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Doing Nothing Becomes Busy

January 25, 2016 by

We rejoined the ARC fleet three days after our unsanctioned early departure. We had missed the awards dinner for Leg 1. Two Fish grabbed a trophy – third for the catamarans. The day after we left, Port Control of Santa Marta shut down the

sunrise

sunrise

port. The rally organizers tried to change Port Control’s decision; I found this to be curious. Another curious decision was to make the leg to the San Blas a “racing” leg. It is a leg with heavy wind and difficult reefs. Enough of me judging things with imperfect information. Two Fish made it safely and that is the end of my job.

Our sister-ship Kristal had a great ride downwind, testing her new third reef in the main sail in 30-40 knots of breeze. With a tiny main and tiny genoa, the boat was sprinting along at double-digit speeds. They passed a racy monohull who responded with hoisting more sail area and then a few minutes later the monohull had a dramatic broach (tipped on her side).

We had fun helping a fellow ARC boat come into the harbor. They arrived just as the sun had set. We turned on every light on the boat. We radioed them to let them

know there was plenty of room to anchor off our stern. I then watched their AIS path on the chartplotter and offered assurances. They were very appreciative of the help and the electronic tracks we had given them back in Santa Marta. We now have an open bar awaiting us on another boat.

Paddle Express

Paddle Express

The morning in Swimming Pool anchorage started early as I boarded the paddleboard to greet every ARC boat and invite them to drinks aboard Two Fish. The anchorage is large so it took almost two hours to reach all of the boats. My speed was slowed by the wind but the real speed killer was my need to catch up with each boat. I do not mind a good chat. My paddleboard attracted a ray as I passed over shallow water.

James has been doing many great things for Two Fish during his stay. His Antares claim to fame is that he built the deck mold. His Two Fish claims to fame are many but today he was after a noise in the guest cabin that sounded like shrimp eating. Gail overheard the conversation and was concerned as she took it literally. It was a bit of the core rubbing.   At first this was mis-diagnosed as delamination. Good news it was nothing of the kind. When James and Jackie are not trying to make Two Fish the best Antares ever built, they spend time swimming, spotting turtles and eating potato chips. Gail and I made another repair to the boat. The autopilot had been making small unnecessary turns. The owners forum reminded me of the bonehead move we had done. The extra Volvo Oil and Fuel filters were too close to the fluxgate compass and were confusing it. Filters moved and our autopilot’s behavior was back to normal today.

While I was out paddling, there was plenty of adventure on Two Fish. Jackie was adjusting the cushion on the lounge chair and found a 5 foot snake underneath. Since the first telling of the story it has grown to 6 feet. She quickly exited the area and summoned James. He also decided to summon some help and walked over to Gail at the bow. “Gail, we have a situation”, she heard, wondering what it could be. “We have a snake aboard”, he said. It took a few second to digest this information as she walked forward. They pointed out where it was and waited for some action. Fortunately, the boat brush

Stowaway

Stowaway

was out of the locker so Gail asked James to grab it. Jackie went to get the boat hook. With James standing by on broom duty, Gail flipped the cushion off the snake with the boat hook. The snake raised its head and stuck out its tongue. Gail shoved it towards the stern and James joined in with the brush. A few minutes later the snake was off the boat via the stern steps, but not before Jackie took a parting photo. The snake seemed to sink to the bottom, but we are not one hundred percent sure. The conversation afterward mourned the snake. Gail thought she should have put it in a trash bag and had me paddle it to shore.

A bunch of theories have arisen as to his provenance. Did mister snake sneak aboard via the dinghy when we visited the Southern San Blas? Or, did the snake board while Two Fish was on the hard in Grenada? Is there a family of snakes living in the guest cabin? We think we have checked everywhere. When I returned to the boat, I was chided for not being appreciative of the gravity of a snake visit. In the past week we have caught 8 flying flying, 2 sardines and snake without taking the pole out of the locker. We also will be eating fresh sword fish, a gift from another rally boat.

With the excitement of the snake wearing off we spotted new adventure on the horizon.   A non rally boat had put her self on the reef. The skipper had told me he looked away for a moment. The folks on the bow were pointing to turn but all too late. The first 10 feet of the boat were high and dry.   The bow thruster was out of the water. We were the first dinghy on the scene. I had brought a 200 foot line along as well.   They were dumping their water tanks but this not a solution.

Grounded Boat

Grounded Boat

The small tide was going out and this only made the situation worse. I spoke to the skipper and proposed that we help him heel the boat over using and anchor attached to his mast. His crew tried to get out their kedge (secondary anchor) but it was deeply buried in the locker. In the intermin 6 other dinghies had arrived. Some with 40hp engines and eager to use their rpm’s.   The crowd convinced the skipper that shoving him off the reef was the right call. Swimmers in the water scurried away in fear and the boat was shoved.   More digging of coral by the swimmers and more shoving and he was free. Some cosmetic damage to the rudder but otherwise the boat seemed ok.   Hint do not buy a used Dufour 50 from Los Angles.


At 5 pm the ARC rally folks started arriving at Two Fish for the party. It did not take long to realize the fellow ralliers are awesome. They came with such kindness, great gifts and super conversation.   These are going to be great folks to spend the next year with. We broke the record for the most people on Two Fish at one time: 51.

Some cruisers stay anchored in the San Blas for months. They make their own water, eat food from their extensive stores, but have no home for their trash. A social event is the weekly trash burn.   This was announced on the radio yesterday. One of our friends radioed in and asked for details. Immediately thereafter, someone interrupted the announcement telling us in a stern voice that rally boats do not burn trash. No more comments.

 

 

Dreaming of a Dry Bilge

January 18, 2016 by

A bone dry bilge is my dream and here is what I have learned:

1). Bilge pump cycles on and off.
Few things are less comforting during a night passage than having the bilge pump turn on and off. Up come the floor boards with no conclusive evidence of imminent sinking. The only real cure is to make the water collection pit bigger. Here is my logic. The pump fails to send the last bit of water overboard. This last bit is the amount from the pump to the loop of the loop. Let’s say that is a liter. The liter then returns to the tiny bilge box and becomes a centimeter of water. This volume of water confuses the trigger and restarts the pumping process. Add a bit of a rolly boat and you have an endless loop. Now imagine a much bigger box and the liter of water is only a film. I am not ready to start cutting but this would be a great solution. Newer boats have larger boxes. Lucky ducks.

2. Transmission oil cooler (Volvo feature)

The first photo is of a broken plug, a spent plug and a new plug.  After two happy years, my plugs were dead. Too many marinas? The Volvo engines do not have zincs. So parts can get gobbled. My plugs on both engines were leaking slowly;  this could have resulted in  a dramatic fail, as it would open a fairly large hole in the raw water loop.

I am considering installing a plug that has a screw-in zinc. I found one in St Lucia, but want to email Volvo first.
While on the topic of oil coolers. Mine were both cast poorly and I will swap them out at some point. The output hole is blocked partially from original production. Volvo you are lazy.

3. Hot heater overflow water valves.

Pressure relief Valve routing

Pressure relief valve routing

After giving up on the Quick Water Heater support desk, I followed the advice of the

water routed back to tank

water routed back to tank

forum (thanks Paul and Jeff). My pressure relief valves are now putting water back into the tank. I am very happy about this as we were losing quite a lot of fresh water to the bilge. I still need to track down weather our hot water heaters have zincs. The photos show the install. 1/4 inch hose most of the way and then a barb to convert to 15mm NPT and then joined at the water maker tank inlet hose. Not too tough, but it makes me wonder why I have hot water heaters. If you need them, you are too far north. Okay, clean dishes are nice. Most of my bilge water was from the hot water heater but I was still on patrol.

4. Cam screw on raw water pump.
Dissimilar metals are hell. I found a small leak from the raw water pump. It was not from the face plate or the hose, but from a screw on the

water pump cam

water pump cam

raw water pump

raw water pump

side of the pump that holds the cam. This screw had been eaten by stray electrons in only 9 months. Turns out my new pumps that were all covered in sexy green Volvo paint hid the fact that Volvo did

not use a brass screw. It was eaten and started to leak. The screw broke off in the cam so I used the perfectly good cam from my old pump. Brass screw spares are on order.   By the way Volvo will no longer sell the cam separately. I assume it was hurting pump sales?
You can see I have the speed seals as impeller covers. Still like them. As a safety measure, we cut off an inch of the hose attached to the feeder side of the pump to have a cleaner fit.

5. Clean the shaft

Shaft Seal

Shaft Seal

Underneath the elephant nose (aka Tides Marine Shaft Seal) is a home to hearty sea creatures. With the bilge pump on, we removed the black ring and pushed back the baffle revealing some barnacles. Wet sanded them off and new shaft ready for another 1000 hours of dry bilges. Also moved the entire unit forward a centimeter to have the lip seal touch at a new point of the shaft. Our shaft alignment is good, so the seals are in good shape. The second black ring is our back-up seal that allows for changing at sea with shaft removal.

 

 

6. Leaky head solenoid.
The solenoid has a small anti siphon loop that was leaking. Swapped it out for new and no more drips.

7. Years ago we had a leaky sump from the shower, but this has been fixed.

As Two Fish is a catamaran, we got to do most of the jobs twice.

As for my other bilge dripper, the air conditioning condensation, we will be on anchor more from now on, so this should not be an issue.

And so completes the tale of my dry bilge experiences to date. One can only hope it works.

 

Day Minus One

January 9, 2016 by

We will set sail from Rodney Bay, St Lucia towards Santa Marta, Colombia, in the morning.

Last paddle in St Lucia

Last paddle in St Lucia

This five day passage is the first leg in our trip to Australia.  It would have been cheaper and quicker to buy two first class airline seats, but this will be a lot more fun.

I feel a bit more pressure than average passage for a few reasons.    Firstly,  we have joined a rally with other boats and this creates more rules and timelines.  I will get used to it over time.   Secondly, we are going on a L O N G trip.  It is 12,500 from St Lucia to Australia.   In the past 2 years we have sailed 12,400 miles so we will be under sail many of the days.  About 2,100 hours or 86 days of sailing in the next year.  Good news is we have a kind forecast for our trip to Colombia.

Gail has cooked up a storm so we have eight frozen dinners (Chili, Baked Ziti, Lentil and Chicken Couscous x 2).   We plan on inviting some fish over for dinner as well. We found some new invitations at the hardware store earlier this week.

 

Over the past few weeks, we have readied Two Fish for the Pacific.   The engines were gone over with a fine tooth comb and  had their share of fixes.   Every filter has been changed.  Every system tested. Oil changed. Even a wood squeak was removed from port forward.   The stuck fuel filter on the genset was changed and the leaky gasket on the governor was replaced.


In addition to our usual chartplotters, we have collected a few more resources for navigation:

1)   We have downloaded Google Earth for offline use for our entire trip.  It takes up about 25 gigabytes of room.  It has good spots and some weak spots.   We use the app Tallon on the PC to download regions. Our files seem to work only on Windows 8.1.
2)   We have many great tracks from other boats.  We load these gpx files onto our chartplotter and into Google Earth.
3)   We have made some of our cruising guides into raster charts that I can use on the tablet.    I use SeaClear II and Map Cal to create these charts. We are trying to buy a tablet holder to keep near the helm.

We will write more about our navigation as we progress through our route.

 

The ARC group (our rally) is still feeling its way.  Some boats are veterans of sailing in rallies, others are getting ready for their first big passage and others, like us, are loners trying to adjust to the pace.  We will find our stride, but for now I have to bite my lip a few times.  Tonight is a leaving party and by morning I will be at sea where I belong. The rally has a start line, which I expect will create some high blood pressure. I am not sure how many boats know the racing rules, so I will try not to win the start.

Fuel Management

December 8, 2015 by

Our last two major cruises were motoring on the ICW (InterCoastal Waterway) and sailing along the Caribbean chain.  On the ICW, diesel is easier to find than a NYC Bagel.   During our 6 months sailing south in the West Indies we used the engines for fewer than 40 hours.  In both cases, fuel plans were not needed.

Our next adventures will involve long distances (3,000 miles from the Galapagos  to the Marquesas), no or unreliable quality diesel (Tuamotos) and possibly light air (Bay of Panama).   As is my usual habit when solving problems, I created a spreadsheet to investigate further.

Fuel gauges vary in their accuracy.  I have heard that air pressure gauges and electrical sound gauges are very accurate.  We have traditional WEMA float gauges, which offer a suggestion of the amount of fuel in the tank rather than a definitive statement.   Also, we never push it close to empty to ensure that the engine does not suck in bottom-of-the tank gunk.   I should have more faith in my multiple fuel filters.

fuel gauge

Conservatively, (7 gallons in reserve) we have 63 gallons of diesel capacity in each tank.   The builder claims 75 gallons; that may be correct if you draw out the last ounce of diesel.

At anchor, Two Fish’s batteries require very little charging since the solar panels cover the lights and other anchor based consumption.   We tend to run the genset every 3 days for about 1.5 hours.   However, during passage our consumption skyrockets.   The solar produces 20 -30 amps for the sunny parts of the day, but the boat relentlessly consumes 21 amps every hour, whether the sun is up or down.  8 amps for the fridge and freezer, 7 amps for the navigation screen, 4 amps for the beefy autopilot and radar; other assorted bits fill in the balance.

Onan consumption

Two Fish and other Antares boats will run their genset for 2.5 hours a day when on a 100% multiday sailing passage.   To reduce the hours, I purchased a Watt & Sea hydro generator.   It looks like a rudder from a sailing dinghy with a propeller attached.   So far, the results have been okay. It is too early for a final verdict.   The boat does not seem to travel any slower with the hydro on, so it is kind of free energy.   The marketing materials are rather optimistic.   The hydro can be fitted with 3 different size propellers.   We fitted the largest size. It produces in the real world what the marketing gurus say is the medium size propeller’s amps.  At six knots (a speed we exceed most of the time) the hydro can produce between 5 and 10 amps.   This is a game changer as it replaces 1.5 to 3 hours of genset time.   We might only need the genset for the watermaker!   The hydro will produce almost no energy at 4 knots and at 12 knots it cuts out.

Genset Usage

This is the plan for our 3,000 mile leg, assuming no hydro amps.   Without any type of rationing, assuming a 21 day passage, we would consume 25 gallons, or 20% of our fuel by running the 2.5 hour top-up.   All hail hydro.

Volvo Consumption

When the wind becomes light the engine typically fills in for the loss in speed  but on a long passage you have to ration your fuel.

Fuel Capacity

What is the magic number of jerry cans to carry?   8 cans can fit nicely in the cockpit locker.  I like to keep the weight out of the bow and stern and this has proven a convenient location when they need to be accessed.   If 8 cans is not enough then tying extra cans under the cockpit table.  They are not too annoying for folks sitting at the table and can be secured well with a few lines.   It is a large boat and there are plenty of places to hide cans.  I once put 17 cans on Two Fish and she does not sail well with that much weight.  The waves are more uncomfortable and the performance is ruined.   However, 8 cans and I did not notice any change.

Motoring Range

Our usual one engine, 2200 rpm motoring speed burns .8 gallon/hour has a range of 775.5 nautical miles.   That is  conservative since we give no credit for the hydro generator, no bonus for motor sailing, and reduce speed by 20 percent for bad waves and wind.   More realistically, over 1,000 miles is possible.  In an emergency that number could double if you sacrificed speed and ran the engines at lower rpms.

I need to end this post before I become a motor boat head. Our new screecher headsail should power us up better than the engines. Next post should be about sail trim?

Downwind Choices

September 14, 2015 by

Cruising sailboats are often sighted traveling dead downwind.   The crew will poll out a single headsail, launch the chute or have twin headsails.  Typically the main is not hoisted.  The boat then steers dead downwind, but, is this efficient?  Gail says, “Who cares? It is comfortable and easy to maintain.”

Let us look at the hard numbers.

Choice A:

Sail dead downwind for 1 hour at 5 knots.   The next sunny anchorage is dead down wind so this is the most direct course.

Choice B:

Sail on a deep reach at a true wind angle of 140 degrees to the wind.  This allows for increased apparent wind and a bit of the slot effect to power the boat to increased speeds. The speed through the water will increase, but will it compensate for the increased distance one needs to sail?   If you travel at 6.52 knots for a half-hour and then jibe to the same wind angle on the other tack, you will arrive at your anchorage at the same time.   You need to travel at least 30% faster!   From experience in light to moderate air, this is achievable.   In stronger breezes, I tend to go dead downwind, since the boat is going fast enough for my taste.   However, the 140 degree true wind angle has another benefit.  When puffs come, the crew can head down to de-power the boat, an option unavailable to the dead downwind boat.     The boat’s polars would also indicate the best idea is to avoid dead downwind.

So what is the best angle?   I find anything deeper than a 140 degree true wind angle (i.e. 145, or more) causes the main to blanket the head sail too much.  If hand steering, I will flirt with 145 in the puffs and heat the boat up to 130 in the lulls.  If I have the boat on autopilot wind mode, then I target 140.  135 feels great but you are sailing 41% more nautical miles than the dead downwind course.

Sailing slowly DDW

Sailing slowly DDW

Of course, speed is great but comfort is key.  Sometimes the jibing angles can be less comfortable due to the seas.  Or sometimes the crew is not up for jibing every 3 hours.

How did I get these cool numbers?  My clever wife used her geometry and cosine skills. Our Furuno navigation system displays VMC(velocity made course) or VMG(velocity made good). I find these not be as useful because they rely on the paddle wheel and get fooled by a slightly off-angle waypoint. On some jibes you look like you have made a great decision, while on other jibes you look as if you are sailing in reverse.   It is easier to just use the ratios.  Play with your sails to find your best ratio beating set up.

Vendor Review

August 8, 2015 by

Two Fish has needed a few fixes and we have performed many upgrades over the past two years.   Here is how we rank the subsystems’ providers after-sales support.  This is not a representative poll so we would like to hear from others on their experiences with marine manufacturers.

Harken (winches, blocks, main sail cars)

Harken

Harken

We had a bent stripper and damaged jaws in the early days of Two Fish.  The company was very helpful via email on diagnosing the problem and getting the parts ordered.  Their inability to  ship to Brazil, not uncommon for companies, is the only thing that holds them back from a perfect score.  In Florida we upgraded the main sail cars and Harken was very helpful in recommending the correct combination of parts.

Score 9/10

Selden (rigging)

Selden

Selden

 

Selden pro-actively replaced our original Reef Lines, including arranging for a rigger in Trinidad to come aboard. They also pro-actively adjusted the angle of our furler. The president of Selden USA has been super-responsive in answering our questions on worn out parts and rig questions.

Score 9/10

 

Quick  (water heaters, capstan)

Quick Windlass

Quick Windlass

We have worked with Quick on problems with our chain counter (installation issue).  Quick USA are quick to respond with very thoughtful answers.  They got us a spare sensor and magnets as we debugged a problem which turned out not to be Quick’s fault.

Our second interaction with them was to buy new hot water heater release valves.  The current valves leak a small amount of water as tank pressure increases.  The replacements were easy to order.

Finally we got plenty of quick replies helping us change our gypsy, actually wildcat, to accommodate the new G43 chain.  We decided to install 80 meters of 5/16′ (8mm) G43 chain which requires us to change the wildcat.

Perfect service but not perfect pressure valves prevents a 10 out of 10.

Score 9/10

KVH

KVH

KVH

The KVH is our source for internet while at sea.   This technology could be very complicated but between Gail’s huge brain and KVH’s great customer service, the unit has been easy.  On delivery of the boat the unit was not activated properly so we had to call KVH.  They emailed us the solution but we did not act on it as we were busy with other things.  Two days later they emailed us asking if we had problems since they had not seen us on the network.  Wow, that is follow up.  Since then we have worked with them on missed software upgrades because the unit was off while transiting the US East Coast.  Again, they were efficient.   KVH can remotely control the satellite unit when in need of service so you never need to find a local dealer.

Score 10/10

Sea Recovery

Sea Recovery

Sea Recovery

We were shocked at how bad the experience with this company was.  They do not have a dealer network in Brazil or maybe anywhere.  When a dealer did board, they spent half the time complaining how they hated the company and the other half asking me how the unit worked.  The dealer even emailed us 6 months later asking for help having his bill paid by Sea Recovery.  They were not open about a known problem with the water maker that would have saved us hours of headaches.  In their defense, the main office in the US did work hard at times trying to help, but still not enough.    This low score could have been lower.  Since our fix, the unit has run like a dream.

Score 3/10

Furuno

Furuno

Furuno

The best way to get service from Furuno seems to be via their forum where Johnny Electron will usually give timely responses. (Johnny was helpful with questions about velocity made good and velocity made course)  Furuno is always at the boat shows with some helpful people who answered our early questions.  (How to turn off the fish finder or fix a stuck button on the autopilot).

Furuno, however, fell down in the early days of the TZ Touch units.  They had a major glitch in the map distribution web site which was producing corrupt files.   The plotter would crash or freeze once a day.  We felt Furuno was denying this issue which affected 100% of the Antares.  Finally, Furuno realized the source of the problem, but did not publicize it properly.  Unit working 100% now but still a bit irritated with their piecemeal service.

Score 5/10

Fusion Stereo

Fusion

Fusion

After owning the boat for a year, we got around to investigating why the stereo had a strange orange bar appearing occasionally on the screen.  A quick email to Fusion, and they informed us that they would fix the unit.  I told them I was a full time cruiser and could not afford the time for the turn around.  We brokered a deal where they would send a new unit and charge the credit card until the old unit was returned.  The process was good but could have been smoother.

Score 8/10

Vesper AIS

Vesper

Vesper

We have never fixed something with a kitchen pot but that was the advice Vesper gave us to block the AIS’s antenna for a proper software update.  The advice worked like a charm.  The company is in NZ so plan on working on the unit at night to reduce the turnaround time.   Friendly staff, but when will the anchor alarm upgrade be released?

Score 9/10

 

Onan

Onan

Onan

Companies can deliver service from headquarters or from a dealer network.  Electronics are easier to do centralized while bulky stuff like engines tend to be better served by a network.  A strategy of neither will fail for sure.  Emails to Onan central will get a response of please seek advice from a dealer.  But Onan dealers are hard to find, and the dealers do not seem to have experience with the product.  Our Onan has been running well so that is very good news but the service is skimpy at best.

Score 4/10

Volvo

Volvo

Volvo

Volvo also follow Onan in a dealer network strategy but they actually have plenty of very well trained dealers. It is worthwhile to get the shop manual for the Volvo engines to better understand their construction.  Volvo parts and service centers are not that hard to find with a bit of planning.   I would score them higher if the Volvo headquarters helped, but their dealers are strong.

Score 7/10

Spinlock

Spinlock

Spinlock

They sold us our auto inflation vests and our line clutches.   The vest side of the business has offered much help on replacement cartridges and other questions.  But the clutch side of the business was not helpful in our questions about the always open feature.

Score 6/10

 

Victron

Victron

Victron

We have had a few chances to talk with Victron about the solar charger, the inverter charger and the possible installation of a transformer for cruising in Australia.  They quickly replaced our broken solar charger and did not require us to mail the broken unit back to Victron.  The service was speedy and done via email, my favorite.  I wish I had sorted that problem out much earlier.  They also have some tech support folks that can really go the extra mile and advise us on plans to make the boat 220 volt prepared.   They do not have a dedicated support network, but the electricians who we have come aboard start by reading the manual.

Score 8/10

Winslow

Winslow

Winslow

Our salesman was responsive and helpful when the check was being written. Since then, we discovered that Winslow only services liferafts in the US. Perhaps he could have alerted us to this when we told him we were sailing from South America? What liferaft company doesn’t have a rep in the Caribbean. When I emailed him, he would not respond and when I called the company they were less than helpful. Since liferafts should be tested every few years, make sure you know your manufacturer’s service areas before you buy.

Score 0/10

Brownies

Brownies

Brownies

The diver compressor folks are located in Fort Lauderdale.  They have done a modified version of a common German dive compressor.  It is fairly technical stuff so I would not ask many folks to work on the system.  Our initial unit had a faulty 3 phase motor.   Brownies came to the boat multiple times and finally solved the problem.  The machine has been reliable since then but Brownies stuffed me with part of the fix-it bill.  Great service, but a hefty hit to the wallet lowered the score.

Score 6/10

Antares

Antares

Antares

The only help network that is 24 hours.  The presidents of the company will reach out with almost any type of help they can offer.    The topics are not limited to their product but also seamanship, must see places to visit and food advice.  Many boat builders after sales service is limited to “their” part.  Send you off to fight with the electronics firm on your own.  Antares stands behind the whole boat long after the warranty is over.

Score 10/10

 

Bogotá

August 3, 2015 by

“Hello … um I mean … Hola”, Gail spoke into the hotel phone as we were woken by a 5 am call from the concierge.   The caller asked “Had we been looking for the pharmacist?”  Gail curtly replied “Wrong room”.  This mistake phone call played into my preconceptions of drug-filled Colombia but the next three days would show me another country.   Embarrassingly, most of my understanding of Colombia comes from watching Gail’s favorite situation comedy “Modern Family,” so I had plenty to learn.

Politics

The country is full of oxymorons such as peace activists involved in gun crimes.  Or, rich communist politicians.  Or, closely allied governments funding the Colombian rebels.  Or, philanthropist drug lords.  Or, a mayor of Bogotá who is an ex-Guerilla. Because modern Colombia is complex, Colombians seem to be comfortable looking at a problem that does not have an easy solution.  The small group of Colombians we met seemed more interested in politics than people I encounter in the US.  This gave me hope; however, some of the crime stories seem to indicate there is a long way to go.  We have been told horrific crime stories that I hope have been embellished over time.  The car jack genre usually involves a cab driver and partners who blow drugs on the victim which causing them to enter a defenseless state.  Cognizant enough to know their bank pin code, they are driven to an ATM, but have no memory in the morning.  Our well-meaning hosts would tell us varieties of these stories to keep us safe but also to express their frustration.  Colombia seems to have been in this unfortunate state since 1948, when the Liberal leader, Gaitan, was assassinated by the Conservative government.  The largest and most infamous guerrilla group is FARC, with which the government is trying to broker a peace agreement after 60 years of civil war.  The road to peace seems bumpy as the leadership are juggling their desire for peace with the ability to absolve FARC of the violence. The only more stubborn civil war is currently in Papua New Guinea.

 

Bike Tour

There is no better way to explore a new city than on a bike tour.  Fortunately, we stopped frequently during the 5 hour trip, as the high altitude was making me short of breath.  We gorged on foreign fruits with names that seemed to all start with G; many claimed to be aphrodisiacs.

We pedaled through the red light district.  We stopped at a coffee shop and a chocolate shop which are musts in Colombia.   Gail, and a few other chocaphiles on the bike tour, gave the chocolate a failing grade.   Nobody partook of the odd refreshment of crab drink – yes, crabs pulverized in a blender. We visited cemeteries, statues of great Spaniards, memorials to revolutionaries, murals for the displaced farmers and half a dozen outdoor peace paintings. We saw some jugglers, entertaining cars who were stopped at a light.

Street Performers from Two Fish on Vimeo.

Navigating the streets was exciting as we fought with cars and motor bikes for space while avoiding large potholes.  Our enthusiastic leader had poor traffic sense and a meandering style which lead to a bit of chaos amongst his flock.  However, no one fell off their bikes despite the gears and brakes being of questionable quality.  My wheels were slightly bent so the brake would only engage at the bent portion of the wheel and with a strong vibration through the bike frame.  With vigorous application of the brake the bike would stop violently; this was tested several times as fellow riders seemed to keep popping up in front of me.

 

Not Your Average Emerging Market City

I enjoy cities like this that are growing. Bogotá seems proud of its heritage while also embracing change.   We were shown two examples that brought their into strong contrast.   The bull fighting stadium carries a tradition some Colombians find important to their Spanish heritage.   The current mayor closed the stadium months ago because of the cruelty to the bulls.   To add to the complexity, the bull fighters have joined forces with socialists sueing the city for barring their right to work.  Another strange association we were shown was a Catholic church with an abortion clinic on the side buildings.


Colombian Rapper from Two Fish on Vimeo.

 

Bogotá Rhythm

Bogotá’s streets are mostly arranged in a grid, with Calles running East-West and Carreras running North-South, making it easy to navigate.  A street address in Bogotá is very precise and offers much data as to the location. Calle 11 # 4-41, translates into Calle 11 near the intersection with Carrera 4, 41 meters from the intersection .  It is almost a Lat/Lon, London city planners are you listening?

We have enjoyed walking the city by daylight.  There is plenty of street art, commemorating important events. We also went to the Mercado de las Pulgas, which any Northern Californian will tell you is a flea market. We bought some Habas for a snack. You might know them as dried fava beans. We were told that world class cyclist Nairo Quintana claims to get his strength from these.

The statue of La Pola, commemorates a heroine of the Independence movement, Policarpa Salavarrietta. Bavaria breweries introduced a beer, La Pola, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Columbian independence. Since some time after that, pola has become slang for beer in Columbia.

 

Museums

Bogota hosts several museums with collections from history to gold but my primary goal was the Botero Art Museum.  I get Botero and Lipchitz confused.   The fourth photo is a sculpture I visited as a child in Philadelphia.  Lipschitz is older than Botero and my theory is that Botero drew inspiration from this sculpture.  Agree?

 

Ciclovia

Bogota is also known as being the first “car-free” Sunday city. In 1974, the mayor started the ciclovia and it has continued since then with every Sunday now being bike-free. We enjoyed the freedom to pedal and watch as most of Bogota seemed to empty into the streets.

Four days in Bogota is not enough but we liked the little we saw.  If you get a chance explore the town, your tastebuds will thank  you.

Relaxing in the room

Relaxing in the room

 

Bilge Pump

August 2, 2015 by

Rule Bilge Pump Break Down from Two Fish on Vimeo.

 

The more I learn about boats, the more I realize the marine industry is an industry of fear.  Preparation is prudent but frequently I find myself planning for extremely low probability scenarios.   Having a decent flood plan is not a bad idea.

How would Two Fish flood?

1)   Most likely candidate would be a failed hose or hose clamp.  We check for loose and rusty clamps frequently and  replace as necessary.  Hoses that contain hot engine fluids should be replaced before they deform.

2)  Much less likely would be if a thru hull fails.  Near each thru hull are a variety of wood and synthetic cones to fill any leaky point.  The speed at which water enters is not fast and the bilge pump can actually keep up with a failed thru hull.

3)  A failure of a fitting in a remote part of the boat such as under the port head or under the master bed.  Both of these areas did not have limber holes at construction.  We added these to allow a leak to flow back into the bilge.  The limber holes are fairly small so will allow small amounts of water to pass but will continue to keep some separation of space for the bulkhead.

4)  Hull failure due to impact would not be fun.  Our manual bilge pump and electric might not be enough.  I would try to use the engine’s raw water pump as well.  I think this scenario is unlikely.

The reason I took out the bilge pump is that it was mis-firing.  It frequently would cycle on and off as the sensor was getting confused even after cleaning it.  We bought the new model which has a sensor instead of a manual float.  But I have learned that the new technology also needs frequent cleaning.

The bilge on the Antares is not 100% dry.  The air conditioning condensation and hot water heater overflow deposit measurable water in the bilge after a few days.  Old salt water pumps for the Volvos can also leak into the bilge.  The Volvo pumps were replaced while in St. Martin.  Another source of water in the bilge occurred only once in huge seas. Water came into the bilge via the pump exit despite the loop.  If we encounter nasty seas again, I might close the seacock and turn off the pump.  The bilge manual states clearly that there should not be a check valve to prevent water coming into the boat.

 

 

Going to Weather

July 18, 2015 by

Thoughts on sailing hard on the wind

 


Sailing hard on the wind from Two Fish on Vimeo.

Monohull sailors will often preachingly ask us “how we sail to windward.”  On our last sail of the season, the answer would be “just fine”.  While beating up the south coast we passed a monohull that had no sails up, motoring into the wind and seas.  We were tacking back and forth but eventually caught up to the motoring mono.  How does she sail to windward?

The reality of cruising is that all cruisers spend hours reading GRIB weather files and spend days hiding in harbors to avoid sailing to weather.  We are no exception to this rule and will use our engines to make a tide or to enter a harbor before sunset.

A few ideas for sailing upwind:

1) Set up your sails for power or speed according to the wind speed and sea state.  In the video, we are in power mode as the seas were on our nose; we wanted power to accelerate after hitting a wave.   We positioned the jib fairlead one slot forward and the main halyard a bit looser.   The draft on both sails was near 50%  (measure from clew to tack).  We had the main and genoa twisting at about 35% between the clew and the head.

2) Your instruments can help you determine how much to point for distance, or foot for speed.  Our chartplotter draws a line coming from the boat showing our course made good. As I pointed the boat lower, the leeway was reduced and our course made good pointed higher.  Wow, now that is backwards but it worked.  Point lower and achieve higher!

 

Hydrogenerator by Watt&Sea

In 2016 we will sail about 12,500 nautical miles, comprised mostly of 4 to 21 day legs. I have discussed in past posts that this type of sailing requires that we run the generator every day.   This is typical on cruising boats that run fridge/freezer/RADAR/Auto pilot/chartplotter and more but I was hoping for less generator time and dependency. We decided to experiment with some new technology and buy a hydrogenerator that produces electricity when the boat is moving.  The hydrogenerator has an underwater propeler that is spun by the movement of the boat through the water.  This creates three phase power that is sent to a charge controller.  The charge controller then sends the proper 14 volt power to the batteries if they need a charge.   In the video you can see the hydrogen moving back and forth like a rudder.  Besides dropping the Hydro-gen in the water there are no other tasks for the crew of Two Fish.

The hydro-gen can use one of three propellers with different diameters (small, medium and large).  The larger propeller allows power to be generated at slow speeds; the cost is that at higher speeds the propeller ceases to produce power because of cavitation. Our unit came with the medium propeller, but its production matched the marketing material for the small propeller.  Artistic license?  Poor water flow because of our positioning? Either way the dealer has decided to install the large propeller. We will test this when we come back to the boat in the fall.

 

Naked Woman Astern

July 18, 2015 by

It was past one o’clock in the morning and I was standing on our stern steps with a flashlight beckoning a naked woman I have never met to come aboard.  While swimming, she was yelling at a guy in a dinghy “Go away, you want to kill me”.   Gail was on the VHF speaking to the Grenadian Coast Guard. How did we end up in this mess?

We were anchored in Prickly Bay on the South end of Grenada.  It is a large anchorage, popular with cruisers.  Early in the evening we had hosted friends to watch the movie “Charade” from 1963.   We had all enjoyed the movie and Two Fish went to bed to prepare for the trip East early the next morning.

A screaming noise bolted me upright. I headed to the cockpit driven by instinct and not fully awake.  It was such an odd situation that it took time to figure out what was transpiring.    Was someone in the water?  I grabbed our emergency flashlight that we always store under the helm seat and saw a woman in the water.  I asked Gail to grab the life ring.  I now could see that the swimmer was a woman and that she was being closely trailed by a man in a dinghy.  Looks like we were in the middle of a domestic squabble.   Not a good place to be.  Her illogical communication with her partner clearly indicated some form of chemical impairment.   Messy situation.

Gail had the dark thought that the two people might be enacting this as a ploy to rob us; she is a New Yorker, so tends to be suspicious.   I was focused on not letting anyone drown.   The wind was light and there were no waves, so all we had to worry about was an aquatic domestic squabble fueled by alcohol?   As she swam closer to the stern I deployed the stern ladder.   She released an exhausted burp and some more diatribe directed at her partner.   The partner was holding a short distance away and encouraging her to come aboard Two Fish.  And she did!   Wearing only panties she climbed aboard.  I went below and grabbed her a shirt and a towel.   I offered the shirt and she replied  “what is this?”.   The comedy of the moment was missing since I was genuinely concerned she might drown.  She turned down the shirt but did accept the towel.

Once aboard, she repeated herself many times – a defining characteristic of someone who got more than their fair portion of the rum bottle.  She declared that she was embarrassed to be naked.   Gail thought that the swimmer had plenty more to be embarrassed of and told her “Don’t worry, he is not looking at you.”

Gail had been busy giving the Coast Guard our details, including our Lat/Lon.   This process had taken about 10 minutes.  In the meantime, our drunk swimmer had had enough of Two Fish hospitality and decided to enter her partner’s dinghy.   This was inspired by knowing the Coast Guard were coming.   The dinghy pulled away, but after 5 seconds her fury re-ignited and she dove into the water.  Oddly, she also confessed to him how much she loved him.  We realized at that point that they were from a boat in the anchorage. The evening was not over.

We were now eager for the Coast Guard to take over.  I engaged a flashing light to help them find Two Fish.  Two nearby boats with good intentions also helped guide the Coast Guard closer to the swimmer.   Finally, the Coast Guard was on the scene and the crew of Two Fish went below to unwind.  It took a few hours to relax before we could fall asleep.

Despite our shortened sleeping time, we were in no mood to stay in the harbor for a minute longer than needed. We sailed out at daylight, hoping for more peaceful surroundings the next evening.

Lessons Learned:

1)   I was quick to judge these people at their worst.   I hope this was a one-time occurrence.  I wish them well, but will keep our distance.

2)   Good to have safety gear in fixed locations.  Light, floating ring, heaving line and knife are useful.

3)   Break up the task.  I was keeping an eye on the swimmer.  Not because she was naked!  Gail was working the VHF.

4)   The other boats were slow to help.  It was the middle of the night but it would have been great to have another boat come by in their dinghy.  Also when Gail asked for the name of the other boats speaking on the radio they would not give their name.  Odd?

Tall ship sailors used to hope for a topless mermaid to swim aboard.  I would tell them a good night’s sleep is better.