Pacific Crossing
Papeete, Tahiti October 27th, 2011,
Back for a quick holiday on SKIE with Margaret to explore the Leeward Islands, and attend to some boat maintenance issues in advance of the trip home early next year.
The expression "Use it, or lose it" certainly applies to boats, and I have found many small problems due to the time of boat inactivity.
The first one was heading to the Island of Moorea, to find that the Auto mode on the autopilot wouldn't activate. The problem was that the small battery in the heading sensor, which is in our case the satellite compass, had expired, and after 3 hours of hand steering downhill with 30 knots I experienced an enormous physical challenge and could have sworn that I saw NZ on one the sweeping lurches to starboard as the following sea picked up the stern and took control of our heading.
The battery has to be replaced by a Furuno technician, so fat chance for this to happen where we are, so out came the manual to reveal how to switch to either of the two backup Fluxgate compasses, which one was activated, then "Bob's your uncle".
Our plans to move onto the other Leeward Islands was cut short as the motor on my backup dinghy was erratic due to a clogged carbie, and the main tender with its 40 HP Yamaha was back in Tahiti awaiting a replacement head gasket (1 month before it could arrive which shows you that we are still in a third world country), and finally it blows here at this time of year 30 kts, and gusting to 40, and Marg wasn't comfortable, so we jumped on a plane and flew out to Bora Bora to stay at the beautiful Pearl Beach Resort for three days.
Even on land we still can't leave the water.
When we return to Papeete in a few days I have to take the lid off the sea chest and check whether there is marine growth from the outlet to the Wing engine, which is not expelling raw water from the exhaust pipe.
This has happened because the Wing engine hasn't been used for 7 months. All of the above apply to the "use it or lose it" principle. In a pique of frustration I enquired whether we could ship the boat home on Dockwise, only to informed that there are no plans for Dockwise to call into Tahiti this year, or next. Damn!
With this situation I will continue with the dream of seeing the final 50% of the Pacific, but will mean much more prep time on the boat is needed before we leave, and the burden of being in Tahiti, which is a very expensive and frustratingly slow place to do boat maintenance.
Whilst at anchor in Moorea we had a local tourist guide in a dinghy come by with a note from a passenger on the Westhaven which was a big cruise ship anchored close by and only stayed for one night.
The note was from Americans Patrick and Miriam Gill who we met in Juneau and Sitka in Alaska last year, where their Selene 54 "Spirit" was moored near us. Shame we couldn't meet up, as those big ships run to a tight schedule.
Also we caught up with Cec and Halina Gill, and George and Liz Merakis who are close friends back home, and were staying at a resort only half a kilometre away from where we were anchored.
At the Marina Taina where the boat is moored in Tahiti, we have been Med moored (stern tied up to the dock) which doesn't suit Margaret as she has to walkdown a skinny, bending, hunk of wood to get on board. How I got our huge suitcase on board is still a mystery on the night we arrived. Still got to get the sucker off again, so fingers crossed.
Arriving back to the marina from Moorea, just offshore, we passed a boat departing which I recognised as being an Australian flagged Marlow 69 "Wanderer". Contact with the marina revealed she wasn't returning, so we got her plum slip, which saves walking the gangplank anymore. Marg is now happy.
We are also now stern to stern with Nordhavn 57, Shaka, and Johann Kiel the owner and partner Laurie who we first met in San Diego last year, will keep an eye on our boat. Johann and I get on very well as apart from boats, business and politics has us both on the same page.
Had a delighful dinner and show at the Intercontinental Hotel with Cindy Dittrich who has been our good friend and agent over here, and her Pilot boat Captain husband, Richard.
Richard did a tough job for me in the engine room getting that damn acrylic lid off the seachest, only to find no marine life or clogging. This is the third time it has been removed, and I'm happy to say, by others.
Richard and Cindy with us for dinner and show in Papeete.
Nordhavn design some great boats, but inaccesability to the seachest is ridiculous. Have absolutely no idea how I will be able to replace either of the bilge pumps in the bilge. I reckon these were installed, then they built the boat around them. Only solution I see is to pull the shaft when on the hard, and find an anorexic, not prone to claustraphobia, person to replace them.
To criticise PAE the builders of Nordhavn can be sometimes unfair in an objective and fair sense. No boat, like people, is perfect, and we all must compromise eventually.
SKIE has in the main been a dream boat, and I should count my lucky stars that I chose this brand.
Heard that PAE is using one of our Kimberley pics of SKIE in their 2012 calendar.
Anyone reading this may like to go into the Pacific Puddle Jumpers website and read an account about one of our German Puddle jumping adventurers coming to grief in Nuka Hiva. He was killed, cut up, and remains burnt. The world headlines were about cannibilism occuring.
The island of 2000 people say that cannabilism doesn't exist, and are all shocked that anyone would think otherwise. These are beautiful people and deeply hurt by this sensational story by a German newspaper. They know who did it, and are still trying to find him with the help of the French navy. He is a guide and hunter on the island, so knows his way around.
Back to home now until next April (maybe or not) and see an end to the Cyclone season, then finish off the project heading westwards again.
French Polynesia is not prone to Cyclones usually but they have had them in the past. Have a feeling I may be hit with a premium on my insurance policy.
Lot's of new pics about to be posted if I can only get them over to my Mac Pro.