When we were looking for the right tiny home to sail us away to a tropical island, we knew it had to be offshore worthy! We didn’t exactly know what that meant, but we believed we should look for three things.
Safe. Comfortable. Reliable.
That’s part of the reason we went with the Catalina 387, and all the captains who’ve been on her, tell us she’s the sailboat for the job. And now we’re itching to take her offshore!
See our full offshore sailing gear guide.
But first, we must prepare.
Everything at this point is a learning lesson for us. And that’s great because we’re getting to know our boat in and out.
Take the sails for example.
We needed to do something with the sails, which are original from 2004. And for 16 years old, they’re in great condition overall.
However, the blue part…it’s not merely decorative…it’s for UV protection. The blue UV covers were severely worn and the threads were dry and falling a part.
In the process, we learned how to hoist the sails, fold the sails, take the sails down, and how to sew on a UV cover (thanks Quantum Sails!)
Here’s the short list of our preparation:
- New UV cover on headsail
- New water pumps
- Additional dock lines (Hurricane season)
- Recommission the water tanks
- New air pump for dinghy
- Harness for Mocha 😉
- Bottom paint
- New propeller
- Polish and wax
A few new bolts and ropes here and there, and really, the list isn’t complete, but this will get us started.
We’ll share part 2 of our offshore preparation next week to share the behind the scenes on the sails and the machine shop where our new prop was repaired…that’s right, new prop that needed repaired!
You Turn
As always, thanks for joining our journey! Leave us a comment to let us know you came here to the blog.
PS – did you know we’re sharing our live location online?
Cheers!
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