Capt. Nancy spent most of November with the Caribbean 1500. This event is a rally of cruising boats migrating to the Caribbean for the winter. For many of the boats, it's the first major leg on longer voyages to South America , or even circumnavigation. A few days before departure, the fleet of 69 boats gathered for vessel inspections, seminars, and pre-departure festivities. Capt. Nancy gave the seminar for Celestial Navigation again this year - keeping alive the almost-lost art practiced by a few remaining "real" (or maybe just anal) sailors. The crew of Kikuyu had a wonderful passage, with most congenial crew in recent experience. The passage had its adventures, with a strong cold front which spawned no less than four waterspouts within view, and gale-force winds for about 20 hours. Other boats had various problems, with shredded sails, parted rigging, and life rafts washed overboard, but Kikuyu rode through comfortably under a storm jib.
Once in the islands, Kikuyu's crew enjoyed a few days in Tortola and Virgin Gorda, including a snorkeling trip to The Baths. Kikuyu is on its way to Columbia, where Maria, Kim, and their son Daniel will live near relative in Maria's homeland. Read more about Kikuyu's adventures at : http://www.sailblogs.com/member/sailingourway/
The Caribbean 1500 is a great event - especially for boats embarking on their first try at major ocean passages. There is lots of support, both practical and moral, via the highly experienced and supportive event staff, twice daily radio chats underway, and now satellite tracking for all of the rally boats so your friends at home can check on your progress. See the rally website at www.carib1500.com for more information and other events put on by the Cruising Rally Association.
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Lion's Paw spent the summer and fall in Annapolis, Maryland, undergoing commissioning and some significant refit work. Living aboard "on the hard" is a lot like living in a tree house. And everything you need for whatever you're doing is at the other end of the ladder.
Ammenities are few, with no running water or "indoor plumbing" - the heads are a quarter mile walk at the far end of the boatyard. We had one electrical cord, run from the nearest lightpost (where the light would dim every time the power drill was turned on).
Major work included removing the old, leaking aluminum water tanks. (The guys who removed them "left the lights on" - for a month - and thus the batteries were stone dead when we arrived - requiring a major epic to get them resurrected back to life.) The engine is relatively new, but the heat exchanger tube stack was hopelessly clogged with dead marine life, and required removal of the heat exchanger, which required removal of the exhaust manifold, which required drilling an access hole through the galley bulkhead, which required moving the fresh water sink feed hoses ....you get the picture. And so it went for a 6-page list of projects, from installing a head holding tank system, to electrical wiring, to replacing through-hull valves and replumbing all the below-waterline hoses, rolling on jazzy red bottom paint, etc., etc. I think there are now only about 4 pages left on the list.
We were launched in late October - it felt good to be floating at last. Although it brought to light all the leaky connections in the new hoses.
We tried to head south at the 11th hour before heading out to an offshore trip with another boat. Unfortunately,persistent northwest winds blew enough water out of the bay to leave us hard aground in the slip. Thus Lion's Paw spent an extra month "resting" in Annapolis, enough time for the winter weather to set in.
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