Sunday, January 30, 2022

Bahia San Pedro Anchorage

To continue with our saga of boat projects we pick it up with our third haul out.  It went as planned for once.   Francisco Navarez, also known as Coyote or Pancho arrived as agreed and he and his buddy started right in replacing two thru hulls and adding an extra one in the galley.  Day one, they removed the old stuff and got the holes in the hull just right.  Day two they installed the thru hull mushroom fittings and the sea cocks and connected all the hoses.  Since they finished early I had them replace the raw water pump on the engine with a new one that I'd ordered from the states.  We stayed in the yard an extra day to give the 4200 adhesive time to cure properly. 

Hopefully we are done with pictures of broken parts and nasty work.  So all the pictures here are of the scenic beauty of Bahia San Pedro

While in the yard we had Manuel Reyes come by with his diesel jugs and filters. He removed all the old diesel fuel that had been aboard for years.  We could tell by the color of the fuel that it was coming apart... loosing its " juice."  With both tanks empty, we decided to just stop using the starboard tank as it has a crack and leaks.  That's a project waiting for a future fix.  I made a couple of trips to the fuel station and brought about 40 liters of diesel for the port side tank.  Clean fuel, new water pump, new sea cocks. We were looking good for a January 21 launch.

No problems at the launch, no problems getting to the dock. Things were looking up!


Launch Friday.  Clean up the boat Saturday. Go out on a sea trial Sunday.  We cruised around the inner bay, starting and stopping and checking the engine.  Then we headed out into the Sea and got the sails up, turned the engine off and IT WAS MAGIC.   We tacked back and forth running east towards Miramar.  As the afternoon winds filled in the boat started healing and by about 4 PM we were over canvassed.  Items below came crashing down on the floor and we hung on for dear life as Nepenthe heeled over, driving through the waves and swell.  She held her own and proved she was seaworthy with dry decks in four foot rollers and 20 knots of wind.  We fought down the sails and motored back to the dock where our dock buddies helped us squeeze into her slip.  

Sea Trial: Successful 

Sweet Haven motoring north to Bahia San Pedro

The next trial would be an overnight cruise.  Fifteen nautical miles north is a small bay named Bahia San Pedro.  After we put out the word that we'd be going there on Wednesday for an overnight, we had three other boats decide to join us.  Sweet Haven, Juguete, and Kia Ora.  The winds here in the winter blow constantly from the north, often times creating 4 to 8 foot wave trains.  On Wednesday, the rough seas subsided and we were able to motor and sail and then motor some more north to Bahia San Pedro.  We dropped anchor in 20 feet with a sand bottom and immediately got the dinghy in the water and went ashore.  The bay is only accessed by water and has no development so it's truly a wild natural place.  Wonderful shells and bird bones on the beach, wind swept rocks and spiny cactus.  And quiet... oh so quiet. 

This is what we came here for.  This is why we wanted a boat in Mexico.  We just want to anchor in a sandy bay, do some hiking, paddle around, sit on deck and watch the sun set.  Then sleep in a dense quiet to awaken in a natural place where I can sit with my hot tea and watch the light change on the water as Connie paddles the board around the bay.  We have arrived!


The run south back to San Carlos became a little bouncy as the afternoon winds piped up.  We made it back to the dock in windy conditions and I bumped the bow pulpit on the pylon coming into the slip. Little Sweet Haven ( with Noreen and Myron aboard) made it back just fine but had a topsy turvy time of it out there in the big swell. 

Now it's time to think about crossing the Golfo de California and experience the wonderful little anchorages that run from north to south down the east coast of Baja.   We checked the wind models and found a two day respite from the north wind on Monday and Tuesday.  Tonight we are having our last night at the dock and tomorrow we leave San Carlos and head out into a 20 hour crossing of the Sea, arriving in Punta Pulpita sometime in the morning on Tuesday.  

Sweet Haven has sprung a little leak.  We know how that goes....  So Noreen and Myron have decided to haul her out of the water and put her in storage.  And now they will be joining us on Nepenthe to provide crew and company.  After some hectic packing and provisioning we are almost ready for a 1 PM departure tomorrow.  Connie and I are soooo....  ready to get out there on the water.  It's been a long slog, getting this boat ready but we are in good spirits and looking forward to having a nice relaxing "vacation" on the water.  No mechanics to deal with, no parts being shipped, no boat yoga moves trying to install things in tight places.  Just water and sky.  Wish us well.  And don't jinx it! 



 


 

Sunday, January 9, 2022

Super Pelicanos

A Squadron of Pelicanos
 The marina here in San Carlos provides habitat for little bait fish who swarm under the docks, feeding off the growth on the sides and bottom of the floats.  The bait fish draw the pelicanos who soar around the marina, dodging all the sailboat masts.  When their keen eyes spot a good sized fish, they turn up for a split second, then plummet down to the water.  At the last second the beak opens wide and when the bird surfaces its gular (pouch) is full of air and water and hopefully... fish. 

The little gulls land all around the pelicanos and try to peck the little fish out of its gular but the majestic bigger bird just turns in circles and squeezes the water and air out of its sack, then tilting its head towards the sky, swallows the caught fish whole.  The little tail does a wiggle then the big bird leaps into the air with its big wings and accelerates across the water, slapping its webbed feet a few times before gaining altitude. 


 

We sit on the back deck of Nepenthe and watch this drama play out over and over, chuckling each time as the squawking gull's unsuccessful attempt to steal the pelicano's catch fails. Occasionally a big bird will bump into a mast or some rigging and have to go sit on an open dock to recover its wits.  More often, the squadron of pelicanos will drop us little white presents that stain the deck and sail covers.  And sometimes, they dive so close to the boat that the saltwater splash enters the cockpit.  Our friend Myron got his shirt soaked by the dive bombing splash of a nearby bird.  

CB varnished the new cockpit table and the wheel 

In the afternoon the wind comes up from the west and as the sun sets the air gets chilly and we retreat down below for dinner.  Sometimes we have a little dinner party and have Noreen, Mryon, and Leo over to eat and drink some wine and talk about where we'd like to be if we weren't stuck here at the dock in San Carlos, Sonora, Mexico. But, hey, it's not 40 degrees and raining like it is back home!


A week ago we scheduled Francisco Javier Lopez Escalante and his son Alejandro to fill in the  holes in the hull where the transducers were leaking.  On December 28 we hauled out and put Nepenthe back in the work yard.  The next morning Francisco and Alejandro arrived and removed the two transducers.  

They then used a grinder to taper the holes gradually,

Beveled cut

making a cone in the glass hull.  Francisco mixed up the West Systems epoxy and cut circles of cloth ranging in diameter from 2 inches to 6 inches.  He layered them in with a hot mix and covered it with taped on plastic. After drying it was sanded and painted. A similar procedure was done inside the boat, under the floorboards in the settee.  Connie used plastic sheeting to partition off the area so none of the fiberglass dust could migrate into our cabinets.  

The next day they finished and we brought in the big launch trailer and popped old Nepenthe back into the water.  When she splashed, we hopped aboard and found no drips.  Thumbs up!

Back at the dock we examined the repaired raw water inlet pipe assembly and it didn't look good at all.  Some of the connections were weeping salt water.  I ordered all new piping from Defender so we could remove the stainless steel piping and replace with all new bronze fittings.  

Bronze fittings and new fuel filters

We had problems getting the head to work so I set about running new hoses both for the inlet (rinse water) and the outlet (poopy water).  In doing so, I had to fight the old calcified 1.5 inch waste hose, finally resorting to using a hack saw to cut it into sections so that I could pull it out.  After all this grunting and swearing and tugging on the thru hull valve, I noticed the valve leaking a steady drip.  This old style cone valve is adjustable and serviceable so I loosened up the nut and tried to move the valve hand a little bit to see if I could staunch the flow.  That's when I broke the bronze handle.  Now I am stuck with an ancient thru hull valve that is dripping steadily, unable to open to flush the head.  No open, no flush, no suitable shitter.  Expletives occurred.  

Connie reminded me of the advice that our friend Desiree Dun gave us when we talked about fixing up a boat that had been sitting.  She said, "Replace every thru hull and transducer, if the boat has been sitting for more than two years."   Ok, Ok, Desiree. You were right.  Grrrrrr.

Boat goes in

 

Boat comes out

So now we are faced with doing yet another haul out, our third, or we could give up and go cruising with no head and a steady drip drip drip.  The prudent captain would say that you should never go to sea with thru hulls that are leaking.  I strive to be a prudent captain so we'll bite the bullet again and haul her out to replace the thru hulls.  The parts are ordered and on their way.  When they arrive, I've arranged for a new Francisco named Francisco Navarez, also known as Coyote or Pancho to do all the heavy work grinding out two old thru hulls and replacing with new sturdy sea cocks.  In addition to the thru hull and valve for the head, we will replace the big thru hull and sea cock for the raw water to the engine.

Nacapule Canyon hike


While we are at it, we've decided to add a new hole in the hull... a galley sink drain.  Right now, all the sink drains go to a big sump in the keel. Back in the day, the day of clipper ships and square riggers, most ships had one big salt water inlet, a big square box fitted to the bottom of the ship.  From the one box, salt water was pumped up to the deck or into the galley as needed.  As for water going overboard, pumps would direct water to a central chamber that was then pumped overboard. As you can see this design is a little archaic.  But this is the design of Nepenthe.  


The rationale is that the fewer holes in the hull the better and safer.  Nepenthe has basically one hole in the hull to bring in salt water and one hole in the hull for used water to exit.

That's fine, but then we have grease, and food particles, and soap suds from the galley that go directly to the sump. We have a sump pump that we have to occasionally use to pump the affluent overboard.  Some of  the detritus gets pumped out but some floats to the top and it seems that it could become a stinky mess over time.  With a pipe going from the sink directly outside under water, we can dump all sorts of messy kitchen stuff and it will go straight overboard to feed the fishes, who feed the pelicanos.  Circle complete! Modern times, modern methods.

Leaking water pump


"Meanwhile", as Stephen Colbert says, the raw water pump which has a new seal in it has started leaking again.  How wonderful. We had Omar come re-seal it and it still leaked.  I ordered a new pump from Fisheries.  This drives home something we are in the process of learning, over and over again.  If a part is broken, don't try to fix it, replace it with a new part.  It will cost more, but will take much less time and save money on labor. 

Alternator mechanic

Now that the boat is floating, we had Omar come by to re-check the alignment.  He moved the engine around a little bit and surprise! found a motor mount where the lag bolts had come loose.  In fact they are stripped out.  The bed mount must have had some water get inside and the wood has deteriorated.  Our next project was to jack up the engine, taking the weight off that one mount, remove the motor mount, drill out the holes and fill with fiberglass.  Then we re-drill the pilot holes and refasten the mount.  Simple! Ha!

One thing leads to another.  Pull the string and you get more string. When, oh when will we run out of string?

Meanwhile,  Connie has a birthday.  January 4th.  We start with birthday muffins from Leo.  Connie and Noreen go for a nice hike up the beautiful green Nacapule Canyon.  Then we all go out for dinner and have shrimp and fish.  The waiters sing Happy Birthday and bring CB a piece of cheesecake  with dollops of whip cream and chocolate! She gets a lovely multi colored solar powered luci lite and cards and well wishes, conversations with her loving adult children from afar! It's the perfect day...even learning the boat needs to be hauled out one more time will not deter her reverie!



As the days go by and we advance into January it is becoming more apparent that we might not get to the Mexico Riviera this year.  In fact, we may not even get to LaPaz this year.  With this information, Leo decided to book a flight and head south to the warm waters of Puerto Vallarta.  We got him to a flight out of Hermosillo and now he is happily basking in 80 degree temperatures in the land of sunscreen and margaritas.   

You might think that our simple little boat renovation project has gotten completely out of hand and you might be right.  But our little human minds can find lots of justifications and rationale so as to be comfortable with our lot in life.  

 

I still think that Nepenthe has been worth the effort and that she will see us through thick and thin and provide a good platform to explore the Sea of Cortez and points south.  Maybe not this year, but next.  Meanwhile, our compatriots in the Pacific Northwest are experiencing heavy snowfall, freezing temperatures, and now intense flooding.  Up north the Omicron variant is raging and people are trapped indoors.  Here in San Carlos the sun shines every day.  We are mostly outdoors, people wear masks in public places, we're eating well and staying busy.  I could not think of a better place to be, in the present moment.  

Shrimp Crema


Newly leaking head seacock



Newly leaking raw water inlet