Author: Pam
Using Visual Passage Planner we had plotted our passage from Tonga to New Zealand and the program estimated in the month of November based on data that is averaged the trip would take 11.9 days at an average of 4 knots of boat speed. It seems that November 2005 could disrupt the averages. The winds are coming from the SE which is not typical (typical winds are from the SW) and of course is the direction we need to go. We have made slow progress on passages in the past, but today may have been an all time low. We sailed 18 miles in 24 hours, we are thinking at this rate we might be in NZ for Christmas.
The day started with Scott laying across his friend the diesel engine for a couple of hours while wearing his best detective hat to try and figure out why there was no water coming out of the exhaust. The raw water pump had acted up in Niue, but he thought he had solved the problem. After tracing hoses, taking apart the water pump and inspecting and lubricating the impeller, he had a brainstorm. We heaved to and he was able to confirm the hose that was the culprit didn’t like being on a starboard tack, it had formed an air bubble in the raw water circuit. Once the hose was cleared and reattached we stayed heaved to and ran the engine to finally feed our very thirsty batteries. While Scott was in engine repair mode he crimped and taped a battery cable on the alternator that also has been part of the recent engine quagmire. We continue to keep our fingers crossed this engine gets us to the marina in Whangarei, where there will finally be a mechanic who can undo all of the work-arounds that have been put into place since arriving in the South Pacific and get this vital entity back to purring like a kitten.
Also while we were heaved to we reefed the mainsail, inspected the rigging and made sure all items on deck were still securely strapped down. It was a good couple of hours spent and we decided it is a good thing to keep in mind for the future. I guess it is fair to say this “break” may have taken away from our progress, but trust me we were hardly moving at the time.
Once we had the boat put back together and were back sailing again I collapsed on the settee and commenced to take a three hour nap wearing a thick fleece pullover and wrapped in a fleece blanket. I had been sneezing every thirty seconds all morning and by lunchtime I had a very achy head. I think I am having an allergic reaction to the mold and mildew that is hiding in all of the secret places on the boat, since we really haven’t been able to go outside for fresh air. I am not very keen on what this possibility could be doing to my system, but I am not keen on getting a cold either. Maybe I am just tired.
Last night we had another first on Torunesol. After over a year of sailing we finally rigged up the lee cloth on the starboard settee. During the past few passages due to rough seas we have found that the person who is on watch doesn’t have anywhere comfortable to sit or be while the other person sleeps on the low side of the boat. This hasn’t been too much of a problem when we are on a port tack, because the port side settee has the table as a barrier, there isn’t even a lee cloth for this settee. So, we scrounged around and found three straps and after connecting them to the lee cloth tied them to the handrail. Scott stayed on the settee all night and thought it was very cozy. We were commenting to each other that it looks like a 24 hour slumber party, both settees covered in bedding all day long. I don’t know if we have said before that we live in an 8’x12’ space, Scott says it is smaller than a prison cell. I asked how does he know that?
With the engine distraction and my head feeling like it was going to burst, neither of us seemed to have an appetite until dinner. We made fried rice with canned chicken and called it a day. Well, at least I thought we were calling it a day. While I was washing the dishes I unfortunately saw a cock roach crawling along the edge of the stove. I screeched (which never solves anything) and tried to squash it I wasn’t sure if I got it or not, but then the dish drainer jumped off the counter and when I bent down to pick it up I saw another one and of course I screeched again. Yuck! Unfortunately all of this commotion happened while Scott was talking to Starship on the radio, but fortunately each event happened while Rachel was talking. He got off the radio and we were both immobilized with being grossed out. We got out the boric acid and sprinkled some around the galley and in the head, but I was creeped out for the rest of the night. First thing on the list when we arrive in NZ, is to bomb this boat. We are constantly cleaning, especially in the galley, I think they stowed away on those cabbages from _ _ _ _. We are considering not bringing any more fresh veggies on board unless you can wash them. So if I looked back over the day, we had no wind, had to fix the engine again, we live in a prison cell and now we have bugs, who said sailing was glamorous?
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