Spare parts are in, preparations of boat done, tomorrow, Friday, Shearwater and I start the long leg.....3000 miles of nothing but ocean,ocean ocean!
Loving THANK YOU to LESLEY for having helped me get ready for this!

Join the tour of Shearwater. What she looks like from the outside.

Galapagos has now contracted the Dengue Virus, apparently, for the first time. Derived from the Swahili phrase "Ka dinga pepo" it describes the disease as being caused by evil spirits that cause high fever for 7 days and a host of other horrible manifestations. And, once again, its the Mosquito!

Today,having no idea of this outbreak, and walking in 'downtown' San Cristobal and... feeling a little under the weather... I ventured into an agency for tours.....called "SHARKSY"!! There, I inquired of the very knowledgeable owner if they had Ciguatera Poisoning in the Galapagos...a nasty and sometimes deadly inflammation of the nervous system caused by eating various kinds of fish. Being that I had been doing just that, eating fish, my 'hypochondriacalism' was taking hold.

"No" she said but, before I could breath a sigh of relief, she informed me that, instead, for the first time, there was an outbreak of Dengue!! and that the whole town had been already fumigated by the government.

But.... that left those of us at anchor, uninformed and full of mosquitos in our boats. Remembering that last night on Shearwater one or more mosquitoes had feasted on my foot.....I ran, well I almost swam, well... I took a 'water taxi' to the boat, grabbed my South American "Raid" and fumigated Shearwater.

And now I sit, imagining that I see mosquitos!!

---------- radio email processed by SailMail for information see: http://www.sailmail.com

For my even littler, littler friend. And, based on a true observation.


"Oh how tired I am" said the Big Sea Lion. I swim and I fish and I swim all the day and my fins hurt so much, oh how they do hurt!.....if only I could find a nice, soft, comfy spot for the night. All those hard rocks to sleep on.....Oh I hope, Ohhhh.. how I hope!¨

And so he swam and he swam, as he did every night, looking for that nice, soft, comfy spot.

And then suddenly, he saw David and his little boat......tucked away on the side of an island. "Oh" he said, "I will go and welcome David and his little boat to my island."

So he swam really fast over to David and his little boat....and what did you think he saw?

There... on the back of David's little boat sat another even littler .....a little...a nice little boat. It was made of soft rubber and just the right size. And then... as he looked closer, not believing his eyes... there, on top of that nice, just the right size, rubber boat was a......soft.... big.... fluffy, blue blue blanket.

"That's just what I need! "David! David!' he called out...."David".....but David was already asleep, very deeply asleep in his bed in his boat.

"Why that's perfect! exclaimed the Big Sea Lion....that's where Im going to sleep tonight!"

So, he backed up... and then swam as fast as he could, faster and faster toward David's little boat and at the very..... last.... moment.... he jumped up, out of the water, whizzed through the air and landed in the middle of the soft.. big... fluffy, blue blue blanket on the littler, that nice, just the right size rubber boat.

"OHHHHH!" he exclaimed, how nice and how soft and how comfy this is .... it fits me just right!" The Big Sea Lion stretched his fins, rolled over on his back...and before he could count to ten, was fast asleep....

...on the soft, big, fluffy, blue blue blanket on the littler, that nice, just the right size, rubber boat....all sitting on the back of David's little boat.

So, What the hold up? Maybe David is scared of the 3000 miles of the next leg?....procrastinating?.....wants to live in Galapagos?........hmmm....could be.

But more to the point....there are some problems with Shearwater and her engines. To set out on the next leg, the longest and, one that puts one truly out of reach of anybody, it is crucial that all systems are working. And right now, they are not. The Port Engine on the last leg developed a overheating problem that is damnably elusive. This morning after days of work on it, I pulled up anchor and put the engines to the test.....the Port side failed again.

Additionally, the S Engine has developed leaks in the Sea Water Strainer....this is the filter that takes out any big engine-clogging stuff that comes in with the cooling sea water. The problem is the following: small cracks have developed in the strainer's plastic like cover ...they are now leaking. If that cover cracked, suddenly there could be a catastrophic amount of water coming in....many gallons a minute that would soon overwhelm the pumps. And within a few minutes the S Engine could be under water.

Thanks to my dear sister Lesley, the new strainer is in Panama...but no way to get here. So, do I head out into endless ocean and hope for the best?...or?

So, waiting, wondering, worrying.

---------- radio email processed by SailMail for information see: http://www.sailmail.com

The beings that inhabit this famous island in the Pacific as filmed in a 24 hour period.

Dedicated to my little friend, Sean, in the hopes that animals play a magical role in his long life ahead.