Hello, Blue Turtle!
It feels like a somewhat momentous day, in that we have just closed on our new boat and home, Blue Turtle!
This beautiful boat…
She is a 1978 CSY 44 Walkover - a heavy, solidly built cutter, with a 60’ air draft, a keel that draws just under 5’, and a center cockpit with a full enclosure. We bought her from two very friendly cruisers, Kim and Randy, who bought her just over 3 years ago and sailed her through the Bahamas and up the east coast. (You can see their blog and history at https://blueturtlecruising.com.)
I looked at over a dozen boats in the fall, and Blue Turtle was the last I’d visited in person, at the tail end of a trip that was largely focused on Taiwanese-built boats such as Tayanas and Vagabonds, which was my original idea for our next boat. I knew from the moment I stepped aboard, however, that she was special. We submitted an offer on Thanksgiving, and it was accepted as we were sitting down at my dad’s house to dinner.
The past few months have been a flurry of work since, mostly driven by insurance — we had to have the rig inspected and the boat surveyed, both of which ended up delayed by the yard’s holiday schedule and the cat delivery I was crew for last fall. Candidly, I have felt bad for Kim and Randy, whom I’m certain didn’t expect the sale to be as convoluted as it was. They have been incredibly patient and helpful, and I am sincerely excited to see their next adventures, as well.
Blue Turtle hanging from the travel lift during her survey.
Under Kim and Randy’s ownership, she has had her engine and transmission rebuilt (a large 85hp Perkins!), and she has a new hot water heater, a relatively new 5kw generator, AC and heat in both the forward and aft cabins, and she carried 400 gallons of fresh water and 100 gallons of fuel. CSY built these boats with solid glass (no balsa in the deck!), and while they reportedly encourage a relaxed pace under way, they’re also very comfortable and sturdy.
Now, of course, the work begins. Immediately after closing, I placed an order for all new sails from Mack Sails, and am lining up new standing rigging, a new feathering prop and dripless shaft seal, new electronics, and various smaller things for her cabin (new lights, fans, two gorgeous Denn Hann oil lamps, a new ship’s clock and a barometer/thermometer, and so on).
She has been so lovingly cared for, however, that we’re really just doing typical maintenance prior to setting off; my hope is that she’ll be back in the water with the refit complete by March, and we’ll have enough season left to shake her down in the Bahamas. We’re tentatively planning to then come up the east coast for the summer, and in the fall head back south and depart for the Rio Dulce, Guatemala - at least her second visit, with the owners before Kim and Randy having had her there some years ago.
Many more adventures to come! For now, the focus is on continuing to clean out the storage units here, coordinating boat work from afar, and preparing to head down in just over a month to move aboard. Stay tuned…