Staircase!

It's 11:11 pm after a grueling day, a fun evening with Tucker and a lovely few hours with Wiggles.  How does she do it all you ask?  I ask too.  It must be the 3.25 mile walk I start the day with nearly every morning, even in the rain.  Or...maybe it's the glass of luscious wine I just poured to enjoy with the blog posting.  In any case, here I am, and here is one set of the pictures I promised Monday.  I have to stop with these promises - gets me in trouble every time.

You have to stop to realize that these steps and handrail are brand new for the 55.  In fact, these steps have never been done on any boat.  There was a leap of faith involved here, mostly on my part since Tom B. was confident in the ability of the yard to carry this off.  He and I chatted Monday and we both agreed that the yard has done an awesome job.

It was so clever to make the steps open to the salon - the design added quite a visual to the already spacious beam to beam salon.  The handrail itself is close to 3" wide, quite substantial both in utility and aesthetics.  The top of the cabinet adjacent to the steps will be a lovely place to display something special (secured with Museum Putty of course).  We'll get a better look at the handrail once the protective sleeve comes off - you'll have to come visit!

The idea of creating a landing instead of a continuous "wind" is another stroke of genius.  There's enough depth in the curving steps to actually put a foot down flat - a real bonus while underway in "lumpy" seas.

One almost expects a bride to descend this staircase!  It will be a great spot for anyone aboard to make a dramatic entrance.  These steps really are "house like", including the height of the risers.  Right now, we're trying to decide on how to best position access to the storage under a few of the steps - probably by lifting up the top of the step so as not to mar the curved piece of wood we're looking at head on.

The level of detail involved in planning out this boat is mind boggling.  I give the KKY staff so much credit since mine is not the only boat being built at this time.  Each time I get pictures or we chat on the phone, I feel as if mine is the only boat in the production line right now and they have all the time in the world to make sure I'm always in the loop and completely happy with whatever is on the table for discussion at that point in time.   Who could ask for more?  Since I always do, it's amazing to me that I'm more than satisfied with all that is going on.

Anyway folks, I wanted to keep my word and share this beautiful staircase with you.  Still to come are pictures of the master stateroom and more of the salon and galley.  The galley is really taking shape; I may actually learn to love cooking again.

I hope you're enjoying the show.  Would love to hear your comments.  Thanks John for always being there with a great comment!  I always look forward to hearing from you.