Saturday, June 27, 2015

2nd post of voyage to St Lucia

@ Deshies (pronounced Day Hey) Guadalupe Saturday 20th June

daylight inside chain locker




cracked frame


top bow it measures a 1/2" gap


bottom bow

Started on the temp repair. I had found a length of 1/2” stainless all thread studding long enough, with nuts and lock washers, I had also found some bronze plate 3/8” thick and some teak 1” thick by 4” wide. Then I drilled a hole right through the boat and knight heads, third plank down, cut the bronze in too and drilled 1/2” hole in each, cut teak in too as well for battens with a 1/2” slot. Assembled all this on the all thread rod, and hammered it through the hull, then tightened the nuts up really hard, this pulled all the planks back tight to the hull, success. That took me all day to achieve, and will have to be fixed properly later.
Moored in the anchorage @ Deshies

studding inserted starb

and Port side

U bolt that failed on running backstay and fitting for temp repair (long one)


completed repair port

completed repair starb

Sunday 21st
I made a repair to the running backstay fitting, I took the old one out and had to re drill a new hole in an adjacent plank, for a different fitting, with a batten under the deck to spread the load, and bronze plate, this will have to be fixed as well later. After I finished that about 1700hrs I went ashore to relax a bit.



Monday 22nd
Tidied the boat up again and tried to clear customs, every time I went there it was closed, so failed.
Tuesday 23rd
A very bad storm all day prevented me from leaving the boat to go ashore, read a book about the Caribbean pirates and storms of the past, didn't quite help with my present frame of mind.
Wednesday 24th
Quite a good days weather so decided to leave again, tried to clear customs 3 times with it shut each time. Took the decision to leave anyway and left at 1600hrs bound for St Lucia with a serious amount of trepidation as to the outcome.
All went pretty well but forecast wasn't that good, and the actual weather wasn't good either. Battled my way down Guadalupe and out into the passage on course for Dominica, made that and the bow was holding as was the running backstay, even more of a battle down behind Dominica and eventually I had to hoist the big jib to get more to windward. Then out past Dominica into the sea again towards Martinique, I made that just as it went dark about 1830hrs, but the weather had calmed a lot and I flew past quickly, arrived at the passage to St Lucia at 0100hrs Thursday 25th.
This was with only 24 Nm to go to Rodney bay, I decided to heave too on the same tack and wait for morning, during this manoeuvrer the port sheet lead pulled out of the deck fitting and I had to tie the sheet to a cleat, but once back on port tack I wouldn't need it any more, with boat speed now only 1 to 2 knts and me being very tiered I put the alarm on for an hour and had a kip. When it woke me I came on deck to check around, I had gone nearly a mile, that's all, so went back to bed, when I woke up again it was 0500hrs dawn was just starting to happen, I had traveled only 2Nm during that time. I tightened the steering gear up cos it had come loose, then I blew the jib, the boat took off like a greyhound out of the trap and accelerated to 8 knts towards St Lucia, I made it there just after 0900hrs, dropped the sails and proceeded to the marina were I was put on the 'D' dock number 24.
So here I am safe in port again a week late but a survivor again with more stories to tell. Preparations will start on Monday next for installing the new engine while I relax for the weekend.

Roy