Is It Spring Yet?

One of the things I love about living on the boat is the way it forces us to be attuned to the weather. We have to be aware, especially of the potential for storms, just to stay safe. On the positive side, we have to be aware of upcoming warm sunny days with just the right amount of breeze, so we can take advantage of them to go out and sail.

In the last week for the first time, a few spring-y days alternated with the wintry ones and it felt like boating season is closer than just a nostalgic memory. Signs of spring are everywhere. The sun shines more warmly and a few brave or hardy boats begin moving up and down the creek. Later in the season, the incessant wakes from those passing boats become an annoyance; right now we greet them as yet another harbinger of the season, and the motion makes our own boat feel alive again in its slip. Our land-based friends are planting herbs and flowers; we celebrate our own spring rituals - wrestling the sails out of the storage shed where they spent the winter protected from the winds and snow, hoisting them back on the mast, and recommissioning the engine. It’s still too chilly for us to really travel yet, and the few days that have been warm enough to sail just didn’t coincide with available days in our schedule. But still, we know the season is coming, and our thoughts are looking forward to favorite anchorages that we’d love to visit again, and new ones to explore.