Signs of life
27 October 2019 | 250 miles North of New Zealand
Stephen
Our position: 30.00S, 170.07E
We have now been motoring for the last 30 hours and are getting fed up with the noise. However, at least we have lots of hot water and the batteries are fully charged. There is one person on the boat who is happy with the almost complete absence of wind and that prompted her to make
a lemon drizzle cake yesterday afternoon and some fresh bread for breakfast this morning. Actually we think that making the bread is some form of atonement for the double strength rum & ginger ale that she drank last night. None of us think that the Fijian rum is very good in the first place
and the solution is probably not to make it overstrength. Sadly, with the whisky finished we dont have much choice.
The other good thing is that the engine is working. I decided to do some engine checks yesterday morning after the radio schedule. The leak around the prop shaft seems to be ok, but there was one around the salt water inlet, which also seems to be under control. I needed to put a little
oil in both engine and in gearbox - but that is only to be expected and top up the diesel tanks from the cans we carry on deck. Having finished these tasks, we started again and the diesel purred into life. A job well done. However, about one minute later it died and simply would not start.
the book "Diesel Engines Afloat" came out as well as the service manual (taken from a 1980's Haynes manual on the Morris Marina as the engine is the same). Neither held any clue to this near catastrophe - the idea of sitting in complete flat calm for unknown days held no appeal for
anyone. After a lot of scratching of heads, I find that i had knocked the fuel inlet and turned it off. No wonder it wouldnt start.
Last night we had a couple of planes pass overhead and this morning we have seen a ship bound for Japan. That was shortly before we caught a fish - sadly it was so huge that it took the line as well. At least the lure that Curly Carswell from Savusavu sold us did actually work - the only
other thing it has caught was an empty tin of tuna we had thrown over the side.
Listening to weather forecasts, it looks like we should get some wind later on today - otherwise the sea is completely flat - and that should allow us to start sailing again. With any luck, we should arrive in Opua on Wednesday or Thursday. By the sounds of it, there will be an exciting game
on Saturday night and we'll have to find a bar to watch the final.
Off for breakfast and that fresh loaf of bread.