Current Position: 28 47.476’S 32 04.958’E; Timezone: UTC+2; SOG: 0; COG: N/A; TWS: ?; TWD: ?; Distance to Waypoint (Richards Bay): in a slip at ZYC; Total Miles Sailed: 15574 nm; Engine Hours: 314; Estimate Fuel: 11 +13+50;
Comments: I got up at 5:30 again. As expected, the wind has shifted to the S and that has brought rain. I met with Andries (the head person in the work yard) at 8:00. He gave me material for the boom repair and is letting me use his shop. He will also weld the nuts on the SS plate I am using to fix the boom. I finished making the pieces to be welded. I believe Andries is in Durban tomorrow, so I assume it will be welded Tuesday. My guess is this problem will be solved by Wednesday. In the meantime, it is pouring down rain, so not a good day to work topside. I changed the engine oil and fuel filters, and change the fuel polishing filter. The Racor polishing filter was at its limit. I believe it is impregnated with a compound that absorbs traces of water via chemabsorption, and when saturated, the filter acts as if it is clogged (back pressure increases). The filter looked clean but the back pressure was high. the engine fuel filter showed signs of corrosion, suggesting traces of salt water may still be getting through. However, I note these filters seems be of pretty low quality. I have been thinking about the next stage and whether it is necessary to stop in Durban. Des recommends I do … 80 km and perhaps 18h away, it shaves that much off the passage to East London, reducing the 3+d that would be required to reach there from here. We have not been seeing the 3-4 days of good weather needed to make the direct passage. Accordingly, when I am finished with my work and there is a weather window, I will leave Richards Bay about noon for an overnight passage and arrival in Durban the next morning. The critical items on my punch list are: fix end of boom, treat the wood beneath the winch for the wood borer and reassemble the winch, repair windvane, replace the second reefing line and find permanent solution to reefing lines, seal running lights with caulking, fill water tank, fill fuel tank, provision, and create a flight plan. The flight plan is required in South Africa and it involves getting stamps from the ZYC, Immigration, Customs, and Border Control. This is apparently a while morning effort that involves taking a taxi around to the various offices. Also, if you don’t leave right away, you may have to start the process all over.
Comments: I got up at 5:30 again. As expected, the wind has shifted to the S and that has brought rain. I met with Andries (the head person in the work yard) at 8:00. He gave me material for the boom repair and is letting me use his shop. He will also weld the nuts on the SS plate I am using to fix the boom. I finished making the pieces to be welded. I believe Andries is in Durban tomorrow, so I assume it will be welded Tuesday. My guess is this problem will be solved by Wednesday. In the meantime, it is pouring down rain, so not a good day to work topside. I changed the engine oil and fuel filters, and change the fuel polishing filter. The Racor polishing filter was at its limit. I believe it is impregnated with a compound that absorbs traces of water via chemabsorption, and when saturated, the filter acts as if it is clogged (back pressure increases). The filter looked clean but the back pressure was high. the engine fuel filter showed signs of corrosion, suggesting traces of salt water may still be getting through. However, I note these filters seems be of pretty low quality. I have been thinking about the next stage and whether it is necessary to stop in Durban. Des recommends I do … 80 km and perhaps 18h away, it shaves that much off the passage to East London, reducing the 3+d that would be required to reach there from here. We have not been seeing the 3-4 days of good weather needed to make the direct passage. Accordingly, when I am finished with my work and there is a weather window, I will leave Richards Bay about noon for an overnight passage and arrival in Durban the next morning. The critical items on my punch list are: fix end of boom, treat the wood beneath the winch for the wood borer and reassemble the winch, repair windvane, replace the second reefing line and find permanent solution to reefing lines, seal running lights with caulking, fill water tank, fill fuel tank, provision, and create a flight plan. The flight plan is required in South Africa and it involves getting stamps from the ZYC, Immigration, Customs, and Border Control. This is apparently a while morning effort that involves taking a taxi around to the various offices. Also, if you don’t leave right away, you may have to start the process all over.