Cleaning the Boats!

Although these are not our boats this is similar to what my yard looked like today. Only add to the picture 2 saw horses and an extra boat.  Lucky for me my sister's fiance has most ALWAYS cleaned the boats for us.  Well, let me tell you (and Al) I had no idea! It wasn't as easy as I thought it would be. So for the record: Thank you, Al.  I appreciate your hard work and effort in the past.  

On a side note - I did offer the job of washing the kayaks to my daughter in exchange for a little cash. She declined which makes me think she had more insight than I gave her credit for!

I hadn't planned on writing about it so there are no pictures...just the one I'll create in your mind. I began the ordeal by cleaning out the hatches, removing all life vests, first aid kits, bug spray & anything else that needn't get wet.  Then I got my mild detergent (Palmolive of course - Oh Madge would be proud!) and poured some in a clean 5 gallon bucket which I was then filled with cold water from the hose.

Pretty much washing the boats was like washing a car (although it has been awhile since I've done that!).  Cleaning them while they were sitting on the grass seemed counter-productive, and I quickly realized that in order to do a proper job the boats needed to be up suspended on top of something.

Kayaks resting on Garden Cart

Looking around diligently, I spied the saw horses and figured they would be the perfect aid in this process. I carried them to the middle of the yard figuring the lawn could use some watering too. (I later moved the saw horses to a new spot in the yard for each remaining boat!)  Hoisting my 42 pound boat I was able to sit it atop of the saw horses with only a little bit of difficulty.

Finally I felt  all set to begin the scrubbing. The grime and algae of the Charles River did come off with a little extra elbow grease.  Next, I flipped the kayak over and sprayed the inside of the kayak.  It was full of sand, bugs and other debris.  This is where it got tricky as I had to duck under the boat and poke my head inside.  Reaching deep inside I was able to wipe it down and clean it out.

I was pretty proud of my work until I flipped the boat over and there was still a ton of water inside!  Opening the drain plug first, I then lifted the boat off the saw horse so water would exit....it took  f o r e v e r..or so it seemed.  I did have to lift and move the water around several times.  Any water left over was soaked up with my favorite ShamWow! I gave it one final hose down and then dried it off.

Three Clean Kayaks

The next obstacle was figuring out where to store it since I don't have a garage.  As you may know you should store kayaks on their side, usually with foam on the underside.  Again, I surveyed the yard and saw an old garden cart.  Upending it would allow two of the boats to sit nicely.  Grabbing the kayaks and placing the cockpit over my shoulder which is not very comfortable to say the least and awkward at the most!  When all was said and done - this operation took about 30 minutes....and that was just for one.  I was looking at two more!

Well, I won't bore you with the rest of the details because they are much the same.  Let's just say our kayaks are now clean and ready for the next outing! Oh, and if you're wondering, I think I absorbed more water than the boats!  Good thing it was 85 and humid! Looking forward and hoping Al will take over the duties next time!

top photo credit: JohnCarlinPhotography via photo pin cc