September 2016.
After a few years owning the boat, it was time to undertake some repairs & maintenance on the front cratch – The canopy was coming apart in a few places and some of the paintwork needed refreshing.
Short on any money in the kitty, it was DIY repairs, so with armed with a heavy duty sewing machine needle, my trusty machine from home, a sturdy table and some paint, we set about tidying up our front cratch.
Mooring on a navigational section next to the River Aire was always going to mean needing rise & fall pontoons. The marina we were at had a main walkway, with finger pontoons at each mooring section. No matter what the level the water was at, there was always a certain amount of “bounce”. Also, space was limited – Not a problem!
As previously mentioned, the funds in the kitty were also limited, so it was a DIY job. Bringing the sewing machine from home just needed good organisation, but setting it up on the finger pontoon was quite an experience! I didn’t have much room but no matter – Once set up the view from my seat was quite unlike any other I’d had during previous sewing projects, that’s for sure. Whilst the boys set about cleaning and painting the front – which looked MASSIVE without the canopy and detritus that gets stored in there – I sewed the canopy back together, all the time being slightly bounced up and down by the pontoon every time someone walked along the walkway.
Quite surprisingly, the whole job was simple and quick and along with they fantastic paint job carried out by the boys, our interim DIY project had dome its job and the cratch and canopy had a new lease of life. Now, an incredible 6 years later – ( WHERE has that time gone?) – our canopy needs replacing and our boat needs a complete repaint, our little brave Harebell is now in here 30th year – Her engine woes have finally been sorted, it’s now time to get her a new lease of life on the outside.
