ST. AUGUSTINE TO MARATHON

Some of you might have been wondering if we fell off the earth, since we haven’t sent out a posting in two months. We are just fine, and as I write this, we are on a mooring ball in Marathon (Florida Keys).  It has taken such a long time because of the weather.  The storms have been frequent with gale force winds, and we have even seen a few tornadoes.  This is definitely not the time of year to travel through Florida by boat if you want bright, sunny sailing days or if you have to meet any deadlines.

We left off our last posting (end of March) in St. Augustine awaiting a part to be delivered.  Because of bad weather, we didn’t leave the boat yard until April 6.  Before leaving the yard, we said goodbye to Don, Trish and Cheryl Barr and their friend Dave.  I talked about them in our last posting.  They were heading out to Cuba on their 62 foot schooner so that Cheryl could put the finishing touches on her Cuba cruising guide.  Here is a picture of them and their boat Road to the Isles.

We continued to wait for the part to come at a mooring ball in the city marina.  The part didn’t come until April 17!!  In total, we stayed in St. Augustine for over 2 months, all because of the poor work done in Portsmouth, Virginia.  Ahh, the joys of boating.  By the time we left St. Augustine, a number of the taxi drivers and bus drivers knew us by name!  It was definitely time to go.

Just before we left, we had a very pleasant surprise.  One day a couple in a dinghy pulled up to us, and lo and behold, it was Chris and Brenda Reed from Canada.  We met them originally through John Boasman when vacationing in the Thousand Islands a few years ago.  When they pulled into St. Augustine on their way back north from the Bahamas, they recognized our boat and came over to say hello.  We had a great time and shared a wonderful dinner with them, telling tall sailing tales and other nonsense.  

So, finally on April 18, we fueled up and watered up the boat, got gas for the dinghy and headed south again. 

It took us 5 days to reach Lake Worth, which is a popular jumping off point for boats going to and from the Bahamas.  We planned to leave the Intra-Coastal Waterway (ICW) at Lake Worth and take the ocean route to Fort Lauderdale (1 day), then head back outside from Fort Lauderdale to Miami (1 day).  In the ICW, from Lake Worth to Fort Lauderdale, there are 19 bridges; for 17 of them, we would have to wait for an opening.  So, skipping all of the bridges was very appealing.      

The weather continued to be an issue, with the ocean seas at 4-5 feet and high winds.  So we waited in Lake Worth until April 25.

I’d like to explain a little about the things that need to be considered when deciding when to head out to the ocean through an inlet (for you landlubbers, but boaters can read this too).  First of all, you have to know what direction the wind is coming from, the strength of the wind and the height of the waves in the ocean.  Then, you need to know the tide height at the inlets and the strength of the tide at the inlets (both the inlet you are leaving and the inlet you will be entering at the end of the day).  Otherwise, you can experience a really horrible sailing day on the ocean, and you could potentially be pushed in to the rocks at an inlet. 

We learned to make a wish list of the best conditions for going from one place to another, and then check the marine forecast and tide tables against our list.  For instance, here is our wish list for leaving Lake Worth through the inlet and taking the ocean route to Fort Lauderdale:

Wind:

·      from the north or east (since we were sailing south, a north wind would be best because it would push us, but an east wind, if not too strong, was okay too.  A south wind would be against us, so not the best for us.)

·      up to 10-15 knots strength.  (We can handle stronger winds quite easily, but this speed is the most comfortable.)

Wave height:

·      1-3 feet (again, we can easily handle 4 and 5 foot waves, but the most comfortable ride is in lower waves)

Inlet conditions:

·      Wait to leave until slack tide when the tide strength is lowest and enter Fort Lauderdale inlet at optimum conditions.  (It is best to wait outside an inlet until conditions are good.  Sometimes, this can mean going round in circles for an hour or more,)

From the marine weather forecast, we learned that on April 25, the wind would be from the NNE at 8-10 knots and the seas would be 1-2 feet.  Sounded perfect.  From the tide tables and the cruising guide, we learned that slack tide at the Lake Worth inlet would be at around 11 AM, and the optimum time at the Fort Lauderdale inlet coincided perfectly with our expected time of arrival.  So, we headed out from our anchorage at 10 AM on April 25.  We had no problem at the Lake Worth inlet, a perfectly delightful sail to Fort Lauderdale and no trouble with the inlet there.

We had some shopping to do in Fort Lauderdale, so we planned to stay at least one day.  We anchored in a little lake (Lake Sylvia) just inside the inlet.  It was lovely there and fairly close by dinghy to the shopping we needed to do. 

The next day, we headed out in our dinghy towards the shops.  The guidebook gave the route and said there was a little bridge with about 7 foot clearance to pass under along the way.  Well, we must have left at high tide because the clearance was only about 4 feet.  Dave and I had to duck right down in the dinghy to get under it.  Here is a picture.

The end of the dinghy ride brings you to the Raw Bar restaurant.  They charge $10 for leaving your dinghy at their dock and, if you eat a meal there, they take $10 off your bill.  Sounded good to us.  The restaurant was right across from a Winn Dixie and a laundromat.  We took a short walk to the Bluewater Charts store to pick up charts of the Grand Cayman Islands and Cuba.  The Sailorman store was our next destination.

Sailorman is the same kind of store as the Sailor’s Exchange in St. Augustine, but we didn’t like it nearly as much.  It’s bigger, but the staff are not as friendly generally.  We found a dock box we wanted, although not a cheap one, and Dave was able to get new blades for our wind turbine.  The guy who helped us most was Jeff.  When we learned the store would charge us $40 to deliver the dock box just a few blocks, we balked.  So, Jeff said he could put it on the roof of his car and drive us back to our dinghy.  I was a little skeptical of the dock box precariously positioned on the roof of his car, but it worked out okay.  Jeff helped us get the box tied to our dinghy, and we bought him lunch.  He was an interesting fellow: grew up in Detroit, did a lot of hitchhiking around the country, learned to sail on a brigantine and was completely in love with his wife and daughter.  It was a very pleasant lunch.

The trip back to our boat in the dinghy was a little different than the trip there, since we had the new dock box tied to our dinghy.  Pretty funny – we laughed all the way back, and you should have seen the looks on the faces of people we passed.  Here is a picture.

There were piles of mega-yachts in Fort Lauderdale, and the evidence of wealth was everywhere there.  Here is a picture of one of the yachts.  Do you think they would ever have to self-deliver a dock box by dinghy to their boat?

And how about this for an interesting watersport!’

After checking forecasts etc., it looked like April 27 would meet our wish list requirements for travelling from Fort Lauderdale to Miami via the ocean route.  The weather report said the seas would be 2-3 feet, but they were wrong.  The winds moved from NNE to strong easterlies, and the seas were 4-5 feet and very choppy.  We tried everything, but there was just no comfortable point of sail.  So, we rolled from side to side for 5 hours.  Quite unpleasant, but not dangerous.

The dangerous stuff happens at the inlets.  The Miami inlet is described in the guidebooks as essentially no problem at any tide because it is wide and deep.  We found this to be true.  However, the go-fast, sport-fishing boats are a hazard.  They drive at high speeds close by your boat, with no consideration for the havoc their wake is leaving behind them.  We are a heavy boat (about 30 tons), and we were tossed around like a cork by several of these guys.  We heard a sailboater reporting one to the coast guard over the radio, and we cheered.  A small sailboat could easily be swamped by the wake from these boats.

I’ll let Dave tell you about our engine problem as we were going through the inlet.  In any case, we were able to make it to an anchorage in Biscayne Bay at Coconut Grove. 

We had expected to stay just one day in Miami, but we ended up staying 3.5 weeks!!  Not because we love Miami.  Again, the weather changed our plans.  This time, the weather was vicious.  From April 27 when we arrived to May 4, there was a thunderstorm every day, and for several days the winds were 20 to 35 knots with gusts up to 50 knots.  Here are some pictures of the weather, including tornado formation.

On our fourth day there, we heard a loud “thunk” at the front of the boat and realized right away that we were drifting and had no anchor.  We acted quickly, started the engine and kept ourselves from drifting into the traffic channel.  We thought the anchor had just lost its hold, but when Dave tried to pull it up, all that came was chain – no anchor!  The chain had broken!  Now, this was 3/8 inch chain, so we were surprised, but gale force winds for days on end had done it in, or there had been a weak link somewhere.

In any case, Dave was able to get our spare anchor set so we were safe, but not without help.  And that is how we met our new friends, the Stells from New Zealand.  They were anchored nearby and saw we were in trouble.  Harvey and his daughter Millie came over in their dinghy, and Harvey helped Dave get the spare anchor set.  All of this was happening in choppy seas, rain and high winds.  Not fun!!

This happened on May 1^st, and we didn’t find our anchor until May 11.  It was a very discouraging 10 days.  Our anchor, for those of you who don’t know, is a 125 pound Rocna.  Dave had researched anchors before we left, and even though it cost $2000, we decided to get a Rocna because it had the best rating.  We fell in love with it during our trip because it just always stuck and stayed stuck.  Now, we were considering leaving it at the bottom of Biscayne Bay because we simply could not find it.

There were several reasons why we had trouble finding the anchor.  Firstly, because of the almost daily afternoon thunderstorm, the seas were all stirred up, and we simply could not see anything in the water.  Secondly, there was a lot of sea grass areas, so the anchor could have been in the grass, and you would not be able to see it.  Thirdly, there were some days when the weather was just too stormy to allow for searching.

The Stell girls saved the day!  Harriet, Millie and Amy would just not give up looking.  At every opportunity they had, they were out in their dinghy and diving down with fins and snorkels to see if they could find it.  Day after day.  It was extraordinary.  They even enlisted the help of another local boater who had diving equipment.  Harvey and his wife, Anne were also extremely supportive and lent a hand frequently.  Neither Dave nor I can dive, but we used our underwater camera off our dinghy and magnets to search.

Eventually, Dave and I pretty much gave up on finding it.  We ordered another Rocna anchor and 200 feet of new chain.  The Stells said, “Don’t give up.  We’re going to find it.”  So, Dave and I made one last attempt.  We spent 4 hours one night taking apart our chart plotted trip into the anchorage.  On paper, we then created a rectangular area with 4 GPS coordinates which represented the most likely area the anchor would be in.

The next morning, May 11, we dropped weights with floats at the four GPS points, and the girls dove just within that area.  Within minutes, Amy dove down and then popped up and shouted, “I found it!!”  The only thing visible of the anchor was the shackle at the top.  The rest of it was completely buried in the mud.  Turns out, we were right about the Rocna – it holds.

It was a spectacular moment and a red-letter day.  And all because of the perseverance and faith of 3 extraordinary teenage girls.  They taught us so much, and we are forever in their debt.  Here are three pictures: an underwater picture showing all that could be seen of the anchor. You can just barely make out the shackle; a picture of lifting the anchor up and a pciture of me in victory.  

Now, I simply have to tell you more about the Stells.  An amazing family, and we were truly blessed to meet them.  Harvey and Anne emigrated from the UK to New Zealand and bought some land.  Harvey worked as a builder, and the family took care of their vineyard.  Everyone pitched in, including the three girls, Harriet, Millie and Amy.  They worked hard and eventually bought a sailboat and did some travelling.  And I mean, travelling.  They sailed from New Zealand to Tonga in the South Pacific, and the girls were the crew.

I can’t do justice in words to describe these girls.  The three of them came over to visit us one evening, (just them, not with their parents) and we sat on the back deck until midnight and talked.  I have rarely spent a more interesting evening with adults.  Harriet is 17 years old, Millie is 16 and Amy is 14 (I think that’s right), and they conversed intelligently with us on every topic under the sun: politics, sociology, sailing – you name it, these girls can talk about it.  Dave and I were completely charmed.

Harriet is a voracious reader and far beyond her years in knowledge and wisdom.  She’s lively, chatty and full of compassion for people.  Millie does not appear to be in the least cowed by her chatty older sister or by being the middle child.  She is currently the most competent sailor of the three, and she oozes self confidence.  Amy is lively and charming, but don’t mistake - she can hold her own with her two older sisters at every turn.  Besides, she found our anchor, so for us, there is only sunshine around Amy.

After spending the evening with them, Dave and I pondered as we went to bed.  Why were these three teenagers so much more confident, competent and mature than the other teenagers we know?  We believe they have developed all this self-esteem from being allowed the freedom and by being given the opportunity to face challenges, whether they succeeded or not.  As we got to know Harvey and Anne better and listened to their family stories, we were struck by how much time these folks spent together as a family and yet how liberating Harvey and Anne are as parents.  They have provided a safe place to be for the girls without denying them the risks and challenges of life.  Dave and I have so often seen our Canadian teenagers being “snowplowed” through life by their parents – to the point the kids have no confidence in themselves at all.  (“Snowplowing” is when the parents plow ahead of the kids to ensure the road is always smooth and dry.)  Kudos to Harvey and Anne for letting their kids fall and get back up again.

And Harvey and Anne are no dummies in other ways too.  We are sure that it is their example of faith and perseverance that ensured one of the girls would find the anchor.  For our part, we are just so grateful to have made these new friends.  Here is a picture of the Stell family.

So, the lessons learned in Miami are:

·       A watermaker is a must-have.  We had only a little water when we anchored with plans to get more at the local marina, but the bad weather never let up.  We were down to the last few drops when we could finally get some.  It is absolutely not fun to live without water. 

·      If your clothes get wet with sea water, they will never dry.  I’m not saying it will take a long time for them to dry.  I am saying, they will NEVER dry.  Several dinghy rides, we got completely drenched by the choppy seas.  I hung and laid out our clothes to dry and checked them every day, and they were never any drier than they had been the day before.  It wasn’t until I was able to rinse them in fresh water that they finally dried. 

·      Don’t take a taxi in Miami.  We had a 5 mile trip to get our alternator fixed, and it cost $37!!  $80 round trip with tips!!

·      Get the best anchor you can afford.  In our world, the Rocna is #1.  Dave hardly slept for night after night when we had to use the secondary anchor.  The anchor alarm kept going off, and the anchor was constantly slipping. 

·      Check every link on your anchor chain – and then check again

·      Set a waypoint on your chart plotter when you drop the anchor –every time.  If we had done this, we would have found the anchor almost right away.

·      Buy the best dinghy you can afford.  I know people talk about dinghies being stolen, but if you lift it each night and lock it each docking, there is no problem with theft.  Our wish list for a dinghy includes: a 4 stroke engine, key start with steering wheel and a rigid bottom.  With regard to the key start, this is a must-have for me.  I simply do not have the strength to pull start the engine.  Consequently, I must always have Dave with me.  I long for just taking the dinghy out to shop by myself or even just to run a quick errand while Dave works on the boat.  Any and all donations to our “New Dinghy Fund” will be gratefully accepted!  (Just kidding.  Don't send money, please.)

They say that if boaters are planning a long cruise, they should do a shorter, shake-down cruise first.  Just to work out the bugs.  They say this can avoid an emotional melt-down on the longer voyage.  Well, it seems “they” may be right this time.  In any case, my melt-down occurred on our retirement voyage on May 13.  We had invited the Stells to a celebration and “thank you” dinner on the H&E Hope.  So, we went into town to do errands and buy the needed groceries.  On the way back in the dinghy, the seas were really choppy, and we got soaked.  And the groceries got soaked.  And the delicious, fresh cookies for dessert got soaked.  And the boxes holding the gifts we bought for the Stells got soaked.  You get the picture?  We got back to the boat, and I started unpacking the sodden goods, and then I started crying.  And I couldn’t stop.  Ruined food was the last straw after weeks of water rationing, salt soaked clothes, daily thunderstorms and gale force winds, not being able to find the anchor, then finding the anchor.  And all of this on top of engine trouble, an accident at a bridge, 2 months getting the repairs done.  And it all culminating in Miami, which is a city I have always hated. 

Okay, so I’m a wuss.  But on that day, I actually thought I did not want to continue with the trip.  That day, the fact that I have no other home to go to seemed like a curse instead of the choice it had initially been. 

Then, I went to sleep, and I woke up feeling silly and childish, but still concerned about whether or not I wanted to keep travelling on the boat.  Then, we went into town in the dinghy again, but this time, the water was calm, and just as we were about to dock the dinghy, a dolphin popped up for air almost within arm’s length of me.  So, I said to myself, “You 62 year old dummy.  When and where else are you going to have moments like this.”  End of meltdown.  I’m back at the helm again.

So, onward and southward we went.  On May 16, we left Miami, and it took us three days to get to Marathon.  We are finally in the Keys.  Since we are both so tired out and in need of a vacation from our retirement, we decided not to leave for Cuba right away.  In fact, we have a lot to do to prepare.  So, we are staying here for at least 1.5 months – on a mooring ball so we don’t have to worry about an anchor for a while.  I will tell you all about Marathon and our preparations for our Cuba/Grand Cayman voyage in our next posting.  Leaving you with this quote for the day:

“Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...  It's about learning how to dance in the rain.”  Anonymous

DAVE'S TECHY TALK SECTION

While we were at Lake Worth, we put up a more appropriate SSB antenna in the hopes of getting better reception.  This was no small challenge.  I had bought the antenna from ‘Sammy’ at a ham flea market, after which I was warned about ‘Sammy’.  Turns out the antenna was made for CB, not HF. Fortunately I had done some testing and learned this prior to mounting it.  With Pat’s able assistance, we disassembled the antenna completely, removed all the related CB tuning parts and made a vertical out of it.  

You may recall our concerns re: our height and bridges.  After being questioned by a couple of bridge operators, we decided to check our height once again.  It seemed that previous to installation of the SSB antenna, we could have ducked under a 27 foot bridge.  With the ‘new’ SSB antenna, we now needed 45 feet, but the way it was swinging in the wind and waves, we worried that it may not stand up to the challenge.  I still had to run the control cables for the tuner, but reception was way better, so I was guardedly optimistic.

At Lauderdale, they were preparing for an air show with tours of a number of navy ships. Add to that, cruise ships and freighters, it reminddr me of 401 at rush hour.  Just a tad nerve racking.

On our run from Fort Lauderdale to Miami, for reasons unknown, the GPS that controls the autopilot decided that giving an accurate position or heading was way too boring, so it began creatively introducing new course headings at random.  This quirk was most apparent when entering port.  Once past all the navy and big commercial ships, it once again began to behave.  

Then disaster struck again, when we turned to enter the port of Miami.  Miami is a very busy port with many, very large ships entering and exiting in a continuous stream.  We had been fighting both wind and current all the way from Lauderdale, making only 4 to 5 knots all the way.  With 4 foot plus seas, we were looking forward to getting into calmer waters.  We were both watching the boat traffic carefully, looking for a good gap to enter the channel into Miami.  Aside from the freighters, there were large numbers of sport fishers, runabouts, pilot boats and the occasional kayak all transiting the same channel.

What we failed to observe quickly was that we had an electrical power failure on the starboard engine.  This was indicated by all the gauges for that engine reading zero.  I know it wasn’t for long as we scan the gauges regularly, but it was probably 5 minutes or so.  As soon as I noticed it, I coupled the  electrical to the port engine.  Oil pressure was OK but the temperature was 100 degrees C.  Not good. We throttled back the starboard a bit until we were in the channel on an even course then shut down the starboard engine.  I mentioned to Pat that the only thing I could think of was a broken belt and hoped that was it – even though we had changed all the belts prior to leaving Canada, it was still the best bet.  Once we were through the channel and headed into Biscayne Bay, I went into the engine room for a look see.  Sure enough the belt was broken.  OK, we carry spares.  Once we get settled I planned on putting on a new belt.  Not so lucky.  Further investigation showed the alternator was seized.  Not good.  Further, for however long it ran without the water pump turning, it boiled of all the coolant.  So, why didn’t the auto shut-offs turn off the engine?  Cuz there was no electrical power.

I don’t know what you know about diesels but the good news/bad news is, once they are running, unlike a gas engine, they require no electrical power to run.  In fact, to turn them off, there is a solenoid that merely stops fuel from going into the injector pump and you basically starve them until they quit.  The big question at this point was where to get another alternator or, find a shop that could change the bearings in this one.

There was a bit of a bright side to this, sort of.  We entered Biscayne Bay in crappy weather (windy, rainy, choppy water) and the prediction was for more of the same for the next few days.  So we wouldn’t be going anywhere anyway.  I pulled the defective alternator Sunday morning so we could take it with us on Monday to a local mechanic.

Aside from all else, I read ‘The Proving Ground’ by G. Bruce Knecht.  This is the story about the Hobart race that claimed 6 lives.  A really good read. There are a couple things in the book that I want to share because I find them interesting and worth pondering – perhaps.

One of the rules in the ‘Racing Rules of Sailing’ as specified by the International Sailing Federation determines who has the right of way on a racecourse.  The rule states that a boat on a port tack – meaning that the wind is approaching from its port or left side- must give way (change its course) if it is on a collision course with a boat on a starboard tack. But why?  According to this book, it is based on the notion, from days gone by, that the starboard side is inherently superior.  Apparently in centuries past, senior shipwrights constructed the starboard side while apprentices constructed the port side.  Captains made a point of boarding their vessels from the starboard side.  Navel artillery salutes typically had an odd number of blasts because they were fired from alternate sides of the ship, with the first and last guns both firing from the starboard side.  Hmmmm.

Apparently, bananas, or anything containing bananas, like cake, should never be brought upon a vessel.  By the same token, whistling should not be allowed.  Don’t want to tempt fate at sea.  I wonder if this could be one of the contributors to some of our difficulties, all three of us like bananasJ.

On a more serious note, for all who travel by water but especially those on sailboats, the power of the wind increases disproportionately to its speed. Mathematically, this means that the force of the wind equals the square of its speed.  Therefore, an increase in wind speed from say fifty to sixty knots (20% speed increase) amounts to an increase in power of more than 40%.  Something to remember when sailing or trying to dock or leave a dock.

One of the more curious things I noticed in St. Augustine and again here in Coconut Grove was the lack of boats using their anchor lights.  We always do, unless the blankety blank thing is burnt out.  St. Augustine has a well defined mooring field so maybe they have an excuse.  Here, no such thing.  There were boats all over the place, yet night after night, I only saw 4 or 5 anchor lights including ours.  The International Collision Regulations (CollRegs) clearly state that thou shalt use an anchor light at night and a black ball during the day.  I can’t remember where we read this, but apparently, at some known anchorage, a passing cruise boat lost power and plowed into several anchored boats.  The insurance companies only covered those boats that had an anchor light showing.  Consequently, only a few boats received compensation.  So, apparently, the insurance companies pay attention to the CollRegs! And we understand, that had the accident happened in the daytime, only boats with a black ball would have been covered.  (So, John Boasman, keep your black ball handy Len, you might want to reconsider the importance of an anchor light.)

I think I’ve figured out the ‘Hope’ will only allow me 3 days of peace before she wants hands on attention again!  And apparently, she is an excellent weight management program.  I lost 20 pouunds after I retired and before we left Ontario, just from discontinuing junk food.  Now, I've lost another 20 from constantly fixing the boat.  Pat says I look like a refugee from a 3rd world country!!

First of all, while we travelled from Lake Worth, our newly installed SSB antenna snapped in two where the lower section meets the higher sections.  All that swinging back and forth was just too much for it.   Time for plan ‘B’.  Plan ‘B’ consisted of running a long wire from where the antenna broke to the flag staff on the stern.  Not a big deal, and in less than an hour, we had an operational antenna.  Receiving anyway.  I mounted the tuner but decided to test the controls for transmit before I ran the control cables through the ship.  No go, won’t tune.  It will take both of us to sort it out (one at the tuner to see what’s happening and one at the radio to push the buttons).  It’ll have to wait, alternator is a much bigger problem.

To Pat’s description of our lost anchor event, I will only add, the whole event started at 2:15 AM of the morning the chain broke.  I was awakened by a loud ‘bang’, and I knew from experience the snubber had broken.  I went outside in the driving rain and rigged a very makeshift snubber and went back to bed knowing full well that first thing in the morning I’d have to figure out something else.

Pat told you about her meltdown, and I was having one too – just not the crying part.  It was the first time we looked at each other thinking perhaps we should just pack it in – the constant mechanical issues, daily thunderstorms, strain on body and spirit were getting to be too much.  We were heartily sick of Murphy being part of the crew.  Digging out of this funk was a much slower process for me. No single event, more a combination of  things.  Meeting the Stells was one, listening to what others were going through was another and thinking of not living this life style was a big one.  In any case, here we are still at it.

Back to the alternator.  Thanks  to having the ‘land’ GPS, we were able  to quickly locate an alternator shop fairly close by.  We hired a cab to take us, and he was quite attentive as to where we were going and  how long we’d be.  The shop was in a run-down neighborhood, but the guys inside impressed me as competent.  They checked the alternator and agreed the bearings were shot.  They said the odds of being able to get new ones was vey small as the alternator was made in England for Ford by Rolls Royce and hadn’t been manufactured for some time.  They did however have a 24 vdc 70 amp alternator in stock which they’d let me have for $150.  OK, let’s do it.  Turns out the shaft size of ours was different than the shaft on the new one, so they’d have to get us a pulley. Can we come back in an hour?  Sure.  We’d go grocery shopping and get that chore finished while we waited.  All this time, the cab driver was by our side so when we said we wanted a grocery store, no problem.  The surprise was when he dropped us off.  I said we’d be about an hour and could I call him to take us back to the alternator shop then back to the dinghy dock?  Emphatic NO!  In fact, he said that when we finish shopping, don’t leave the front of the store until our cab shows up.  According him, this was not a nice neighborhood and he doesn’t go here if he can at all avoid it.  I got the impression that had he known exactly where we wanted to go in the beginning, he would have refused.

OK, so we called another cab, picked up the alternator and back to the dinghy dock and a 15 minute soaked to the skin in the wind and rain ride back to the boat.  Kind of funny in hind site.  Installed the alternator, ran it for an hour or so 1200 RPM to verify everything was working and we’re set.  Except for the weather.  

Keep in mind during this time we were still looking for our anchor.  We were using the Danforth which frankly I don’t trust - too many times it has dragged.  The consequence of my nervousness was I was now sleeping in the salon so I’d be there at the first sign of trouble.  No need, the Danforth mostly held – we only reset it once. 

We met a rather interesting fellow (part of the anchor search party) who commented on our davits and how they were secured.  He said I’d better figure out a was to give them more support, as even though we were steel, they’d eventually break open the aft deck where they were mounted.  He then went on to explain he had done the same mounting we did on his boat (fiberglass) and lifted the deck from the hull.  Not fun. What to do, what to do.  We’d heard of this great hardware store (Shell Lumber) that had everything, so decided to make a trip there to see if they the materials I’d need.  What a place – this was a real hardware store – not like Home Depot or Lowes or Canadian Tire but a real one.  Want a stainless still shaft, over here, stainless nuts and bolts, over here, fiber washers, nylon washers, stainless and galvanized fittings, no problem.  And not just the usual sizes.  They went from the very small to about 2” diameter, not length.  Tools, oh my, Pat kept a close watch on me, for sure.J

In the end we bought all the materials I needed along with a couple wrenches that had disappeared awhile ago, and away we went.  Back at the boat and about an hours work later, our davits were sporting two new support struts that ran from the davits to the swim platform.  Another job completed.

We also bought an EPIRB while in Coconut Grove.  Had no real intention of doing that but Harriet and her sisters (mostly Harriet) finally wore us down.  They were adamant that, if we were travelling out of Coast Guard range, which we would be, an
EPIRB was essential insurance.  For those of you who don’t know, EPIRB stands for “emergency position-indicating radio beacon”.  Essentially, it interfaces with the worldwide offered service of Cospas-Sarsat, the international satellite system for search and rescue.  When activated, it sends out a distress signal which is monitored worldwide, and your location is detected by satellites.  Then, rescue parties come to your aid.  The signal transmits continuously for 54 hours or until you are found.  It’s amazing how much more secure we feel about the trip to Cuba/Grand Cayman now that we have this insurance.  It is one of those things you pray you’ll never have to use.

It took a bit of effort to get the EPIRB registered as we are a Canadian flagged vessel and an EPIRB bought in the USA is programmed for US vessels, but after a trip to an authorized repair centre, it was reprogrammed and duly registered with Canadian DND Search and Rescue. 

By the way, the shop we took the EPIRB to for reprogramming is also a ComNav dealer and an ICOM dealer.  All things marine electronic – neat place.  Wish I had known that before we went, as I would have taken in our ICOM SSB and had them check it out.  Oh well.

With regard to safety at sea, here are some things to ponder.  Long ago, Pat and I established a rule: if either one of us are uncomfortable with the weather or the conditions, we don’t go – no questions, no arguments.  We met a fellow anchorer in Coconut Grove with a 41 foot ketch.  He was preparing to leave within days on a voyage across to Spain.  His wife and her son were joining him, although neither of them had any sailing experience.  They left Miami and got as far as Fort Lauderdale, when the wife and son abandoned ship.  Our intrepid fellow decided to go ahead on his own and started sailing for Bermuda.  He left in weather that neither Pat nor I would have gone in.  A tropical low was off the Carolinas, and there was no assurance of what it was going to do or where it was going to go. 

You guessed it.  At one point on his 130 mile trip to Bermuda, he was surrounded by 6 lightening cells.  You guessed it again – he turned back, sold the boat and flew to meet his wife in Spain. 

Along these same lines, one of my rules is that the VHF radio is never turned off.  We may turn the volume down, but the radio has a feature whereby if there is a weather alert, the radio will beep, and will get progressively louder until you push the button and listen to the report.  You cannot sleep through this horrid screeching. 

Having the radio on all the time has allowed us to hear all of the distress calls from vessels at sea.  At a rough guess, I would estimate there are at least two or three a day.  Many if these just require assistance from a tow boat.  However, since we have been in Marathon, there has been at least 2 capsizings, one Catamaran on fire, and some poor fellow who had his transom split.  Aside from the enjoyment and fun of the cruising lifestyle, this is serious business and requires serious attention to your vessel, your surroundings and the purchase of serious equipment.

Yet another tale from the bilge involves yet again, our generator.  On May 9^th, I noticed some steam coming out of the generator exhaust along with the ‘normal’ water.  As I had rebuilt the raw water pump prior to leaving Ontario, I decided it was something else.  So, I disassembled the heat exchanger thinking we had some plugged tubes.  No plugged tubes.  Checked the impeller (normally this would be the first choice but as I had rebuilt it…….. so much for that).  The impeller should have 6 lobes, ours had 2 and both of those had a tear in them.  Oh joy.  We cannot run without our generator.  Well, OK we can sort of run using the little Honda backup generator, but it uses straight gasoline and doesn’t deliver the current to charge our 24 volt house bank in a reasonable amount of time.  To solve this, I disconnected the deck wash pump and re-routed the output to the generator heat exchanger.  Now starting the generator, or stopping it, takes both of us.  I have to go do the normal preheat cycle and hit start.  When Pat hears it start, she starts the deck wash pump.  We do the reverse to stop it.  Need a new impeller, should be simple enough – NOT.  Walked up to Crook & Crook Marine (Miami) – yes, that is their name.  Took the broken impeller with us to make sure we’d get the right one.  Well, despite what their web site says is in stock, the reality is, very little is stocked.  OK, they went to the book, found the part number and ordered one for us.  Would be in next day.  Next day, go back.  Guess what, wrong impeller.  Get on the phone - sorry, only available from Onan, could take awhile.  Supposedly there is a dealer in Marathon so will wait until we get there.

Enroute to Marathon, the starboard engine tossed the belt, so we had to run on port engine only – now what.  Once we were anchored and things cooled down in the engine room, I go to see what happened.  Looks like the alignment of the alternator was slightly off so spent the better part of the next morning redoing the installation.  Much better.  However, when it tossed the belt, it also stretched it, so I could not get it as tight as it should be.  The next morning, the seas were OK, so we ran for a while on both engines, and shut down the starboard engine to let it cool. 

That night, we anchored off Rodriguez Key.  It was the first time we’d anchored exposed to the ocean.  It was a lovely night and later, we were joined by a few sailboats.  Nice and  uneventful.   Next morning, we were up early anxious to be off to Marathon.  Best laid plans and all that.  The windlass stopped after only bringing in a few feet of chain.  Now what?  The windlass breaker tripped, that’s a new one.  After much head scratching and  taking things apart, I discovered the chain had fouled where it drops into the chain locker. Backed itself up and shorted out the windlass supply line.  Why, we may never know.  In any case, cleared that up, reset the breaker and away we go.

Enroute, always something eh?  The new alternate quit, no volts.  Arrrrg!  Well at least the belt wasn’t broken so we still had engine cooling.

As I write this, we are on a ball in Marathon.  We had the new alternator checked out at a shop and the mechanic said it lost its magnetism.  He flashed it and away it goes.  While there, we bought a spare alternator and another set of spare belts.

We also ordered and received a new impeller for the generator.  This weekend, I hope to get the generator back to normal and the alternator installed.  I’ll keep you posted, could go on and on but hey time to get busy.

Oh, one last thing.  I had read that once you leave the Miami area, the water becomes much clearer – very true.  Very nice.