Bequia to Grenada

I left Bequia around 9 am, this time with 2 passengers, Joey and Gabriella.  This was a first for me as up till now I had sailed alone.  We headed south toward the Tobago Cays in light but steady wind.  The Tobago Cays are a small archipelago located near Mayreau.  Surrounded by dangerous reefs, the picturesque islands are a protected marine park.  We dropped anchor around 3:30 and snorkeled and explored one of the small islands.  The waters around the Cays are chock full of sea turtles, and there are land tortoise's ashore.   We bought some fish from a local fisherman and had a nice dinner.

Buying fish in the Tobago Cays

The next morning we were off to Union island to clear out of SVG, and on to Carriacou to clear in to Grenada.  Clearing out at union is kind of a pain because you have to walk to the airport, and the officials are not very welcoming.  Union Island is kind of a strange place.  Its the kind of place were you cant hide being an outsider.  We looked around a bit and headed for Hillsborough to clear in to Grenada,  Historically, vessels entering Carriacou must anchor in Hillsborough for formalities.  We did this and it was a pain in the ass.  Arriving in Tyrell Bay a couple hours later, I learned the new customs and immigration offices had just opened there. 

Union Island

Tyrell Bay is a large protected cove which is home to hundreds of cruising boats.  There are several bars and restaurants along the shoreline, as well as a mangrove lagoon.  We rented a mooring close to shore and had a fantastic dinner at the Slipway restaurant, which is actually an old marine slipway.  The Chef is an Italian lady, and she really takes pride in her work.  The next day we took an island tour in a beat up old Suzuki which was fun, but not all that interesting as there really isn't much to see on Carriacou. One unusual site is a large cemetery on the east side of the island which has been used for hundreds of years.  Due to phosphate mining, the cemetery is slowly being washed into the ocean.  Hundreds of graves just being washed away.  The place has a very strange vibe, kind of like the last scene in Planet of the Apes....YOU BASTARDS!!!

 

After the tour, we got some beer and took a dinghy ride through the mangroves.  boats hide out in the mangroves for hurricanes, and there are quite a few wrecks from boats that never made it out.

 



The next day, we were off to Grenada.  This was around an 8 hour ride down the west coast in very light winds, with a few rain squalls.  we arrived in Port Luis marina around 4pm.  Port Luis is a newer secure marina, and well kept but lacking in any real character.  Its great to be in Grenada thou, and finally having caught the bulk of the southbound cruising fleet after lagging behind the last month or so.

Night sail to Bequia

It was hard to leave St. Lucia, because it is a comfortable spot, and I was having a good time.  After 10 days, I figured I had to move on, and the weather was looking good.  So on Monday, August 4th, I cleared customs, put on 100 liters of diesel at Rodney Bay Marina and set off south at 11am.  The run to Bequia is just under 80 miles, but the wind was light, and it took Valkyrie 21 hours.  All in all a pretty comfortable overnight trip in mostly calm seas.  I saw lots of dolphins along the way, and there was a fair bit of maritime traffic to keep things interesting.

Passing the Pitons, St. Lucia

Tuesday morning, I approached Admiralty Bay at around 8 am.  I wasn't sure if I wanted to anchor off Princess Margaret Beach, or rent a mooring in town.  Puttering around the harbor, I was approached by one of the locals who directed me to a mooring close into shore right off the boardwalk, and bars,  perfect I thought. Renting a mooring turned out to be a wise decision, as another boat that came in after me, and anchored in the same spot I was eyeing off the beach, was boarded by thieves that first night.  Fortunately the owners scared the thief away, but as tired as I was that first night.... who knows.  Also, just as I settled in on the Mooring, a large Manta Ray circled the boat several times.   Manta's are rare in the islands, so to see one up close was a treat.

 

 

Bequia is an interesting place.  It has the feel of a city, but its really only a small town.  Clearing in is fairly painless and cost me $35ec.   Even in August there are lots of yachts coming and going from the harbor, and high speed ferries, and RORO freighters come and go all day long.  Bequians have a long seafaring tradition which is evident today with numerous traditional vessels around the waterfront.  Whaling, is still permitted around Bequia provided it is carried out by locals, on traditional whaleboats.  They are allowed 4 each year for the entire island. From what I hear they seldom meet this quota, and many years they catch none.

 



 One afternoon while having a beer at the Frangipani Bar, I met a couple, Joey and Gabrielle.  After a few Tequilas, we go along well and headed off to explore the island.  We3 got along so well, maybe the will come with me to see the rest of the Grenadines...............



Ile de Saintes to St. Lucia

Ile de Saint was a great stop.  The harbor can be a little rolly, but its beautiful and the water is clear.  The shore is lined with French 'plat du jour' type restaurants and other café type places often labeled as bars in the European tradition. They aren't actually bars, but serve food and alcohol at such a slow pace that you actually get thirsty drinking there. I don't know what it is, but some cultures just don't understand the concept of a 'bar'.


The harbor at Ile de Saintes

On Wednesday July 23rd, I slipped the mooring and headed south toward St. Lucia.  For once the weather was forecast to be mild, and there were no squalls on the horizon. With steady east winds, Valkyrie took off toward Dominica at around 5 knots.  After about 5 hours I reached the north end of Dominica, and the wind gradually died as the mountains blocked the breeze from the east.  Dominica is said to be one of the most beautiful islands in the Caribbean with tall jagged mountains, rivers and dramatic waterfalls. Sometimes I find natural beauty a bit dull, so I continued on with the feeling that I'd stop someday when I have more time.  Toward evening, I approached Martinique, and the wind again lightened to almost nothing in the wind shadow of the Island, so I motored southward on the calm moonlit water. 

 

The next morning Valkyrie passed the south end of Martinique and turned easterly toward St. Lucia.  The wind by this time had filled in from the ESE at about15-20 knots, and it was actually a tough beat into Rodney Bay.  Arriving at the mouth of Rodney Bay, the wind increased to around 25 knots from the east, and I was getting a bit nervous about docking in the marina, especially since no one would answer me on the VHF, and there were 3 other boats also circling trying to get an answer on the radio.  After waiting a few minutes, I put out some lines and fenders and headed in the narrow cut to the marina.  About 20 yards from the docks, I tried the radio once more, and the dock master immediately answered and directed me to a very convenient slip were I tied Valkyrie up without incident.  Rodney Bay is a very nice marina complex, and while the wind blows fairly steadily, the water is flat calm and landlocked on all sides.  Most of the vessels here this time of year are either waiting out the hurricane season, or local commercial boats. 

This is my 3rd time visiting St. Lucia, so I know my way around fairly well.  Its a large island, and most everything is available here.  I don't know why, but the locals seem much more friendly here than St. Thomas.  I understand why some cruisers never leave here.  Rodney Bay Marina is very convenient and you can dinghy to nearby shopping malls and beaches.  At the end of the Dock, there is a bar called the Boardwalk, and I spent lots of time there.  Below is a picture of the lovely ladies that work at the Boardwalk.

There always seemed to be three or four of them working, even if there was only a couple of customers.

St. Kitts to Ile de Saintes........

After a quiet 5 night stay in St. Kitts, I was getting restless so it was time to move on. The wind wasn't really right for the trip, but I figured it would be ok, and I headed out around 7:30 am.   The first few miles along the coast of St. Kitts and Nevis were fairly calm with steady 20 knot Winds.  Valkyrie loves these conditions, and sprinted down the coast at 6+ knots.  Passing Nevis, the seas built up, and the rest of the trip was squall after squall, in confused, steap seas.

Passing Montserrat, I got a good look at the devestation left over from the volcano, and even smelled the stench of sulfur in the air for several miles.  It must have been traumatic for these people to loose their island home in such a disastrous way. The new town on the north end of the island has a relatively exposed harbor, so I continued on toward Guadeloupe. 


The ruined town of Plymouth




Another view of Plymouth

The ride down to Guadeloupe was rough and squally.  There were so many squalls that night that they actually pushed me off course, and I traveled down the coast of Guadeloupe about 10 miles offshore.  This was good because I avoided some of the wind shadow created by the island.  Arriving at the south end of the island, there was a problem.  Being so far offshore, meant I would have a difficult beat to windward to reach the Saintes.  Clearing the south of the island, the wind roared in from the east, and the sees built up to an uncomfortable 6' chop.  Between the wind and seas, and the 1 knot current that runs west through the channel, I could see I was not going to make Ile de Sainte before dark....ugh.  Weighing my options, I decided to turn back toward Guadeloupe, and spend the night.  I spent the night in Marina de Riviere Sans.  This is not a cruisers marina, and I would not recommend it very highly unless you have no other choice.  It is however, surrounded by a nice town, and most everything is available.  Guadeloupe is undeniably French.  In fact, if not for the landscape you would think you are in the south of France.  The population of nearly half a million people is a mix of french continentals, and afro-carib descendants.

Marina de Riviere Sans 

The next morning I set out for the Saintes about 8:30.  The strategy this time would be to hug the island to its southern point, Vieux Fort, and then set out across the channel.  The conditions in the channel between Vieux Fort and the Saintes were the same as the day before, but with a better angle, and an early start, Valkyrie covered the 10 miles in about 5 hours.  This is a difficult piece of water.  I think if I were approaching from the north again, I would head toward the center of Guadeloupe, pass through the river Salee which bisects the island, and sail SSW to the Saintes.

Terre De Haut, the main settlement in the Saintes, is probably one of the most picturesque harbors I have ever visited.  The clear waters are alive with dolphins and sea turtles and the harbor is surrounded by colorful buildings and beaches. Customs check in is completed via computer at the local mail center for 1 euro.  You must utilize the well maintained moorings in the harbor for 9 euros a night.  The mail center, Les Saintes Multiservice, also collects the mooring fees, has internet service and laundry, which I desperately needed. The town is absolutely bustling with people during the day, and the narrow streets are packed with, bicycles, scooters, four-wheelers, trucks and golf carts.  Huge ferries arrive from Guadeloupe 5 or 6 times a day depositing hundreds of tourists in the little town.  In many ways it reminds me of Cruz Bay on Saint John.  Except bigger, more scenic, and French.  Very French.

 

Customs check in is completed via computer at the local mail center for 1 euro.  You must utilize the well maintained moorings in the harbor for 9 euros a night.  The mail center, Les Saintes Multiservice, also collects the mooring fees, has internet service and laundry, which I desperately needed. The town is absolutely bustling with people during the day, and the narrow streets are packed with, bicycles, scooters, four-wheelers, trucks and golf carts.  Huge ferries arrive from Guadeloupe 5 or 6 times a day depositing hundreds of tourists in the little town.  In many ways it reminds me of Cruz Bay on Saint John.  Except bigger, more scenic, and French.  Very French.

Nanny Cay to St. Kitts

After a relaxing 5 night stay in Nanny Cay, It was time to get underway again, so on the morning of the 12th, I untied and set off across the Anegada Passage. I had some trepidation about this trip, because at 120 miles, it would be my longest solo trip to date, and the estimated travel time was about 30 hours.  Crossing the Drake channel, and passing Salt Island, I set a course directly for Saba Island, about 95 miles across open water.  The wind was generally moderate at around 10-15kts, with occasional squalls.  The squalls really suck, because they bring rain, and sometimes high winds, so when they approach, you must shorten sail before they roll over you.  Usually they just dump rain for about 15 minutes, followed by about a half hour of dead hot sticky air before the trade winds settle back in.  During the day, you can see them coming.  Not so much at night.

On the morning of the 13th, I was approaching Saba.  Saba is a unique island in that it is small, about 3 square miles, has no natural harbors, and is very high, around 3500ft.  It's basically just a steep mountain rising out of the sea.  The settlement on Saba, is accessed via a single road cut into the cliffs and starts at around 1500 feet above sea level.  I would very much like to stop at Saba some day, but with the easterly swell rolling, it would have to wait, so I continued on to Statia as planned.

St Eustatius, typically known as Statia, is an unusual island.  Historically it was the trading hub of the Caribbean.  Today it houses one of the largest oil transshipment terminals in the region.  Approaching the island, my AIS receiver, which tells me when ships are approaching, went nuts as dozens of tankers and supply vessels came into view around the north end of the island.  The AIS alarm went off so often, I had to shut it off.  Weaving my way through the tankers and rain squalls(for some reason it rains more than usual on Statia) I arrived in Oranje Baai, which is the only harbor on Statia. There was only one other cruising boat in the harbor.  I picked up a mooring as close to shore as possible, and after sailing 33 hours, I drank a bottle of champagne, and slept for 10 hours.  Oranje Baai, which is adjacent to the capitol Oranjestaad, is a unique harbor.  Surrounded to the east by high cliffs topped by a picturesque 18 century Dutch fortification, the harbor is basically an open roadstead, exposed to the south and west.  Upon arrival, the harbor was glassy with crystal clear water.  The only sounds were from the huge brightly colored parrots which nest in the cliffs, and the occasional family of goats which through some amazing feet of mountaineering, also lived on the cliffs.

After clearing customs the following morning, I walked up the steep path to the town for some exploring and provisioning.  The old fort is exceptionally well maintained, and is a footnote in history, in that it was the first place to return a canon salute to an American warship in 1776, thereby, although probably not intentionally, recognizing the sovereignty of the United States.  This made the British mad, and they later invaded, and the golden era of Statia, came to an end.

After buying some groceries, and having a fantastic lunch at the Old Gin House restaurant, I returned to the boat to find the swell had found its way into the harbor.  The swell increased over night, and got so bad, it was almost impossible to sleep. The next morning, there was a steady 2-3 foot swell rolling in from the south west, and I was eager to leave. First I had to load the inflatable on deck which would not be easy in the swell, especially since the outboard needed to be removed first.  This whole process took about an hour, and left me almost breathless.

The passage to St. Kitts, is 21 miles.  With a stiff headwind, I would sail 42 miles to arrive at Port Zante Marina around 5pm.  This made me nervous because I didn't have a reservation, and no one would answer me on the radio as I approached.  Not seeing any good anchorages in the area, I decided to nose into the marina anyway, and found a suitable place to tie up.  Grabbing my papers, I proceeded toward some official looking buildings to try an get some information.  The first person I saw was a disheveled looking character with a monkey on his back(yes a real monkey) who asked me if I wanted a picture with the monkey.  Honestly I kind of did, but I was in a hurry so I passed.  I went to the harbormasters office, who seemed unconcerned about my arrival, and proceeded to the customs/immigration offices, for  the somewhat bureaucratic entry procedures, which cost me $24.  Welcome to the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis mon.

Heading back to the boat, I realized the sailboat in front of me was the same boat I'd shared the anchorage with in Statia, and the crew were back on board.  They were going to dinner at 7:30 and asked if I wanted to go, which I did.  We had a great dinner, and then it was back to the boat for a much needed rest.

Underway....at last....

The plan was to leave Red Hook on July 1st.  Of course the weather was crap, so I didn't get underway till the second.  The trip up to Coral Bay was dead to windward in 20-25kt winds and 6-8ft seas which made for an uncomfortable beat.  Tacking back and forth we managed to miss the heavy rain squalls passing the islands, to arrive in Coral Bay around 1pm.  The anchorage in Coral bay suffers from the same cancer as most warm water harbors in the free world, that of derelict vessels.  I'm not talking about older boats that need a little TLC, I'm talking about floating bird shit dumps with no rigging, no engine and marine growth half way up the topsides.  This not only detracts from the image, but also makes it more difficult to anchor in an already crowded harbor.  After circling around for about half an hour, I located a good spot and dropped my 45 pound Bruce and payed out about a 100 feet of chain in roughly 15 feet of water.  Backing down, I felt the anchor set and the boat settled in to the easterly breeze.  "Great" I thought.  About an hour later the wind switched around to the south, and as my half inch chain slowly shifted across the harbor floor, I began to drift uncomfortably close to a couple of the aforementioned vessels.  Rather than move, I pulled another anchor out and motored as far south as I could and tossed it out.  After about a half hour it became clear that this was not working, "damn"!   Pulling the second anchor up was no problem as it had already freed itself.  As the anchor reached the surface, I could see it was caked with thick black mud.   What to do?  I remembered down below there was an old fortress anchor that was stored in pieces under the settee, so I pulled it out, bolted it together and repeated the same exercise as with the second anchor, except this time it held, and I mean held fast!  By the time I got the dinghy inflated and launched, and the outboard installed, it was about 4pm, so I figured I'd go to Skinny Legs for happy hour, which I did, and then went back to the boat around 7 for a much needed rest.

Coral Bay is a cool little town.  There isn't much there except a couple of bars and shops.  The anchorage is crowded and it can be windy.  There aren't really any services for cruisers and I wouldn't really recommend it for a stop over unless you have a reason to go there.  I spent three days in Coral Bay relaxing and reconnecting with some friends from St. Thomas.

Saturday morning, it was time to leave for Tortola.  1st was removing the outboard from the dinghy, and pulling the inflatable up on deck and deflating and rolling it up.  Then after checking the fluids and firing up the engine, it was time to pull the anchors.  Easy right? Nope.  There was a problem.  the wind had shifted again, and now a 50 foot sloop was sitting right on top of my anchor.   As I pulled up the line, Valkyrie slowly nudged closer and closer to this boat, and the damn anchor just wouldn't give.  finally I sat about half a boat length from this other vessel, and was within easy talking range of the lady on the other boat, who seemed unconcerned about the whole affair while sitting in her cockpit leisurely reading a book. A retired teacher from the Antilles School in St. Thomas, as if I cared. I sat there for about 15 minutes hoping something would happen.    Nothing happened.  Frustrated, I pulled more rode in, inching closer to the other boat, until the line was pointing almost straight down and guitar string tight.  Every time a little ripple moved across the harbor, I used the motion to pull in the rode about a half inch at a time.  this went on for about ten minutes until........something happened.  the anchor grudgingly released its hold and I began to pull it to the surface.  As it came up, it was covered with about six inches of coral bay mud.  No wonder it held so well.  The first anchor came up without incident after about 5 minutes of pumping on the manual windlass. Off To Nanny Cay!

Back from St. Lucia, and waiting on the weather once again......

While waiting on the weather to become more favorable In St. Thomas, My friend Patty asked if I wanted to fly to St. Lucia and deliver a 47' Beneteau to Tortola.  "Sure" I said, "that should only take a few days, and the wind will be on the beam the whole way".  We ended up sitting in St. Lucia for 7 days waiting on parts.  This got old quick, but at least we had an opportunity to see the island, and in any case, the owner was paying us per day.  When we finally left, the weather was breezy and squally, much like it is today in St. Thomas.  Fortunately, with it on the beam, this made for fast sailing, and we made Tortola in 53 hours.  I caught a nice blackfin tuna off Guadalupe, which was delicious.  Patty didn't catch anything.

Now I have to face slugging my way east in this same weather, or wait for more favorable conditions, which puts me closer to the heart of hurricane season.  The other choice would be to head straight to Trinidad, which would leave the wind on the beam the whole time and make for a fast trip, but I'd miss some of the islands that I really wanted to see.

I'm really frustrated with this weather. Quite frankly it sucks, and its forecast to continue for as long as the forecasters will predict, 7-10 days.  The boat is ready to go, and I'm getting very tired of being asked when I'm leaving.......

Waiting on the weather.......

As of today, the boat is basically ready to go.  The new electronics are installed, the dinghy is patched and loaded, the engine is serviced, the lockers are full of food, and the rigger and surveyor have given the rig a good bill of health.  Only one problem...... The weather has been bad. Rain squalls and 15-25 knots of wind every day for the last week, and forecast to continue for the next week.  Oh, and did I mention that the wind is right on the nose too of course.  Now I'm not afraid of a little weather, and I wouldn't be concerned at all if I was caught out in these conditions, but bucking into this type of weather for two or three days on route to my first stop, is not really my idea of a good time.  The purpose of this trip is after all to have fun.  Hopefully, after this wave passes, we will get a few days of calmer, more settled weather and I'll be off.  Heading east, which is the direction I need to go, is dead into the wind 95% of the time in this part of the world.  I'd rather do this leg in calm weather, even if I need to use the engine to get there.  I always hear horror stories about crossing the Anegada Passage, but I've been fortunate on the two trips I've done on other vessels to have reasonably good weather.  Once I arrive in the leeward islands, the rest of the ride to Trinidad should be on a reach.

 

Above is a photo of Valkyrie waiting at her slip in Red Hook.  I'll post some more photos soon.

First blog from the boat!

Its been a bit like Christmas this last week with lots of packages arriving.  Most notably my new laptop, which I can really use since I am now officially unemployed and don't have a comfy office with a computer and high-speed internet connection. I ordered a HP from BestBuy for $289, which included free shipping, even to the VI which is pretty rare.

I also received my new Garmin 441 chartplotter and g2 chip for the southeastern Caribbean.  The screen is a little smaller than I thought, but I like the overall functionality of the unit, and it should interface with the VHF/AIS unit I have on order, which will allow me to see and track shipping traffic while offshore, which is pretty cool. 

Most importantly, I received my documentation from the Coast Guard, so now I am legal, and free to roam the world. 

Rigging..........

There have been a couple of persistent headaches in getting the boat ready to sail.  One of the most stubborn has been getting a rigger to come repair my back stay   I don't understand why I cant get anyone to come, but I just cant.  Unexpectedly they did come today, but by the time I walked to the office and back, they had left without explanation?

The second is the documentation.  I sent the paperwork to the Coast Guard months ago, and still no response.

Over the weekend I did manage to get a few things done such as changing the engine oil, and getting the auto pilot working.  So some progress anyway.

Time is flying by, and the departure date is coming up quickly.  The boat is coming together nicely and all the essential systems are up and running.  I replaced the starter and now the engine starts up effortlessly which is good.  The roller furling line and the control lines for the windpilot were worn so they have been replaced.

The whole "alternative energy" program with the solar panels and the wind generator never really cranked out any power, largely (as I came to find out) because one of the panels was wired backwards.  Now she puts out steady amperage all day which seems to meet my electric needs.  I also purchased a portable Yamaha generator that will power the battery charger and the AC receptacles.  The side benefit of this is I get to keep the microwave which is pretty handy. It also has a DC outlet for charging the batteries directly if ever needed.  I thought about 'going green' and installing larger solar panels and wind generator, but the ones I have now are sufficient for normal sunny days, and there is just no substitute for AC power when you need it.  I have friends that have spent thousands of dollars on panels with mixed results.  Having the generator adds a lot of redundancy to the overall system.  Loosing power offshore is probably not the end of the world, but it could be dangerous, and definitely uncomfortable.

A note on Navigation.  While I've never gotten lost on the water, I don't consider myself to be a very experienced navigator.   I've had plenty of exposure in practice, I'm just not sure how much actually sunk in.  Fortunately modern satellite navigation has dumbed things down enough that even I feel fairly confident in finding the place I'm looking for without too much embarrassment.  To start, I purchased the three chart sets from NV charts that cover the area between Puerto Rico and Trinidad.  They are very nice charts and well worth the money.  Next, the boat came equipped with a Furuno GPS unit that looks like a relic from the 90's but works fine.  Technically these two items are all I would need to get to Trinidad regardless of where I stop on the way.  However out of an abundance of caution, I have also purchased a Garmin chartplotter and a chip for the eastern Caribbean.  I hope to integrate this with an AIS transponder to track ship traffic  and let others know I'm out there.  I also have a Garmin Gecko hand held GPS unit, which I love, and have used extensively.   On the iphone, i downloaded the Navionics app for all of the Caribbean and South America.  For only $15 it looks as good as any of the chartplotters I have seen, and always shows my exact position and speed, at least around St. Thomas.  So all in all, I hope I'm covered on the Nav front.

Refrigeration, Starter

Having spent a few nights on the boat, I'm happy to say it is really very comfortable.  This weekend the main tasks were getting the refrigeration running, and repairing the starter.

The 12 volt Danfoss refer unit refused to run, so Pauly jumped the starter relay and hard wired it to the switch which made it run and cool the icebox, but it doesn't seem to respond to the parameters set in the electronic control so I'll have to play with it some more to see how it works.

We also took the starter off and tore it apart.  The insides were pretty dirty, so we cleaned it up and re-installed it. Unfortunately it isn't working any better so I ordered a new one from a company in Maryland.  The upside is, now I'll have a spare starter since the one I have on there still works if you keep switching the key on and off.

Moving aboard

The boat is back in the water with fresh bottom paint looking good.  Now it is time to start the painful process of moving aboard.  I say painful not because I'm not looking forward to living on the boat, but because moving is always a pain, and when you try an shoehorn all the trappings of life ashore into a space roughly the size of your closet you need to make some tough choices about what you need and don't need.  i'm finding that I am continually asking myself, "how did I end up with all this shit?".  Fortunately I have a storage unit to handle some of the overflow, but that has a bunch of crap in it already.  I think the plan is, since I have to be out of the apartment by the end of the day tomorrow,  to put everything from the apartment into my Chevy trailblazer and gradually move what I need onto the boat over the weekend.  This should work since most of the furniture and large items came with the apartment and I've already done several rounds of tossing out/giving away stuff I really don't need.  After a few weeks on the boat, I should have a good idea of what I want to keep, and what takes up more space than its worth.

In reality, the Westsail has a tremendous amount of storage space for a 32 foot boat, and the previous owner lived aboard with his wife and 2 kids.  I cant imagine where they kept everything, but I guess you learn to live with less stuff,  a skill I will be trying to acquire over the next few months.........

Boatyard time

Friday morning around Dawn, I brought the boat over to the boat yard for Haul out with my friend Pauly. We had a nice ride over watching the sunrise and tied up at the work dock at Independent Boatyard at about quarter to eight (we had to be there by 8:30).  After signing in, the yard hauled Valkyrie first thing which was nice because sometimes you have to wait for hours if there are other boats.  Really I had planned on the whole process taking longer so I ended up taking it easy for the rest of the day and getting everything together for Saturday morning.

I started sanding early Saturday morning and and as I thought, the bottom was in good shape and it only took about 3 hours to sand the entire boat.  After lunch, I put the first coat on and the boat started looking really nice.  Sunday I put a second coat on and then inspected all the seacocks which were in good condition.  in climbing around in the engine room, I discovered the nuts on the battery terminals for the starting battery were very loose which is probably what caused the difficulty starting on Friday morning.  we'll see when we get back in the water.

Well, Friday is the day.  The boat is finally coming out of the water for paint.  I haven't gotten a lot done the last week because I was busy with work, and sailing on the weekends, but the time has come.  Friday morning I have to bring the boat around to Independent Boatyard, about an hour trip, and hopefully they'll haul the boat first thing.  Today I let the engine run for a while and checked to see how much fuel was in the tanks, about half full.  The one somewhat disturbing thing is that the engine doesn't seem to want to start with the starting battery alone, in fact it doesn't even begin to turn over..  When I parallel it with the house bank, it starts right up without any trouble.  I have a strong suspicion that the starting battery is nearing the end of its useful life.

Well this has been a good week for work on the boat.  Sunday I removed the old shifter in the cockpit   This was no easy task as corrosion had pretty much frozen it in place.  About 10 minutes of hacking with a heavy duty Milwaukee sawzall with a 12 inch metal cutting blade finally did it in. with the old one out, I realized the hole was too big for the new shifter.  Not good. Fortunately I had a few small hunks of teak in storage and shaped one of them into a plate that fit over the old hole, and drilled a smaller hole through the middle for the new shifter/throttle assembly. I epoxied this directly over the old hole and then it was ready for installation.

Monday, Lou came down to the boat and installed my used Icom 710 SSB radio and tuner.  Lou is an old HAM radio operator who kind of reminds me of my grandfather. he's really knowledgeable about radios and ran all new cables for the power, tuner and antenna(back stay).  With this I should be able to communicate and get weather within around a 4000 mile range.  Someday I will get a modem so that I can send emails as well.

Tuesday, Kevin came and began work replacing the forward bulkhead.  The new bulkhead will be around an inch thick and should do the job.  really all it does is keep the chain in the chain locker and support the two sampson posts on either side of the bowsprit.  As of today, he is close to done.  which means the boat is nearly back together.

Also this week, I received the TV/'DVD I ordered from amazon that will mount on the main bulkhead in the salon.   Its only about 16'', but it will be nice to watch a movie on the boat, and it runs off 12 volts.

The next step is bring the boat to the boatyard for a haul out and bottom job.  I think the transducer may need replacing as well.  She has virtually no bottom paint left at the moment, and has grown a pretty impressive beard in the last month since she was sling-hauled for the survey.

There's still the rigging and refrigeration that need a little attention, but I'm happy with the progress so far.  I've been try to get help from some of the tradesman I know not only because they're skilled guys, but because I'm working full time and if I try and do it all myself, I'll either screw it up, never finish or both, and I really want to keep the momentum up.

Working through the punch list

Well its been a very breezy week on St. Thomas, and work on the boat is progressing slowly.  The electrical system seems to be charging properly of the wind generator and solar panels, but still no luck on the engine shifter.  The wind has been blowing 20-30 knots for the last 7-10 days so the weather has not really been great for boating anyway.

The Plan......

Valkyrie is a Westsail 32 built at the factory in 1975.  I recently purchased her in St. Thomas from a gentleman who sailed her back and forth across the Atlantic several times before buying a much larger boat and settling on the island with his family.

My plan is to refit her and go sailing. Valkyrie is a proven blue water cruiser, but after many years of hard use, most of her systems need attention, the bottom needs paint, and she needs some overall TLC.

The main item taking precedence at the moment is replacing the engine shifter.  The diesel engine, a 3 cylinder Yanmar, runs well, but the shifter is badly corroded, and the throttle advance is stuck at around 1500 rpms which is much to high for normal shifting.  Larry the machanic is coming to look at it today. 

After the shifter is working properly(hopefully by the end of this week) I'll bring the boat to Independent Boatyard in Benner Bay for a haulout and bottom job.  The sling haul survey showed the bottom to be in surprisingly good condition, with only one small nick in the gellcoat, and virtually no bottom paint remaining.  This should make it relatively easy to sand and apply a couple of new coats.