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Published: February 5th 2006
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So here we are in Charleston, SC. We have finally made it across the country and have rendezvous with the boat. We can’t believe how busy we have been and how much we have done in the last week.
So we arrived in Charleston late Tuesday night, exhausted from the trek across America. Of course it was too late to go over to the marina and board the boat, so we found a nice hotel in downtown Charleston for the night. The next morning we woke up excited and ready to see the rum runner. It was Boat Day! A day we have been planning and waiting for so long. So we went over to the marina, walked down the dock, and boarded the rum runner for the first time. And WOW!!! She is a beautiful boat- we had almost forgotten how much we loved this boat. She is sleek and elegant on the outside and spacious and comfortable down below. She is completely decked out and is everything and more than we ever wanted. The entire first day we had giant smiles on our face and we kept looking at each other in disbelief. This was our boat! It
Sailing
Full sails on the Rum Runner. truly was unbelievable for the first couple of days, and in many ways still is today.
The first 3 days we were busy with the hand over process and we were very thankful that it was so thorough and intensive. Basically we had the service manager walking us thru the boat, from bow to stern, opening everything up, explaining all the systems and how they work, as well as any maintenance issues we need to be aware of. It was a whirlwind of information and we got to pick the brain of a guy who knows this boat inside and out. We started early in the morning by coming down to the docks and going over the boat till late in the afternoon. It was hard not to get overwhelmed and we were exhausted at the end of the day. But like I said, we were so thankful for all the information because trust me, reading the instruction manuals for this boat is almost impossible.
The highlight of the hand over process was the afternoon that we took her out sailing in Charleston harbor. I’ve included a lot of pictures of Charleston Harbor that we took while
Sailing
Full sails on the Rum Runner. out sailing. Charleston is a great city, very historic with a great cultural scene (a lot of local artists). And it was great to see it from the water. And I am happy to report that on our maiden voyage we saw dolphins. They swam right next to the boat for quite a ways, it was very awesome. And as we have found out, it is also a good omen (sailors are very superstitious people). So our trip has started off well. And like I said before, the rum runner sails like a dream. It is very different than our J24 because she is 47 feet long, therefore making her a much faster boat. It is going to take some getting used to, but it sure is fun!!!
On our way out to the harbor we tested the motor on this boat, we wanted to see what she can really do. Now the motor on the standard Beneteau 473 is 55 horsepower. However this boat came with the upgraded engine, which is 110 horsepower. And let me tell you, when you put it full throttle she really moves. The front of the boat started coming out of the water
Sailing
Full sails on the Rum Runner. about 2 feet and we were throwing quite a wake. I think you can almost water-ski off our boat, which is ridiculous. So the good news is that the engine will definitely get us where we want to go and will probably get us out of harms way when needed. She definitely responds well.
So we finished the hand over process and by Friday afternoon, she was all ours. So we have been busy moving into our new home and are both really excited to finally be living on the boat. It has taken us a while to get everything unpacked and to figure out where we want all our stuff to go. And we have been busy provisioning for our trip, not only getting all the food but also getting all the gear we need. It seems that every time we get something for the boat that we need, we think of at least 10 more things that we should have as well. So we have made several trips to Costco (thank goodness for Costco- when else would we need 15 pounds of mahi mahi and 100 packets of oatmeal and 20 pounds of rice, etc.) And of
Dolphins!
A good omen course we have had to go to Target a few times to get other odds and ends that we need. And now we have been spending all of our time at West Marine getting all the boat supplies we need. So the average day for us is to wake up, go to the store, fill up our car with the stuff we need, and then unpack it and try to find room on the boat for all this stuff. It seems like a never ending process right now- but I know that will change. It is just taking us a while to get all set up on the boat. And we are hoping that we will get the boat all ready for our adventure and be able to take off and head South to Florida and onto the Bahamas in a couple weeks. In the meantime, we will be here in Charleston preparing for the journey and hopefully be sailing as much as possible around here.
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Gran
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WOW
What a great play-by-play account of your first week. The pics were great. Love you