Into the Yard for TRIMMING OUT, and a trip to the Mississippi Delta

It was time for a  haul out.  TRIMMING OUT needed some cosmetic and mechanical work, and this was just more than I could do both physically and technically.  So the decision was made to have the work done at British Marine prior to the trip from the San Francisco Bay to Ventura, CA.  

On the the appointed morning I motored the short distance from my slip at Alameda Marina over to the boatyard.  For some reason the normal 1600 rpm on the Perkins 4-107 diesel wasn't delivering the usual 5.5 knots.  In fact, the boat seemed downright sluggish.  Was I towing some debris?  A fishing net perhaps?  Or was my propeller so fouled that it had become totally inefficient?   Well....here's what it was....a very foul bottom:

Yep...that's the growth that occurred on my two year old ablative paint and after a three month old bottom cleaning. YUK!!

But with the help of a pressure hose washdown, this stuff all came off quickly,  revealing a fairly in shape bottom for a practically 50 year old boat.  As the sprayer took off a layer or two or three, the actual original gel coat could be seen.  But it would need additional sanding and the prop would need burnishing.  Zincs needed replacing, a water pump rebuild and exhaust system replacement were all indicated, and I needed to head off to Kentucky to collect my mother for the next part of the voyage.  Mom, as you may have figured,  is an original Delta Belle, and in fact, a contemporary of the original Memphis Belle.  And she wanted to go visit her old stomping grounds in conjunction with her 90th birthday.  So here's how I left TRIMMING OUT: