Fri Jun 10 2022
Efficient movement in tidal zones implies that we wish to have the tide helping out rather than punishing us. Recall that we burn about 4.3 gallons per hour of diesel at 1400 rpm, producing 8 knots SOG (speed over ground) on flat, current free water. Noting a SOG of 9 or 10 knots is immensely satisfying! So after sorting out our generator snafu on the morning of the 4th, we proceeded towards the Canadian town of Sydney on Vancouver Island where we could check in with customs. With the current with us we made short work of the trip, completed our information on the App then ended up standing by outside Port Sydney Harbor marina while a massive super yacht took up the entire customs dock. After about 90 minutes we lost hope, cancelled our App input and called Van Isle Marina just a couple miles away to see how clogged up their customs dock was. No problem they said, so we pointed the bow that way, completed the App input yet again and soon we were tied up to their pontoon. Calling Canadian Customs on the special phone, we answered their questions, asked a couple of our own, and we finally told we could press on without being boarded for inspection. They were OK with the groceries, along with the small amounts of beer, wine and liquor we had aboard!
Casting off our lines we made our merry departure and began plying our way towards Thetis Island where our old cruising pals Michael and Doreen Ferguson live and keep their beautiful boat, St. Leger. We anchored in Preedy Harbor late that afternoon and gave them a call to say hi, arranging a rendezvous for the next day, Thursday the 5th. That morning we launched the dinghy and made our way ashore to take a walk, and in the afternoon Michael and Doreen collected us and gave us a tour of the island, followed by a tour of their own awesome place and a lovely smoked chicken dinner. It’s so much fun to catch up with old cruising friends!
Friday I used the optical device Michael had loaned me to test the batteries in the most accurate manner. They all tested good, negating the results of the tired old specific gravity testing device we had on board. Enough writhing around about battery condition, time to live with what we got. Later in the afternoon our old Mexico Sea of Cortez cruising pal Greg Keel arrived in his Corsair F-27 trimaran, planning to collect his crew and race the following day. We had arrived bearing gifts for Greg and he didn’t disappoint with 2 very nice bottles of wine, one of which we all consumed together on the flybridge. Looking around and knowing what kind of chilly wet weather we’d be dealing with the next few months along with the generally crap sailing conditions, Greg acknowledged that the stink pot was certainly the best way to accomplish our mission. We’d more likely get where we were aiming in a timely manner, and remain warm and dry. That works for us.
That afternoon Michael and Doreen moved their boat from the marina out to Preedy Harbor to make room for the various racing boats there just for the weekend. They were going to join us for dinner on Saturday but a bit of a blow came in and we all had to hunker down and keep an anchor watch for a few hours, so we rescheduled for Sunday. Greg and his crew did well in the race and Sunday morning he came by to collect his rather bulky gift and proceed home towards Nanaimo, aiming to arrive at Dodd Narrows just at slack tide. Sunday dinner with Michael and Doreen was a blast, and early Monday morning we made preparations to depart for Nanaimo which involved hoisting the dinghy up to the sun deck roof. We needed to get to Dodd Narrows at slack tide and naturally this was the chance for the dinghy hoist to quit working.
Whipping out my trusty voltmeter (I have 3 and they’re all yellow) it was soon apparent that a bad ground was causing a low voltage to the controller circuit. I found a way to bypass the controller altogether and eureka, the dinghy was soon stowed and we were ready to weigh anchor. Somehow we got all that done and managed to pass through Dodd Narrows at slack tide with minimal current, and soon we were anchored with a pack of other boats across from town and out of the seaplane terminal operations area. Launching the dinghy once again we found our way ashore and explored the local dining, food shopping and chandlery options. A chat with Greg produced the opportunity to test the replacement alternator for the generator the following day, along with a chance to address a new fuel seep on the generator fuel lift pump.
Greg kindly ran me around both Tuesday and much of Wednesday before all those issues were resolved - never could have done it without him. Greg and his lovely wife Mary hosted us for dinner for us on Tuesday, and on Wednesday we moved into the rather expensive Port Authority Marina for 2 nights so that I could complete troubleshooting and repair of the generator. It was expensive to moor there, but made everything a lot easier with faster access to the chandlery and the library with excellent wifi, and by Thursday afternoon the generator was in a fully functional state. The one fun detail was having to re-wire things from the old alternator with external regulator to the replacement one with built in regulator. Once started with the replacement alternator the generator ran wonderfully and the alternator was charging the start battery like a champ, but the generator wouldn’t shut down. After studying the schematics for a bit and chatting with Chris Dunn about it all, I dug out a diode that Australian cruising friends David Frost and Chris Adams had given us back in French Polynesia. Installing that diode on the energizing line did the trick and finally the generator worked as it should.
It’s amazing how members of the cruising community find ways to help one another. How did David know I’d need that diode?
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