Phase 3: Complete

I successfully dragged the trailer home! I was pretty worried the whole time I was on the road.  I almost got stuck in a motel parking lot. A little extra gas got the trailer to jump the curb. The lane was really narrow. I've never towed anything that big or that heavy before, but my little CR-V rose to the task. Even making it the last two miles to the house in the middle of a snow storm (with lots of thanks to my neighbor, Doug). 
I'm home for about 2 weeks. Getting my taxes done tomorrow (3/20/2017). That's always fun. I've got several doctors appointments to attend to. But, the boat is never far from my mind. While I'm here, the same guy that installed the GPS antenna and the auxiliary bilge pump will be installing a Garmin radar set and a board on which I can mount my little outboard motor. I want to mount the outboard on the big boat so that I won't have to tow the dinghy with the motor clamped on.
I've been trying to get this update posted since yesterday. But, I keep getting interrupted. This last interruption was good news. The radar is on-board as is the motor mount for my little outboard. Progress!

On left: Radome on mast  Center: Outboard on swim rails  Right Outboard from above

Click for bigger pictures.

I'm still on schedule to fly to Pensacola on Tuesday (3/28/2017).

Wrapping Up Phase 3

As I said in a recent post, some ups and some downs. This past week has been mostly up. Several loads have been taken off my mind.
One "load off" was getting the trailer registered so that I could tow it back to WV. Paperwork back and forth, long waits between communication, and a request for even more paperwork had me pretty nervous. But, the plate finally arrived. Whew!
Another "load off" involved getting the dinghy registered. I called the DMV and asked what would be required. They said, "Driver's license, Bill of Sale, and Manufacturer's Statement of Origin." Contacted the business that I bought it from, they had been really nice resolving an issue with a broken part, and requested the BoS and the MSO. They emailed it to me and I went to the DMV. They have an automated queueing system that sends text alerts, first approximate wait time 2.5 hours. I went and did some shopping and returned after several text alerts. Finally got to talk to the DMV agent and after nearly an hour and several visits by her to her boss, my application was rejected. The BoS needs to be on business letterhead and they didn't like the MSO that I had presented. Multiple hours-long phone calls and multiple emails (one email included the advice that I should go back to the agent and "be more assertive"), I got a BoS on letterhead and an official MSO from the manufacturer. I went back through all the DMV hassle and finally got the dinghy registered. Whew!
One of my early concerns with the boat is that it only came with one bilge pump. The way that the cockpit is engineered, any water that comes in the boat (rain, spray, wash down) goes directly to the bilge. In a severe rain, water pours into the cockpit. I found a marine electrician and he was here yesterday. So, now I have a second bilge pump. Should the first one fail, I, hopefully, won't sink! He also mounted my new little GPS antenna on the roof of the cabin. Good times! He is also going to send me an estimate for installing a radar system. That's going to be expensive!
A couple of days ago, the weather was really nice and the kids next door were on their boat. I invited them out for a little cruise. We spent a pleasant hour or so out. We cruised by the Oyster Bar, where my friend Kasia works. I texted her and she came out and snapped some pictures as we cruised by.

Cruising on a sunny afternoon