We had Luis here at Marina Mazatlán come by and start the refit for the stern steps on our Islander Freeport 36' sailboat. We use these steps while at anchor a lot. After about 45 years of being on the boat one of the life line swags broke off. it is on the end that attaches to the steps where they go under the water. So it is no wonder the swaged end rusted apart.
Our Acco anchor 3B 3/8 chain we dragged out of the boat. We then gave it a cleaning and did some paint touch up and then we will put it back in the boat while un-twisting it. It will be ready for more use after crossing the SoC. Taking advantage of a little marina time!
Debbie and I worked out a tie down system for my "Starboard 2017 Atlas EXTRA Starlite
12’0″ x 36″" paddleboard on the foredeck. We left enough room in the straps so we could get Debbie's "Sea Eagle 300x Pro" kayak to fit under the paddleboard with the kayak partially deflated.
Yay!! We have received our new VacuFlush 5000 series VacuFlush toilet base and installed it. It only took six weeks to get the correct one sent. We did get two others, but they had the outlet on the wrong side, so they said keep them. We now have plenty of spare parts! Now it is working just great, no more putting the TP in a bucket, out it goes with the rest of the waste!
I put the first coat of Epifanes varnish on the starboard caprail this morning; Debbie was taping and "foiling". We'll give it another light sanding in a couple days and add another coat.
Today we started our cap rail project, refreshing the Epifanes varnish. We will swap the paddle board to the port side. I enlisted Debbie's help this time on the sanding - she usually helps with the taping. We work well together, and it is enjoyable doing these projects together! The starboard side is now sanded.
Today we started our taping of the cap rail. It gets hot in the sun after a while! Also the paddle board works till the breeze picks up then it is hard to stay in place to tape.
New Barra Diver, Miguel and co-worker...who was referred to us by Pat, s/v Doreal (the fellow who cut out the wood box for our window air conditioner per our template). They had an air compressor! Charge was about $1.50 USD/LOA.
s/v Elegant'sea ⛵ Chip & Debbie 💑 anchored ⚓ in the Lagoon, Barra de Navidad 🛶 Pacific Mexico - February 2023 Look who's in the top right-hand corner of the poster!?!? Hopefully the weather will be favorable for our participation in the Regatta!!
We have our GPS antenna connected to our Icom M802 SSB radio and are getting time, longitude and latitude data! This means to us that we can press the emergency red button (like on the VHF) and send an emergency call around the globe with our position. Also, our Icom radio is now a standalone system, no longer dependent on the VHF or backbone network for the position data!
Yesterday we went to Manzanilloand also "La Casa Del Pescador" a chandlery in Santiago
. We picked up a new stainless-steel shackle to replace the one that got lost from our bridle (well the pin did). Also, purchased some floaty line and some stainless-steel polish.
We went to the "Mayor's Raft up" last night for fun and some great food. Surprised at some of the food, being these boats are at anchor. Pizza, spring rolls, yummy desserts etc! There were eleven or so dinghy's there and a drone of course. In a few weeks you can probably triple that number.
This was leak prevention at the end of the membrane and the "J" tube that was leaking at the bottom of the Clark pump on the right piston. That one of course is hard to get at so it has to all come appart. That is, we pull the membrane from the Clark pump and then turn the Clark pump upside down and remove the mounting plate etc. The membrane end we removed along with the plugs and fitting then replaced two "O" rings.
We spent another many hours and came away with one very slow drip at a different spot. We can take that as a win. We would really need to buy new piping as we have the ferrules and end caps but purchasing the piping and getting it here for one small drip is not what we care to do. The water maker is running like a champ and making great water!
So no serious leaking and one very slow drip.
The water maker is under our settee and is a lot quieter once we put the covers on then the cushions (plus the conditioner is running because it's quite warm here with quite a bit of humidity - not complaining compared to the extreme weather in other parts of the World.)
A fun game of Mexican Train Dominoes with Danny and Deborah on s/v Cyclades. First, we ate a delicious lunch at the Grand Bay Resort then we played. Deborah and Danny kicked our butts, yet fun was had by all!! s/v Elegant'sea ⛵ Chip & Debbie 💑 in Barra de Navidad, Isla Navidad Marina ⛱ Pacific Mexico 🇲🇽 December 12-2022
Debbie took on the VacuFlush 5000 series VacuFlush toilet repair today (fresh eyes). We are trying to purchase a new base for the toilet, as this one (we think) is shot. It has served us for 14 years but now seems to be worn out.
One of our errands today was to run by Opequimar boat yard to deliver a gift to Coral (she collects Minion Legos and we picked up a kit for her while we were in the USA). While we were there I asked if they had any XL shirts....so I was able to score a shirt after years of trying off and on to get a XL. They always seem to have the small or large but not the XL but this time was a charm! They also gave us a couple of hats and a bag to carry the schwag in!
