Now what was it we were going to do …

Well we made a start to rebuild.

Decided we wanted two private cabins in the forward section.

I detest v- berths in yachts.  They are always the most uncomfortable places to be while at sea.  I remember one trip in a Nichloson where I was exhausted and trying to sleep in the v-berth.  I think I occasionally touched it, but most of the time I was air-bourne.

Also, where else do you put extra sails except under the v-berth bunks.  Which means you have to reorganise everything you get at them.  Which means you hardly ever do even if you should, so whats the point of having them on the boat anyway??

So,  we decided to dedicate the forward section to a sail locker, storage and workshop and put 2 cabins on each side of the mast in a nice stable part of the boat.

Of course this meant we could not walk forward into the bow section, so we made a small hatch from the stb side cabin for emergency access.  The main access to the forward section will be from the hatch on the foredeck.

We also went with a water proof bulkhead between the forward section and the main cabins.  Note sure if this is a good idea – I doubt it would stop us sinking, and it makes keeping the boat dry harder.  Water that gets into the forward section will have to be pumped out rather than just letting it drain along the keel into the main part of the bilge.

We installed a ring frame just forward of the mast to strengthen the boat where a bulkhead was removed.

A water tank on each side of the mast provides a base for the bunk – a different kind of waterbed.  The port side tank is in.