A "3-antibotic" sinus infection and 5 days in Salt Lake City has left little time for being aboard SunSmiles, but that's about to change.

This week SunSmiles goes on the hill for a total outdrive service, including all new bellows -- whether they appear needed or not. A recent story in one boating magazine indicated that 44% of all sterndrive sinkings was attributable to leaking bellows. That's reason enough for preventive maintenance, sooner than later.

While out of the water, I guess we'll go ahead and relieve the sundeck of the old camper-style A/C unit and install the marine unit we got last year. The old unit can turn SunSmiles into a freezer locker, but even I admit it's rather unsightly, not to mention taking up good sundeck space that could be used for entertaining.

We'll also be doing some galley upgrades. We're excited about Sea Wee restaurant's chef, Mark Lee becoming CruisingTheICW.com's Seaside Chef. In the days to come, Mark will be preparing new recipes aboard SunSmiles, to show that cooking can be fun aboard a 30' cruiser with a limited galley. Watch for the new recipes to appear on Seaside Chef, found under FYI on the CruisingTheICW toolbar.

While on the site, check out Kristen, Hans, and KitKat's blog as they sail S/V Whisper on a 4-year journey from Pasadena, MD down the ICW and to the Caribbean Sea. I'm not sure which I envy most, their itinerary or the time they will spend on the water. We wish them smooth sailing.