We started our Journey to French Polynesia on Friday March 22nd. I know what your thinking, Never Start a Passage on a Friday. Well I am not superstitious, generally, so off we go. When I look back we also started our 1st Passage from La Rochelle France to A Corona Spain on a Friday and our Atlantic Crossing also started on a Friday. Maybe the Superstition should be “Only” start on a Friday.
In our first 8 days we have had our share of excitement. On day 1 we were flagged down by another Sailboat of Spanish only speaking gentlemen that had run out of fuel. We gathered that they were from Ecuador as they mentioned ports that didn’t have any diesel. So always paying it forward we passed over 5 gallons that would enable them to get to Panama City. But you may wonder if they were a Sailboat why need the diesel. Well that because there was Zero Wind. We left Panama City and got about 14 hours of beautiful 15-18 knots of wind on the beam, then NOTHING. In fact in the last 8 days we have only had 2 good days of wind. Lots of motoring going on, which I hate. As I sit here writing we are motoring. In fact we have used 40% of our fuel in 8 days of a 28 day predicted passage.
Besides no wind we have had one other major problem, our Generator. With 5 crew members on board we use a lot of power. While our battery system is Lithium at over 2000 Amps we still use more than our Solar can provide. So we need to supplement with either the Generator, which is very efficient, or the engines. The Starboard Engine especially as we had a High Output Alternator installed while in Florida. Our Generator has been giving us problems since we were on the Caribbean side of the Panama Canal. We have had 5 mechanics look at fixing the overheating problem. They all came up with a reason, fixed it, but it still would overheat.
So we have had to burn more fuel than we expected, plus remember we gave away 5 gallons.
So out here we checked the impeller, checked for air leaks, I even went swimming to check for blockage in the Seacock that provides raw cooling water, but nothing was found. Stumped I reached out on Facebook to see if anyone had an ideas. That did the trick. A few friends mentioned the cooling system. Then an old Scuba Buddy Mark Ertel downloaded our generator manual and guided me through the cooling system and we quickly found the problem. There was No Coolant. Luckily, literally, the last spare item I put on board was Antifreeze. We were able to fill the coolant and Success, the Generator Works. Now we didn’t solve the problem of where does the coolant go, but the generator is working, so on we go….
Enough of the negative. The positive part of the trip starts with the Crew. Besides Cindy and I we have 3 crew members. First is Joe who is an old swim training buddy who also was with us on our Atlantic Passage. He “Jokingly” said he would join us again if we didn’t have any crew members but still decided to come anyways even after we got crew. He must be a gluten for punishment. Joe also brought along a childhood friend Jim. Now Jim has very little sailing experience but is a very willing learner. He has handled his shifts great. We do a 3 hour shift at the helm with 12 hours off. This schedule has worked great and everyone is getting enough sleep to make it an easy passage. The final crew member is Alexandra, or Alex, who we met in Grenada last Summer. She flew all the way from Finland to join us. Cindy loves having another Woman on board, she doesn’t feel so outnumbered. Alex is working on her Royal Yacht Master Captains License and is getting in her required Sea Time for Qualification. We are all getting along and everyone is pitching in on cooking, cleaning and sailing. I can’t stress how important a Good Crew is in making a Successful Passage.
So far the Marine Life has been plentiful. We have had multiple interactions with both Spinner and Bottlenose Dolphins. Plus a highlight of Pilot Whales. This is only the 3rd time we have spotted Pilot Whales since we have been aboard Remission, always a Treat. Bird Life has also been plentiful. For a couple nights we had small colorful birds, abut the size of Big Shallows
rest out of the wind in the cockpit and salon. They were cute, but we needed to clean up after them a lot,…. As we have gotten closer to the Galapagos the Red Footed Boobies have tried to take over Remission. At one time we had 7 taking a rest aboard. But talk about clean up, they have covered the deck with their waste. Luckily with our generator working I can make plenty of water to clean the deck.
Life on board can get pretty repetitive. Everyone is doing great on keeping busy. Alex does her Yoga, Cindy stretches, Joe and Jim are lifting weights and I am doing my walkabout (where I do 70 laps around Remission. Plus a lot of reading, playing games and surfing the internet.
Today we are passing the Galapagos Islands, in fact I can see them now. We are not stopping as the regulations and cost of entering is way too much. Today will be the last time we see any land for at least 3 weeks. We will be reaching the Equator later this afternoon, and paying our Tribute to King Neptune and the 3 Pollywogs on board will be doing their Naked Swim Around Remission. Should be an interesting day….
Live Every Day Bart
