Preparations for departure
Preparations have been hectic for weeks. Penny has now purchased all the provisions- no small feat. However the weather has been too wet to load things onto the boat.
Dave still has about 13 things left on his "To Do" list. There were 56, but we made a decision to skip some of the less important things.
Then, a few days ago, we discovered salt water in the Saildrive. This is like the gearbox on a car and connects the engine to the propeller. So, we have to get the boat lifted out of the water (in a bit of a hurry) and replace some seals and O-rings. Unfortunately, our long-time shipwright Mark Humpheries has closed his business after his landlord of 25 years died and the kids/heirs- who know nothing about marinas, shipyards and other things- made it impossible to continue. So, we are negotiating with a Shipwright in Careel Bay who is quite close (several hundred metres) but who is also extremely busy. The boat was supposed to come out Tuesday 19th for the two hours necessary but it is now back to Thursday due to the very poor weather- rain and high winds. It is possible there will be further delays because the weather has yet again worsened for the third time in ten days.
Regards
Dave & Penny
