New Hope after Home was Destroyed!
What Happened?
A few months ago, our disabled catamaran/houseboat "Time Lord" was suddenly ripped from her anchorage and severely damaged by ice from upriver. She was half-sunk and beyond repair. Philip (a caretaker and cancer survivor) designed and built the boat by himself over the past 4 years. We lost almost everything.
Why do we still need donations?
After much searching, we have found a new sailboat/home which we are now restoring. She is a 1939 Alden designed 41’ Casey Cutter, that needs much work and TLC. "Wood Wind" (unofficially named "Lee Lee" for Holly's mom) does not currently have her mast, booms or rigging, and we would like to purchase them back from a marina in Maryland.
Here she is in her former glory...
This elegant old beauty made of oak and mahogany was built to sail, and we plan to use the engine as little as possible. Below are some before and after photos taken since we have been putting the boat back together- she was allowed to sink 3 times due to the
negligence of past owners...
The Galley (starboard side) "Before"
The Salon (port side) "Before"
The Salon & Galley "After"
The V-Birth "Before"
The V-Birth "After"
The Story of The S/V Time Lord - the boat that we lost....
Building The Boat.
Construction of S/V Time Lord began in 2014 while Philip was taking care of his dad, Donald, who had colon cancer. For three and a half years he battled, but died at age 85 in his home (with little to no pain), surrounded by family...the way he wanted to. During
much of this time, a tent extended the garage to accommodate Time Lord’s 50 foot hulls, and Donald came out frequently to check on the progress of his son building his maritime home. It was moved to a marina near Syracuse that Fall. Construction continued over the years in that undeveloped part of the marina until the launch in June of 2018. Although the interior was not complete, it was time for Time Lord to taste the water and motor across Oneida Lake to the Erie Canal. Holly had been on an international 6 year quest to become a liveaboard sailor. In March of 2018, she joined the crew of Time Lord, bringing it to four - Philip, Holly, Jordan the cat and Grady - the cat she renamed “Chumbawumba.”
The Erie Canal.
While going through 22 locks on the Erie Canal, work continued on the boat as Philip and Holly tried out TL’s handling. Work stopped for a time in Rome NY, as Philip’s father’s house needed repairs to get it ready to sell. Frankfort became a quiet anchorage for a time as the keel was constructed for installation. Handling became easier in Amsterdam with the long awaited installation of the keel.
Three times the journey was delayed by our wayward cat Jordan, who decided to go on
“walkabout” for a few days just as we were ready to move forward. Eventually, the
"Flight of Five" in Waterford was in sight. The five locks are all done in one day, as they
are one right after the other.
In Waterford (at the bottom of the Flight), another long span of time was needed to
assemble the masts after painting them with epoxy. Our troubles in the Hudson River
started early (while "anchored out" nearby) with the destruction of the first rudder. It
was to be the beginning of a series of pitfalls to befall the Time Lord on her way to New
York City.
The Hudson River.
This part is rather long, but it does explain exactly how we ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time....
It was time to finish as many things as possible as we raced (at 3 miles per hour) down
the Hudson before the worst part of winter came to visit the Northeast. Holly and I
brought the TL to an acceptable level of safety and comfort as we traveled from creek to creek starting in Albany, NY in late September. The final windows were put in, the
interior was well organized (thanks to Holly), and things were proceeding.
On the morning of October 9th (Holly's birthday) in Athens, NY we awoke at 3 AM to
terrifying banging noises from under the boat. It sounded like something was trying to
come up through the floor. For 45 minutes, the noise and shuddering continued. In the
darkness even our brightest flashlights could not reveal what was happening under the
boat. It finally relented after the sound of breaking wood. We later surmised that a
submerged tree had traveled down the Hudson, and our anchored TL had gotten in the way. It must have been gigantic to do the damage it did to the keel. We tried to limp
down to Hagar's Harbor, finding out we had no control of our direction. Investigation
showed that the tree had also bent one of the rudders completely off to one side.
Anchors were used to keep her off the rocks on the shore.
Once finally docked at Hagar’s Harbor, efforts were made to shorten the original keel
and affix it back to her supports. When it couldn't be fastened in, a 4x4 piece of plywood was clamped onto the keel support to serve as a temporary keel to keep the flat
bottomed TL steerable. Temporary rudders were also screwed to the motor mount
blocks to control the now disabled home.
Further down the river, the temporary rudders had to be replaced with stronger bolted
on versions, which were still working when the boat arrived in Inwood (Manhattan.) At
the end of Dyckman Street, a city park became our access point to bring our rowboat
dinghy "Jacques”, to and from the shore. 
While in Inwood the now waterlogged temporary keel broke off. That made 4 rudders, 2 keels, and 4 anchors now lost to the mighty Hudson River. Going underneath looked far too dangerous in the cold waters to attach another temporary keel. It was decided to
build a leeboard and attach it to the outside of the starboard hull. A leeboard is a type of keel that rotates down from the side of a boat to prevent sideways motion of the boat -
the same function a keel serves. The first attempt to attach it failed in the fading light
and waves as Philip tried to do it alone. Holly was ashore focusing on a work deadline. 
With the worsening temps and high winds, access from land to the TL was spotty. We
had to sit tight for two days on shore, until we could return to the boat and then move
her to Liberty Landing Marina a week later. Philip returned to Inwood first (with
yet another tank of propane to keep warm) to find our chained up rowboat was gone.
The parks people were contacted and a police report was made, but Jacques was to be
ours no longer. To make matters worse, our two cats were stranded on the boat and
running out of food. 
The worst cold snap of 2018-19 was about to hit. Philip contacted Boat US for our
"Unlimited Towing" and they refused to help us. Sea Tow did not have any boats in the
water either, and The Coast Guard would not help because there were no people on
board. Holly frantically reached out to the boating community and friends via social
media and email. An angel from The Inwood Canoe Club responded, and the next day he was able to row Philip out and back to rescue our kitties from the approaching cold.
As we waited for our new dinghy to arrive from Amazon, little did we know what was
coming our way - luckily, no souls would be lost during the disaster about to befall our
disabled home.
Early Thursday morning, the NYPD called to tell us we had better put eyes on our boat
ASAP, because there were reports of it sinking. Philip rushed uptown to find the TL was
not anchored where she was supposed to be. From their boat, NYPD Harbor Patrol
spotted her south of the George Washington Bridge. He ran a mile to her side. Our
floating home was resting near the rocky shore, listing 45 degrees to port. The port hull would never rise again. The built-in foam and empty containers would keep her from
completely going under, but she could never be restored to what she was. Later on that
day, she visited the Little Red Lighthouse under the GWB. As Philip watched, she floated starboard hull high, closer to where she had originally been anchored. Surrounded by
the broken-up ice from up river, Time Lord settled there in the fading light for the
coldest night of the winter.
Over the next days, day we were bombarded with the question “What are you going to
do about this situation?” by the NYPD, the Port Authority, the Coast Guard and the
Army Corp of Engineers....but none of them were willing to help secure our boat. At this point it had become a “salvage operation,” and Holly sprung into action to search for
salvage companies that might be able to help.
On Friday, a call from The Army Corp of Engineers sent the two of us to Riverdale to search for the boat, which we never found….although the NYPD did, and kindly took a picture for us. The next day, the Coast Guard and the Army Corps of Engineers finally caught up to our wandering home. ACE wrapped her with steel cables and lifted/towed her to a location in Yonkers, NY. There, Time Lord floated, half-submerged, swinging upriver and down with the changing current, being further battered by ice while tied to a seawall. As for how long the lone cleat at the John F. Kennedy Memorial Park would hold her out of the shipping lanes, no one could be sure. 
The Final Chapter for TL.
On Wednesday, February 20th, Time Lord was completely destroyed and shoveled into dumpsters. We had no choice but to have her pulled out of the water, dismantled and disposed of - to prevent future liability by her possibly floating away and becoming a hazard to navigation. She was beyond repair and we were heartbroken. The process was executed by a salvage expert who greatly helped to push our claim through Progressive Insurance. On February 18th, we were able to personally salvage a few treasured possession covered in thick mud. It was horrifying to see her so terribly damaged, with large holes in the hulls, the interior ripped to shreds and 95% of our possessions lost to the Hudson River. The boat was Philip's only home.
Our maritime journey was challenging and fraught with peril, but we also had some truly wonderful experiences. We are devastated but also grateful to have had this incredible adventure, living and learning on Philip’s unique labor of love - The Time Lord.
RIP - we loved you well.
Thanks for reading our story! If it resonates with you, please share it. Let us know if you have any questions: [email redacted].
Peace & Fair Winds,
Philip, Holly, Jordan & Chumbawumba
