The New Year has been here for a few weeks already, so the days are supposedly getting longer. We have 7 daylight hours now, which is one and a half more than we did at Christmas. Or so says the sun calculator – my own eyes have yet to witness it. Still, the spring is nearing and it’s high time to start preparing for next season.

Our little lady still stands in the backyard, all quiet and lonely. I’m wondering if she believes that the reflection of a snowy plowed field on her beam is a stretch of the open sea. I hope so. I’m sure it would be a comforting thought for a sailboat on dry land.

I have asked for and received several quotes for a roller furler and a new genoa, and to top it all, a stack pack system for the mainsail. Boy those things are expensive! It all amounts to almost half the purchase price of our boat – and will not likely show up in the resale value. But it’s all relative – it will cost about as much as a week’s bareboat charter in Croatia. Yes, I know the water’s a lot nicer colour in the Adriatic, and maybe you don’t even have to wear long johns… But I’m sure the furling sail will make me happy for a much longer time. I’ll be grinning every time I don’t have to crawl on the deck to hoist or lower a sail, and the novelty is not likely to wear out soon.

And although we will still be sailing in the Baltic sea, we can go south, and we can find white sandy beaches. So if you’re still here, my reader, stick around. We’re making heaps of plans and will hopefully get to realize at least a few of them next summer. What will your plans be?

Here are some snapshots of the rigging of a slightly bigger vessel – just for inspiration to all of us boat outfitters!

• Sailboat Projects – Well Begun is Half Done!

February 12, 2017

• Now It’s Official – Summer’s Gone!

September 29, 2016

• Boat Projects Start Again – with Another Big Bang!

April 2, 2018