Beannacht being lowered back into the water

We’re back in the water! Alan dropped us in again on Friday morning, and after a few tense moments watching water slosh around the bilge wondering if we were still leaking, we confirmed that the keel repair had worked and could concentrate on other things. The water was a hangover from installing a new fresh water filter in the galley, rather than the creek making its way into the boat. It’s fantastic to be floating again, but a sharp reminder of the extensive list of things still to do before we can set sail. We’ve worked on boat projects on a daily basis, but while the boat was sitting on the hard it wasn’t our fault that we hadn’t left yet. Now the yard is finished it’s entirely up to us.

So we’ve pared down the to-do list to essentials only for now, and yesterday got busy. Our shipment will arrive from Canada on Wednesday and brings with it both the means to get things done, like our sewing machine, and also things to get done, like install our SSB radio. Again our task list in prioritised, but we definitely can’t leave without a working engine, installing our anchor windlass (winch), lee cloths (that keep us in bed while we’re in the ocean), jack lines (that keep us attached to the boat should things get rough), and some refinements to our storage onboard to accommodate the 11 boxes arriving from Vancouver.

Our engine still isn’t working which is depressing, the amazing powers of Stu the mechanic have been exposed as the amazing overconfidence of Stu the bullshitter – which of course is nothing new. Having just tightened the last bolt on the injection pump I discovered a spring that fell out of the governor while I was replacing the o ring seals that had expired. I bled the fuel system and tried to start it just in a vein attempt to overcome physics by willpower, but no luck. All will be disassembled again tomorrow and I’ll take a trip to Coastal Diesel for the missing part.

Keli has been reading loads on Bahamas and bought some navigational charts and guidebooks this week. They’ve been arriving everyday, which feels like a special treat. Whilst our time in the states has been unexpectedly fulfilling, we’re both compelled to be in the Bahamas by Jan 29^th, and really excited about making our first passage too. It will feel real when we get there I think.

Yesterday we spent the day fitting our newly tuned sails. Mark Weinheimer a local sailmaker modified them to make them more suitable for offshore use and strengthened a few weak spots. Seeing them up on the rig was satisfying and we were delighted to have Mark Lucas, Sailcraft’s rigger and our newfound friend for a day’s free labour. Unfortunately our lack of engine prevented a test sail in the bay, but that will come early this week.

Another Oriental friend Stephanie is heading back to Chicago this week to finish her Phd in Archaelogy and asked to interview us as a potential adoptive parents for one of her cats. Radiator has been in her herd for over a year, but still hasn’t made peace with the alpha female and needs to be re-housed. We agreed to take him on a quick seatrail to see if the sea, or more specifically the confines of a small boat, might suit him.

On Thursday evening Steph and Mark came over for dinner and Radiator stayed on until the morning as a quick test. At least he stayed onboard until sometime in the middle of the night before he broke out of the boat and made a bid for freedom. Kel and I woke up thinking that he was in a zen-like state, only to discover that he wasn’t there at all! Panic ensued, but a couple of hours searching in the neighbourhood drew a blank.

Last night as we were heading to the loo for the last time Keli spotted him in the carpark. I ran to the boat for a can of tuna and Kel worked her feline ways getting him to come to her, I think she understands cats better than she understands me sometimes. She carried him back onto the boat, got the tuna and water on the go, and we spent the night with him sleeping in our bed. He had been hiding in the boat yard for two days and although the thought of returning to the secne his captivity probably wasn’t in his five day plan we were the best thing going. Steph came to collect him this morning and promptly removed him from the adoption programme.

Radiator on Steph's lap in the boat

We’ve spent time this week watching the weather systems down the coast to get a sense of what we can expect for our journey south. In November, the first safe month to sail after hurricane season, you can sail directly to the Bahamas in one go as you have slower moving pressure systems that sustain the necessary Northerly winds. At the minute the longest window we’ve seen is 2 days, and most are less than 36 hours. What that means is that we’ll leave from Oriental with a view to getting as far south as we can before the wind shifts, and then pull into a port to wait for the next window. While we’re waiting we can explore the local areas and keep working on the boat.

Anyhow, off to breakfast with Steph and Mark, will get back online later in the week as our departure plans take shape…