ALL HANDS ALL HANDS 1/7/91
Happy New Year! Last All Hands in front of me as I sit at leisure in St. Croix harbor, all systems ready to go, fuel, water, batteries OK, SatNav working. Rudder difficulties are still unsolved but will be solvable in PR, a fat day's journey down wind. My offer of transport St. Croix to PR to the South African lad (engineer on the boat beside which we were tied up our first night in St. Croix) is apparently not being taken up. So continuing from page 4 of the last All Hands ...12/29/90Isaac did get my rigging done. Great difficulty with his schedule - too many extra things showed up on the jobs he was committed to, all good big, but time consuming. Troubles and Christmas coming and no holes in his schedule. OK, he did it, and in ample time for me. I joined him and family for Christmas dinner at his Parents. They have a lovely house high up over the harbor. Much beer and glorious food, planned to be off the next day. Nope. Boxing Day, can't clear customs - probably could, but there's a penalty charge and after Richard's bill, the cost of the ironwork that I installed and Isaac's rigging charges (very reasonable actually) I'm feeling very poor. So I held over, showed up at 8 am on Monday. Hours are 8:30 to 5. No one there at 8:30. Nor at 9. Quarter past there was some movement, 20 past the doors opened. Few minutes more before anyone got to the desk although "Good Mornings" had gone around cheerfully enough. OK. Forms to keep government employees busy, even a departure fee ($1.15). I'm not a visitor, at least not "Pleasure". I came for repairs. Finally off at a trifle after 10.
Jib and jigger down wind to St. John and power into Cruz Bay. Tied up at customs wharf for very brief formalities, and off again by 1 pm. Jib and jigger again for an easy run to St. Thomas. Tied up briefly at a commercial wharf while I bought some supplies at Pueblo. American supplies and at almost US prices. Anchored at twilight in the lee of Hassel Island.
Off in AM for fuel (half Tortola price) and then to Lindbergh Bay for Peg's plane. No such animal. Snow in NY canceled flight. Maybe one at 8 pm. Maybe not! No way Peg could call me, and no way I could get a hearing aid to work on the Virgin Islands phone. I finally cornered a VI telephone man and got him to call for me. Got Eric and message that PK would (probably) be on the late plane. OK back to boat, wait, rest, even sleep for a while. Supper and back to the airport. Yup, confusing planes, but she was there. Walked from new terminal (further than old terminal) in the rain and out to the boat. Sacked in, right at the anchorage. No other boats.
Off in very brisk wind in the morning. Not as northerly as predicted or planned for. Close reach all the way, at half way put on power. Into Christiansted channel early afternoon. With sails to bed, the engine died in mid channel, and we went aground on Round Reef before I could get sail up. A push boat had a go at pulling us oft. Nope. Then a bigger fisherman took my line and dragged us across and off. Still no major damage. I'm luckier than I am smart. He towed us right into the marina ($23/day).12/31-1/7OK, determined that there was no major damage & called Nick. Dizzying round of back and forths to Nick for dinner, shopping, etc. Waited till Monday for further inspection of bottom, which appears 0K.
Left Marina for anchorage in the lee of Hotel on the Cay. Very crowded, new boats not welcome. Winds and tides at cross purposes. I found a place, but had some difficulty getting two anchors to hold me where I wanted to be. OK made it. Moved the next day and made it again. An attempt to take the whole gang to Buck Island for swimming and snorkeling failed. Air in the lines was holding down power in a stiff headwind with 8 people aboard. I turned and ran back to the anchorage. Nobody was pleased at the prospect of wet and rough ahead of us - just as well I guess. I'm upset that I'm not allowed to try again. If ever there was a prophet without honor in his own country its me! 100 miles upwind from PR and I can't take them another 8 or 10 to Buck Island. Ok, OK no great matter. Peg off by air back to NYC. Dinner with the gang Tuesday night. Great fun no surprises.1/10/91Off Wednesday AM, up well before daylight, anchors out at half light and off well ahead of sunup. Careful and conservative observation of channel marks. Jib and jigger once I got clear. No need for more. We zipped along. Had to stop and douse all to straighten out a mizzen halyard, probably right in view of their house too. Around the corner at West End and straight down wind. Jib and jigger quite enough and fresh easterly trade. Overcast and two little showers. Not enough for rain gear, but it looked like a hard rain ashore. Showers all around me through the morning, but not much landed on me. St. Croix out of sight in the mist several times before it finally sank below the horizon, about noon. Puerto Rico showed up at the same time well off to starboard, and I kept it so. Lunch of avocado and ham and cabbage stew. Showers ashore, but few reached me and those were very light. Sun out in force by 1300, hot, added double reefed main. Not a lot of difference, hard to balance. Heaved to for supper and navigation. Fair current and all, I made a trifle better than 3 knots. OK, no hurry, and downwind is the hardest course on my suspect rudder. Took down the jigger and sat and steered till 10 pm. [Some inconsistencies here about days & times, I'm copying it as it came to me - PK] 2-hour nap in a boisterous bed. Great white monster of a cruise boat coming straight for me. I whipped on some lights, started the engine, but he turned astern of me before I could get it in gear. The only boat I saw after St. Croix. 4:30 pm, I'm anchored at Caja de los Muertos, almost home waters. Sleep and a square meal. Home tomorrow morning, I hope.
Pulled into Ensenada about 3 pm after a slower than expected trip down wind. Left St. Croix about daylight, sailed through the night with jib and jigger and thru most of the next day, anchoring in the lee of Caja de los Muertos about 3:30 pm, dead tired. Anchor down, dinner and drink. Dragged added scope and a safety anchor straight down in 12 feet of water and sand. No trouble. Slept through like a baby. Up at 7, but near 10 before I'd chased through another engine problem - still not solved. Peaceful run down wind to Ensenada. Variable direction and force kept me at the helm pretty closely all the way. The rudder held up 0K, that was my real suspicion, carried light sail and kept heavy pressure off the tiller. Sailed into the anchorage, but didn't pick up my mooring. It needs to be inspected, easier to do from a nearby anchor than raise the chain under tension. Much sitting around in salt wet pants and underwear has brought on salt sores again, not as serious as the ones from many days (with Stan), but annoying and slightly painful. Fresh water shower has already taken the bite out of them.1/11/91Many chores to get done after two months of visiting and traveling. Motora great, took off like a bird. Nearly a bushel of mail, packages, junk mail, catalogues, magazines. Plenty to read, more than enough to answer, and close to the limit of throwable awayables.
Worked on the engine in the pm. Will start and run 6 - 8 minutes, then die and need to be bled again. Clean lines and drain air, and the engine runs finest for 6 minutes then craps out. Stop and think. It is air. Known Has to come from somewhere. Both tanks have adequate fuel. Fuel flows by gravity to the Racor (primary filter) and holding the line down shows it flows. Ditto the line from Racor to fuel pump. Ergo pump must leak air. I had to sit at the typewriter to work this out. Ratiocination stimulated by machine.1/14/91Changed to new pump bought in Tortola ($125), difficult because of very awkward position and soft copper washers that have an earnest desire to live in the bilge. But done and none lost. Pump up with new pump - 96 strokes instead of 130-140. Not a monster difference, and sure enough, no difference in behavior. Try the different tanks one at a time, starts. runs 6 minutes. Tother side the same. Pump up fuel into the final filter (which IS bleeding air) and it will run again 6 or 8 minutes. Air appears in the final filter, whence? Has to be on the suction side of the pump. Tighten all fittings back to the joining of feeds from the two tanks. 96 strokes and start. Ran 20 minutes, and I guess it's finally fixed. Took most of the afternoon.
Shore chores till 3 pm. Social security, bank, pkgs of back ordered stuff from Ramon in Yauco. Needed to move. Patched dink, out to boat Engine ran 20 minutes before craping out. 15 minutes improvement. Thanks! By that time I was involved in inspecting the mooring, had barnacles and slime all over the foredeck and chain tangled with heavy mooring pennant. I didn't clear the engine, but did cut 20' off the mooring chain and put a new ring on it and replaced the pennant without tangles. Good job, partly done. I'm still hanging on the anchors that hold Apogee over the mooring anchor (had to hang over it in order to pull the chain up straight with the anchor winch). Its ready to hang on now, but I have to take in the anchor and long lines in order to avoid a major tangle.1/15While I was working and not noticing, a white sloop anchored well astern and an inflatable rowed up presently with a rather slight, deeply whiskered (not yet beard) and deeply sunbaked Austrian, turns out to be a buddy of Oliver Theodore, whom I expect here soon. "I can't stop now, and have no hearing aid on, but I'll be done in a half hour, so come ashore (point) for shower and supper." Shouted happily. Turns out he's been sailing several hundred miles in short hops with Oliver. Nice couple, Reinhard and Lynn. They came in from Boqueron, an upwind trip and probably a hard day for that 28' boat. I had a ham & spam stew. They were delighted with the shower and water and were polite about the second rate stew They're on the way to St Thomas where she has a prospective job in the hospital.
Pole-axed by stiffness in back and neck from left over fluey cold that got worse as I left St Croix. Visitors here mean I'm busier than usual. We have shared cooking and she has done nursey things to my back. Better than that they helped get the rudder out and ashore for examination and careful measurement. I'll cut a lot of the damaged fiberglass off of it and try to get the kink out of the bottom few inches There doesn't seem to be enough damage to warrant a whole new rudder.l/18I did straighten the broken wood - grind, pound, drill, tighten, turn and prop - and fastened it back in place with the stainless steel plates that were made in St Croix and some stainless rub rail trim that I had salvaged in Tortola. Reinhard & Lynn have stayed on to help me get the rudder back in, what a Job. Reinhard rowed, relieving my back and neck. I rigged a four-part tackle to lift the rudder to vertical. R swam and tugged and Lynn worked the safety line. Wiggle and fart around the pivots, bolts matched, tightened & ends sawed off. Tiller went on mostly with stomping. Big celebratory lunch. The job is done. DONE!l/19/91Hard to imagine a day to top that one. But yesterday pm while R & L were swimming at Pardas beach, they saw a sloop heading in & figured it must br Oliver Theodore & Petsey, his charming lady. And sure enough just at dusk a sloop showed up between R's boat & mine, and R rowed out and brought them in for a big stew with noodles and plenty of beer. A great reunion, my cup runneth over.1/21/91Monday, and the houseparty is over. End of the era. Both sloops off just before daylight. And all the little things that go wrong in the house have got to be worked at, now that I don't have the excuse of visitors. Typewriter needs repair. Leak under the toilet. Electriciy to heat shower water is chancy. The visit was great. Much teasing, and more serious talk too. Long talky evenings, not earthmoving but very good, as close as people can get. Some good consideration of self-steerer, my next big project. Made me face some facts/parameters of hydrodynamics that l hadn't really brought to conscious thinking. But most of all it was fun, and I look for some of you readers to bestir yourselves and come down for a visit soon. Who's next?