24th June

12 02 N
61 45 W

Weather; showery, wind n/a waves n/a

DAY 8 IN CHINA JAIL

One more down, only 6 to go!
The sky has been more overcast than usual today, we've played open and close the hatches all day as the showers are just enough to cause the boat interior to get damp but not enough to wash the red dust / sand off of the deck. If we get a decent downpour we will be out there with some boat wash and a couple of deck brushes to get the deck looking clean once more - to what end I'm not sure because as soon as the rain stops the deck will just be covered in dust / sand once again! Gerry checked our movement and anchoring this morning as we kept hearing the anchor chain clunking, we don't know if it's caught on a rock or just being moved from side to side with the changing swell and wind direction but we don't appear to be moving anywhere so all is good for the time being.
With a week to go until we are allowed out of China Jail (provided that our Covid tests come back negative) our thoughts have turned to "what next"?. To that end Gerry has been making enquiries at the marinas around the island, trying to find one that meets all of our requirements - not so easy! We really don't want to have to med moor (that's putting the stern in to the dock and tying it up then throwing out the anchor to make sure we don't sway and move), this is quite normal in European marinas but we aren't set up for it as our dinghy hangs off the davits at the stern and will get in the way. European boats also tend to carry a plank to allow them to reach the dock via the stern if they don't have a walk through transom - we don't have a walk through transom or a plank so getting off the boat would be difficult. We would prefer to tie up to a floating dock with side access for getting on and off the boat but not all marinas have these side to tie ups. Then there is the issue of power, we require 60 hertz, 110 volts, most of the marinas here seem to cater for 50 hertz and 220 volts or 50 hertz and 110 volts, the appropriate power cords are also required. Then of course there is the draft, we need to be able to clear our 6 foot 6 inch keel - with room to spare! As to be expected all the marinas have some of the facilities but none have all - it's a crap shoot! Oh and then we need to take into consideration the difference in the cost per foot to use the facility. After much backward and forward, questions and answers we are booked into the marina at St George, not that they have everything and we think we are going to have to work out a way to get on and off our boat as all the slips are stern into the dock - a real pain for us but at least we should be able to have airconditioned splendor for a few days. I've suggested that maybe we need to rig a halyard to use as a hoist to get us on and off the boat, don't laugh as worse things have come to mind! If we end up having to walk the plank I'll be certain to get snap some photos! Jobs for the day didn't amount to much, Gerry headed into the sail locker and tightened up the nuts and bolts holding the inner forestay chain plate - not terribly exciting but might save us from a disaster somewhere down the track. He's fed the heads a couple of times with more muriatic acid, and still the bubbling and gurgling continues - just how much scale is in these pipes? Probably heaps as we have never cleaned them out and I'm pretty certain that the previous owners didn't either so at least 10 years' worth of silting up. The afternoon continued with us watching the harbor for new arrivals, they keep coming, and the anchoring woes are something to behold for one and all, almost every boat has tried at least 3 different spots before their anchor finally bites but we know that won't be the last time they have to set it. For the moment we seem to be holding reasonably well, I just hope it stays that way until we get the all clear from China Jail. I've done nothing of note all day, just read, worked on puzzles, updated the gallery on the blog site and prepped meals for the day whilst listening to other sailing vlogs - we all seem to have similar issues but some are a lot worse off than we are so I'll keep our issues and they can keep theirs! This evening we have noticed that a couple of our neighbours (including our fitness guy) have taken down their Q flags which obviously means they have completed their quarantine period and are free to move on from the quarantine harbor. We shall probably have new neighbours tomorrow. So that's all for today, again nothing exciting happening but that's what you get for putting us in WuFlu jail for 2 weeks!