Update...Video of the new galley table build.

I finally put together a video of the building of the new galley table.  It is not perfect nor does it show ALL the steps involved, there is much left out.  However, it does give you and idea of what it took to put all this together.  Estimated labor time - 150 hours.  Estimated total video record time that was pared down - 15 hours.  Here is the completed project, all in just 3 minutes.  Enjoy.

SV Liahona
Bret and Marne

P.S.  I want to give a huge shout out to Ron Drake for all of his time and knowledge that made it possible.  Also a big thank you to Pat Abernethy for helping with the finish/varnish work.

The new galley table. Bigger, more versatile, better.

This summer I took on the project of building a new galley table.  The old one was in good shape but it was a single table with no options to make it larger for more comfort and room when we have visitors on board for a meal, a game of cards or just visiting and having the snacks spread out in front of us.

The plans that guided the project.

Before we left the Liahona in Mexico to come home for the summer I took some basic measurements, drew a simple drawing and had plenty of imaginations in my head for what I wanted to do.  Raw lumber was bought and the process started.  Hours and hours passed as the lumber was measured, cut, planed, glued, sanded, assembled and finished.

 A look across the mirror like finish.

 The leaf support extended.

 Leaf folded out and support legs down.

A look at the underside showing the slide out supports and drop down legs.

The glare on the far end left intentionally to showcase the glassy finish.

The finished product was much better than I had ever hoped for.  It is truly a piece of wooden art. However, along with the beauty came much more functionality and ease of use that I hope will serve us onboard the Liahona.  I would love to take credit for this work but I really have to give the majority of the credit to my good friend Ron Drake whose skills and love of wood are manifest in everything that he does...and he doesn't do this for money. He does it because he loves it and loves creating things with wood. We spent many hours together in his shop talking about every subject possible while we worked together on what is now this finished product.  Thank you Ron for your expertise and the many, many hours that you devoted to this project.  Marne and I hope that you will come see your creation in it's intended environment onboard the Liahona.

Until next time,

SV Liahona
Bret and Marne

P.S.  I am going to try to put together a video of the process and post it up here later.

Make it work.

 That's the new alternator tensioner. haha

Being a live aboard cruiser you definitely find yourself in situations where you are forced to fix things without the right parts or the right tools or both.  If you were sitting in the marina in San Diego it would not be a problem, just run to the marine store, pick up what you need and make it happen.  However, sailing the coastline of Mexico , and many other places in the world, if you don't have what you need on board you just have to make do with what you have. We become real, live MacGyvers at times.

I got to practice some of my MacGyver skills while delivering water a week or so ago.  We were about 45 miles out in the woods, at the top of the mountain and some 10 miles down a dirt road.  I think you call that "middle of nowhere". We had just delivered a load of water to one of our grower clients and were heading back when I noticed the temperature guage was about 20-30 higher than normal.  I pulled over and when I lifted the hood I immediately saw the problem.  The bolt that holds the alternator in place with tension on the water pump belt had sheared off.  What was left of it was still in the alternator which meant I couldn't just rob a similar bolt from somewhere else on the truck to get me home.

What I wound up doing seemed a little sketch but it got the job done.  I found a piece of 1/4" nylon line that I tied around the body of the alternator, passed it through a crack in the engine sidewall and then secured it to the blinker housing.  With some creative knots I was able to pull on the alternator enough to keep tension on the belt which turned the water pump and kept the engine cool.  It wasn't pretty but it took us all 45 miles back home where I was able to drill out the old bolt, tap the hole and put a new bolt in.  Problem solved!  My Mexican friends down south would have been proud of the ingenious fix.  Those guys can fix anything with almost nothing!

 From the alternator through the fender and secured to the blinker housing.

 The finished job with the new bolt.

Chalk up that fix to "fix it with what you got cruiser mentality".  And the summer wears on as we anxiously await our time to get back onboard in the fall.

Ciao for now.

SV Liahona
Bret and Marne

More summer work.

Filling up for a second load and taking calls for more.

Marne and I have been very blessed this summer with work for the water trucks.  Better money can be made running water for wildland fires but for now we just keep the deliveries rolling while we wait.  This summer has been super busy so far as the calls for water deliveries continue to come in.  We are just grateful to have work in order to put some more money in the cruising kitty for this upcoming season.  Here is a look at today's double delivery to a grower way up in the woods northeast of Medford.  It took us about 5 hours to make the turn for a single load  We did two.  It was a long day.

 Pulling out of Mom's house early in the morning.

 Ya...it't pretty noisy.

 Almost at the top...

 Marne following me up the hill.

 We climb about 5,000 ft...at this speed.  It's definitely a slow go hauling 2000 gallons of water up a mountain. Patience is in order.

 You can't see her but Marne is back in that dust cloud somewhere.

 That green supplies us with US green that we will convert to pesos very soon.

 We definitely live in God's country.

 Mt. McLaughlin in the background.

 Waiting our turn at the water fill station.

 Fill 'er up!

 This is where our water goes.

After 40 miles of dirt road you are rewarded with a pair of dirt socks like these.  Shower time!

It was a long day but definitely worth the effort as we added about 2 months of cruising budget in just one day.  While we drive we pass the time thinking about spending time with friends in the warm waters of Mexico.  Until next time.

SV Liahona

Bret and Marne

What do cruisers do in the off season?

There are many misconceptions about cruising and the lifestyles we live on and off of the boat.  Most of that is centered around the concept that we are "retired".  It is true that most cruisers don't have regular work and many have permanently distanced themselves from their previous life with a J.O.B. However, as long as you are a cruiser, you are never retired.  Life on board requires work and life on land is a stark reminder that even though we don't have a 9 to 5 we don't get to sit around for the rest of our lives sipping Mai Tais.

Here at home on land we have a LONG list of "to do's" that we chip away at while we count the days until we are back home aboard the Liahona.  While aboard we keep of list of wants and needs that we bring back down with us to the boat in Mexico.  Sourcing the 3-4 pages of various bits ranging from toilet parts to mattress toppers and everything in between is a time consuming job.  There are insurances to secure, cell phones to connect, family and friends to be visited, chores for our aging parents, taxes to prepare, medical  and dental checkups, weddings to attend...AND...trying to put some extra cash in the bank to fund the dream.  The work part is our first priority and everything else gets squeezed in between.

The fleet parked at Mom's house

For us the work part involves delivering water with our 3 military 6x6 trucks.  We have contracts with the Oregon Department of Forestry in four neighboring counties.  Fire money is good.  Very good. However, there is no guarantee for work on fires so while we wait for the lucrative fire work we deliver water around our beautiful valley to rural residents and "growers".  As the temperature rises, so does the demand for water and we make ourselves available to the customer's beckon call, ready and willing to deliver whenever they need us.  We don't make a lot of money doing simple water delivery but it does cover our on land living expenses and allows us to put a few pennies in the bank.

The new truck added to the fleet this summer. 1952 Military M35A2 6x6.

Sometimes life here during the summer seems crazy busy and almost unmanageable but we realize that we are lucky to live the life that we do and are willing to pay the price of hectic craziness for 3 months in order to live our dream the other 9.  Are we grateful?  You bet!  Are we lounging in retirement like many think?  Not even close!

We can attest that life outside of the box is worth the effort.  Live. Love. Enjoy.

For now, we had better get back to the grind.

SV Liahona
Bret and Marne