LESSON'S LEARNT !!!

G'day All !,
                  One year on, Several of the valuable lessons from the last wet season have resurfaced to remind me just why I'm aboard a YOT. There's water EVERYWHERE!!! Outside ,inside and several places in between, and when itz not raining the water is pouring out of your skin faster than you can drink it.
Itz a little warm here!
On the brite side "The Pergola" is performing itz purpose (little Dolphin) brilliantly. With the torrential downpours last year flooding the cab of the yot , with the new rear dek cover that problem no longer exists.
Last nite several of us spent the whole evening on the

rear dek during yet another major downpour that lasted all night, dumped 4 inches of rain on the yard,sinking the work dinghy at the jetty.  Meanwhile we were dry and comfortable and cooked a huge satay feed.The "chook fukker" Kiwi speak 4 the Turbo oven! is proving 2B a worthwhile inclusion in the catering arsenal as it provides a complete cooking package for oven type dishes without the downside of heating the inside of the yot. I did gourmet stuffed potatoes 4 Friday lunch this week and with the yard full 2 ovaflowin, 10 people enjoyed the spudz.However they needed to B cooked in the convection oven and this heated the inside of the Yot for a good 3 hours..

The pergola is now fitted (temporarily) to the rear dek and all the necessary attachmentz and supports are slowly being fitted . We've added 2 oregon beams to the underside that both support the roof and will provide a mounting location "wkoa" for the led lighting. Also the edge trims made of structural aluminium have been fitted to either side and only need 2b sikka-flexxed and riveted.All I need is 4 the rain to stop  long enuf 4 us to be able to paint the big catamaran on the slip and still have thyme left 2 silicone and rivet the pergola edges.

The mounting blocks for the poles have now been made. After laminating several blocks of Tassie Oak together,I shaped the topz with a serious P16 disc on the angle grinder until 1 side was 11mm shorter than the other.This allows for the curve it the fibreglass to be fully supported. These blocks will soon B fibreglassed onto the roof before the poles are bolted to them.
The task for this week is to build a sliding windscreen attachment to the front of the pergola. Lots of strength needs to be built into the frame work of the screen to fix the entire pergola to the existing cabin top.The whole stucture needs to be incredibly strong

and able to both support the solar panels and wind generators and still withstand the forces of wind and wave action.
The windscreen perspex panelz will be able to slide out when more wind is needed on the rear deck and B replaced if I need to rainproof the dek or insect proof the sleeping/entertaining area.
Lotz of work but still it keeps the brain busy.
I came back to the boat this Thursday to get the welder off the rear dek only 2 watch as 2 barramundi sliced up a mullet school in the shallows just beside the Yot. Needless 2 say I had a mullet fitted onto the fishing rod about 3 minutes later. I then took the welder back to the big cradle only to have one of the guys working on the big cat ,yell out that my rod was going off! Not even a minute ! Unfortunately it was a barracouta not a barramundi.
It seemz the fishing has improved  both here and in Perth even if the heat hasn't.
With big Carl and Fridgy Brad scoring Dhuies and snapper on this week's nite fishing trip off a secret spot near scarborough.
 I'm hoping to have the Yot underway within the next few weeks then I too will be amongst the real fish again!
I can see a trip in the dinghy for a few nannygai in my near future.
 After all  man cannot  live on work alone!
Thatz all folks! Keep dry and COOL!

Captain Felix