What a summer! To cap it off, we just sold the Shady Lady. A fellow from Indianapolis responded to my ad, fishing to see if there was interest, and last Monday, within 48 hours of our first contact, we met in Hessel, took her out for a sail, and concluded the deal. Bam! No one is selling boats, especially in the U.P., so this was a remarkable end to quite a story for us.
In the end, we decided after all this we just aren't sailors. I love the water, and any time on a boat is a good time. Sailing isn't my thing, though. I just don't care which way the wind is blowing, how fast, which way the sails need to be set to maximize speed, etc. Watching he, his sister and her son (a sailing instructor in the British Virgin Islands) work the boat, I was more convinced that I didn't like sailing and we were right to sell her, and that they were the right sort of people to own her.
We had a fabulous adventure, including our stop at Gilligan's Island, met lots of interesting people along the way, and did things we never thought we would. What's next for us? I don't think we'll buy anything soon. We're checking out rental options for next summer in Les Cheneaux, like a building on the shore. I'll miss sleeping on the boat, I like that motion and could get addicted. But the economy isn't getting better anytime soon, and if a slamming good deal for a cabin cruiser--something with twin V-8s for power--comes along, well....?
Saga of the Shady Lady. Nordic by birth, the chronicle of her half-century saga seems appropriate.
