Recently in Boat Maintenance Category

Since Karen got back on Wednesday, we have been trying to pack in our final sightseeing. There is a weather system moving through the south Pacific next week that will influence our weather for our trip to the Cook Islands. Due to visa limitations, we have to leave by next Wednesday. But, if we wait until then we will not get good winds for the passage. So, we are now looking to leave on Saturday night (tonight). NOTE: lots of photos of the sights of Bora Bora below.

When Karen arrived on Wednesday at the Raiatea airport, the first thing she did at the boat was to unpack her new bags with all the stuff from the US. It was like Christmas! Just a few examples: a new dive computer, new WIFI antenna, candy, Chips Ahoy chocolate chip cookies, and the very important boat part from South Africa. Karen was really tired after nearly two days without sleep. She managed to sleep for almost 24 hours straight. While she was sleeping, we moved Tahina back to Bora Bora from Raiatea.

Karen had heard about our bike tour last Sunday, so I took her on the trip around the island with the electric bikes on Thursday. Karen had a great time on the bike tour, and I took the opportunity to take several 360 panoramas along the way. We arranged to meet up with Jason and Lara at the famous bar/restaurant called Bloody Mary's. When we arrived, another table was being set up for a bunch of other boaters, so we joined them. I took a 360 panorama of the group in the restaurant. It may be a while before I get the 360s processed though.

Jason and Lara went diving at the pass and saw lots of shark and fish. I went with them on Friday, but we saw fewer fish that day. I did get to try my new dive computer, which worked great. I did see some of the very large lemon sharks, and lots of black-tipped sharks. It was sad to see that nearly all the coral outside the pass at Bora Bora was dead. We covered a large area, and could find very little live coral along the way.

On Friday night, there was another pot luck at the Bora Bora Yacht Club. It's a great way to meet up with other cruisers and pick up tips and compare notes on places to visit. The cupcakes Lara cooked were a popular item and were soon all gone.

Jason installed the new main traveler while I went ashore to get paperwork completed for duty-free fuel. Afterwards, we moved Tahina over to get her fuel tanks filled. Unfortunately, the fuel dockhand did not tie off Tahina's stern, and we shifted such that the corner of the dock rubbed along our starboard bow where we didn't have a fender. This happened while I ran to a bank ATM to get cash since they didn't take credit cards. As a result, our starboard name decal got all scraped up. Bummer! While we were at the fuel dock, Jason took our air tanks to the scuba shop and got them re-filled.

Check out a bunch of photos of the sights we've seen in Bora Bora in this photo album. The album includes photos of the day we got to pet and feed the stingrays, the day I went spearfishing with the new speargun, pictures from our second bike tour, and more.

Today Jason and Lara are going to try a dive with manta rays on the other side of the island. Karen and I are going to do some shopping and prepare the boat for our trip. I'm also working on weather and route planning, and going to get cleared out of French Polynesia with the local gendarmerie.

Our next stop is Aitutaki in the Cook Islands (see map). After exploring there, we will move to Raratonga, where we will drop off Lara and Jason so they can catch a flight to New Zealand. Karen and I will continue on from there on our own.

While Karen was in the US, we bought a number of boat parts and supplies and hard to find provisions. Whenever someone is coming to visit the boat from home, its a great opportunity to have them bring us stuff and avoid the big hassle of customs and shipping. Since we are a "yacht in transit", such goods are supposed to have no customs charges or hassles. But, in reality many countries manage to still charge "other" fees and there are sometimes delays of days or even weeks before you get your package delivered.

At the end of the hard beat upwind to see the eclipse, we did a close inspection of our gear. We noticed that our main sheet traveler (a special "block" that slides on a track and provides a flexible connection point to attach to the main boom) was showing signs of wear. Since this is a critical part, we immediately investigated getting a new part ordered.

We couldn't find the right part on the Lewmar (the manufacturer) web site. So, I sent an E-mail to our boat's builder (St. Francis). The owner quickly replied that after calling their supplier that they have upgraded that particular model, but his rigging supplier could get the new part and configure it for our boat. We explained we needed it quickly since Karen was in the US and would be returned in 2.5 weeks (at that point) and it would be best to have her bring it back with her.

A week later, I heard that they had the part ready and were going to deliver it. I asked that they send me a tracking number as soon as it was ready and to send the bill. It was still 10-12 days from Karen's departure. But, I didn't hear from them as the weekend approached. The following Tuesday, I again asked if they had a tracking number. The next day (since they were 13 hours ahead of us it would take a while to get a reply) St. Francis confirmed the package was sent, then later they said it had already been delivered and here was the tracking number. The tracking said they left it in the front yard. I immediately called Karen and she said they had not seen that package! Karen's sister, after double-checking around the yard and not finding it, left messages with her neighbors. By Friday there was still no sign of the package. At this point, it was already four days since the package was supposedly delivered.

On Saturday, I sent messages to St. Francis asking what our next steps were going to be. This was not a happy occasion as everyone (the shipper, the builder, and the boat supplier) was hurt by the package disappearing. Apparently the package was stolen. But, a few hours later, one of Karen's sister's neighbors finally showed up with the package! What kind of neighbor picks up a package without leaving a note or calls, and then doesn't show up with it for 5 days!?!

So, we got the package after all! I would like to thank St. Francis, and the rigging company (Central Boating of Cape Town) for responding quickly. My only complaint is that they didn't tell us the tracking number when they sent the package so we could make sure Karen or her sister was home when it was delivered. Otherwise they did a great job of getting the part, assembling it, and shipping it to us right away (without even waiting for our payment).

Rangiroa is the second largest atoll in the world. It is over 50 miles long and 20 miles wide. We can't see but a small strip of land from the anchorage near the eastern pass on the norther side of Rangiroa. The rest of the atoll is too far away to see.

We have spent three days getting caught up on Internet, doing maintenance on Tahina, and relaxing. On the first morning, we were very pleased to see how clear the water is in the anchorage. Since we are located only a half mile from the pass, when the tide comes in the water gets very clear. Karen was sitting outside when suddenly a 4-foot manta ray surfaced and swam around Tahina feeding. It was our best view of a manta ray yet! Later in the day we went ashore to find out about dive shops, and to see what the village looks like. We walked around and found a few small grocery stores. Some even had a few fresh vegetables and eggs!

Not all our time in paradise is lounging about, sightseeing, and working on the Internet. We also have to do some manual labor occasionally. For the last two days we have been cleaning off the bottoms of Tahina's hulls. Even though we have anti-fouling paint things still manage to attach themselves and grow on the hulls. Some gunk even grows above the waterline making Tahina look like she's been swimming in a dirty pool. This not only looks bad along the waterline, but on the hulls growth can slow the boat down. Barnacles, algae, and slime all create friction. We noticed our performance was down a bit (a half to a whole knot) on the way over from Manihi. Sure enough, after diving on the bottom, there was some inch-long algae growing along the outside (sunny side) of the hulls and a smattering of barnacles (mostly on the saildrives/propellers). As big as Tahina is, the cleaning job takes several hours even with four of us working at it. But, we do get to look down at the fish while we're working, and its a good way to cool off after some hot hours in the sun.

On Monday, we decided to go for a Memorial Day cookout. Jason and Lara cooked up some cheeseburgers, baked beans, and cole slaw. Other than the bottom work, we all pretty much relaxed for the day as well. We had planned to set up a dive today and maybe do some more sightseeing, but we may have our first rainy day in weeks according to the weather forecast. So, maybe the next day.

Karen left to go to the US mostly to get boat parts and supplies we have been having delivered there and bring them back to Panama. The plan was that she would return Wednesday, but she found out her father was ill so she delayed her stay by two days and will return now on Friday.

After we dropped Karen off at the airport on Sunday, I thought it would be a good day to do more leisurely like activities. Seeing as how Jason and Lara love sailing, I suggested we go for a sail. But, first we needed to try out the Tahina Crew Review Checklist. This is the checklist I've been creating to show new crew all the important systems before they start crewing. We spent a little time before and after lunch. Jason and Lara asked lots of good questions, and we managed to add a few more items to the list in the process.

It was not windy in the early part of the day, and it was hot. So, we paid a few dollars to swim at a hotel pool nearby. The wind started picking up, so we went back to Tahina for a late afternoon sail. We motored out to the last set of channel markers and raised the sails and headed across the bay away from the ships. We were soon sailing at 9-10 knots which put some smiles on the crew's faces. We then tacked back the other way. I discovered one of the pumps had a problem and we would probably need yet another new spare pump.

We were starting to head back when a coast guard vessel approached us. They came along side and asked us to "stop engines". We were under sail so I said - in order to stop we will have to drop sails. They said: "stop your engines", we need to inspect you. So, we started our engines and dropped our sails (yes, it was kind of amusing - but, we didn't laugh at the time. They had guns.). They then came along side and asked for my passport. They explained we were supposed to call the canal signal station on channel 12 before manuveuring in the channel area. This makes really good sense, I just wasn't aware of it. I apologized and explained we had come through the canal and weren't aware of the rule and we were just going back to the anchorage. They told us to please call the signal station and apologize, so we did and headed back to anchorage at sunset.

On Monday we started paperwork for getting the new crew on our crew list and clearing out of Panama. Jason and Lara spent all day performing maintenance on our winches. This is a messy job involving cleaning and degreasing and then putting new grease on all the gears. I spent time looking for the pump in local chandleries and ended up buying a new on in the states and having it overnighted to Karen.

We have been using a taxi driver named Frederico to help run the errands. On Tuesday he met me at 8 AM to run several tasks. I needed to go to the French embassy to see about extending our stay in French Polynesia if needed. After waiting 30 minutes, they told me it would take many days. Next we went to the American Embassy. I needed to have some papers notarized for house stuff in the US. They charged $50 to notarize two documents. What a racket! Then I had to have the documents mailed back to the US. While out, I purchased or searched for several other items needed for the boat. One important item was a chart for the Galapagos. Jason and Lara worked more on the boat doing maintenance on the windlass, stripping some caulking, cleaning rust on thru-hull fittings, etc. (I'm really glad to have such a hard working crew!) Later in the day I found out about Karen needing to stay two extra days. We decided we would have to do the big provisioning run ourselves on Thursday.

On Wednesday we first went to the local chandlery - they had a 30% discount day. We all had a number of purchases to make in boat parts, sunglasses, scuba and snorkeling equipment, and fishing gear. Mid-morning, Jason and Lara left by taxi to do some sightseeing and shopping. I went to get on the Internet and ordered another part we need, then got gas for the dinghy via taxi. After some lunch I got another taxi and went into town to find more boat stuff and in particular to look for barbed wire. Turns out sea lions in the Galapagos can easily get on top of a catamaran like Tahina unless you block the aft stairs. Unfortunately, no one would sell a small section of barbed wire. Will have to come up with another plan.

Lara had discovered the gated beach area we had been walking by every day was home to a Smithsonian museum. We each paid $2 and went to have a look. The first thing we saw was three sloths in the trees and they were awake and active! We took some pictures and video clips. We also saw several varieties of birds and a humming bird. We then saw their small, but colorful and interesting acquariums. They also had some tidal pool exhibits with sample marine life, turtles, and sharks. It was well worth a short visit and there are some great views of the water area and the anchorage.

Here are some photos from the anchorage, some of the work Jason and Lara were doing, pictures of the sloth, the museum, sunsets, and the pizza party we went to on Tuesday night:

We had suggested the museum to the family on another catamaran called Stealaway. They are from South Africa. I invited them to come over to Tahina. The father was asking for some help with his computer, and I thought the kids might like to play on our Wii. It gave us the excuse to clean up Tahina, and things are much tidier now. It was a good end to a busy day.

We still have much to do this week. Unfortunately for us, this is easter weekend and many places are closing. We found out the local fuel dock ran out of fuel yesterday and won't have more until next week. This could be a problem if we can't find it somewhere else. The forecast isn't looking good for sailing to the Galapagos at the moment (very little wind or in the right direction). We are still going to try and head out this weekend if at all possible.

We stayed in Cartagena a few days longer than originally planned because we were waiting for a part to be shipped to us. Our primary fresh water pump died an ignoble death on our passage down to Cartagena. It had been giving warning signs for some time, and I have no excuse for not having bought a spare earlier. We thought the original problem was simply a broken diaphragm, which was the subject of another parts shipment back in the Grenadines. We performed the diaphragm replacement and the pump stopped leaking, so we thought it was fixed. But, there was another problem.

Anyway, we identified a company which said they could get the part we ordered (two of them, one as a spare) in the US delivered to us in a week. But, they were not very good at "tracking" the package's progress. We essentially did not know if they actually had the product here in Colombia until Monday night. Then, we didn't hear from the until late last night - but, around 7 PM they finally delivered it to me at the marina. Whew! By 8 PM, I had removed the old pump and installed the new one. And, it works beautifully!

Now we'll be able to leave soon for the San Blas archipelago in Panama (click on thumbnail above to visit in Google Maps - Google doesn't have high-res aerial photos of the area - yet). These islands are some of the most beautiful tropical islands in the Caribbean. There are supposedly 365 islands there - one for each day of the year. The islands (and surrounding tropical forest-lined shore) are occupied by the Kuna Indians who believe in keeping their lives simple, live off the sea and the land, do not use modern technologies, and keep their culture separate from foreign influences. They are reportedly very friendly as long as you don't harm their environment or violate their rules. For example, each Kuna family owns specific coconut trees (they use coconuts as a form of trade, and a source of food and supplies). It is forbidden for visitors to pick up and use coconuts for this reason.

We are looking forward to being able to jump in the waters again. The port here at Cartagena does not have very appetizing water, so we haven't been swimming in nearly two weeks! We'll have a to wait a bit for a weather window and to get cleared out of customs.

As I've mentioned before, we will have VERY limited Internet connectivity while in San Blas during the next couple of weeks. I'll still hopefully squeeze out a few blog posts - but, you'll have to wait until we get to Colon, Panama for me to upload photos. We won't be able to reply to our E-mails during this time as well. It will be a vacation!

We haven't been very productive from a tourism perspective so far in Colombia. We arrived on the weekend and spent two days before we found the agent we had been looking for to help with getting our clearance. Fortunately, some friends of ours were here the first evening (but, left for San Blas the next morning) and gave us some insights on local conveniences and information. Of particular use is the local marina's guide to cruisers, which is available on their web site here. This is the best online guide I've seen by a marina to date. You may not find all the services you want here, but at least they have information on what is available.

Unfortunately, the marina - Club Nautico - is in the middle of doing a major re-construction. For some reason the local government put it to a halt at the worst possible time. So, they are operating out of a rustic shack of an office and the main facilities are in shambles - no showers, no bar, etc. And, they aren't allowed to continue construction (no building permit?). The docks are still in place, and have power and water though. And, the staff are doing their best to maintain services for the boaters.

Cartagena doesn't seem to have full-service chandleries (marine stores). There are two nearby stores, but they only have a subset of the usual items found in chandleries catering to serious boaters. I couldn't even find 3M's popular 5200 glue/sealant at the two stores, nor the usual oil we use for our engines, and I haven't been able to get the cruising guide for Panama I expected to buy here. More importantly, and this isn't as surprising, they don't have the pump we need - to replace the one that drives the water pressure on our starboard hull. I spent two days trying to determine the best way to have a new one sent to us here. We finally ordered two of the pumps (one as a spare) in the US, and are having it sent to Miami. An outfit there sends it to Colombia in the main port. Then it is brought down to Cartagena, clears customs, and is finally brought to us - where we pay the fees for the shipping, handling, and customs. If all goes as planned, it will be here by next Tuesday. We may also see if the old pump can be overhauled.

Meanwhile, we have gone to a few restaurants. We even went to Centro - the old part of Cartagena - and had a nice dinner and walked through the scenic area one night. Cartagena is a beautiful city, and we look forward to seeing more. Karen has been a bit out of commission having consumed something that didn't agree with her. We're hoping she'll be well enough today to do some sightseeing. There is a wonderful grocery store with nice Internet cafe nearby that has been our favorite haunting ground outside the boat.

We have a couple of candidates for crewing on Tahina for the upcoming long passages. If you think you may meet our criteria/dates, please contact us soon.

There is a young married couple, who are photo journalists, with whom I've been communicating with for several months now on the chance we could get together. Turns out they are in Colombia right now. They may be joining us for a couple of weeks as we depart Cartagena and go to San Blas in Panama. Then they would leave us when we reach the Panama Canal. We hope to pick up some traveling tips from them as they have done two round-the-world trips (not by sailboat). And share some photography tips as well.

The weather here has been hot and muggy. It hasn't been helped by the lack of wind the last couple of days (and more still air the next few days). We have actually been running the A/C while charging the batteries with the generator the last two times (something we never did in the windward islands).

For several weeks, we've been keeping an eye on the weather between Aruba and Cartagena. There's an area just north of Cartagena that is notorious for strong winds. A river comes out to sea near Barranquilla and the contrary currents and temperatures apparently churns up some wind. We've regularly seen gale-force (> 30 knot) winds appearing in this area in recent weeks. Our package finally cleared customs in Aruba on Tuesday afternoon (Monday was a holiday). We picked up our new anchor light, but it was too windy to go up the mast to install it. But, the weather forecast for Cartagena was looking pretty good for the next day. There were still some 20-25 knot winds in the forecast, and it was all following winds and seas. NOTE: this is a long post! We decided to stay well offshore to avoid risks of piracy sometimes reported out here, and to reduce the risk of weather effects closer to Cartagena. Check out the map of our GPS track below.

Meanwhile, another boat in the anchorage, named m/v Antipodes, came over and invited us out for drinks. Jim and Lara's boat is a motor trawler live-aboard, and they have come from San Diego to Aruba in the past few months. They plan to attempt a circumnavigation as well. Only 18 motor trawlers have ever made it apparently. Their boat is registered in North Carolina, so naturally we had to meet them. They also have worked in the information technology business as well. And, the most amazing coincidence is that they know Pat and Ali from s/v Bumfuzzle (an amazing couple who I followed on their web site when they circumnavigated a few years ago). In fact, they met them in person a few times. I really enjoyed hearing their first-person accounts of what they are like.

I spent the rest of Tuesday preparing a route and planning our arrival in Cartagena. We got up Wednesday and first sent me up the mast to install the light. That went very smoothly and it worked perfectly. Next I drove Coconut down to Barcadera port and cleared out of customs. One more trip to town to take in trash and get some cash. Then we got the dinghy up and prepped for departure. We weighted anchor at about 10:30 and headed out. Shortly after we left, we had two dolphin swim over and join us at the bows a bit. I always consider it a good thing when they visit us on a passage.

As mentioned the other day, we had a nice sail to Aruba on Sunday (see GPS track in the link). After a good sleep in the marina, we got up and worked all day Monday, and Tuesday morning, getting the boat cleaned up and ready for our guests who arrived on Tuesday afternoon. We took advantage of the access to water at the marina to give Tahina a thorough washing. She was covered in dirt from the desert-like environment of Bonaire. And, lots of salt as we hadn't had rain since we left Grenada and had three salty passages to get to Aruba. She was gleaming like new by the afternoon.

In the afternoon on Monday, I climbed the mast to investigate putting a new anchor light on Tahina. But, after looking closer I decided we needed to order the same anchor light we had before and have it shipped here. It would be the easiest way to get it installed. While up the mast, I took some photos of the really nice little port with the marina. In the series of photos I took below you can see the hotel, mall, restaurants, bars, shops, and cruiseship dock (complete with just one cruise ship in port).

In the afternoon we took laundry downtown to be done for us. We discovered there was a movie theater, a Taco Bell, Subway, Haggendaaz, and other reminders of home here. Not only that, but Avatar was showing. So, Monday night we went to watch the movie at last! We loved the movie! We also treated ourselves to Taco Bell. And, you won't believe it, but it tasted really good here. They must have Aruba or Venezuela influences because it was really tasty with a much different spice compared to the US.

On Tuesday morning, we continued the cleaning on the boat. Karen went to the grocery stores to do a big provisioning project, and I went to get the laundry later. Karen had me a bit worried when she was nearly an hour late, but thankfully our neighbor in the marina (s/v Lucid - an American owner who's been down here for two years) offered to check on her and managed to pick her up and bring her to the marina with her huge load. We were ready to leave at noon and checked out of the marina. But, the marina dockmaster suggested we just stay until our guests arrived - no charge.

We took a bus to the airport and Andy and Aliza arrived pretty much on time with all their luggage - including a load of stuff we had ordered and a bunch of our mail. First thing after we got back, we left the dock and went to a nearby anchorage for the night (next to the airport). Andy, while wallowing in the wonderful warmth of Aruba, was kind enough to pull out our goodies from his luggage. It was like Christmas! New spare parts! Hardrives for backups! Engine filters! Wow!

More photos to share - here are photos from our excursions from Bonaire to Aruba. Including photos from our brief stop at Curacao. We traveled there on the same day as "A Small Nest" with the family from Belgium. We had their kids over cupcakes and ice cream and to play Wii on Saturday afternoon. You can also see some of the ships we had close encounters with during our passages. And, there's a shot of Captain Frank washing Tahina in there as well:

On Friday we left Bonaire to make our way west to Aruba. My friend Andy and his wife Aliza are flying down for a few days of warm weather and sailing on Tahina. We had made the arrangements weeks ago, and were slowed down for repairs and a new computer back in the Grenadines and Grenada This is why we had limited time to stay in Bonaire.

We did manage to stop in Curacao for a quick look. Curacao is much more developed than Bonaire and has a sizable, and growing, population. You could see construction trucks and cranes all over the island. There are many more cars than buses on the roads. They have a huge bridge over the main port entry - big enough for ships to go under. We were enjoying looking, and taking pictures, of the island so much, that we passed the entry to the anchorage called Spanish Water. We ended up having to turn around and motor against wind and waves to get back to it. In our defense, the entry is almost impossible to spot from offshore.

We stopped in Curacao partly because there was a chance to get a new anchor light at the Budget Marine chandlery. I tried to catch a bus to the store, but it didn't show up when expected. I was told it was only 2-3 miles, so I started walking, but fortunately a boater drove up and offered me a ride. It was at least 5 miles.

Earlier in the morning, I went to take a shower in our guest bathroom (so I wouldn't wake Karen). The shower drain pump stopped working. Uh oh! So, I checked out the wiring and found there was 12V going to the pump. So, I removed the pump assuming the pump was bad. While at the Budget Marine, I managed to get a suitable pump replacement (it turns out two spares I had bought back in the US were not the right size). Back at the boat, I spent a few minutes setting up the wiring, and then put in the new pump. Nothing happened - but, I noticed when I pushed on the wiring it would sometimes make a slight noise. Our friends on A Small Nest also came to Curacao on the same day. We invited their kids to come over for Wii and ice cream we had bought. When their father Willem brought them over, he offered to help diagnose the pump problem. We did some testing and found both of the new pumps worked. The problem seemed to be the 12V power wire. It had slightly less voltage than the other wires. I went to pull on the wire to get a closer look, and a 6 inch piece of the wire came right out. On the end was green gunk - the wire was corroded! We had found the problem. We soon had a new power wire in place, and the pump worked perfectly. I'm a bit perturbed about the corrosion though. Good marine wire shouldn't do that, and this wire was put in by the boat builder.

Yesterday, Sunday, we left before dawn and made our way slowly out the Spanish Water entry in the dark. We soon were having a nice downwind sail to the NW along the Curacao coast towards Aruba. It was about 80 miles to the main port of Aruba and we wanted to arrive well before dark. We had a great sail and made good time. There was only a brief period where the winds died down and we ran a motor to keep our speed up. Once we got to Aruba we had a great run in the lee up the coast making 11-12 knots on a beam reach!

We called Aruba Port Control on the radio several minutes before getting to the port. But, they didn't answer until we were entering the harbor. They told us we had to go back to the Barcadera commercial port to clear into customs. So, we turned around and sailed 4 or so miles back. Once there, we found a small ship dock with 5 boats already parked - and no room for Tahina. There was more dock space to the west, but it was behind a fence and the water was shallow. A coast guard boat came by and said we should wait for a boat to leave. We waited for over 30 minutes trying to hold position with the wind. Finally I called the port again. Fortunately, the local marina listened in and told us that although the water was shallow, if we would move in close to the dock on the closer end it would be deep enough. He was right, and we were soon docked. Customs and immigration were speedy and I was in and out almost as fast as I could fill in the forms. That was nice!

We motor-sailed back up to the main port and called the marina. They told us where to dock, but explained they were leaving for the day. So, we tied up ourselves. The ironic part is that the water was even shallower at the dock, and I'm sure we touched sand in the process. As we were arriving, the sound was incredible. It turns out the first Carnival parade was going on at the street next to the marina. But, as we were finishing tying the end of the parade went by and was followed by a series of trucks that picked up all the pedestrian barriers and the parade was gone.

As we were cleaning up and having a late dinner, the Superbowl had started. They had it projected on the side of a nearby hotel, and loud enough we could hear the commentary. But, we enjoyed seeing a taste of good ole US of A. We're glad to be in Aruba with a couple of days to clean up the boat. And, we've now completed a brief visit of the ABCs. I would definitely enjoy being able to spend more time at the other two islands. But, hopefully we'll have a chance to see a lot of Aruba during the next week.

Yesterday, Friday, we accomplished all the priority tasks we had planned for Grenada. We had to sacrifice a few of the minor tasks in order to accommodate our schedule. But, with a lot of hard work, help from the other cruisers here, and frequent trips to shore with the dinghy, we got it done! So, we're ready for departure.

We're kind of sad to be leaving our new friends already. But, unfortunately, we have to get going or we will miss one of the best dive sites in the Caribbean - Bonaire. We hope to be able to spend at least 3-4 days there. We're hoping to leave either today or tomorrow - depending on the winds/weather.

After getting things cleaned up in the boat mid-evening, I took the dinghy over to talk to the other cruisers about our plans. Ended up at s/v Grace, and the crew from Ascension were visiting there. Grace is also headed west and we may end up at the same island in a few days. We had a really nice chat again about cruising experiences, teaching kids on boats, plastic in the oceans, pollution around the world, and even Patrick O'Bryan books (author of "Master and Commander"). It was amazing listening to Ascension - who have traveled around the world - describe with passion the travesty of pollution they have seen, and the disregard of the local people for the consequences of dumping trash and plastic into the sea. They also described beautiful atolls in the Pacific with trash all over the beaches - these are islands with no people on them!

Below is a summary of some of what we got accomplished yesterday:

We finished re-installing our jib sail. I spent the early morning soaking the jib sheet lines in a bucket of softner to remove salt and stiffness. Karen and I installed a new furling line in the morning, because the old one had some chafe. Thanks again to some help from Gord on Ascension, and help from Karen, we got the new sail up, and I went up the mast to properly affix the special steel halyard we have for our jib and adjust the furling system stopper at the top. We weren't done with all that until about 4 PM because of other parallel tasks.

I picked up a new engine starter battery because the old one was starting to not hold a full charge (and it was suspect because of a problem with our battery system when we first bought Tahina). Although, I had to go back to the store and exchange the new battery because it turned out we needed bolt connectors instead of posts. And it turned out the new one had 1/16th inch larger bolts. But, that wasn't a problem since I bought new butterfly nuts. The local bus didn't hesitate to pick me up with my battery in a rolling crate. I had to pay double-fee for a drop at the boatyard, but that meant it cost me about $2 US. A lot cheaper than a taxi.

We also finally got the custom security bars we had made for our two ventilation hatches. These bars are intended to give us more comfort at night in areas where crime is sometimes reported. The two hatches are quite large and accessible, so making it impossible for someone to just crawl through is a prudent move. We got the idea from another catamaran we met.

Karen got some last minute grocery items to make sure we're ready for a few days with limited grocery supplies. One thing I wanted to mention is that when we went to pay the rigger for the sail work, our credit card got declined. This has been happening to us at least once a month. And, apparently its getting to be an all too common occurrence with boaters traveling down here. I had called and informed the credit card company of our travel plans months ago, and they said they had made a note on our account. But, it keeps happenning. Fortunately, the business owner happened to use Skype, so I was able to make a call to get it cleared up. But, they took nearly 15 minutes to do it and made the business owner late for a lunch appointment. What a pain!

Finally, I wanted to mention that the customs guy I met when clearing out late yesterday is the nicest customs agent I've met in the Caribbean. I mentioned it to the other cruisers, and they all agreed he's the nicest man. So, if you want a positive customs experience, hopefully you'll get this guy if you try Prickly Bay's customs office.