Ah, life is good - we are back on the water! We actually launched Vagus on Friday, February 11th at 1100 (but who was watching the time?). The boat transporter promptly showed up at the appointed hour, carefully took Vagus over to the travel lift (a huge device used to put boats in and out of the water), and the travel lift gently lowered Vagus into the water. The engine started, friends helped with our lines, and we quickly moved off to anchor in nearby Prickly Bay. The Bay is beautiful, complete with pastel buildings, palm lined beaches and clear water. It is a bit rolly (swells from the Atlantic make their way around into the Bay and give us an occasional rolling motion) but we are close to lots of shore facilities and the buses that can take us into town. We can now start on putting Vagus back into sailing condition and getting provisions for some future exploring. Also, we can now just enjoy being back on the water so who knows when we will move.

On our last update, we had just escaped The Yard for true Blue Bay Resort as the fiberglassers attacked Vagus with grinders in hand. It was quite a sight to see great patches of fiberglass disappear in dust as all the damaged areas were ground away. The dust was very fine and went everywhere. We had sealed the boat as best as we could but I think there was an attraction between any clean surface and fiberglass dust - some sort of undiscovered law of the universe. We had to spend the first few days taking off the other toe rail to allow fiberglassing of a damaged area beneath the toe rail. This job was much harder than doing the first toe rail as we had to strip all the furniture and cabinetry from the starboard side of the boat to access the toe rail bolts. After a lot of sweat, we finally figured out how the boat was assembled, found the hidden screws and bolts holding everything together and got all the furniture off. The interior of the boat was stacked with stuff (a nautical term to describe items behind cabinet doors) and the cabinetry, making Vagus totally unlivable. At the end of the day, we surveyed the mayhem, declared it a day well spent, resealed up the boat, left the fiberglassers to continue to grind away , and retired to a hot shower and swim in the beach pool at True Blue Bay Resort. While relaxing in the pool, we could not believe our good fortune in being able to stay there. It really made the whole experience tolerable.

Life at True Blue Bay Resort was wonderful. The staff were friendly and courteous and the facilities were first rate. There were two pools; one at the top of the hill with a beautiful view and one by the beach. The upper one was deep and was used for dive checkouts and the lower shallow and great for lounging. We even got a continental breakfast included. This was a nice way to start the morning and we ended up meeting several people - some boaters and some vacationers - while there. Our days revolved around going to the boat yard and either consulting on the work in progress or, after the main fiberglass work was done, working on putting Vagus back together. Late in the days we would head back to the pool. On days when Karen was not needed at the boat, she stayed at the upper pool with her cross stitch and became an expert on the dive check out routine. The instructor asked her if she would like to give the next class. Of course we had to go down occasionaly to De Big fish restaurant at the boat yard for Happy Hour to see all our friends and find out the latest news. One day a large group decided to visit us at True Blue. We met them at the beach bar and had a great time until The Princess managed to spill two full glasses of red wine on me. It was a direct hit, not a drop was spared. It all ended up in my lap. Since that time, no one will sit across from The Princess of Wine (as she became known) and all grab their glasses as she approaches. In fairness, we were at a picnic table which was on a slant and the wine did not like the angle of repose.

The time at True Blue went quickly and soon we were getting ready to move back aboard. Our checkout date was February 7th . The fiberglass work was nearly complete. Keith, with the help of Devon (a Grenadian) did a fabulous job. He colour matched the gel in the hull and even colour matched the blue stripe so we could pass a 10 foot test (does the job look good at 10 feet?). The plan was always to get her painted but now we do not have to be in a rush. The rigging work was also coming along well and they were expected to finish shortly so we set our launch date for February 11th. We moved back to the boatyard and it was all we expected. I am sure that living in a boat yard is purgatory for boaters - enough said. The only added item for this stay was the boat beside us was a wreck and had open ports. We suspect it was a major mosquito breeding ground as we were invaded by an army of mosquitoes every evening where other people in the yard had very few. Our new electric mosquito paddle came in handy (and works great). The fiberglassing was finished on the 8th and the rigging on the 10th, so we were ready to launch on the 11th. The timing was great. Everyone was super in trying to meet the schedule and came through in the end. The only disappointment that we have had is from the insurance company. They have not come through as yet and our agent is trying to sort out the mess. We should have more on the insurance game in our next update. Meantime we are truly enjoying life as it should be - on the water!