If only my Dr. knew the truth
WARNING: What follows is a long, detailed and drama filled post, with much text and few pictures. Should you undertake the challenge of reading it, we can not offer the return of your time should you not enjoy it.
Before we departed to head south, my doctor thought that perhaps cruising might help to lower my elevated blood pressure due to it being a less-stressful lifestyle. He must not have been thinking about days like yesterday.
At 7:00 AM, we raised anchor at Calabash, with plans to head towards Conception Island, and were bid farewell with a beautiful rainbow. That’s a good omen, right?
A good omen?
Stress point 1…
Instead of taking the safer but longer route outside the reef, we opted to take the shorter route around Cape Santa Maria, inside the reef. As is often necessary when arriving at, or departing from, anchorages, one of us stood watch on the bow, in this case me, while Rebecca piloted her way through the waters. On that note, even though we had issues obtaining the new chart chips for our chartplotter, we love our Garmin and especially the Explorer cartography that is built into it. Anyway, it wasn’t long before we were beyond the dangerous area and were in a position to raise sails. Yes, it’s true, we were going to sail!
Stress point 2…
The weather had called for easterlies of about 15 knots. Well, that was the forecast. Bump that up a bit as we really had sustained 18-19 with gusts about 5 knots higher. We had also heard that there would be a fairly large, long-period swell (I’ll write more about waves another day). Yes, the big waves were there but in my opinion, they were a lot closer together than were forecast. Regardless, even though the ride was rough, we were sailing, and sailing fast!
Did I mention that the wind was still pretty much coming from the direction we wanted to go? Well it was. For the non-sailors reading this post, this is a bad thing. Why were we able to sail today when the previous day, in perhaps a bit more benign conditions, we couldn’t? Anticipating that our days of sailing off the wind in the next couple of months will be few and far between (due to the trade winds), we replaced our large 150% Genoa headsail with our smaller, self-tacking jib. With this sail, in addition to being much easier to manage, we can point higher into the wind. A good thing!
Stress point 3…
While bashing through the waves, we were taking significant water over the bows, burying the anchors repeatedly. There were times when we had green water splashing right over the bimini! It’s times like this that we start to pay attention to things that could start falling off the boat. On the deck, we had made the mistake of leaving the cushions on the bow. I had set 3 water containers on top of them but with the water that was coming onto the boat, I was concerned that they might fall off. Deciding to check, I clipped my harness onto the jack-lines and made my way forward. As I feared, one of the jugs had already been knocked onto the trampoline. What I also found was that there were so many waves coming on board and it was so windy that I would have had a devil of a time getting the cushions back to the cockpit. Comfortable with the knowledge that they had yet to blow overboard, I simply replaced the water container back onto the cushion and left them where they were. Mistake number one.
Stress point 4…
Only minutes after returning to the cockpit, I commented to Rebecca that I needn’t have gone onto the tramp to check the cushions. Instead I could have just looked through our salon windows. Walking down there to prove my assumption, I was greeted with the image that only one cushion was remaining. F@#%! Within the space of a few minutes, one of the cushions had gone AWOL. What followed was our 2nd-ever COB (cushion overboard) drill. With winds blowing 20 or so knots and big waves, this was not going to be easy. I quickly turned on the “tracks” function of our chartplotter which plots a little dashed line showing where we have already gone. Tacking the boat, I started to sail a reciprocal course, heading a bit downwind to allow for the drift of the cushion. Only moments later Rebecca spotted the mischievous cushion and after clipping herself in, positioned herself at the transom with a boat hook, ready to retrieve it. We made two passes at the cushion, getting very close each time, but with the high winds, we were going just too fast to catch it. We decided then to drop the sails and use the engines to attempt to retrieve it. After a less-than-fancy job of dropping and securing the sails, we made another pass at the cushion which has continued to drift away from us. Placing the boat directly downwind of it and using boat’s forward and reverse engines to hold ourselves steady, we allowed the cushion to drift back to Rebecca and she was able to get it back on board.
- Lesson 1: Do not fall overboard! This was a difficult maneuver with two people on board. Trying to pickup a crew member who has fallen overboard while single handing the boat is not something we ever wish to do.
- Lesson 2: Read lesson 1 again!!!
- Lesson 3: Always remove cushions from bow before sailing, no matter how calm you think the conditions may be outside of the harbor. It is much easier to bring them out if it is indeed calm as opposed to getting them back to the cockpit when it is blowing like stink.
- Lesson 4: Whenever we have a suspicion that something might go wrong, act on it right then and there. Don’t wait. This is in the same category as the common saying “The time to reef is when the thought first occurs to you.”
- Lesson 5: Read lesson 1 again!!!
Cushions safely stowed, we resumed our brisk sail towards Conception Island. The wind and waves continued and we happily bashed our way forward, tacking as necessary to make headway. Once comfortable with the motion, we decided that we might as well try to catch some dinner and thus dropped two lines overboard using a couple of new lures that our friend Tim gave us back in Georgetown. We were in a bazillion feet of water at this point so I wasn’t holding my breath waiting for a hit but at least it gave me something to focus on while on route.
Stress point 5…
The sailing was going fine right up until our last tack when, pinching a bit too much (that means trying to sail too close to where the wind is coming from), I put the boat ‘into irons’ (the boat stops dead in the water when this happens). The waves were making it challenging to get back on track and we were so close, I gave up as I frequently do this close to land and started the engines. Here comes drama part two. Remember those fishing lines we were trolling? Both caught under the boat. Yup. Two new fishing lures now proverbially, fed to the fishes.
Stress point 6…
We motored uneventfully into the West Bay anchorage and secured our spot. After straightening up, we decided to go look for some dinner (fish or lobster) but before we could do so, our first order of business was diving on the boat to find out where that fishing line ended up. Of course, it was all around the starboard prop, nice and tightly wound. So commenced a half hour of both Rebecca and I battling with the line, freeing its strangle hold on our prop shaft. With the engine once again happy, we piled into the dinghy with our gear, off looking for coral.
Returning from spearfishing, empty handed.
Stress point 7…
We didn’t have to go far as there were coral heads everywhere. Most of them were a bit too deep for us to dive on so we ended up in what is referred to in Van Sant’s book as the “Kiddie Pool,” where coral can be found in 5-10 feet of water. The coral field was immense and battling the current, we worked our way through a virtual labyrinth. When we were both a bit tired and decided to return, we couldn’t find our way back! Neglecting to take accurate bearings before heading out, we ended up swimming all the way around a small island to the opposite side of the beach that we set out on. That was a bit of a workout!
Stress points 8 and 9…
Back on board, we relaxed in the late-afternoon sun, enjoying a cocktail. After finishing the last bit of box wine that we had in the galley, Rebecca made one last foray into the starboard bilge to see if we had another bag (from a box) remaining. Much more disturbing than the fact that she found no wine was that she did find about 4 inches of water in the bilge! We never get water in the bilge. Where did it come from? My hypothesis, yet to be proven or dis-proven, is that the water is somehow related to the hard sailing that we had just gone through and had made its way into the shower sump-pump output hole. We’ll look into that but at that point, we just wanted to get it out. Let’s use the bilge pump, right? Guess what. We couldn’t get the pump to work. Grrrr! Here goes another long, drawn-out troubleshooting series, attempting to figure out what is up. When part of our troubleshooting required that we add even more water to the bilge, I went to the starboard bow locker to retrieve a bucket. Oh oh! There was 6 inches or better of water lying in the bottom of the locker where the below-the-waterline through-hulls live. THIS IS NOT GOOD! Are we sinking? Should I close the seacocks or did this, too, relate to the bashing that we had just gone through for much of the day?
Leaving the bilge alone, we now focused on this water, fabricating an extension to our hand pump that would reach down into this compartment. We don’t have a pump related to this task but now plan to acquire one! With minimal muss and fuss, we removed the water and set about monitoring the situation to determine if any more water was coming in. Satisfied that this was not the case, we left the through-hulls alone and went back to the bilge issue. No solution was found so we pumped the water into the head compartment and used the electric shower pump to remove it from the boat.
So ended a drama-filled day. Too wiped to do much of anything else, we ‘vegged out‘ watching the movie Taladaga Night: The Ricky Bobby Story. FYI, that movie is hilarious. It is the first time that either of us had seen it.
What was up for today? Another early departure and this time, for the first time in ages, we could actually sail directly to our intended destination without tacking. And we again sailed fast, averaging better than 7 knots close-hauled for much of the morning. This trip had its share of bashing too so on two occasions, I went forward amidst the waves and looked inside our bow locker to make sure that we weren’t taking on any more water. Prior to our departure, I tightened the two latches on that locker’s hatch so perhaps that was now preventing water from getting in?
Fast and in the direction we want to go. Wow!
What about the bilge? Yes, we took on more water there. Perhaps there is a faulty check valve in the shower sump’s output line that needs to be replaced? We have yet to explore that, nor have we been successful in getting the bilge pumps to function, in spite of another 45 minutes of troubleshooting.
Any other issues? Oh yes, we decided to check on our repair of our reefing system and found that it isn’t working quite properly either. Groan!
Our plans are to wait out the next few days of forecast high winds here in Rum Cay so in addition to enjoying what the community and island have to offer, hopefully we’ll be able to fix at least a few of these things. I hope.
Wow! This is a great post, showing that cruising isn’t all fun and relaxation! Glad everything turned out okay.
I don’t want to lead people on… it’s not always fun, but it is worth it I believe.
Well now, that sounds like a very non-boring couple of days beating to windward. Great descriptions Mike! Carry on.
Once you get all the particulars down, a day of beating will be just another day, maybe even boring. Just kidding! I really hope you guys have a fun filled trip down island and I look forward to all your posts.
The sailing wasn’t un-fun. In fact, we were laughing and smiling most of the time, minus the drama-filled parts.
Maybe becoming a Dyneema captain will help. Congrats.
Thanks Lyndsay. Just call me “Captain Dyneema!” That sounds like a super hero. 🙂
Hi Mike. Here’s a trick I learned many years ago. In checking the water in your bilge…stick your fingers in and taste it! If it’s salty, it’s coming in from the outside.
Like my crew always said: “That’s cruising”!
Good luck…Capt Rich
Hey Rich. That was the very first thing I did. It was salt water.
Let’s hope it wasn’t coming from the head!
hehe… yeah!
If you ever want to find out if and where your boat is leaking, sail to windward in 20-25 knots!
hehe… yeah. Fortunately, no leaks where the water was bashing over the boat.
Three comments:
o Bilge Pumps
o Bilge Pumps
o Bilge Pumps
Roger!
Oy! Carol and I have found that I am often more interested in taking the long route to stay away from crunchies so I can relax and he is more comfortable taking the shorter, “high navigational awareness route” to get somewhere more directly.
Also, regarding Talladega Nights: We love thin pancakes.
hehe… no broken arm for you.
you just stresssed me out…I am selling my boat!
Sorry John.
I’d want that bilge pump working and a good understanding of where the water was coming from before raising the anchor from the sea floor. If that shower sump output has a shutoff on the thru-hull, shut that too while underway. In fact, try closing ALL thru hulls as a first shot at finding the water intrusion – just write notes on things that need them open so you don’t forget.
Hi Jeff
I agree. The shower sump output is above the water line by about 1.5 feet. It does not have a shut off that I am aware of. I assume it should have a 1-way valve but I don’t know that for sure. The only below the water thru-hulls are the holding tank output and the toilet/watermaker input.
Glad you guys aren’t sinking! Sounds like a good sailing experience – perhaps you it just seemed rough to you after such a long time at anchor?
We may be rusty but I don’t think that was it… the conditions were rough.
Well, now that you have tested your boat for leaks, you can relax and find them. Having fixed the current set of leaks, your next windward bash will reveal a whole new set! ISN’T THAT FUN! NOT! Anyway, enjoy the enforced leisure while you fix the bilge pump and find the leaks. BTW, could the water have come in from the lashings on the tramp when you took green water over the bows?
Hi Helen. Yes, we water leak tested the boat, that’s for sure. There is no entry point for water at the tramp but thanks for the suggestion.
That was an exciting day for you then, i bet you slept well after all that, Our friends in Tonga always put a bucket of water in / over the Bulge pumps before setting sail as they left there cocks open one day & $6000nz later as the water pressure came back in filled the sink , flooded the gang way & covered the computer & nav system. & one pump had stopped “bad connection” to it, So after that it was a bucket of water every day just to make sure they were used & didn’t stick.
As for the fishing lines make a cover over your throtles with a sign saying “fishing lines out” & put it there when you put your lines out !!!
Good ideas!
Anytime I looked at my chart plotter and saw the word Rum I would just keep sailing towards that point!
🙂
Wow what an exciting day! I was on the edge of my (couch) cushion when you circled back for the COB. That would have thrown the feng shui of your vessel completely off to be short one cushion. Great post!
Exactly. How could we ever continue with only 1 cushion? I am all about symmetry.
Congrats on being named one of 40 joining the Dyneema Team!!!
Thank you!
When we had heavy weather coming down the the Pacific side of Baja with ‘DreamCatcher’ we had sea water sloshing in the galley and head sink drains as well as the shower drain. Rubber stoppers where on the ‘to buy’ list after that. We also lost a cockpit cushion but with the wind at 30 we did not try our MOB drill, just chaulked it up to experience.
We have not had water coming up through the drains although I have heard of other boats having that issue. I assume you never experienced water like we did? The water in the bilge I think could have been an overflow from the shower sump as they are connected (there is a little hole).
Wow! Thanks for that Mike. As my blood pressure has been fluctuating just a tad lately (due to stress), I am now even more wary of this “stress free” life of sailing! Oh, and did you take your blood pressure after all that excitement? 😉
I think I would have blown up the BP monitor.
Wow. Just Wow. It sounds like your jacklines and harnesses are now etched into the the “required” catagory.
Do you have snaps on the forward edge of the bow cushions? Mine did not when I bought it and we very nearly lost a cushion. Weight doesn’t work, because it “floats” when bashing. I think we have 4-5 snaps each, and that is enough.
We also added tie-ons to the aft cockpit cushions (the ones up top). Here we used webbing and fast-loc clips to the posts.
Add a LONG hose to the manual sump pump, enough to reach through the cabin door. Much easier. We have the 3-foot long plunger pump and it will clear a bilge faster than typical electric pumps. We got lots of practice, in part because the PO liked to take the plumbing apart EVERY year to winterize, creating MANY leaks, that would only show up, one at a time, when sailing hard.
I thought the boat had an installed manual diaphram sump pump? I’ve tested mine but never really used it, as the manual one works better and pumps lower.
The most dependable sump pump is a strong bucket.
I remember you commented here before about that long-hosed pump. We’ll need to get one although I bet we’ll have to wait until we get to a West Marine in PR to do so.
The cushions are attached by the snaps but apparently that wasn’t enough. The rear cockpit ones are not attached and we have lost one of those overboard before too. They all get removed before sailing now.
Hi all
Thanks for the comments.
Here is what we have determined:
1. A rag was stuck in the bow compartment drain hole. With the amount of water we were taking over the bow, I have little doubt that without a place for it to drain out, it could have accounted for the water by the through-hulls.
2. There is no leak in that area (transducers/through-hulls) as after drying it out, it has stayed bone dry for the last two days.
3. There is zero water in the sealed crash compartment.
4. After disassembling the sump pump, checking every hose and part and then reassembling it, it now works. No idea why. It may be as Drew suggested and just wasn’t able to prime.
5. The water in the bow was not high enough to leak around the head hoses. I still believe that the water in the bilge came from the shower sump exit. There is NO loop in both the holding tank vent hose and the shower sump exit hose. I will be fixing both of those, adding more hose to make a nice high loop.