It's been a busy last two days for us here in the anchorage. We've concentrated on getting the mainsai fixed. Yesterday, we tied ties around it so it was like a big sausage and pulled it down off the boom. We slowly laid it out on the back deck which is no easy feat as while there is a good bit of room, the mainsail is huge. It had split right along a seam and took out the casing for the "bolt rope"(is the main lifting point to get the sail to the top of the mast)yanking it free of the sail. We had to get it back into the luff(front edge) of the sail by messaging the rope back into the canvas tube it normally sits in. We also tore out the leach(back side of the sail) which pulled out another rope that allows us to tension the back of the sail so it will draw more wind. It wasn't a tough repair but it was going to take some time.
Yesterday was get the bolt rope back in and figure out how to attach it to the rigid piece of plastic(called a head board)that makes up the top of the sail. This "headboard" attaches to the rope that pulls the sail up. No bolt rope, no sail going up the mast. In the end, I stitched it to the nylon straps that attach the slides that go inside the mast and hold the sail to the mast.

Next was the sewing machine. I had the toughest job. Sitting on the back deck with sail laid out all over the place, there is no place for a nice table and chair to do the stitching on and to sit on. Instead, we sat on deck and did what we could. Tracy was at the sewing machine since she knows what she is doing and I got the tough job of squeezing the foot pedal to turn on and off the machine. She said "GO" and I'd squeeze it. She said "Stop" and I'd let go. It was a lot of pressure but I think I did all right. Tracy knew what she was doing and the sail slowly got put back together. We had to stop late yesterday afternoon as a weather front was decending on us quickly and it was going to rain. Plus, if you read yesterdays post, you know we had to move Zephyr to another anchorage a couple of hundred yards away. We had anchored where we should not have. Two of the three boats there had to move. Once it started to rain, the winds started back in and we've had 20 -25 knot winds ever since. All through the night, it shreaked over Zephyr. Some times we had our bow facing into the wind and sometimes we had out stern into the winds. It was all decided by the current in the bay. Incoming tide made us face the entrance to the bay and the outgoing tide made our stern face the entrance. The problem with this is that being in the cockpit as the water was going out of the bay, we stayed nice and comfortabe. Turn the boat around and the dodger and bimini made a great wind scoop. We know we are much farther south than we have ever been as it almost feels like we should be wearing long pants. We already wear jackets when on watch at night.
While yesterday was nice and sunny for most of the day, today it was cloudy and overcast with 20 to 25 knot winds all day long. We finish up the sewing maching part of repairing the sail and all that was left was a good bit of hand stitching on another seam. It wasn't blown out but there were plenty of broken stitchs along the seam. I spent a couple of hours sitting in the cockpit with a needle and thread replacing the broken threads. We started in this morning at 0845 and we finally stopped just about 1600. The sail is now all fixed and we just have to have a bit less wind to get her back up where she belongs.
In celebration of getting the sail fixed, Tracy cooked up some Zebu Filets and potatos for lunch. Of what a great meal that was. Once done, I was back in the cockpit stitching away. Stick the needle through the sail where the old thread had been, then duck my head under the sail and see where the needle came through. Grab it and pull it the rest of the way through the sail. Find the next broken thread and do it all over again. Above the sail for a stitch, under the sail for a stitch. Over and over.
We'd been invited to Mahe Mahe(another cruiser) for early "Sundowners". Unfortunatley we were still sewing away and there was no way we were going to get the sail fixed if we hoped to get out of here tomorrow. There is a lot of discussion amongst all of us as to wether tomorrow is good or the day after. We will just have to wait and see what Mother Nature tells us tomorrow. Maybe yes and maybe no. As of now, we have no clue. Just have to wait for the weather man to tell us what to expect tomorrow morning. At least the decks are getting a good wash out of the rain.
The picture for today is the screen of Anchor Watch. It shows us how Zephyr is doing a with the hook down and set. As you can see, we've danced around the anchorage yesterday. --------------090508010003010705060904--