For the winter here, most live aboards build a framework of wood or metal, then wrap the boat in plastic. The plastic is special in that it shrinks when heated. So when we are done wrapping the boat in plastic it looks like a big greenhouse. Then we apply heat from a propane torch and the plastic shrinks up to the frame that we’ve built pulling everything in tight and holding everything in place. This ‘bubble’ protects us from much of the winter weather and keeps the snow off the deck. It also makes a great storage area for all our junk which is why so many of us leave the plastic up way too long into the summer - it’s easier to leave it up than clean up the junk!

We do not operate the boat in the winter - the engines have been winterized to withstand the freezing temps. For most of the winter we are locked into the ice anyway and could not go anywhere if we wanted to.

cya.