Rehab the lift!
[Full Photoset] I think that photo would make a great advertisement for Custom Boatlifts, Inc., who paid a visit to the Craighill Lower Range Front Lighthouse yesterday to survey the feasibility of retrofitting a boat lift onto the existing davits (click for larger image showing their company name on the boat). The work barge was awesome out there. The whole crew was also very helpful in fitting the ladder that’s been sitting inside under the hatch on the southwest side, which seems a more leeward place to tie the boat up. I’m not sure the ladder will actually remain there as it doesn’t quite fit right. Although, the platform does seem to be closer to the water level than the steel grate on the other side.
Chris and I met for lunch in Pasadena, where I was surprised to find a house on my short-list of possibilities about 9 months ago on Stoney Creek is STILL for sale! Wow. We discussed board items over lunch, then headed over to Scott’s (of Custom Boatlifts) house, where we were treated to a boat ride on mostly calm waters out to the light. When I initially mentioned the boat lift idea to Chris, I joked that it’d need to be easy to drop down as well as secure so that I was the only one who could drop it without having to hold the boat in one place to work a crank or something. I wrote, “remote control?!” half-jokingly, particularly since there’s no power at the lighthouse (yet). So I giggled out loud when Scott lowered his boat into the water off his dock using a remote! Seemed a promising sign!
This circa 1950s or 1960s photo depicts the davits/lifts in use on both sides of the lighthouse. The pair on the left are the ones we are looking at as the pair on the right are now missing a davit. I still haven’t uncovered what happened to it. You can see a board mounted across the tops of the ends of the davits and now there is quite a bit of rust and erosion where the board was, so the structural integrity of the davits will need to be determined before we sink money into a lift system. I think it will be awesome to lift the boat out in the same way keepers did back in the day. It’s historically accurate. However, aside from the coolness factor of replicating how keepers manned the light into the 1960s, I’ve found lifting the boat to be an absolute necessity out there. The waters are far too rough to tie my boat up with glued-on rings and the tide and winds change unpredictably. I’d like to be able to sleep restfully through the night so I have enough energy to actually do maintenance work two days in a row rather than being drained from babysitting the lines and boat all night and rearranging as needed.
Planning on using solar power to drive the motors needed, we started out discussing overhauling the existing winch, but deeming that too large and expensive of a project for now (it appears to be missing some parts that would require a machinist and I want something as quickly as possible), we turned to discussing placement of mounting motor boxes and how to wire cables through the davits. The Custom Boatlifts crew continued measuring and brainstorming while Chris and I headed up to the gallery deck around the lantern. I had noted water is still leaking through in places, likely where the seams have split in the roof paneling, so we used up the rest of the roll of Ice & Water Shield to cover a large area. I’ll bring another roll out next time and finish the entire thing.
Meanwhile, with a bunch of strong guys out there offering to help, I asked them to try to fit the big ladder that’s been sitting inside the lighthouse since we acquired it under the hatch that opens and closes easily on the leeward side, but has too short of a ladder to use as an entrance. The guys were awesome and I owe them a huge thanks for their help! We placed a lock on the top of the hatch, but once the ladder was in place, realized it wouldn’t close all the way. Plus, the ladder doesn’t fit in the way I envisioned it would. I thought it would hook in backward from the inside out on the bar, thus fitting behind the shorter ladder. A brace attached to the caisson from the existing short ladder blocks that since the other ladder is wider. So it fit platform facing in, and seems a bit awkward. Oh well, it was worth a shot! But I’ll probably end up hauling it back up next time out as it seems a little unstable and I’d like to close that hatch so it doesn’t warp. Bummer. It’d be nice to be able to tie up on that side until we get a lift. Ah well, you don’t know til you try, right?!
So keep fingers crossed that the lift idea is viable! Even if it’s a little awkward to work, anything is better than tying up out there for any length of time. If there’s anything I’m learning about being a Keeper, it’s that you have to be creative and adaptable! I’m also learning that while lighthouses stir romantic notions in most lighthouse lovers, reality is that as a keeper, particularly of an off-shore light, they take a ton of exhausting body-numbing work. Whew! I’m up for the challenge, though. Thanks to everyone for their help and expertise yesterday!
Scott joked that he and his son River will bring me coffee in the mornings in a couple years. Boy would I love that, but hopefully I have a coffee solution next time I’m there that early. Must get a single-burner stove or something. That grill just doesn’t boil the water in the percolator like I had hoped it would!
I was disappointed to receive an email from a company I ordered industrial metal primer paint from matching the color of the lighthouse stating they no longer carry what I ordered. Back to the drawing board as I’m fairly certain the “Safety Red” Rustoleum I currently have is going to be way too bright. I’m picturing fire-engine red, but I’ll probably try a swatch to confirm my doubts. Speaking of fire engines, I arrived home to a bunch of flashing lights right in front of my house; a sight that can stop the heart beating for a few seconds since I knew my family was home. While thoughts of “Is someone hurt? Is the house on fire?..” raced through my head, I was relieved to see them in the front yard spectating. Turns out a motorcyclist was hit. Eesh, hope he’s ok.