I’ve been posting mainly on my Facebook page, Ted Box, because most of my friends who have been involved with the Seeker have become Facebook friends.
But now we are entering a new phase of the project: getting the boat operational.
After as many launching dates as their are bottom planks, we finally launched last July. The launch was exciting, as they tend to be, as a land-locked dream transforms to a real life vessel, displacing real water, poised to take on her aquatic destiny.
But before that can happen, although the woodworking is more or less complete, mechanicals, sails, composting heads, plumbing, electrical and all the other systems necessary to leave the mooring have to be found, purchased, donated, resurrected and installed.
Just to catch you up, we have the propeller shafts, stuffing boxes, and struts installed, in preparation for engines, we were lucky to get two sixty-five foot old-growth-white-pine logs we had milled at Mystic Seaport and delivered to the island where Gary Mottou and Skip Davis helped me fashion them into masts, a task we enjoyed which came out looking like it came off of a lathe.
Presently Jeff Smith, old-school machinist and inventor, is helping me install the double headed windless donated by Captain Bob Douglas, and on inclement days I’m working on the galley countertops.
I’ll be posting here again more regularly along with on Facebook, and will also be interacting with the IT people at companies who make donations to support their philanthropy.
Ted Box