03/24/2004 - 03/31/2004
The whales of Banderas Bay put on quite a show as we started the passage to the South Pacific. Several whales waved goodbye as we left the bay.
Here We Go!
Whisper's filled to the brim with fuel, water, food, and beverage. Jose finished washing and waxing. Fresh coats of varnish are complete. Last minute genset repairs (ugh!) are complete. Puddle Jump meetings are over. Robin and Duncan are healthy. Weather reports for a good window to depart stream across the airwaves. Quick, pay the marina bill and check out of the country. Let's go!
During the Puddle Jump, we emailed a few folks with daily updates. What follows in this log and the two subsequent logs are the daily updates along with photographs.
With lots of fond memories and new friendships, we bid Banderas Bay adieu (we need to start trying to use a language other than Spanish)!
03/25/2004 - Day 1
- Latitude: 19° 06' N
- Longitude: 107° 24' W
- Miles to go: Around 2700
- Wind Speed/Direction: NW 10 to 15 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 6 knots
We are underway to the South Pacific as of Wednesday, 3/24! We will keep you posted on how the journey progresses. Our first day brought us 150 southwest of Banderas Bay with an average speed of 6.2 knots. Not bad. We are both happy and healthy. Whales waved good bye to us, dolphins swam off Whisper's bow and hundreds of boobies encircled us as we left the bay. All in all, it was a fine send off.
Check out our position on the second day. This handy GPS chartplotter in the cockpit gets lots of use when we are underway.
03/26/2004 - Day 2
- Latitude: 17° 38' N
- Longitude: 109° 43' W
- Miles to go: Around 2600
- Wind Speed/Direction: NW 8 to 12 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 5 knots
Another day and more adventures. The current count of squid landing on deck is 5 with only one hitting Duncan in the face. Yesterday was a gorgeous day. We debated amongst ourselves and other vessels nearby what the color of the amazing blue water should be called. Fortunately, Dana on the sailing vessel Camira was a graphic designer with a professional color palette on board. She claims the color was cerulean.
Duncan discovered salt water in the engine oil. He thinks it is coming from the genset anti-siphon and the engine anti-siphon are plumbed into the same discharge hose. We think the genset anti-siphon is sending saltwater into the engine block as a result of running the genset underway on a starboard tack. The good news is that we have not needed to run the engine yet. Duncan has clamped the genset anti-siphon to prevent more water going into the engine. Oil changes are forthcoming. Aaaah, it is always something.
The decks are wet from the morning dew. We wear long pants and fleece at night to keep us warm. During the heat of the day, our attire is usually a bathing suit or less.
03/27/2004 - Day 3
- Latitude: 16° 25' N
- Longitude: 112° 02' W
- Miles to go: Around 2400
- Wind Speed/Direction: NW 10 to 15 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 6 knots
Awesome sailing and conditions filled Day 3. This is great from both a fun perspective and an engine repair perspective. Dolphins ran alongside Whisper at night with phosphorescence trailing them. One flying fish kamikaze'ed onto Whisper.
Duncan continues to work on the engine issues. He re-routed the genset anti-siphon and performed the first of several oil changes. He sucked the water out of the exhaust. The next task is to pull the injectors to clean out the cylinders. Thankfully we are in regular contact via SSB with a diesel mechanic - Fred on the sailing vessel Arcturus. Arcturus is located in the Sea of Cortez. Fred owned a diesel repair shop for 30 years. Keep your fingers crossed that the engine starts sometime in the next few days.
We are having a BLAST!
Here comes the sun!
03/28/2004 - Day 4
- Latitude: 15° 47' N
- Longitude: 114° 00' W
- Miles to go: Around 2200
- Wind Speed/Direction: NW 5 to 10 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 5 knots
Greetings from the Pacific Ocean. Did we mention yesterday that the sailing has been awesome? Well, the great sailing continues. This is good news for a boat that has an engine under repair. Duncan can now add diesel mechanic to his resume.
"Diesel Duncan's" Recap & Update: First, we detected water in the engine oil. Then we discovered that while underway, the water discharged from the genset anti-siphon was forcing water into the engines anti-siphon discharge (ironic huh). Long story short, the anti-siphon's have been re-plumbed independently, the engine oil has been removed and replaced, the cylinders have been purged of water, and the injectors have been cleaned (it took 3 hours to get the injectors out). The turbo-charger also needed to be removed and cleaned, the 4 gallons of seawater had to be siphoned from the exhaust hose and muffler, a corroded exhaust gasket seat was discovered was removed, cleaned, and the mating surfaces filed.
The engine re-assembly begins today and the first attempt to start it will be tomorrow (assuming the re-assembly goes OK today). Then, two more oil and filter changes will be performed. Then after a 20 hour run -- the oil gets changed again. And believe it or not, we are still having fun -- this ocean is BEAUTIFUL!
Sven (our nickname for the Volvo engine) lives!
03/29/2004 - Day 5
- Latitude: 15° 28' N
- Longitude: 116° 00' W
- Miles to go: Around 2100
- Wind Speed/Direction: NW 5 to 10 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 6 knots
Enough of these updates with just 'great sailing' and 'diesel repairs'. Here is the real scoop. At present, there are around 24 boats underway from Mexico to the Marquesas. In addition, two boats returned to Mexico - one under tow because they lost their rudder and one because the crew was sick and tired. There are several more boats awaiting a good weather window for departure.
We work with 3 hour watches at night. In between the navigation and sailing activities performed on watch, we listen to music on our favorite toy, an IPOD. With all the unplanned work on the engine during the day (aka no naps), we are a little tired but still love the passage.
More fun updates on life in the middle of the Pacific Ocean will be forthcoming.
Oh, by the way, the engine IS BACK IN BUSINESS thanks to a valiant effort by Diesel Dunc. Okay, so we saved the best for last. Did you hear our screams of elation back on land? What a relief!
The nice thing about the engine installation and the engine room access is that getting to the engine is easy. We remove the doors, and a cavernous space opens to allow engine work.
A scattering of tools and parts. The engine repair is well underway.
The new engine anti-siphon is plumbed directly into the cockpit drain hose via an epoxied kludge. The old T-fitting and single hose set-up is abandoned for two completely independent discharge hoses.
The corrosion around the exhaust elbow caused saltwater to leak down on the turbo-charger and turbo-boost pump valve -- rusting it shut. It has been a while since the turbo-charger has actually worked (and it still may not).
The Volvo engineer that came up with the fuel line routing was an "artist". The serpentine nest of fuel feed and return hoses was a challenge to tackle.
To Duncan's surprise, the darn thing started on the first try. The next 24 hours of run-time were spent tracking down minor fuel leaks.
When Duncan went forward to rig the gennaker, the light air sail, wind speeds averaged 8 knots. By the time the sail was hoisted, the wind climbed to 17 knots. The sail, boat, and Duncan's patience were stressed to the limit. Down it came, and the genoa is unfurled.
03/30/2004 - Day 6
- Latitude: 14° 47' N
- Longitude: 118° 27' W
- Miles to go: Around 2000
- Wind Speed/Direction: NE 15 to 20 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 6 knots
With the engine fixed, we spent most of the day relaxing and catching up on sleep. Every morning we listen to a radio net on the Marine SSB to catch up on weather. At 11:30 Mountain Time, we check into the Pacific Puddle Jumpers Net. There is a roll call of all the boats heading to the South Pacific from Mexico. As a part of the roll call, each boat gives its position and weather information. It is fun to check everyone's progress.
We think we've arrived in the much desired trade winds. From now until we reach the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), typically somewhere between latitudes 02 N and 07 N, the winds are supposed to blow between 10 and 25 knots from the northeast. We will give you more scoop on the ITCZ in another update.
We still feel great and are having a blast.
With a little rest, the diesel repaired, and the first week of the passage behind us -- spirits are high.
03/31/2004 - Day 7
- Latitude: 14° 22' N
- Longitude: 119° 27' W
- Miles to go: Around 1900
- Wind Speed/Direction: ENE 10 to 15 knots
- Current Boat Speed: 5 knots
Today is a big milestone in our journey. This day marks the end of the first week of our passage to the Marquesas and the 2 year anniversary of departing San Francisco. We are one third of the way to the Marquesas.
Check out a few week one stats for the passage:
|
Trip Miles To Date: |
965 |
|
Trip Average Speed |
5.8 knots |
|
Trip Engine Hours: |
1.5 hours (engine testing) |
|
Trip Generator Hours: |
26.7 hours |
|
Average Daily Generator Hours: |
3.8 hours |
|
Trip Fuel Capacity: |
130 gallons (Fuel Tank: 110 gallons, Jerry Jugs: 20 gallons) |
|
Trip Fuel Consumption: |
9 gallons |
|
Degrees Latitude Traveled: |
6 degrees |
|
Degrees Longitude Traveled: |
14 degrees |
We consume more energy than expected which results in more generator runtime than planned. What takes up all this energy? Throughout the day and night, we run navigation instruments (wind, depth, speed), refrigerator, freezer, fans, computer, autopilot and 2 GPS. For at least an hour, the watermaker replenishes the water consumed. The hot water heater runs an hour each day. Random amounts of time and energy are spent talking, listening and sending/receiving email on the Marine SSB radio. At night, navigation lights, cabin lights an radar add to the mix. But, we are very comfortable. You didn't think we'd turn minimalist now, did you?