The boat is in the water. The engine started up after dry cranking it for about a minute to get oil circulated. A lot of blackish water came out of the exhaust along with about six geckos who had been living in the boat while it was up on the hard. (Drydocked) We got the staysail furler to work. The problem was a frozen top bearing. Ray was up both masts much of the day dealing with lines, blocks, etc. I spent most of the day chasing down refrigeration people who never showed up or trying to fill the propane tanks - also not successful. The problem with getting anything done in French Polynesia is that nothing is readily available. Most First World people interface with “paradise” as tourist in hotels. Trying to accomplish things at the level I’m dealing with is mostly an exercise in frustration. Tomorrow we tackle the water maker. I’m crossing my fingers but we’re covered if it doesnt work. We have 100 gallons of fresh water that we will use only for drinking. All washing of dishes will be with salt water. There will probably be no washing of clothes and only sponge baths - that’s if the water maker doesnt work. Otherwise, it will be more leisurely. The refrigeration is another problem. One refrigeration guy doesnt have any R134 and the other guy didnt show up. It wouldnt be the worse thing to have nothing cold for 3 weeks but it will limit how we provision. Right not there are gales southwest of us which have turned the prevailing winds from East to East-southeast - which is good since it might mean we will be able to visit a few of the atolls of the Teammates - this is for Ray. There’s a hurricane in Baja that will not affect us so the thinking is that we will try and leave on Sunday or Monday for the Tuamotoes - if the weather holds. Otherwise, if the wind veers back to the East we will head straight to Hawaii. In comparison to the last trip, this is going to be a wet ride. We will be on a starboard tack the entire time - taking the wave broadside. We are re-positioning as much heavy gear to the starboard side to counterbalance the effect of waves and wind. More in a few day.
Posted on: Thu, 29 May 2014 15:36:00 +0000
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