StickyBill
New Member
After almost thirty years of talking about buying our first real sailboat, we finally did it. We've had smaller sailboats over the years but nothing that you couldn't sail for more than a few hours at a time (no cabins).
We found a well-cared for 1977 E32-2 (ERY32554V77I) in Nanoose Bay, BC. We had looked at quite a few boats during the search process and when we saw this one we immediately knew it was going to be the one. We made our offer, hauled it out and had it and the engine surveyed in Nanaimo, BC, where it was given a clean bill of health. While it was out of the water we did the bottom paint and then sailed her to her new home in Madeira Park (Pender Harbour), BC.
Quick overnight stay in Halfmoon Bay (our home).
Tied up at her moorage in Madeira Park.
While everything is structurally sound, she's not without a few items on the project list. The two big ones are the installation of a holding tank for the head and the replacement of the old Kenyon low-pressure alcohol stove with, most likely, an Origo. One portlight has a small sporadic leak and all the gaskets could stand replacement on the portlights. The upholstery is in great condition and appears to be the original 1970's vintage yellow/orange tartan pattern fabric. We may eventually make up more modern cushions throughout but we'll keep the original cushions intact and in storage. She was re-powered a few years ago with a Betamarine 20 diesel and has just over 100 hrs on it so it should be good for the foreseeable future. Despite the previous owner's warning that he couldn't get the in-hull transducer to work, I managed to install it and get the depth sounder running. I mounted a Garmin 721xs chartplotter to the binnacle and I'm in the process of adding a few Blue Sea USB ports in strategic locations in the cabin. They seem to be a necessity these days. The standing rigging is all relatively new and in solid shape but some of the running rigging lines/sheets will be replaced in the next few months (mainsheet, boom vang, outhaul, and topping lift).
We're very fortunate in that we live on the front doorstep of the popular Desolation Sound cruising grounds and have easy access to the Gulf Islands so we're hoping to get out and explore them all over the next few years. Hopefully we'll cross paths with other Ericson owners along the way.
We found a well-cared for 1977 E32-2 (ERY32554V77I) in Nanoose Bay, BC. We had looked at quite a few boats during the search process and when we saw this one we immediately knew it was going to be the one. We made our offer, hauled it out and had it and the engine surveyed in Nanaimo, BC, where it was given a clean bill of health. While it was out of the water we did the bottom paint and then sailed her to her new home in Madeira Park (Pender Harbour), BC.
Quick overnight stay in Halfmoon Bay (our home).
Tied up at her moorage in Madeira Park.
While everything is structurally sound, she's not without a few items on the project list. The two big ones are the installation of a holding tank for the head and the replacement of the old Kenyon low-pressure alcohol stove with, most likely, an Origo. One portlight has a small sporadic leak and all the gaskets could stand replacement on the portlights. The upholstery is in great condition and appears to be the original 1970's vintage yellow/orange tartan pattern fabric. We may eventually make up more modern cushions throughout but we'll keep the original cushions intact and in storage. She was re-powered a few years ago with a Betamarine 20 diesel and has just over 100 hrs on it so it should be good for the foreseeable future. Despite the previous owner's warning that he couldn't get the in-hull transducer to work, I managed to install it and get the depth sounder running. I mounted a Garmin 721xs chartplotter to the binnacle and I'm in the process of adding a few Blue Sea USB ports in strategic locations in the cabin. They seem to be a necessity these days. The standing rigging is all relatively new and in solid shape but some of the running rigging lines/sheets will be replaced in the next few months (mainsheet, boom vang, outhaul, and topping lift).
We're very fortunate in that we live on the front doorstep of the popular Desolation Sound cruising grounds and have easy access to the Gulf Islands so we're hoping to get out and explore them all over the next few years. Hopefully we'll cross paths with other Ericson owners along the way.
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