Adventures on Slàinte Mhath

As the saying goes a boat is just a hole in the water that you pour money into. Trying to get everything in tip top shape certainly results in a huge investment in time and money. With that in mind I often joke that our boat should be named “Empty Pockets”. Although things do cost a lot we have been fortunate for the past 10 years that we have owned Slàinte Mhath as we have had no major expenditures. Part of the reason is that John is quite the handyman, able to fix most everything, thus the nickname MacGyver!  Preparations for the last two months or so have included work on the Naiad stabilizers, installation of new water pumps, rebuilding the port alternator, repairing and recharging the refrigeration, installing all new Garmin electronics and purchasing spare parts to have when needed (which will undoubtedly happen).  Of course there is maintenance done each year under any circumstance; such as scraping barnacles, changing oil and filters, adding new anodes and painting the...

We are John and Bonny Gifford from Westport, MA. We have been married for 43 years and have two grown sons, Seth and AJ who are both married with children.  Westport is a small coastal town that boasts farm land, stone walls and the lovely Noquochoke River which lies between Narragansett Bay and Buzzards Bay. As life long residents of Westport our family has enjoyed the river and beaches tremendously.  Now that we are both retired, we are anxious to get underway on the Great Loop on Slàinte Mhath (Slanj-ja-va), our GB 42 CL. Slàinte Mhath comes from the Gaelic and translates into good health. It’s a traditional Scottish and Irish toast that we became aware of many years ago while enjoying a Guiness in the Settle Inn in Stirling, Scotland. Our bartender (George) greeted us with this hearty cheer, inspiring us to name a future boat with this hearty salute!  About 10 years ago we did end up purchasing that “future” boat, choosing the stately Grand Banks Classic. We got a tas...