Bedding Down Songster

We settled into Yacht Marine and it was a bit like old home week.  We met up with quite a few acquantances and friends; catching up on how their season of sailing went.  However the marina was much quieter than at the same time the last two years (hard to believe this is our third autumn in Marmaris).  In the past, in October and November, the yard would be a forest of masts and we would get lost making our way to the canteen through the boats.  Quite a stark reminder how several terrorist attacks and a staged military coup in a country will effect the yachting industry.

The near empty boat yard

So our days are spent getting Songster ready to bed down for 4 months on the hard.  Last year we paid for a company to wash and store our sails for the winter.  When we got them back in the spring it looked like nothing had been done.  So this year we decided to do the job ourselves.  It was a challenge to wash the sails on the foredeck, put them back up to dry (making sure there was minimal wind), then taking them down again to fold on the foredeck.  The whole job for the three sails took several days but I am glad we did it.

Sails up to dry

Next big job was to wash all the salt encrusted lines.  They were feeling more like wire than rope.  Thanks to the sea and the Mediterranean mud rain, the ropes were filthy and took many rinses to get them pliable again.

The lines drying

On another day Bob went up the main mast to check out all the blocks and halyards and the anemometer.  We suspected the anemometer was under reading the wind speed and needed to be replaced or maybe just a bit of lubrication.  We lucked out at it seems it only needed a bit of lube and now it seems to be much more responsive and recording the correct wind speed.  This was Bob’s first time all the way to the top of the main mast and the views were fantastic.

Bob living the high life

View of Songster from the top of the mast

Bird's eye view of the marina

Tomorrow Songster will come out of the water and spend the next 4 months in her cradle on the hard.  We will be off on some land travel in Asia and Australia.  It is always a bit of a melancholy time when we have to say goodbye to her.