As I write this, we are back in the
water, having completed the bottom painting and waxing of the hull.
As mentioned in the last blog, we also had the upper bearing of the
rudder replaced. The new one – a piece of hard plastic – cost a
hefty $300 – unbelievable! But it's for a boat, so why should I
expect a low price?
Now that we're back in the water, it
might appear to the non-boaters who read this that we are near ready
for our departure. That's not quite true. We actually have lots of
projects to complete prior to our departure. They range from
checking out the sails and restitching any weak areas to replacing
the tablets in our inflatable life jackets. (These are tablets that
are designed to dissolve when they get wet. Our spares did.) Also
included are checks on the engine, batteries and rigging as well as
radios, GPS and other electronic equipment. We want to begin the
trip at least with most everything in working order. We know from
past experience that the wear on the boat and equipment will result
in breakdowns somewhere along the way. Of course we hope that we
won't see major issues like the engine we had last year.
We also must provision the boat. This
includes the obvious items like food, but it also includes spare
parts that might be needed during the trip south. For instance, we
may need to replace fuel filters, and these filters are not available
in many places. I'll be changing the engine oil before the end of
the trip, so I'll need oil and the filter on board as well. We add
extra cans for fuel and water as well as loading our folding bikes
onto the boat. (We've decided not to take our kayaks this year. We
just didn't use them much in the Keys, and they take up lots of space
on our foredeck.) We'll make decisions about clothing to take. We
want to be prepared for cool weather during the trip through the
Carolinas in November. Even northern Florida can be pretty cool in
the morning. We saw temps in the 40s last year. Shorts and T-shirts
just won't be enough for that portion of the travel.
Having gone through this process a few
times now, I find that I have a new mindset for this time of year.
With the morning temperatures moving down, this change of seasons
tells me that it's time to move south. As I see boats come to the
marina, I wonder if they too are heading south and just leaving
sooner than us. As I review the charts, a picture of each stretch
comes to mind. I also am reminded of where we were concerned about
shallow water and where the anchorages were most crowded. We usually
manage to visit with friends and family during the trip, so I've
begun to think of how each of those will work out and where the
meetings are most likely to take place. Of course we've begun talking
about places we hope to visit on the way. Beaufort, NC, Beaufort,
SC, Charleston, St. Augustine and Vero Beach always make it onto that
list. There are others, though, that we don't always get to. It
just depends on weather and how well the travel goes.
We still have a nearly three weeks to
wait for our departure. In addition to the insurance limits, I have
jury duty for the next two weeks. At least I'm on the list. The
nightly phone calls will tell me whether I actually have a good
chance to serve on a jury. My last day of service is supposed to be
the 19th. If all goes well, we'll hope to leave the next
day, so we can get through the Norfolk area with its bridges during
the weekend. (During the work week, the bridges close each morning
for a couple of hours to accommodate rush hour. That delay would
make it difficult for us to get to our first planned anchorage south
of there in North Carolina.)
As a final note for this addition of
the blog, I'll mention that I've decided to begin using synthetic oil
with our new engine. A fellow cruiser spoke highly of this move
awhile back. As I've wrestled with the issues that might have
contributed to the “early” engine failure, I've thought that a
better lubricant might have made a difference. After talking with
some diesel engine people and doing a bit more investigation, I've
decided this would be the right move. Any comments from cruisers who
have made the change or decided against it would be appreciated
before I actually make the change.
The next blog will likely show up
before the end of the month.
Carpe Diem
Captain Bob
No comments:
Post a Comment