It seems that I spend more time covering/uncovering the boat to fuss with it and the actual "fussing". One of the bigger hassles was raising the mast every time.
Last weekend I picked up a 8' X 10' tarp, strung that up from the boom and tied the sides down to the toe rails and left the mast up. Due to the curve of the boat, parts of the tarp ended up inside the toe rail and the whole thing was rather limp.
After heavy rains I ended up with a bunch of water in the cockpit (thankfully I have a drain) so last night I "modified" it to use some battens to hopefully shed water better. Hopefully this won't blow away though. We have some more rain coming later today so I should know soon.
That's pretty neat. Here's a tip for those who live in drought-stricken areas: You can MAKE IT RAIN by keeping your boat outside.
Hi Andrew; We bought a SheilterLogic Canvas Garage to built and store our Weekender in and should be an ideal place to park the boat after a sail or durring New England Winters. Just "Zip it Up".
As "Very Much Newbie's" and "Everything We Don't Know About This" We can't understand why after an enjoyable day on the water why we would anyone have to spend additional time "Wrapping It Up' and experience the problems you have allready mentioned with your 8'x10' tarp technique ?
                    Alan
Those canvas garages are great; my boat lives in one over the winter, and emerges in the spring dry and ready to sail.
Even if I could figure out where to make room for one of those, the $500 is much happier doing other stuff for me.
Just an update - I had foolishly raised the bow of the boat thinking that would help water run off - wrong! It helped the water run along the cabin roof and into the cabin and along the deck into the cockpit. While I was bailing that out yesterday and fixing a switch I'd broken earlier, I was shocked to discover a couple of inches of water in the forepeak as well. When I built the boat I made sure to have a raised lip around the forepeak hatch and the mast to prevent such a thing. Closer examination revealed though that "probably" the water had run down the mast and then out the drain holes I put at the bottom of the mast box. I've caulked the seam between the mast and deck now and am hoping that problem is now solved.
We had heavy rain again yesterday and I checked and the cockpit is dry still even though I had also removed the plywood cockpit cover. I didn't have the enthusiasm to climb in and check the cabin but suspect (hope) that it's dry now too.
  It's always one thing or twelve. I went out yesterday to work on the Weekender and it seems I set up the Canvas Garage in a low spot :o had the hull been completed "Joedee's Song" would have had the Maiden Voyage right there. We'll all survive the little misshaps that we encounter along the way and have a good laugh at ourselfs for years to come.
  If it ever stops raining here in New Hampshire I'll do some "Pick & Shovel Excavation" and correct the problem.
  Have a Good OneÂ
       Alan
I got a 12' x 25' portable tarp shed for 100 bucks at walmart , granted it's been a few years now but she's still holding up
On the weekend I folded the mast back down and the boom tent still works going over the mast and boom. In fact it seems to work even better - no water in the cockpit despite heavy rains and lots of ventilation.