Although many people don't winterize their boats when they're in the Med,
we wanted to do whatever we could to make it safe for the winter. Winterizing
generally involves eliminating water or salt water from the onboard systems
and replacing it with antifreeze, turning off all batteries and electrical
draws, and trying to protect indoor and outdoor surfaces from sunlight or
dust.
The boat stays on land each winter. This page depicts the
winter preparation for our first year out of the water, in Spain. We've gone
through a similar process each year before we leave the Mediterranean.
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Here's our boat, awaiting haulout. We put up a sun
cover over the boom and placed the inflatable dinghy to keep sunlight out of
the forward hatch. If the marina construction lasted longer than we
expected it to, the boat would still be very safe in the water.
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The
Club Nautico El Arenal was the 2000-2001 winter home for Swept Away. We like the
facility and the staff was very professional. While it's hard to
leave the boat for months, it's helpful when you trust the marina to
take care of it.
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Here,
Art
handles some final tasks. This cockpit cover normally gives us a
protected place to sit in cold or rainy weather. When the boat is out of the water,
the cover provides protection for the varnished outdoor chart area.
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Boats hauled out of the water are secured by wooden
studs.
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The
winter storage area was under renovation when we left for the winter. After
the rest of the marina construction was complete, our boat was pulled
out of the water on a Travelift, which took it to its winter home on land. |
