After ten grueling days of work Charisma is back in the water! Amen!

At 9am Karl and Shane , the experts at Riverside Drive Marina, drove the travel lift over to our corner of the boatyard and by 10 am not only had we been lifted out of the cradle but Bob had applied bottom paint to the spots where the keel rested on the cradle and…we were back in our slip.

I guess I did not really believe it would be a 9am lift because as I hurried down the ladder for one last time and saw the slings lift Charisma up

I realized I had neglected to move the full coffee pot off of the table. One quick slip while Charisma was being carried across the boatyard to the launching dock and our salon could be full of coffee. Uh oh. Maybe I was just testing Karl’s driving skills. And we are thrilled to report that he is an ace drive and all was well on board.

It was a huge relief to be back in our slip and we are very pleased to have made our best turn around yet…just ten days. Grueling days but a huge sense of satisfaction when it is done.

So we celebrated, taking a day off (minus Bob getting a coat of varnish on the helm). Yep, we played! Lunch in town at our favorite cafe, a quick trip to get food for a birthday BBQ tomorrow for the captain, and even ice cream on the water front. And to make sure we knew how to play we hiked up Parihaka to enjoy the view to the ocean. A stunning day to play!

Of course not everything is done, but the work that required Charisma to be out of the water is complete. She is shiny and beautiful and we are smiling!