Every year the COLUMBIA III starts her season “all spruced up” . . . And last year was the first spring maintenance done under cover of the new floating shed. In 2011 we took the opportunity to paint the ENTIRE outside surface of the boat, from the mast tippy-top to the bottom of the keel and all surfaces in between. So this spring with the mothership under cover for the whole winter for the first time in 56 years, much of paint and varnish survived very nicely indeed. So, rather than rest on our laurels, we used the “extra” time to get down to serious restorative maintenance. For the month of April, we have had 3-4 workers (read mainly family) stripping, sanding, painting, oiling, varnishing, revarnishing, reoiling, revarnishing, resanding, revarnishing, reoiling, resanding, polishing, resanding   . . .  I think you get it . . .  Also, as you look at the photos, you will see glimpses of the internal structure of the boat shed with its curved steel trusses.

Here my mentor, Dennis Mattson, long time boss, skipper, family friend, uncle, intentional grandpa and now great grandpa, master shipwright and general treasure chest of  marine knowledge, helps me fabricate a mast-mounted radar base for a new, second radar for the Columbia III.

 

and the base starts to take shape . . .

 

We had to push the mothership out of the shed to stand the forward mast up to test the new radar. This is an experiment for us. To save space in the wheelhouse and to keep current with technological improvements, this radar uses the latest in navigation software allowing the radar image to be “overlayed” on the GPS moving-map display on the ship’s computer. A new gadget for me to become familiar with this summer! The second radar also adds the safety feature of the redudancy.

 

This is small example of the kind of preventative maintenance the new boatshed allows us to perform. The scuppers were never carved quite deep enough to drain all the water off the side decks. There was often a small pool of water that lay undrained.  The total protection of the shed finally allowed us the opportunity to carve 6 scuppers (really a channel through the raised covering board) without fear of exposing bare wood to the winter rains. This will really help prevent long term damage to the deck planking.

 

This year we took the time to strip to bare wood the very glossy handrails, cap rails, guardrails and aftdeck hatches. All the finishes were getting too thick and the details of the fine teak grain was lost under the mirky layers. Here Farlyn is resanding the handrails after a heat gun was used to remove the old layers of finish.

 

And the first coat of finish is applied. It is always an exciting time! One of my biggest problems on this kind of maintenance is sequencing. What should I do first and how will it affect my ability to keep the crew working every day.  I did start with the stripping process but then we were committed to getting enough layers of finish on the bare wood to protect it from the subsequent powdery paint dust when we sanded  other surfaces of the ship such as the white wheelhouse walls or grey overhang above the handrails. The shed does provide a dry shelter but not a warm one. As the rains pour and we work, slow set times are an obstacle when we try to keep everyone working.

 

As the main crew worked on the exterior I continued in the engine room fabricating a belt guard for the front of the Gardner main engine. This is a tiddly and time consuming safety improvement for the engine room.

 

Here is a shot of a pouring rainy day and you can see the guards are stripped bare in preparation for resanding despite the foul weather.

 

 

and the first coat goes on the cap rails . . .

 

Even Fern came down to help on the recoating of the varnish on the exterior brightwork.

 

One of our challenges is finding enough space to lay-out our work as we refinish it. This is especially true when we take an item down to bare wood as it will need 5-7 coats of finish before it is ready to go back on the ship. As all finishes are sanded between coats and we are working on other aspects of the boat simultaneously, dust control is a big issue. Here our back porch is far enough from the workshop and the boatshed to allow for refinishing. Often to shorten cure time the pieces are moved into our house for the night to kick off the finish.

 

Here the shop is used for a one-night paint job. “Whoa betide” anyone who runs the chopsaw or table saw without noticing the freshly painted item on the work bench!!!

 

The bulwarks get a new coat for the year . . .

 

Here Farlyn is “cutting” the line between the white wheelhouse wall and the dark deck. With a wooden boat, it is nearly impossible for masking tape to be used effectively, so a good brush and a very steady hand is best. And a rag for the slips!

 

We have quite a compliment of tools, and we are always trying new sanders, looking for the right feel, right angle, right weight . . .  and of course, everyone has their own opinions.

 

 

I like the ship’s tender to be “presentable” too.  So it got a good scrub, waxing and new lettering . . .  as well as a new 60hp outboard for the upcoming season. Note the new grandson sign is still up!

 

Luke is getting really good at polishing the high profile salon table. It was sanded and varnished with 5 coats before the polishing began.

 

And the aft-deck hatches are finally back on board after the overhaul of the finish.

 

The hand rails continue to get their layers applied.

 

Hey, Steve, watch what you are doing and quit hamming it up.

 

And finally, for now, this innocuous shot of the wheel house. I have included this for me. Yesterday I vaccumed the wheelhouse, and cleaned the whole area. I waxed the floors and polished the brass and cleaned the windows. I even posted the daily tides on the wall for next week when the mothership comes out of the shed and heads to Campbell River for several inspections. Finally the wheelhouse is back to normal. All winter I was working here; installing the new radar, the new satellite phone, new computer software, new electronic heading indicator, new VHF antenna connections for 2 radios, plus inventory, radar control panel and new radio station lighting. There were times this small room was filled with dust, tools, wire bits, software manuals and dirty coffee cups . . .  So a big sigh of relief to have her spotless again and ready for another safe season.

 

The years seem to fly past. And the years in groups for 4 seem to fly past as well. Every 4 years Transport Canada requires all passenger carrying vessels to undergo an extra thorough underwater inspection. The rudder comes off, the drive shaft is removed to inspect the bearing surfaces and the area where the stuffing gland wears, the through-hull fittings are dissambled for inspection and the anchor rodes are flaked for inspection too. In preparation for this event I vacuumed all the bilges of the boat (Really! Vacuumed. This is the COLUMBIA III,you know). I lifted all the engine room floor boards and washed and rinsed the floor boards and the bilge and then I oiled the remaining bilges so all was ship-shape for the TC Inspector.

This year we pulled the mothership out of her shed, and she certainly looked drier and shinier and happier for the protection. It usually takes a day and a half to travel to the Nanaimo Shipyard where the familiar crews are waiting for us. This is a big, industrial yard more use to large ferries and military contracts so the Columbia III seems a pristine gem in a field of rough . . .  These guys aren’t use to taking their shoes off to enter an engine room!

So out the COLUMBIA III III came and she still looked great but she could always look better after a good cleaning.

As this year was our big 4 year Transport Canada inspection, the propeller came off . . . .

and the rudder came off . . .

here is the cutlass bearing and the drive shaft without the propeller . . .

and the drive shaft was pulled for inspection . . .

and here is the stern bearing without the shaft. It was measured for wear and found to be within “new” specifications.

and the anchour chain was flaked out and inspected.

Whilst the crews were working below the water-line I took the opportunity to work on other tasks around the boat. Maintenance in the engine room . . .

Here is a hero shot of me in my favorite location . . . . the engine room work bench . . .  ok, ok, the wheel house on a beautiful summer evening is a close second! And yes, you will allow me to think it’s a “hero” shot . .  really it is just a grease monkey in the bilges.

After a few days at the propeller shop to get prettied up, the propeller goes back on

and gets tightened (hopefully not sooner) for the next 4 years.

I love this shot. I was using the time I was in the shipyard to get to some tedious tasks. One was to update the inventory for the ship’s stores: filters, spare parts, supplies etc . .  including all the spare hoses, belts, fittings, soaps, cleaners, toilet seats (really) and a lot more. But we ARE a small family business and the cell phone rang when I was deep in the stern storage area (lazarette) bundled in lots of warm work clothes, and someone wanted to talk about a tour and then decided to book a spot . . . so I ripped a lid off the nearest cardboard box, and  used my feltpen to take the details . . . not quite the “office” the guest might have imagined I was answering from . . .  but few find fault with the service or the boat come summer!

And finally, one  last artistic shot before the boat returns to the water after 7 days on the marine railway carriage.

And I finally got home to our office and lots of catch up!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So this is the first winter for the Columbia III to be under cover in her 56 years of life on the coast. Here we are in sleet and snow and rain and the mothership is snug in her home. I was worried about winter storms and so when we first got home we had a barge drop 5 more 2 ton anchors and we connected them up with 600′ of 2 inch thick rope and another 1 1/2″ steel pin into the shoreline granite to hold everything in place. 8 new 1″ braided nylon lines hold the boat securely in her berth. If a storm hits, I need to be able to sleep at night.

And the office never sleeps . . . we send out our 2012 schedule to past guests and to people who have inquired but not yet joined us . . . friends we have yet to meet . . . Here Miray is thinking, ” Let’s see, 500 little sticky labels on 500 envelopes with 500 pieces of paper to go inside and 500 stamps to stick on . . . .