Day 20 Off to Portland!

We took off for Portland today to get the sails inspected and have them fixed.  With lots of corrosion on all the metal parts--hanks and eyelets--they need replacing.  Where better than North Sails--the largest producer of sails in the world.  I have them on Sloop to Nuts--our boat in Colorado--as well as the Main and Genoa here on Zephyr.  They should be calling us by the end of the week with the estimate.  Repairs should be done by June 1st.  Remember, these are people in the big city that want your business and not Newport.  While we were in Portland, the mechanic finally called me back.  Only 5 days past his last promised date of calling.  He asked me what I wanted done to Zephyr.  My response to him was that I had gotten tired of waiting for his call and had found another mechanic.  His response--"That's great!"  He was quite happy I had found someone else to do the job and he could go back to doing God knows what.  His company runs on it's own time I guess.  Must not need the money.  

Before we went to North Sails, we stopped at Qdoba for lunch.  A little bit of Colorado.  After North Sails, we were off to West Marine for more parts and equipment.  Didn't have the thru deck for the waste pump out.  Didn't have the zincs for the rudder nor the parts we needed to fix the forestay.  As a matter of fact, they didn't have anything we needed.  They sent us to another chandlery for more equipment, but they struck out also.  Guess it's back to the internet and catalogs.  Got my haircut on the way back to Newport in a shopping center we stopped at to get more cat food.  A can of Friskies runs 73 cents in Newport--under 40 at Petsmart.

While we were in Portland, we got a call from the marina office that our new stove had arrived.  We will pick it up tomorrow with  a four wheel dolly we brought with us.  We took out the existing stove this evening.  With lots of rain in the forecast over the next two days,  we will have to chose our time carefully.  Don't want it setting out in the rain.  Now all I have to do is find someone here that would like our old stove.  Nothing wrong with it other than some rust.  I'll talk to the Harbor Master tomorrow.  With luck he will know someone that can use it.  I'd hate to just throw it away.  All Tracy and I have to do now is get it up the small stairway to the cockpit and off the boat with out denting it and get the new one on with out denting it.  Hopefully it will come apart so it is lighter and a bit smaller.  The doorway is only 22 inches wide at its widest.   It's on a wood pallet in the marina office.  I saw it there tonight when we got back.

Tomorrow is another day.