End of Day 6 - Caribbean towards Chesapeake

These Blog entries are edited versions of the messages we sent back as we completed the passage. They were sent by radio using a laptop that controls a modem and the HF/SSB radio, using the SailMail system. We sent the messages daily to Charlotte and she then forwarded them on to a list of family members.

2359 (AST, GMT-4) 12 May 2018

Dear All,

Well, it has been a day of drama, excitement, and disappointment.

The disappointment has been the wind, or more accurately the lack of it. Since 1800 last night it has stayed at less than 10 knots and mostly at under 5 knots which is just not enough to get BV going. We have therefore been motoring along at low revs only making about 5 knots through the water. Sadly the forecast now shows that we will probably be in this area of no wind for at least another 24 hours. However, it's all a bit uncertain. Chris Parker broadcasts a weather service for the Caribbean, Bahamas and Bermuda areas which we listen to on our SSB/HF radio and he has highlighted that it is difficult to predict exactly what is going to happen because of confused weather off Florida and further north.  Our assessment is that we are going to have another 24 hrs of motoring, then some light wind for a couple of days which might be just enough to get us sailing, and then, quite possibly, much more wind than we would really like as we approach Chesapeake Bay.

The drama started at 0530hrs when I went on deck and heard the engine alarm going off. The first point is that we need to find and fit a much louder alarm because I didn't hear it when I was down below. It's really important because a check on the engine panel showed zero oil pressure and the red low oil pressure warning light was illuminated. Ignoring these for even just a short length of time can result in a seized engine, hence the requirement for a new mega loud warning siren. I switched off the engine, removed the covers and began fault diagnosis with Nicky, who had been asleep off-watch but who was now wide awake.

Nicky's first reaction was to look in the sump under the engine - no oil, therefore, most likely no leak. Great relief.  Also the engine did not feel or show any signs of distress but I did spot that we had sprung a small salt water leak. We have been monitoring a rubber connection on the cooling circuit for the last 2 months because it seems to be a bit perished and we want to change it.  Sadly, we have been unable to find a replacement in the Caribbean.  However, a few weeks ago I tracked down a UK supplier who would to ship a replacement to our friends, Phil and Lesley, who we are on our way to see in Washington, and Lesley has kindly agreed to receive the parts on our behalf. That's great because we have a long term solution but for now we have a salt water cooling water leak of about 1/2 a cup an hour.

It looked like the leak had been dripping onto the electrical connection for the oil pressure sensor.  So, I took that connection apart, cleaned it and made up a new lead and terminal.  Once that was fitted, a test run on the engine showed that we had oil pressure indications again and no warning light. Hooray! So we put the covers back on the engine and continued on our way. From switching the engine off, through fault diagnosis to completed repair all took just 45 minutes which was very pleasing. Nicky went back to bed, because she was off watch, but then appeared again 15 minutes later having had a flash of inspiration.

The leak is close to the hot engine exhaust so we couldn't put anything plastic there to catch the drips or it would melt.  However Nicky wondered if our silicon bread making tin would work as a drip tray.  It didn't because it was too large, however, her next suggestion was to make something up from cooking foil.  That was brilliant idea. So we now have an aluminium foil funnel and pipe that catches the drips and feeds them into the sump under the engine. No more drips of salt water onto the oil pressure sensor! All we need to do now is keep an eye on the water level in the sump and mop it dry every now and then.

The excitement came at 1040hrs when the fishing rod sprang into life and the reel started screaming as the line was pulled out.

 

Once I had finally reeled it in and Nicky had gaff hooked the catch to lift it on board, we discovered that we had caught a nice skipjack tuna.

We bled it and filleted it immediately and so lunch was a glass of white wine with super-fresh tuna carpaccio/sushi with ginger, soy sauce and washabi paste.  We now have a bit under 5 kg of tuna fillet vacuum-packed and in the coldest part of the fridge. So I guess the whole fish must have weighed about 8kg and was about 1 metre long.

For a short while we had a hitchhiker on board

The thick seared tuna fillet steaks that we had for dinner were delicious too.

So, that's it for news from BV for today. Keep whistling for the wind for us and hope that it builds soon (but not too much of it); motoring is tedious!

Reg and Nicky

Passage statistics:
Position at midday 12 May: N29 18 W70 06
Position at 2359 12 May: N30 03 W70 41
Midday to midday distance: 121 nautical miles
Midnight to Midnight distance: 122 nautical miles
Total miles covered:  809 nautical miles
Approximate distance to go: 472 nautical miles

End of Day 6 - Caribbean towards Chesapeake