A place to call home

I know full well that this project will take years to complete.  I also know that I don't want to have any excuses for not keeping at it.  Originally I planned a "blue sky" build, just building a boat out in the open with no shelter.  Living in Upstate NY, winter weather could take away several months of building time every year. Those months would add up quick and delay this project even further. No one wants to go out and work in the cold and blowing snow.

After discussing my plans with my wife, she strongly recommended building some sort of shelter to work on the boat.  I was apprehensive, primarily because of cost.  I don't care how basic or temporary a structure the size required for this build might be, there is no way around it costing a couple thousand dollars.  A couple thousand dollars that I thought would be better spent on the actual boat. 

However after thinking about it I knew she was right.  Not only would it give me a year round, any weather conditions place to work but it would keep all the untreated lumber dry and safe.  The added benefits of being able to keep all my tools and lumber close at hand instead of having to walk back and forth to the shop sealed the deal.  She was right!

Which brings me to another point.  You really need the support of your family if you intend to take on such a large scale, essentially frivolous project.  The amount of money that will be required affects the whole family.  The amount of time it takes away from your family goes without saying.  I am very fortunate to have a spouse who not only supports my passions but encourages them.  She makes my dreams her own, I couldn't ask for more.  Now it doesn't hurt that my girl was born in the ship building capital of the United States in Newport News, Virginia and was raised on the shores of the Chesapeake outside of Annapolis.  The Grand-daughter of a WWII Navy veteran, she spent many a day on the water and around boats.  Sometimes she is more excited about this build then I am!

So I did a lot of research on temporary structures and boat sheds.  I was a bit frustrated by the lack of specifics I found online.  There were many pictures of various boat sheds but not many details on how they were built.  Eventually I found a couple of plans that I liked and I settled on a design and ordered the plans.  I made some slight modifications to the foundation plan and began to analyze what materials I would need.  I'll talk about specifics of the design and materials in my next entry.

So here are some shots of the materials and the ground breaking.  The plan is for a 45' x 20' bow roof shed.  I'll use boat shrink wrap to make it weather tight. Lots of holes to dig in my terribly rocky soil, definitely not looking forward to that.