Winter Onboard in Annapolis

—Blogpost written by Bob 

Monday, December 7

The sky was overcast and the temperature was only 30 degrees F in the morning—it looked bleak outside!  The reverse-cycle heater was coming on about every 10 minutes to keep the boat warm inside.  

When it’s cold outside I like to adjust the thermostat up to 75 degrees inside.  I can do this now while we are using reverse-cycle heat.  Later, when we use two oil-filled radiators, one will be set on high and the other on medium—that’s all we can expect from 30-amp service.  (In January, I expect to use two 30-amp shore power cords.)

Our very small community of about 15 boats
for the winter at Annapolis City Dock.

Our first task of the morning was to carry some things from the car to the boat—these were things we brought from our storage unit: the second oil-filled radiator, a bag of warmer clothes, and a few other odds and ends. 

After unloading things from our car we walked to nearby Bitty & Beau's Coffee Shop for a latte and then walked around the harbor for a short time.  We were all bundled up due to the (very damp) cold weather.

Christmas time at Annapolis City Dock

We put our Baltimore slip up for sale today as well as continuing to research marinas for our summer stay.  We purchased Christmas lights for our wreath and a piece of hose for the starboard deck drain.

Tuesday, December 8

The day started out very chilly (low 30's) but got up to 45 degrees in the afternoon.  We spent a leisurely day of doing laundry and running some local errands.  This morning was the first time that we used an oil-filled radiator to supplement the reverse-cycle heat.  Later in the morning we turned it off and turned on the one in the cockpit.

One of our oil-filled radiators setup
in our enclosed cockpit keeps
the cockpit nice and cozy
until sundown.

Lola watching me in the navigation
station from her perch on the
companionway slide.

I did some small grocery shopping while Maggie did laundry at the Bay Ridge Laundromat, which is a nice clean and large laundromat--it is just a short drive away.

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Again tonight, we used one portable oil-filled radiator set on medium in the cabin to supplement the onboard reverse-cycle heat.  This arrangement has worked out very well.  I am not so concerned now about when we have to retire the reverse-cycle heat and use just the two oil-filled radiators (one set on high and the other on medium).  It has been a long time since I have spent a winter onboard in cold weather!  I recall them not so fondly.

Wednesday, December 9

The outside temperature was noticeably colder today (low 30's) even though it was nice and warm inside our boat--that oil-filled radiator in the cabin really helped!  I had planned on changing out the hose from the starboard mid-ship deck drain today but there is now a 51% chance of rain in the forecast (right in the middle of the day)--so, I think I will postpone the hose changeout for another day when there is no rain in the forecast.

Winter weather always looks so dreary.
(The high temperature for the day
was 46 degrees F.)

After our take-out lunch from Pip's we took a stroll up Main Street and out West Street.  The following images were captured during today's walk.

An Alteration shop on West Street had 
custom face masks in their window.

A novel concept for outdoor
dining: domed dining pods.

Outdoor dining is available
all around town.

Main Street in Annapolis during
COVID-19.  The barriers
set aside areas for
outdoor dining.

Thursday, December 10

With no rain in the forecast for today, we tackled changing the hose from the starboard mid-ship deck drain by, first, removing one end of the hose and carefully measuring its diameter (5/8").  At this point, I returned the clear (unreinforced) vinyl hose that I purchased on Monday and exchanged it for fabric-reinforced rubber hose.  (I was concerned about water laying in the low areas of the drain hose and freezing and causing the hose to break.)

We struggled to get the hose installed in the aft corner of the head without using the plastic elbow--I wanted simply a smooth bend of the hose.  (We had to lube up the hole in the bulkhead with vaseline to get the hose through the bulkhead.)  When we removed the old hose, the short length of hose directly under the deck drain as well as the plastic elbow were completely blocked with a mixture of cat hair and paint flakes.  We fed the hose thru two additional bulkheads on its way to the starboard cockpit locker.  When we got to the juncture of the other drain hose, the hose barb was 1/8" too large in diameter.  We had to run out to Fawcetts (second time in two days) to get the correct hose barb fitting.

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I had a doctor's appointment at 3:40 PM for my shot ahead of my radiation for prostate cancer--this shot reduces my testosterone to almost zero for the next 6 months. (As long as I don't grow boobs, I'm OK with it!)

By the time we returned to the boat, I didn't feel like finishing the hose run.  Instead I had a ginger-flavored brandy and took it easy.  (We will finish it tomorrow during the expected nice weather.)

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The coronavirus has been completely out of control and has caused over 2,000 deaths per day in the U.S. during this week!  (Getting Trump out of the way, so someone can lead us out if this mess can't happen soon enough in my opinion.)

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