Sailing with Nine of Cups

Vessel Name: Nine of Cups
Vessel Make/Model: Liberty 458
Hailing Port: Denver, Colorado, USA
Crew: Marcie & David
About: We've lived aboard Nine of Cups since 2000 and have managed to accumulate 86,000+ nm under the keel since that time. We completed a circumnavigation in April 2015 and managed to sail around the five great southern capes. Come along with us for the ride!
Extra:
Visit our website at www.nineofcups.com for more photos and info about Nine of Cups and her crew. We also have a more extensive blogsite at www.justalittlefurther.com. Are some of our links broken? Links break from time to time. Please let us know which ones are broken and we'll fix them. You [...]
05 January 2017 | Chesapeake, VA
07 July 2016 | Us: East Walpole, MA / Cups: Chesapeake, VA
06 July 2016 | East Walpole, MA
04 July 2016 | East Walpole, MA
02 July 2016 | East Walpole, MA
01 July 2016 | Virginia Beach, Virginia
30 June 2016 | Chesapeake, VA
29 June 2016 | Chesapeake, VA
28 June 2016 | Intracoastal Waterway from St Augustine to Norfolk
27 June 2016 | Intracoastal Waterway from St Augustine to Norfolk
26 June 2016 | Intracoastal Waterway from St Augustine to Norfolk
25 June 2016 | Intracoastal Waterway from St Augustine to Norfolk
24 June 2016 | Intracoastal Waterway from St Augustine to Norfolk
23 June 2016 | Intracoastal Waterway from St Augustine to Norfolk
22 June 2016 | Intracoastal Waterway from St Augustine to Norfolk
21 June 2016 | Intracoastal Waterway from St Augustine to Norfolk
20 June 2016 | Charleston, South Carolina, USA
19 June 2016 | Charleston, South Carolina, USA
18 June 2016 | Intracoastal Waterway from St Augustine to Norfolk
17 June 2016 | Intracoastal Waterway from St Augustine to Norfolk
Recent Blog Posts
05 January 2017 | Chesapeake, VA

Happy 2017!

Happy New Year, Everyone!

07 July 2016 | Us: East Walpole, MA / Cups: Chesapeake, VA

Taking a breather ...

Since we'll be off the boat during July and August, we plan to post only three times per week. The Captain will continue writing a practical Blue View post each week, we'll keep you up to date on what's happening with us and then throw in some cruising nuggets as well.

06 July 2016 | East Walpole, MA

Keeping fit

We’ve written before about keeping fit on the boat. David is so much better at a regimented exercise program than I am. I have all the best intentions, but I can always think of something better to do than sit-ups, push-ups, leg lifts and running in place. It doesn’t take much to distract me. Walking, [...]

04 July 2016 | East Walpole, MA

Happy 240th Birthday, America

Growing up in New England, I took for granted just how lovely a summer’s morning can be in Massachusetts. It’s comfortably cool and everything smells clean and fresh. Spider webs glisten with morning dew and it’s just great to be alive and breathe in the new day. Being back at Lin’s house conjures up wonderful childhood memories of summer mornings past. And this is not just any morning … it’s the 4th of July, the best holiday of the summertime in the USA.

02 July 2016 | East Walpole, MA

Leaving Cups and a Road Trip

Leaving Nine of Cups is never easy. We know she’ll pout while we’re gone and so we do our best to make sure she’s as comfortable as possible before we leave. We were whirling dervishes trying to get everything ready.

01 July 2016 | Virginia Beach, Virginia

Hunting & Gathering - Virginia Beach

We had lots to do before leaving Cups. David was intent on getting as many chores done in advance of our departure as possible so that once we return in September, we can spend time sailing in the Chesapeake rather than doing repairs and maintenance. Much of what we needed in the way of parts and supplies, [...]

Blue View- Spare thoughts on spares

13 June 2013 | Boston, USA
Marcie
In an earlier blog, Marcie mentioned an English sailor we spent an evening with in New Zealand who no longer carried much in the way of spares. He was an experienced offshore sailor with a lot of miles under his keel, and his boat was quite shipshape, so I was interested in hearing his point of view. His thought was that it is now very easy to have parts shipped almost anywhere in the world, and it is no longer important to have all that money and space tied up with spare parts. Our friend argued that the cost of shipping a spare was offset by the savings realized by not having to purchase as many unused spares in the first place. And if we were in so much of a hurry that we couldn't wait the extra week or so that it took to locate a particular part and have it shipped, perhaps we should be doing something else. We had quite a lively discussion, and in the end, agreed to disagree.

Our philosophy is different. We carry a lot of spares. I think his argument is a little stronger if you don't get too far off the beaten track, but in many of the places we've visited, it would take months to get a part shipped in, if it was possible at all. Likewise, in some countries, it can take weeks to get a part through Customs.

Even if we did nothing but coastal sailing, however, I think we would still keep a large stock of spares aboard. I like knowing we can fix most anything that breaks and are pretty much selfsufficient for long periods of time. I don't like having to disrupt our cruising plans or skip some out of the way anchorage because we have to head to civilization to round up a part. And more than once, we would have missed a weather window if we were forced to wait for a part.

For example, not long after meeting the English sailor in New Zealand, we waited two weeks for a window that would allow us to sail up over the top of the North Island and down the west coast to Fiordland. We weren't out more than 18 hours when the alternator quit. Having the spare allowed me to make the fix under way.We made it to the protection of Fiordland just ahead of several gales that pummelled the North Island for weeks and enjoyed six fabulous weeks of cruising the west coast of the South Island. Had we been forced to put in while sourcing a repair or replacement of the alternator, we would have missed our weather window and quite likely wouldn't have had time to visit the South Island at all that season.

On the other hand, we probably do carry a lot more spares than most. We have spares or repair parts for every essential system on-board, and for most systems that would be a major inconvenience to do without. There aren't that many essential systems aboard, actually, but there are a lot of systems that we like having and are truly a big time inconvenience doing without. Fridge, freezer, watermaker, navigation electronics, communication electronics, electric bilge pumps and beer brewing equipment all fall into this latter category.

Sometimes it's difficult to differentiate between these two categories, by the way. If the engine won't start, that's usually a major inconvenience. We can usually sail to the next anchorage, although we may have to shut down the fridge and freezer to save power and curtail our communications to the bare minimum. If the engine dies on a calm day in the middle of a shipping lane or in some remote part of Fiordland or Patagonia, however, we would probably consider it an essential system. Likewise, the autopilot. On a passage of a day or two, it is a big inconvenience to do without it, but on a passage of a few weeks or longer, especially if the weather is bad, it is extremely fatiguing to spend two hours out of every four steering the boat.

We carry spares for a lot of non-essential, less important gear as well, and if I find a bargain on parts we use frequently, like filters, engine oil or anodes, I stock up. (See my blog post on My Little Black Book.) We probably have a year's worth of most of these consumables at any time.

The half ton of spares we carry probably lowered the waterline of Nine of Cups a half inch or so. Add to that the ton or so of tools I carry which are used to install the half ton of spares, and before long we are talking about some serious weight and a lot of dollars invested. This is, however, our preferred philosophy on spares, and is just as correct for us as the English sailor's philosophy is for him. We continue to agree to disagree.

Finding the right spare that has been stowed in some long forgotten cubby somewhere aboard is a whole other issue, however, and worthy of another blog. Stay tuned.

More pix? Visit Just a Little Further.com.
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