Hello Everyone,
I may be a wimp, but I feel as though I’ve been through a war. Maneuvering over the deep blue sea without an engine is quite an experience. One day the winds were so light and the currents so strong that we traveled less than a mile toward our destination after sailing for TEN HOURS. Another day we roared into a bay at warp speed, tacking upwind toward an anchorage. Randy cranked the jib from port to starboard so fast his arms blurred. I steered between boats, calling out depths and bottom conditions. Making a split second decision, Randy then sprinted forward to drop the anchor. Hair-raising! The real adrenaline rushes happened when we used the dinghy as a towboat. A dinky little 200 pound inflatable hauling a 20,000 pound boat. Uh-huh. We’d tie the dinghy to Balena’s side and use its 8 horsepower outboard motor to propel her forward. Under calm conditions inside harbors it worked pretty well. Outside in any kind of waves, riding the dinghy was like riding a bucking bronco. At one point Randy stepped DOWN from the dinghy into Balena as it rode the crest of a big wave. Ah, remembering this is exhausting! I don’t have the energy to describe the time three dinghies maneuvered Balena into a tight anchorage under windy conditions. Suffice it to say, we almost went aground three times that day and hired a panga fisherman to tow us out when we left the anchorage. I need a break. To be continued…..
Okay, I’m back. We made it to Santa Rosalia in one piece. Nerves shot and wiser for the experience. Randy took the blown fuel injector pump out and arranged to exchange it for a rebuilt one in Los Angeles. He thinks our experimental use of biodiesel a few years ago ate away at the seals in the fuel pumps. The injector pump went out just two weeks after the lifter pump. He hitched a ride with a family heading to San Diego on October 16th, injector pump in one hand and broken single sideband radio in the other. Twenty hours later he was knocking at Drew’s door in Bakersfield. He’d covered 800 miles by truck, Greyhound, city bus and shoe leather. Give the guy a hug if he shows up on your doorstep. He’d appreciate it!
With hugs from a flea-bitten sailor,
Gina