Author: Pam
The next four days we spent on the boat doing chores, taking advantage of the amenities offered by Bloody Mary’s restaurant and exploring the surrounding area. I spent the equivalent to two days scrubbing the hull. Between what attaches itself from the sea to your boat, the lines of orange paint from two not so great parking jobs at the fuel dock in Puerto Vallarta in Mexico and blotches of epoxy that was applied the day before we left the Bay Area to cover up the minor nicks and scratches, she was looking a bit dodgey. I was especially determined and quite certain I could remove the orange paint and with some elbow grease I was successful. I also scraped off some of the extra apoxy that dripped and blobbed around the scratches and with Scott’s help around the water line we scrubbed off the sea slime until she was beautiful. It is quite the arm and shoulder workout to sit in the dinghy and hang on to the boat with one arm while the dinghy is bouncing up and down and scrub with the other. I spent so much time out there over a three day period it caused a hull cleaning frenzie throughout the anchorage. I found it quite satisfying and Tournesol really did look like she had had a face lift.
On Thursday morning we decided to pull Tournesol up to the dock and fill up with the free water. James from Novia offered to come along to help, parking is always a bit of a challenge, but pulling up to a dock with corral heads is entirely different and was on our list of we won’t being doing that. However, when water becomes challenging to come by, you do find you are willing to consider modifying that list. We were only moored 100 yards from the dock, it should be a piece of cake we decided, especially with James to help. All went well going in and we filled every receptacle on board. The wind was not our friend as we pulled away from the dock and before we could escape Tournesol kissed a corral head. Upon inspection by James when we got back on the mooring she had two minor boo boos on the keel which we covered with some underwater apoxy. We decided we would put that kind of scenario back on the list of things we were not keen on doing and go back to schlepping jerry cans.
After the water debacle we headed over to Starship to go for a sail with them to explore the other side of the island. As we were heading out towards the pass a huge squall engulfed the boat with rain that was so heavy there was zero visibility. It became clear soon after it started it was not one of your garden variety squalls that lasts for less than five minutes, so we decided to turn back and hoped we could find the mooring ball they had vacated, so much for a nice afternoon sail. We were grateful that it had not happened while we were on the side of the mountain or we would have ended up swimming home in mud instead of trudging home in the dust.
After hanging out with Frank and Rachel waiting for the rain to let up we headed back to Tournesol to get ready to go ashore for happy hour. We had plans to meet up with Novia, Mico Verde and Starship. It was a really nice evening, great atmosphere and lots of silliness.
On board Chet Tournesol we made tacos for dinner. These tacos are noteworthy because we finally tried the vacuumed packed ground beef I had bought on a trip back to SF, Scott was a little scared of it. Much to his surprise it made very tasty tacos. We had splurged in Huahine and bought a package of tortillas for $650 francs, ouch that is about $7.00 American dollars. There certainly hasn’t been any Mexican food in the South Pacific and after spending six months in Mexico we have been desperately missing the food, hence our justification for the tortillas that were apparently laced with gold.
On Friday in between hull cleaning we went to Bloody Mary’s for lunch, of course Scott had to try their cheeseburger, he can’t miss one since we have decided he must be doing a worldwide survey. Bloody Mary’s got good marks. After lunch Scott headed out to go snorkeling with Stephanie and Warren and I stayed on the boat for some alone time. It didn’t last long, they were back in a flash with a sick outboard motor. Scott was bummed, it meant back to hull scrubbing, but it was a lovely afternoon. While we were scrubbing away a dinghy pulled up and Quinn and Kameron from Tequila introduced themselves and invited us over in a bit to hang out for the sunset. Scott was thrilled, any excuse to escape from the hull project.
After hanging out until just after sundown and the moonrise with Tequila and Mico Verde we decided to go over to Bloody Mary’s for a drink with Quinn and Kameron before they headed off for their Bloody Mary’s dinner experience. Well let’s just say we were still there when they finished dinner and the evening became about the girls wanting to go home and the boys wanting to stay out and play. So, Stephanie and I went back to Tournesol and made pasta with clams and the boys had a night gone wild. It was a nice chance for Scott to spend time with someone other than me, he had a great time.
On Saturday we were treated with the discovery of the beach down the way and the most beautiful water we have seen so far. We keep thinking it can’t get more beautiful and then you look out over a white sandy beach at water that has varying grades of turquoise. With the monocular we could take in how it changed as it went from very shallow to a bit deeper, it was amazing. We had lunch at Ben’s the only other restaurant in the vicinity. Ben is from Hawaii and his wife is from the mid west in the states. The food was mediocre, but the location is primo. We decided to finally plan our first beach day and that we would come back the next day to be lounge lizards.
With plans to head off to the beach after lunch it was back to finishing up the hull in the morning. Since I was going to be spending time in the dinghy I decided to tie the large green tarp off the side we had used on the bow to try to keep the rusty anchor chain off the deck. There were two knots tied by both crew members and one of them did not hold. Little did I know the green beast had slipped away and was delivered home by the boat Nike, they had seen it escape and brought it back dragging behind their dinghy. I wouldn’t have known it was gone until I went to bring it in and only found the piece of rope. I was happy to not have contributed that non bio degradable item to the environment.
As planned we headed off after lunch with Novia and Mico Verde to the beach. Everyone decided a beach day was in order. Once there Stephanie pulled out a scrabble board and she, James and I played. I love to play scrabble and though I was a bit rusty it was tons of fun. James gave us a run for our money, he is a very serious scrabblaholic. Scott snorkeled and butchered a coconut with his leatherman, he has been dying to find one and drink the coconut water on the spot. That task kept him occupied for quite some time, it looked like the coconut was going to win at one point. It was one of the most relaxing days we have had in a very long time, which I am sure sounds a bit odd considering our current lifestyle, but there truly isn’t anything like an afternoon on a white sandy beach surrounded by water that is almost too beautiful to be real.
Back on the boat a sun shower was in order. While I was on the bow Des from Nike came by to invite us over for a visit later, he was inviting Mico Verde and Novia as well. We had only said hello to him and his family briefly on our way to the beach, they were snorkeling by the dock. Sure, we would love to come by. Just when you think you will have a nice quiet evening at home an invitation comes out of nowhere from someone you don’t even know. Des and Sharon on Nike are from Ireland and they are sailing with their six and nine year old son and daughter. It was a delightful evening and we hope to cross paths with them again, they are tons of fun.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment