well, for me up on the st. lawrence river i had to call it quits this weekend. hunting season is right around the corner and the river is starting to get cold. on top of that, there are fewer and fewer boats on the water, should i get into trouble.
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<br>i pulled the boat out today and pulled off all the cables, sheets and am now left with a bare mast and boat(hulls, metal and tramp) i have one of those silver $100 or so boat covers and will put that on in a few weeks. should i do anything to cover the mast? any other tips or suggestions for winterizing the boat so that come next summer i can start off from where things left off?
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<br>low temps up here can reach -30 f. there is not much snow, just cold.
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<br>thanks for all the help you guys have given me,
<br>jeff<br><br>success is not having to work in may and october
<br>- art garfunkle

Stainless steel, aluminum and fiberglass. Three very weatherable material. Make sure there isn't ANY water in your mast, or the expansion of ice that forms will crack the mast foot. This is why I drop my mast for the winter and store it horizontally...just in case. As for the rest, make sure that you don't have any lines on the boat and the rest will weather nicely. As for local concerns, what is everyone else doing around there? I know in Alberta, we take everything apart and store the entire boat indoors. It takes up an amazingly small amount of space hung from bridles in the ceiling with everything taken apart. (Except for the tramp that is, it is left strung and assembles, just the hulls, rudder assembly and mast are taken off.)
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<br>Cheers!<br><br>

Wow what a good idea to take the boat apart, how stupid of me not to think of this. I am now planning on taking my boat apart to store it next to my cross-country skis. I never liked keeping my boat on the trailer in the winter as we have quite the snowy winters here in Coeur d' Alene Idaho.<br><br>

Hey all,
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<br>You need to move South; we still have several weeks of good sailing...yes!
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<br>I usually pull my tramp, lines, and rudders; then keep my boat under a car port. I tie my mast to the fence and cover my comp tip.
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<br>David<br><br>

Yes we could move south but then we would have to give up the Mountains and Great skiing, ha, ha. It is still in the 80's up here in North Idaho so I am currently still sailing but expect it to turn cold in October. I actually sail for about 6 months in North Idaho, with the beginning and ending months being wet suit weather. Then the other 6 month I cross-country ski, etc. <br><br>