Scavengers and Pilgrims

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Editor's note: Portions of this entry were written on Wednesday, and continued on Thursday. Sorry for the confusing timeline.

Wednesday, 21 November:

06:30 - Awoke to go for a swim in the local pool before we headed out to sea for a trial run.

07:30 - Exhausted, but feeling "oh-so alive", we trudged back to the cat for a quick bowl of cereal and coffee before we headed out to sea for a trial run.

08:00 - Realized we were in need of bread, fishing lead weights, 80 lb. line, non-slip stuff for the countertop, rubbing alcohol, and nylon washers. Headed out on foot to hunt and gather before we headed out to sea for a trial run.

09:00 - Returned to the boat to find Mark and Louie had set-off to make purchase of one (1) 70 meter length of Extra Special Rope before we headed out to sea for a trial run.

09:00 to 10:00 - Tidied up and cleaned stuff before we headed out to sea for a trial run.

10:00 Realizing a morning sail was not going to happen, we made plans for an afternoon sail. Went back wifi hotspot to chat with Ellen, whom I miss terribly and my little Rosellen, the best 10 year old in the world.

AFTERNOON - Zhenya and Galina come aboard and begin preparing a simple Russian lunch of fish and vegetables to eat before we headed out to sea for a trial run.

15:00 - Lunch is ready, galley is trashed. We eat, clean up, and chat amicably before we headed out to sea for a trial run.

16:00 - Discussions begin regarding the methodology needed to replace the rope that is used to hoist the mainsail. The existing rope looked pretty good, but not great. A new rope is expensive, but an earlier debate deemed it a necessary expenditure. This debate seems to happen time and again on the boat. It's a cost/benefit analysis, but the side that supports replacement always holds a trump card.

*The rope that is there will probably last through this run, and can be replaced after.
*The rope is very expensive.
*If the existing rope fails, we lose the main sail. We could do a repair at sea, but that is risky.
*TRUMP CARD: Is it worth the cost to ensure our safety?

It was agreed that this would be done before we headed out to sea for a trial run.

17:00 - We ain't going out today.

The mast is about 20 meters high. Louie took the lead job of harnessing up and being hoisted aloft. Mark was lead ground guy. The rest of us played supporting roles and pointed out to Louie that he should "take care" and "be careful" and "take care".

Louie stepped into the harness, tied a bowline knot from a rope already attached to a block atop the mast, tied the new rope on to his harness, and we used the electric winch to hoist him aloft. Tom fed new rope up as the harness rose and made sure it stayed clear of hazards. Once he was at the top, Louie replaced the existing spreader pin in the pulley up top and did some regular maintenance. Next he tied the new rope to the end of the old rope. From below, we waited for Mark's direction to heave-ho. We pulled the old rope down through the center of the metal mast, and in so doing, also pulled the new rope up.

The Flying Dutchman

"I should change these pants ..."

The operation was an elegant success. When Louie was back safely on-deck, we gave manly nods all around. After the new rope was fed through the jammer thingy that locks it down tight, we discovered another problem. One of the jammer thingies was busted. It is spring-loaded, and the spring had given out. Dear oh dear.


Thursday, 22 November:

*The jammer that is there will probably last through this run, and can be replaced after.
*The jammer is very expensive.
*If the existing jammer fails, we lose the use of it. We could do a repair at sea, but that is risky.
*TRUMP CARD: Is it worth the cost to ensure our safety?

As I write, it is completely disassembled and we are en route to the parts shop.

The Jammer Thingy

Just the first delivery


In the galley, our chef is also very busy. The galley was full of cooking tools and foods that were useless for an Atlantic crossing. Barry has stowed the bread maker, numerous pots and pans, and many many leftover foods have been tossed. Barry has also overseen provisioning for the trip. A local grocery here caters to boats and will deliver to the dock. We received the first delivery of non-perishables earlier this week. On Wednesday, we took delivery again - this time for semi-perishables. We will get a last delivery on Friday or Saturday for fruits and vegetables and anything else that spoils. In all, Barry estimates that we are carrying 1,000 pounds of food. We are also carrying about 835 pounds of water - 100 liters (26ish gallons). As we use the water, we will refill the plastic 5 liter bottles from the tap. The boat has a water filtration system that makes sea water potable. It doesn't taste good - it's quite briny - but if we were to run out of spring water, we will still be ok.


Mark food.

While in the marina, we are being wildly wasteful with our water, food, and power consumption. Once the sails go up, a lot more thought is required. For example, we will rarely open the tiny freezer. If we catch a fish, it will be put in the fridge first, then the freezer. Putting a fish directly into the freezer would have the effect of warming everything else inside, and making the system have to work very hard to cool it back to freezing. In fact, we will try to always do the best thing; Eat it before it has a chance to figure out where it all went wrong.

Today is Thanksgiving in the U.S.. Hello with much love to David, Kelly, Keith, Emily, Rosellen, and most importantly among these most important people, my Ellen. They are all gathering at my home for a feast and to give thanks for all the great gifts we have. Even though I am not there, my heart is. They are the ones who support me while I am off on this wonderful adventure. For you, my family, I am most thankful. You make me proud in the way you take care of each other ... and me. A storm moved through this morning. It will be afternoon before we head out to sea for a trial run.

Ellen. And some handsome guy who isn't me. Hey, what the HELL!??!

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