Survey Day & Boat Yoga

Scheduling a boat survey, haul out and sea trial is a logistical nightmare. We finally found a date that works for us, the surveyor, current owners and a nearby marina that can do a haul out. 

For the three days before our survey, most of Florida was under gale force warnings. We nervously watched the weather forecasts for Friday. The day before survey day, Fort Lauderdale got nearly 30 inches of rain - a true 1,000-year flood event. The day came for us to drive down and get on the boat… and it was perfect. Another sign that things are just working out in our favor.

To summarize, the survey went incredibly well. We learned a ton of new information about the boat. If you're not interested in learning more about the process of a boat survey, I suggest you stop reading here.

The survey is an eight-hour event. Our surveyor was awesome and I could not recommend her more. She explained anything we didn’t know and took the time to give us advice on things we need to keep a very close eye on during our normal inspections.

We started inside, opening every hatch, drawer and cabinet to inspect what was inside. Water pumps, shower drains, through hull fittings, batteries, inverters, electrical panels, and the list goes on. Then we moved on to the engines, looking at oil levels, connection points and general wear. We climbed in every locker and compartment, contorting to fit into the tiny spaces. A situation the current owners call “boat yoga”, and a term we will also adopt.

Throughout the day, she kept saying how great it was to be surveying a “nice boat”. This was music to our ears.

At 10 a.m. we decided it was time to start the engines and get ready to head to the marina for our 12 p.m. haul out. We timed the two draw bridges just right and called the marina once we turned down the canal to give them a heads up that we were coming. They told us to come right in, even though we were a little early for our scheduled time.

It’s nerve wracking to have a large boat in a tight space. It’s even harder when you have an audience. The current owners of the boat did such a fantastic job maneuvering into the slings that were to hoist us out of the water, with only about a foot of clearance on either side. I hope to someday have that kind of confidence.

The whole process takes about an hour, from getting into the slings to splashing back in the canal. While we were out of the water, the surveyor scoured every inch of the parts of the boat that sit under the water.

Once we were back in the water safely, we headed toward the inlet for our sea trial. Along the way, our surveyor watched how the engines performed at various RPMs to make sure there were no issues or alarms. Once out the inlet, we turned into the wind and raised our sails. After a quick inspection of the sails, we tacked a few times to see how the boat handled. Once satisfied, we turned back to the inlet to return to our slip and complete the survey.

The final act was a trip up the mast for our surveyor to inspect those harder-to-reach areas. It was thrilling to watch and definitely gets your heart racing to see someone so high up in the air.

Our surveyor does a “happy hour debrief” with her clients. After very little food or water during the day, this was a welcome suggestion. Over beers and appetizers we got to know each other a bit better and she talked to us about her findings on the boat, which wasn’t a lot. She said there were no major issues or areas of concern, it was in exceptional condition and the price is very fair. The engines are due for their regularly scheduled oil changes, but that’s about it.