Dos Gatos was partly sunk by Tropical Storm Gabrielle. She was at Twin Dolphin Marina in Bradenton, Florida, when Gabrielle arrived.
The tropical storm developed a large swell when winds shifted to the northwest (down the Manatee river). The marina sea wall did not keep it out, and the floating docks could not handle it. Around 8 boats were sunk and many damaged.
Dos Gatos port hull was damaged and sank. That hull and the galley were flooded. She was raised by SeaTow and patched for her trip to the boatyard. She was towed 300 miles to Miami where she was craned out at Consolidated Yacht (October 3rd, 2001).
We've been staying in a condo at Miami Beach for several months during the repair work visiting the yard virtually every day.
She was put back in the water January 15th while final mechanical and electrical repairs were being completed. (pictures) Several replacement parts have proven hard to get, and this has introduced delays.
We moved back on board (in the CYC yard) on Saturday, February 16th. We tried to leave on the Sunday for a test sail but lost an engine within a few yards. It turned out that the Racor fuel filter had been installed back to front!
After another week in the yard, we finally left Saturday, February 23rd. We went down the Miami River (under seven or eight opening bridges) and anchored in the marine stadium on the north side of Key Biscayne. The next day, after a brief test sail in Biscayne Bay, we went into Miami Beach Marina for a few days. There, and in Miamarina at Bayside for a few more days, we completed provisioning and final preparations.
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