SIDEBAR: Our boat’s “car” – the dinghy:
OK, imagine that you have just arrived in your sailboat at a glorious secluded anchorage and there is a huge beach and hills to hike just beckoning you. How do you get from your sailboat, anchored in 30 feet of water to the shore ½ mile away? So, you 
have to set up your trusty dinghy. If you have already inflated it and it is tied down on the bow of your boat, that is great, you have saved yourself 45 minutes of pumping your foot to get air into all the tubes of the dinghy. So, first you have to untie the dinghy, turn it over and attach a halyard to a bridle that you have made to hold the dinghy up. Then, while one of you controls the dinghy and forces it out past the lifelines of your boat, the other raises the halyard (and the 
dinghy) above the lifelines, and then slowly lowers the dinghy into the water. Then you have to go to the stern of our sailboat to unlatch the 80 pound outboard motor from the push-pit and then carry it forward to where the dinghy is in the water. Either you can lift it down into the dinghy (which by the way has an inflatable floor – which you certainly don’t want to puncture) or you can set-up a pulley system using the running backstay tackle to slowly lower the motor onto the dinghy. Once safely aboard, you make the motor secure, and then have to get the wheels that go on the back of the dinghy so that you can pull it up onto a beach. Don’t forget to bring the oars (in case the motor dies), the gas tank for the motor, the handheld VHF radio, the gas canister, your life vests, and if it is evening, a light or two. Oh, also remember the anchor to keep your boat from floating away from the 
beach if the tide changes while you are on land. Once all these things are aboard, and you have ascertained that your sailboat is closed up and secure on its anchor, you can head off in the dinghy to shore… usually at a pace that makes Sally’s teeth feel like they are flying out the back of her head. Regardless of the weather or waves, you WILL get soaked. If you choose to do some swimming or diving from the dinghy you had also better be careful, as it is easy to get into the water, but there are neither stairs nor ladder to help you get back into the dinghy once you are done. So, getting back onto the dinghy makes you look an awful lot like those giant sea lions sliding themselves onto the 
rocks. When you are done with your excursion for the hour (or the day), you can’t just tie the dinghy to the sailboat and forget about it. You must then haul everything back onto the sailboat and secure it again, reversing all the steps mentioned above. If you don't do all of this, you will never get ashore. Don’t take your cars for granted!
OK, imagine that you have just arrived in your sailboat at a glorious secluded anchorage and there is a huge beach and hills to hike just beckoning you. How do you get from your sailboat, anchored in 30 feet of water to the shore ½ mile away? So, you 
have to set up your trusty dinghy. If you have already inflated it and it is tied down on the bow of your boat, that is great, you have saved yourself 45 minutes of pumping your foot to get air into all the tubes of the dinghy. So, first you have to untie the dinghy, turn it over and attach a halyard to a bridle that you have made to hold the dinghy up. Then, while one of you controls the dinghy and forces it out past the lifelines of your boat, the other raises the halyard (and the 
dinghy) above the lifelines, and then slowly lowers the dinghy into the water. Then you have to go to the stern of our sailboat to unlatch the 80 pound outboard motor from the push-pit and then carry it forward to where the dinghy is in the water. Either you can lift it down into the dinghy (which by the way has an inflatable floor – which you certainly don’t want to puncture) or you can set-up a pulley system using the running backstay tackle to slowly lower the motor onto the dinghy. Once safely aboard, you make the motor secure, and then have to get the wheels that go on the back of the dinghy so that you can pull it up onto a beach. Don’t forget to bring the oars (in case the motor dies), the gas tank for the motor, the handheld VHF radio, the gas canister, your life vests, and if it is evening, a light or two. Oh, also remember the anchor to keep your boat from floating away from the 
beach if the tide changes while you are on land. Once all these things are aboard, and you have ascertained that your sailboat is closed up and secure on its anchor, you can head off in the dinghy to shore… usually at a pace that makes Sally’s teeth feel like they are flying out the back of her head. Regardless of the weather or waves, you WILL get soaked. If you choose to do some swimming or diving from the dinghy you had also better be careful, as it is easy to get into the water, but there are neither stairs nor ladder to help you get back into the dinghy once you are done. So, getting back onto the dinghy makes you look an awful lot like those giant sea lions sliding themselves onto the 
rocks. When you are done with your excursion for the hour (or the day), you can’t just tie the dinghy to the sailboat and forget about it. You must then haul everything back onto the sailboat and secure it again, reversing all the steps mentioned above. If you don't do all of this, you will never get ashore. Don’t take your cars for granted!
