We went straight from being busy with road trip and adventures, to panic mode trying to get all our boat projects completed.
After trouble shooting, Eric decided we need new batteries. Replacing the batteries isn’t as easy as a flashlight. In our case we went from 4 jumbo batteries to 8 golf cart batteries, new cables, rebuilding and repainting the compartment. The capacity of our house bank increased from 780 to 940 amp hours.
At the end of our cruise, the anchor windlass switch started acting flaky, so Eric not only fixed the hand switch, but also added redundancy with a foot switch and another switch in the cockpit.
He also added an engine temperature alarm. This alarm monitors the exhaust hose. It alarms if the temperature gets above 200 degrees F. This is an early warning for if we were to suck something in to the cooling hoses (i.e. plastic baggy, jellyfish, etc), or the raw water pump were to have an issue.
Once we entered U.S. waters we had a whole new complication with our holding tanks. Over the summer Eric cleaned, plumbed, added pump out tubes and a tank monitor.
We flushed/cleaned the heat exchangers on both engines and the generator..
Now that we have new clear fuel tanks, it is easy to see the fuel level. We fueled up and Eric marked the level so we’ll never have to wonder if the fuel gauge is accurate.
We added a system to polish the diesel fuel.
He even took care of little things like refilling the compass to get rid of the bubble.
Before:
After:
Roy spent a day watching a You Tube video to learn how to splice double braided line for our dinghy painter.
Earlier this summer I made new sunshades for the hard top, this week the job continues with ties to fasten the back shades when rolled up.
Then the Sailrite was put to the test. When we got the new hard top, the list of new canvas projects warranted a new machine. This machine works like a dream. I was able to feed it Strataglass window plastic, several layers of canvas and even webbing and it didn’t hesitate.
These new dinghy chaps are my favorite project. Most cruising dinghys have a canvas cover to protect the Hypalon and provide a comfortable seat. The cover only seems to last a few years before it doesn’t fit anymore, I think it must shrink or something in the sun. By then the stitching starts giving out and stains and tears start accumulating.
So knowing this project was coming we started surveying dinghy covers in the anchorages and marinas, did a little research on the web and even found a great example on another cruiser’s blog.
The key to this plan was velcro. Normally you make the cover big enough to tuck around and under the bow with a line that tightens under the rub rail. I find it’s always coming lose and is either baggy or too small and never seems to fit right. So how do you sew velcro to an inflatable boat? Ha Ha, you sew it to hypalon strips then glue the strips to the dinghy.
Next is a little protection for the helmsman. With a new top, also comes the need for a new windshield in the front. Then how about a window to shield the helm from wind.
Oh no, not just one window, how about enclosing the whole starboard side and while we’re at it lets enclose the port side too. This was a huge job, but with the cockpit 3/4 enclosed we have been enjoying the protection it gives us from the wind and storms and will keep us protected from the weather while we’re underway.
One last sewing project to make the cockpit a comfy place to lounge is cushions. The spacious fiberglass benches around the table just were not soft enough. Now we have 3″ foam around all the seats and 2″ for the backs.
I made patterns with cardboard, traced it onto the foam and cut it out with a bread knife. I’m currently working on teal canvas covers. This is the same canvas we used on old Makai.
How about snacks! First of all groceries are expensive in the islands, and secondly lugging them through hot dirt roads into the dinghy is not a fun time. So, we went to Costco!
Three times we went through the check out with an over flowing cart. When I had been up and down each isle loading up with six months worth of dry goods, several hours had passed and the van was completely loaded. We had a dock cart train moving all the mac & cheese, peanuts, cereal, flour, juice and ketchup to the cockpit staging area awaiting processing.
Everything had to be sorted, unpacked and repackaged.
Everyone picked the items they were most excited about. I’m just excited that I won’t have to shop for this stuff again until next summer.
Marie’s room became the secondary pantry. We went through everyone’s rooms removing unnecessary items, scrubbing out spaces under the floor boards, medicine cabinets and the spaces under the bathroom sinks for additional storage.
That huge forward locker got six storage tubs with 150 lbs of flour, pasta and snacks, two crates with crackers, a few dozen bottles of juice and several boxes of cereal. Marie’s clothes locker is housing several dozen cans of tomato sauce, paste, crushed tomatoes and salsa.
After two days of repacking, I came up with this pile of excess packaging. It’s amazing how many items are double boxed and then plastic wrapped.
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We only have a few more days left here. Thursday Eric is taking the van to New Jersey where Bruce and Ginger stored it for us last winter. It’s really getting cold here. The day time temps are around 50 and night time it dips down in the 30′s. That might not be bad in a well insulated heated house, but the boat just isn’t set up for those temps. We’ve been running two electric heaters all day and making sleeping arrangements so everyone has a turn with a heater, extra blankets and Topaz to keep warm in bed. If you get the short straw and have a night without the heater in your cabin, you can have fun watching your breath in the morning.
If 48 isn’t cold enough, just add in the stiff breeze and over cast sky, and warm places are much appreciated.
The Captain’s lounge was great in the summer with the air conditioner, and now the room is heated and a toasty refuge from the weather.
Even Topaz has gotten used to sleeping in bed.
This morning’s temperature report:
We have made a few new friends. Roy got to join the neighbor on their fishing boat a few times. We also met a homeschool family that is starting their own adventure. They sold their house and are purchasing a 128 acre farm. These friends are welcome diversions from our chores.
Everyone around us is getting ready for the winter. West Marine has a huge display of cases of antifreeze, the fishermen are transporting their traps to storage, neighbors in the marina are removing their sails and canvas and hauling their boats out for winter storage, and several boats have been covered in shrink wrap or tarps.
It’s time for us to head south with the snow birds. The kids are even begging to get going. Check the Where’s Makai link to see if we made it out of here on the weekend and pray for good weather.