Sully, How About An Update???

[Lightfin]

Hi Sully,

I'm curious as to how your new venture is working out and how you like your new catamaran???

I'm asking publicly since I'm guessing others are interested too.

Hope you're doing great!!

Bob

[ssullivan]

Thanks, Bob!

Boy it's nice to hear someone cares.

The Catalac catamaran is doing very well. Made it from the FL Keys to Maine without any real issues. We are putting our Little Cod wood stove into her right now and will be developing appropriate winter liveaboard methods for a catamaran. A catamaran is quite a challenge compared to a mono to live aboard in the winter.

We are having some problems finding a good winter dock up here in the Portsmouth/Portland area, however. One place has a real bear of a dockmaster that gives you a hard time... we don't mesh well with his command style (of the dock). He actually prohibits people with slips from departing or arriving at his docks if it isn't slack water! He also seems to live on the dock, rifles through people's dock boxes and is generally a difficult person, referring to me as "Sean" and himself as Captain XXX, although we both have the same tonnage.

So... we are trying to find some alternatives.

So far they are:

1) Take out an ad in the paper to see if we can find a private winter slip
2) Somehow try to arrange for a winter mooring
3) Live at anchor this winter and tough it out

I have a fair amount of work going repairing boats (outboards) locally, and just returned from a week long offshore sailing course with a family. Had a great time with them and thoroughly enjoyed their company. They learned a lot and are doing a large leg this week on their own. Very nice people.

I have a couple more instructional gigs lined up for this month, a few outboards to fix and I'll be doing our wood stove installation. Busy busy, but that's good!

I hadn't updated really because I've been so busy.

Anyone have any leads into good docks for the winter anywhere between Portland, ME and Portsmouth, NH? I'd take a mooring or even a parking spot next to an anchorage at this point!!

Again, thanks for asking, Bob. It's nice to know someone out there cares.

Originally Posted by Lightfin

Hi Sully,

I'm curious as to how your new venture is working out and how you like your new catamaran???

I'm asking publicly since I'm guessing others are interested too.

Hope you're doing great!!

Bob

[Charlie]

Sounds like you are doing what you want Captn Keeping busy. As far as "good docks for the winter" Have you tried Florida or the Bahamas He He Ha Ha. Good luck finding a place.

[Lightfin]

Thanks Sean!!

Very glad to hear you are doing well.

Good luck on finding a suitable and pleasant winter site.

One other question, if you could have the Hirsch back, would you take it, or have you become a "Cat Convert?"

Bob

[Amgine]

Congratulations SSullivan! yes, a few of us are (casually) tracking your doings, and wondering if we can learn from the example... Best of luck, and I hope the CF network can scare up a good slip for you (or, maybe, a mooring?)

[Wotname]

Even from the far distant parts of Oz, we are interested in what happens to Capt Sully.
Thanks for the update and good luck with your future plans.

[Talbot]

I am also interested in your thoughts in comparisons between your previous craft and the Catalac.

I have always considered the 12m, the best design, but the 10m also had a good reputation.

You may be aware that there is one 10m, that was completed as an 11m by the addition of sugar scoops. I understand that this did make a bit of difference to most points of sail, and particularly if you hang a tender on the stern.

[Oceansandmts]

Sean

A friend of mine lives aboard at Southport, Welcome!, in South Portland in the winter, several other year-round live-aboards, and has never complained about the dockmaster, although I haven't heard from my friend since last summer, things may have changed.

[ssullivan]

Wow.. it's nice to log on and see you have friends from all over the world. I hardly know what to say!

The comparison between the Gulfstar Hirsh and the Catalac 10M is not an easy one to make. The boats are just so different. They serve very different purposes and of course, one is a mono and one is a multi. I have definitely converted 100% to the idea of cruising and living aboard a multi. Why? Convenience.

I like being able to take on very long passages without the fatigue I used to have handling a large mono. No idea why, but I arrive less tired and able to go and go on this boat. Very easy to handle.

Also, I like the idea of spending less on a boat with a smaller LOA, although I have yet to visit a marina or mooring with it.

The Gulfstar, at over twice the weight of the Catalac, handled rough anchorages better, but in *theory* we should be able to get into more shallow anchorages with this boat. It hasn't worked that way in practice in the Northeast USA. Most anchorages are deep here already. Anchorages further "inland" are usually choked up with moorings.

The business is going well, so I'm glad I finally decided to just "go with the momentum" and do what comes naturally for work. I sure love boats and I had so many people asking about hiring me for things, I just went down that path.

This winter, we are looking into doing some pretty hardcore stuff - living at anchor, heating with wood and working. This new type of work slows down a lot in the winter (parts of it, anyway), so there will be time to update the website, write, etc.., We felt it would be interesting to challenge our "survival" and off-grid skills by living at anchor through a Maine winter. We are working out the project with a local Port Authority right now to get permission.

If it fails, we will look at a winter dock, but we do want to give the "hardcore" living aboard in the winter in Maine a try...

That's about all I have for now. Photos of the "Little Cod in a catamaran" installation project to come...

Again, thank for asking, guys... It's just indescribable to log onto this site and see that I have friends around the world. Thank you very much for your support and advice.

[Lightfin]

It's difficult to imagine all the difficulties and logistics of getting and keeping enough wood on board to keep warm during a brutal Maine winter while at anchor!!!

Or, are you and your wife part polar bear????

[ssullivan]

Originally Posted by Lightfin

It's difficult to imagine all the difficulties and logistics of getting and keeping enough wood on board to keep warm during a brutal Maine winter while at anchor!!!

Or, are you and your wife part polar bear????

Ha ha... yeah... it's going to be a challenge. We will have to make numerous trips on the dinghy loaded with wood. We plan to finish up a cockpit enclosure to keep the wood dry out on the cockpit.

Luckily, you go through maybe 1/4 cord a month in the deepest of winter with the Little Cod.

[Steve Rust]

Come to Superior, Sean, plenty of firewood free for the taking. You just have to sled over two feet of ice to get to the shore in winter. Glad to hear things are going well.

[anotherT34C]

Sean, If you can go anywhere, why are you wintering in Maine? Just curious...

[ssullivan]

Originally Posted by anotherT34C

Sean, If you can go anywhere, why are you wintering in Maine? Just curious...

Because I can't really go anywhere quite yet.

There is the matter of a marriage - we both need to continue working so our boat can be paid off and our cruising kitty filled (started).

I could theoretically move to FL (if they didn't have a 90 day limit on the stay) and set up shop, but it would be more difficult for my wife to do so.

Moving a boat to FL or someplace requires a completely new setup (work wise) and moving our car (which involves flying, a boat delivery, etc...). Once the 90 day stay is up, I might have just had enough momentum of new business to have some projects. Then... I'd have to leave.

Also (no offense to anyone in FL) wouldn't put my boat in hurricane zone in hurricane season on a bet.

Make sense?


If you're East Coast bound, there is no other place to be.

[Soft Air]

We are tracking your from south america Sully, keep on posting as we are interested to see how you deal with the winter in Maine.