Up the mast
24 November 2020 | 12 00’N:61 46’W, Prickly Bay, Grenada
NC
23rd November
12 00 N
61 46 W
Weather; sunny, wind blustery, waves n/a
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO JESSICA WE HOPE YOU HAVE A GREAT DAY
MANY HAPPY RETURNS OF THE DAY TO LORIE, LETS HOPE THE YEAR AHEAD IS FULL OF BETTER THINGS!
I guess I asked for it today, having done next to nothing for the weekend I was sure that Gerry would find something to keep himself (and by default me) occupied. The job came in the form of him thinking that the wind indicator didn't seem to be turning, everyone around us has a similar instrument whirling away in the wind giving out the wind direction and speed whilst ours was stationary and telling us that there was no wind and it wasn't coming from any direction. This obviously wasn't correct as we were being blown around in all directions as well as rolling from side to side continuously, add to this the fact that our wind generator was whirling away and putting out an average of 5amps showed us that there was indeed wind which should have been showing on our instrument panel - we needed to investigate this and sort it out! It's not a job for the faint hearted as the instrument is located at the very top of the mast which was swaying drastically from one side to the other more regularly than a clocks pendulum and the only way to do fix it was to climb the mast and see what was causing the problem. It doesn't help that we have a 65 foot mast, putting the top of the mast 72 feet above the waterline. When you consider that the boat is rolling from side to side enough to unbalance you at deck level it doesn't take much imagination to realize that the top of the mast is going to be a nauseatingly wild ride. I'm not sure why we couldn't leave it until it was a wind free and calmer day but as I wasn't the one who was going to go to the top of the mast I couldn't really argue the point. As is always the case this was a 2 person job, whilst Gerry went aloft I was the one who handled the winching up, took the photos (just in case he fell - what a photo that would make!) and was on hand to send anything skywards if he needed it before letting him back down to the deck. Out came a bit of equipment that no one likes to use - the bosun's chair - it's a glorified butt hammock really with a securing point for a halyard to attach to, then came the headsets so that we didn't have to shout at each other forcing the entire harbor to listen to us, a screw driver (it's a must have in any situation) and finally one of our favourite purchases, the battery operated Winchrite. For any of our sailing friends who don't have electric winches, this is a must have purchase, it takes the harder work out of having to winch - especially when it's a baby elephant that you are trying to haul to the top of a 65 foot mast! I've put photos of it in the gallery so you can see what I'm talking about. There is no easy way of doing this job so Gerry climbed into the bosun's chair, I was tempted to take a photo but that would just have been cruel - but funny, he attached the main halyard to the securing point and started the journey up the mast by climbing on to the safety rails at the base of the mast then instructing me to begin winching him up as far as the top of the boom. Once he was standing on the boom things got easier for me as there are retractable steps all the way up our mast which he just has to flip out and climb, it doesn't make me redundant though as I have to keep assisting and maintaining tension on the halyard as he climbs (just in case he slips or falls). I have to add at this point that I have no visual of him climbing as the covers over our dodger prevent me from being able to see him so the headsets are the only means we have to know how much winching to do and when to stop etc. we try to limit the instructions to Go and Stop as anything else can get confusing but the occasional "whoa" and "up" creep in there to try and confuse me which isn't helped by the wind whistling into Gerry's microphone and the odd swear word which escapes as he gets higher up the swinging mast. Neither of us are particularly fond of heights so I'm really glad that he's always the one that goes up the mast even if it does mean that I have to develop arm muscles like a prize fighter. Gerry clings to the mast for grim death as he ascends, pausing at the 2 sets of spreaders to get his breathing under control and it isn't too long before he's telling me that he's at the top followed by a whole load of sailor speak as he inspects the offending instrument, unscrews it and then asks me to let him back down slowly - this is always my big chance to hold him up there for ransom but as the boat is still rolling badly and swinging him from side to side I resist the urge today. The Winchrite is redundant for the downward process so gets removed and I try to keep constant tension on the halyard as I slowly let it out to allow Gerry to descend back to the deck. I had taken a quick couple of photos of the journey up the mast in the hope they would come out, I wasn't sure as I had a very brief visual and a quick click to get the photos whilst trying to man the winch - with Gerry back on deck it was time to check them out and see if I had captured him or not - yay, I had a couple of shots worth keeping. Gerry rid himself of the bosun's chair and we went below to examine the wind indicator - more screwdrivers, a bit of prodding and poking showed that the small drain hole had blocked and probably caused water to pool inside the indicator and corrode / rust or cause a buildup of scale around the bearings which was preventing the free movement of the parts the result of which was the need for an overhaul kit - which we didn't have. I laughingly said to just get a new indicator - we are bound to need it in the long run. Off Gerry went in the dinghy to Budget Marine where he found complete new indicators but no overhaul kits so he went to the sail makers next door who are agents for the brand of indicator we have - maybe they would have a kit. It turned out that they wanted our first born child in exchange for the kit along with some 30 meters of cable which doesn't come as an optional extra even though we didn't need the cable. Gerry refused to give up our first born and returned to Budget Marine where the price of a new indicator was a little less, with his loyalty discount, than they wanted for the kit at the agents. Guess who now has a new wind indicator!
Back out on the boat we prepared to once again get Gerry to the top of the mast, this time with the new indicator following the same procedure as before. Once at the top and with the new indicator in place he instructed me to turn on the sailing instruments and make sure that the wind direction and speed was now showing, which it was, so we just had to get Gerry back down on deck and the job was done. We now have a fully functioning wind indicator once more. So the job for the day was done and dusted, it was time to kick back, admire the view and do nothing for the remainder of the day, not that there was too much left of it as this "small job" had taken up most of the day. I prepped dinner and we sat in the cockpit watching the boats around us rolling and bobbing up and down whilst the sun set behind the hills. The sky didn't turn such a good pink colour as yesterday, the rain clouds were too close behind. We commented on the harbor being like a league of nations at present, there are boats flying flags from Germany, UK, Switzerland, France, Canada, Denmark, USA and then there is us with our boxing kangaroo, we wondered where they are all trying to get to - all we know is that we have all made it here and are safe but I'm sure, like us, most people are keen to get on the move again as soon as possible but are being thwarted by the draconian restrictions that various countries are enforcing. Just today Gerry read out a report of 2 boats which have each been fined US$20,000 each for being just inside the BVIs waters - one was a mile inside the line and the other was only ? mile inside and heading out of the zone, both were headed to the USVI's apparently and had no intension of stopping in the BVIs, making any sort of land fall there and no one was likely to have tested positive to Covid anyway as they were in isolation on their boats. It's an unthinkable case of overkill but we seem to be giving credence to all sorts of ridiculousness at the moment and to make matters worse the rules change with such regularity it is hard to keep track of the current rules for any particular place. We were very disappointed to hear that QANTAS airline is planning on introducing a mandatory Covid vaccine requirement for anyone who wants to fly internationally with them - where is this all going to end? Whilst I am not an antivaxxer by any means I don't think it is right to take away a person's choice, though I guess we can all choose not to fly QANTAS, but how many other airlines will follow their lead and leave us with very few options.
At the same time we have reports coming out of the first case of Covid being recorded in Samoa, on a person who had a negative swab from one nostril and a positive swab from the other nostril both taken at the same time - how can we be confident in a vaccine which has been produced in a hurry when we can't even get the test results to be 100% accurate.
So I'll get off my soap box now and try to keep myself and those around me safe from harm I hope you are all doing the same. Like Arnie said - I'll be back.