coat has not been applied yet.

What Do You Do With The Swim Platform?

We have been considering what to do with the swim platform since we bought the boat. It is all teak and the previous owner had treated it with a hardware brand of deck stain, the type you would use around the house. They had coated all of the teak on the boat with it and we have removed and re-done everything but the swim platform. The Cetol we have used on all of the other teak would not be a good choice for this area. It probably would hold up okay, but this area gets wet when we are underway, and with the new dinghy mounted on it, something more durable would be required.

After a lot of thought, we decided to AwlGrip the swim platform just as we did the sampson post and anchor platform. We followed pretty much the same procedure that we posted for that refurbishment. The entire platform is made up of strips of teak that are screwed and epoxied together. Over the last 30 years, some of those strips have started to separate. So the first order of business was to epoxy them back together using West System and screws to pull everything tight and hold it all together. The epoxy was poured between the strips, and clamps were used to tighten it up. Then, holes were drilled into the edges and the screws were installed. The screws were countersunk and hidden from view with bungs. The wood was then completely sealed with epoxy. Everything was thoroughly sand with 120 grit sandpaper.

The next step after sanding was to wipe everything down with a tack cloth, followed by AwlPrep. I use the two cloth method with AwlPrep - one cloth saturated to wipe down and the second dry, to remove the excess AwlPrep. Once everything was dust free, three coats of 545 white primer were applied. Each coat was sanded with 220 sandpaper between coats. Once one side was primed and sanded, the platform was flipped over and the other side done. The fasteners that hold the platform to the brackets on the stern of the boat were covered with blue tape to keep them free of primer and paint.

After the third coat of primer was dry and sanded, three coats of the topcoat were applied. We chose the Sahara Sand, which is the same color that we put on the anchor platform. Now, both ends of the boat will match. Just as with the primer, we sanded with 220 grit paper between coats, and wiped down with tack rags and AwlPrep. AwlGrip calls for sanding with 300 grit, but I have had issues with the paint not adhering to the previous coat with 300 or 400. I have never had that problem using 220 and the finish looks just as smooth. Once one side was completely done, the platform was again flipped and the other side done. 

The finished product looks great and the final step, before putting it back on the boat, is to reinstall the hardware. Both the swim ladder and the Weaver dinghy davits are fairly new, as are all of the fasteners. The stainless always gets a good polishing before we re-install it.

White I was working on the swim platform, the pump for the aft Raritan head got a complete rebuild. It is fairly new, installed by the previous owner, but it had not been working quite right. So the winter down time was a good time to get this done. The rebuild kit can be purchased from West Marine or most other marine supplies. The kits are rather expensive, and there have been times when the cost of a rebuild kit and a couple of extra parts was very close to the price of a complete new head. So take that into consideration if you have to do this. The next step is to re-install everything back on the boat.