This is our first winter with a boat, and we decided to go all out. Building a shelter along side my daughter's garage (we're apartment dwellers.) http://alaska1.us/shelter.jpg Of course, I've had lots of help and advice from our two oldest grandsons! http://alaska1.us/caden.jpg http://alaska1.us/ju...

O’er the glad waters of the dark blue sea,
Our thoughts as boundless, and our souls as free,
Far as the breeze can bear, the billows foam,
Survey our empire, and behold our home!

- Lord Byron

Our thoughts and prayers, as well.

Greetings from southeast Alaska! Our Mac was our 33rd anniversary present to ourselves this last August 30. We closed the deal on board then sat down to a fine (for us) anniversary dinner. http://juneauak.us/33rd.jpg Motoring in Stephen's Passage with the admiral and a couple of our kids. Just north...

Welcome to the world of Mac sailing. Our boat is in storage for the winter. I guess we can enjoy our southern and Aussie Mac sailors stories vicariously. So that's how I'm supposed to make it through the winter with the Chamorrita trailered beside the house! I'm gonna be fidgety the whole time thin...

That looks like an 18mm FL or shorter on that bow shot Dave? Close! I shoot with Olympus Digital so it's a Zuiko 8mm f/3.5 Fisheye mated with my Oly OM-D E-M5 body by way of the MMF-3 adapter to maintain the splash-proof integrity, of course! :D I am a serious amateur whose talent is unfortunately ...

Russ - Thanks for the compliment! We've had the boat for less than 2 months, and already we have had some amazing adventures. Thought you might like to see the avatar full size plus a couple others from the same day. I make part of my living as a nature photographer, so I'm always willing to show of...

One pizza with chicken!

So... Do you you like your henways at about 3 or 4 pounds then?

Yukonbob - Absolutely!! 8) RussMT and Tomfoolery - Thanks for the advice and links, guys! As mentioned above, we will definitely be using the winch to raise the mast again. :) I wouldn't say bringing the mast down without it was a bad experience, but I hope I have enough common sense to know when ch...

Thanks, divecoz! I appreciate your mild admonishment, and will definitely take it to heart. As noobs, we are all ears! I think my reasoning for not using the winch went something like this: the winch is an optional purchase, the manual says it is totally doable, then something inside just needed to ...

Thanks, cptron! I'll remember that note about unplugging the electric. Would have used the winch if I was doing this alone, but seemed like extra work for two. Would like to hear other's opinions on this subject.

The admiral and I just bought a 2003 26M in near mint condition, and we love this boat! Not only are we new to sailing, but to boating in general. What a great thing! Anyway, when it came time to pull the boat out for the winter (we live in southeast Alaska), we didn't see any detailed videos on low...