Dear Friend of CHARIAD:

I am writing this on a wet Mother’s Day in Boston. Yesterday, we had sun and a brisk NW wind. Yesterday, CHARIAD went sailing for the first time beginning the 2019 season.

The 2019 sailing season began with a walk down Cradleskid Lane – the potholed, gravel path into the boat yard in Marblehead. Somehow, during brief periods when rain was not falling including a damp and cool Easter Morning, our crew got the mighty CHARIAD ready again for prime time. We polished her bottom, teak oiled anything looking like wood, bailed water out of the bilge, got the lights and engine working, and cleaned the hull.

Yesterday, our team got all the spring cleaning gear off the boat and fitted her out with an outfit of sails.

Crew prepping outfit of sails for CHARIAD

We went out for a shake down sail in a blustery off shore wind.

Shakedown sail for CHARIAD crew in blustery offshore winds

Too much wind for the sails and crew we had on the boat to do more than enjoy the sun and getting back on the water.

As always, some people like Avery are more photogenic than the rest of us.

Crew member Avery on CHARIAD for shakedown sail for the 2019 sailing season

We just have to accept the facts and move on.

Allison shot a short video once we got under way. Click HERE to see it.

When we got back into Marblehead Harbor and onto our mooring, this is what the harbor looked like with almost no other boats.

Marblehead Harbor in spring - very few boats this early in sailing season

As we got onto the BYC launch to go back on shore, the beautiful CHARIAD is on her mooring ready to take us to adventure and fun.

Looking at the blue sky and seeing CHARIAD out of the boat yard and on the water, I must think again of the efforts many of our team and Friends of the boat made on wet and cool days getting her ready to swim again. I want to extend my thanks and acknowledgement to everyone who made this passage possible.

OK, let’s go sailing.

Rick