Current Position: 17 35.532’S 168 07.670’E; Local Timezone: UTC+21; SOG: 5.8 kt COG: 268; TWS: 18 kt; TWD: 123; Distance to Waypoint (R1, Raine Passage, 270): 1443; Total Miles Sailed: 6953 nm; Engine Hours: 166.3 Estimate Fuel: 60+14+50
Comments: Last night I was walking across the access panel over the shower sump and it collapsed. I was lucky I didn’t break a leg. There are tabs of wood underneath the cabin sole that support the access panel and two of them had broken free. It turns out that we’re only held on with three nails that had rusted through. When I started the repair, I realized I was wrong. The nails were used to hold the wood in temporarily. Each tab had three wood screws driven into it from the top. I had to break out the tools and install three new screws in the tabs (from the bottom). I also checked the other access panels for signs they needed to be repaired. Most are not covering up deep drops (e.g. they have water tanks just beneath them) or they are not generally walked upon (e.g., the one underneath the ladder). After making the repairs, I went ashore and had a nice breakfast. When I got back to the boat I readied her to sail (brought the dinghy, rigged the sheets, etc. when I fired up the engine to weigh anchor, there was a strange ringing noise. I went to the engine room and found the ringing was a loose lock washer. A nut was missing from one of the engine mounts. I searched for it in the engine room but had no luck finding it. Fortunately, I found a galvanized M16 nut at the hardware store and by noon was leaving the harbor. As I left the shelter of the bay, the wind was blowing 20 kt from 122 and I was doing over 6 kt with two reefs in the main and about half the Yankee. I was on a beam reach until I cleared the bay, then was able to set a course via a broad reach for R1 (the beginning of the Raine Passage) which was 1450 nm away. Once offshore and away from the influence of the island, the wind was variable 15-23. I unfurled a little more of the jib, perhaps 75%. I was averaging 6.2 kt directly at the waypoint.
Comments: Last night I was walking across the access panel over the shower sump and it collapsed. I was lucky I didn’t break a leg. There are tabs of wood underneath the cabin sole that support the access panel and two of them had broken free. It turns out that we’re only held on with three nails that had rusted through. When I started the repair, I realized I was wrong. The nails were used to hold the wood in temporarily. Each tab had three wood screws driven into it from the top. I had to break out the tools and install three new screws in the tabs (from the bottom). I also checked the other access panels for signs they needed to be repaired. Most are not covering up deep drops (e.g. they have water tanks just beneath them) or they are not generally walked upon (e.g., the one underneath the ladder). After making the repairs, I went ashore and had a nice breakfast. When I got back to the boat I readied her to sail (brought the dinghy, rigged the sheets, etc. when I fired up the engine to weigh anchor, there was a strange ringing noise. I went to the engine room and found the ringing was a loose lock washer. A nut was missing from one of the engine mounts. I searched for it in the engine room but had no luck finding it. Fortunately, I found a galvanized M16 nut at the hardware store and by noon was leaving the harbor. As I left the shelter of the bay, the wind was blowing 20 kt from 122 and I was doing over 6 kt with two reefs in the main and about half the Yankee. I was on a beam reach until I cleared the bay, then was able to set a course via a broad reach for R1 (the beginning of the Raine Passage) which was 1450 nm away. Once offshore and away from the influence of the island, the wind was variable 15-23. I unfurled a little more of the jib, perhaps 75%. I was averaging 6.2 kt directly at the waypoint.