Boat owners in northern climes are well acquainted with the process of hauling out their boats and setting them up on jack stands or a cradle for the winter. In some places around the world, like Fiji, for example, boatyards don't bother with hardware like jack stands, but instead dig a narrow pit and lower the boat into it. The chine rests on old tires and the keel pit supports the boat. One advantage to this system is that it lowers the vessel closer to ground level to make it easier to work on — except for painting the bottom, of course.
Check out this post from voyager and Ocean Navigator contributor Livia Gilstrap's blog. She and her partner Carol sail aboard Estrellita, which currently sits in a Fijian keel pit waiting out the cyclone season
