Things have been moving quickly lately. With the boat lifted, we aligned the rudder and centerboard—perfectly, and marked the waterline. A few coats of primer later, and we rolled on the first layer of antifouling. It’s a small but satisfying thing, seeing actual color start to cover the hull.

The torpedo is now in place and shaped with filler. Stabilizers and rudder are both ready for their final coats of paint. After weeks of sanding (yes, all of it), we’re finally done with the dusty phase. Now it’s all about clean finishes, hardware installation, and preparing for hitting the water.

Alongside the hands-on boatwork, I’ve started organizing the essentials: safety gear, medical kits, food rations, drinks, hygiene gear, power consumption, emergency procedures and so on . I’ll be testing the VHF and AIS signals early july, and somewhere in between, building the windvane and crafting the tiller.

And then there’s the part that makes this project feel even more personal: the paint. I’ve been working with Marjan, Macedonian artist, and watching him transform the hull with graffiti that means something to me. Every detail—from the reeds to the birds, to the portraits and symbols—has a story. It’s not just a boat anymore. It’s becoming something alive.

Work is still in progress so my future posts will include some more details about the paintings

However Boat building work already pause for me due to job commitments, but the goal stays the same. I’m aiming to splash the boat into the lake for test sails in July, and by August/September , take on my 400nm solo non stop qualification somewhere in Mediterranean sea.

Later