Keel Assembly and Slipway Mobilization

As late winter temperatures lifted above freezing during the daylight hours, Mara and Arel formally struck the pitched thatch cradle that had shielded the paused hull through the autumn gales and midwinter freezes. With the laid keel exposed on the slipway, the entire boatyard mobilized to capitalize on weeks of indoor prefabrication. Master carpenters, fishing crews, and apprentices worked in concert, fastening the pre-shaped ribs, naturally curved framing knees, and match-marked strakes with treenails. Pell’s crew followed directly behind, driving prepared bast oakum lines into the laps and sealing every seam with hot, pitched caulking. The yard’s joint labor has transformed the bare keel into a tight, rising hull, firmly redeeming the promise made to Arel's fishing households.

Harbor Ice Defense and Garden Thaw

Warming daytime temperatures brought shifting ice in the creek and along the sound, sending heavy floes drifting toward shore. Stationed on the lower gravel terrace, watch teams armed with long ash poles fended drifting ice blocks and heavy scouring debris away from the hauled craft lashed above the tide line, keeping the overhauled fishing boat and creek skiffs entirely undamaged.

Uphill, households followed Tor’s direction to collect hearth wood ash and scatter it broadly across the remaining snow crust over the garden plots. The dark ash has noticeably hastened snowmelt across the soil beds, preparing the ground for early turning while depositing potassium ahead of spring planting. Storehouse discipline held firm through the final weeks of frost, with Venn’s rationing schedule keeping the cordoned emergency reserve intact.

The Marker Beach Barter with Saltmere

With the western coastal path clear, Ivo, Venn, and two settlement woodworkers undertook the expedition to Marker Beach, transporting the bundle of birch-bark-wrapped trade goods. There, under full daylight, the delegation met the scouting party from Saltmere.

The exchange proceeded smoothly and amicably. In return for Keelstrand’s twelve carved trenchers and bowls, ten salt scoops, eight tool helves, four sweep oars, and two dry casks, the Saltmere party traded dense pressed salt cakes along with tightly plaited reed mats and hampers. Both sides reaffirmed peaceful relations and confirmed that the shoreline transit between the two settlements remains safe and open. The delegation packed the salt and reed wares onto their pack-frames and returned to Keelstrand well before dusk.

The Feast of the First Bud

To close the winter season, the settlement’s 149 people gathered within the heated boat shed around the central brazier for the Feast of the First Bud. Over a hot communal stew of preserved fish, cellar roots, and newly acquired Saltmere salt—accompanied by hot spruce-tip and rosehip infusions—the community celebrated the turn of the year. Gathering beside the newly framed hull, the settlement marked the successful preservation of their shelters, the endurance of their food stores, and the shared labor that carried Keelstrand intact through the dark months.

Immediate Pressures and Open Decisions

• Hull Completion and Launch: With ribs, knees, and strakes fastened, Mara and Arel must coordinate final planking, pay the remaining upper seams with pitch, and prepare the slipway rollers for launch once open water stabilizes.
• Garden Bed Preparation: The ash-darkened snow over the garden plots is receding rapidly; Venn and Tor must soon organize seed bean inspection, germination checks, and early spading as the ground softens.
• Integrating Trade Cargo: The acquired Saltmere salt cakes and plaited reed mats provide immediate resources for fish curing and warm-weather thatch repair or drying racks, requiring allocation among households.
• Upland Trail Reconnaissance: As lower elevations thaw, the southeast pack trail will soon shed its deepest snow, opening questions about trail conditions, runoff damage, and the seasonal movement of the upland pastoralists and their herds.