The goal for the day: get the boat out of the water and get it cleaned up. We knew it was going to be "furry" because you can see the slimey stuff at the water-line; it's going to be worse below that.
We took the time to get everything ready at the house - time is of the essence when you pull a boat out: if you let the crud dry, it gets the consistency of concrete. Ready: hose, power washer, scrub brushes, bucket with soapy water, muff (for flushing the motor with fresh water), the launching/retrieving gear for towing on the car. Joan shoved me off from the dock, and I was off. Solo. She will be bringing the trailer around and get it backed down the ramp so I can just drive the boat on. That's the plan.
Out on the water, I ran the boat up to speed before heading to the ramp - burn off some fuel, and making shake some of the crud off. The view...
Yes, I did see one dorsal fin, but needed to keep moving. Pretty sure the dolphin was thinking: "Hey, you always stop to watch us! What's up with that?"
There were six tugs with barges in the turning basin...
We are looking like a real port these days. I turned into the ICW, heading for the boat ramp and slowing to 4 knots. Joan was at the ramp, as planned...
Only after we got the boat out did I find she had an issue there: same people as last year were selling Girl Scout Cookies and using the boat ramp area as their "store and parking lot." Joan had to make a bunch of maneuvers to get around them to get the trailer into the ramp. What you see above is after they moved. There was a solid stopped line of traffic on the street, waiting for a bridge opening. Apparently, someone in line saw that the cookie-sellers were being a pain in the ass and called security. Security told them to move, because (duh) the boat launch and ramp is for people who are launching and retrieving boats. Apparently the Grandpa got a bit snitty with Joan (not a smart move) and the kid said, "You called Security on us!" Which Joan didn't - she told the kid, "I don't even have a phone with me."
I drove the boat up on the trailer, Joan hitched up the winch to the boat, I turned the motor off and raised it, then hopped off the boat. I pulled the rig out of the water and Joan closed the gate behind us. Easy. While I was waiting for Joan, the cookie-seller Grandma came up to our car and said, "Let me give you a box of cookies for your trouble." Joan and I hadn't talked about the situation at this point.
I said, "What trouble?"
She said, "Well, apparently your wife had a problem getting the trailer down the ramp?"
I said, "What are you talking about? She can back a trailer with the best of them. Then I saw the "Cookies" sign on the table they had set up in the ramp area. "You are the same people that were in the way last year, aren't you? You need to let people get their boats in and out - that's what the ramp area is for. And, my wife didn't have a problem - you people created a problem. Nice lesson for your little Girl Scout to learn."
Joan had actually talked about buying some Girl Scout Cookies - these people advertised on our owners group on FaceBook. No, we won't be buying anything from these dipshits.
Joan got in the car and we took the boat to our driveway so we could start the cleaning process. It took about an hour and 45 minutes with one spraying the power washer and the other using a scrub brush. This is the worst I've seen with slime on the boat. Then, I flushed the motor. While Joan put stuff away, I went around the boat with soapy water and cleaned the fences (sides of the boat). I pulled the fuel line and ran the fuel out of the boat - while that was going, I siphoned as much gas out of the tank as I could. Checked oil - it looks brand new. Looked everything over and buttoned the boat up.
I said, "Well, since it is still early, how do you feel about hauling the boat to the storage unit today, and this will be a done deal."
"I'll get some water and soda for the ride, while you go change your shirt." Apparently I looked grubby. ;-) No, I didn't get any photos during the cleaning process; we were hard at it.
We hauled the boat to our storage unit, got the coach out, and...
... put the boat away, then put the motorhome back in. This was the easy part. Well, except for my growling belly. Joan ordered a pizza for me that we picked up as we rolled back into town.
We still have some time before we are ready to head out, but having the boat put away is a load off my mind. We'll even have play-time, especially since the boat it taken care of. The scoots won't get strapped down in the trailer until right before we're ready to roll.
What? Yes, I'm going to miss the dolphins.
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