Work, Work and Then More Work

 

Home for the Holidays we are and with plans to stay through the month of January. A lot of skiing is on our agenda as well as visits with family and friends.

Our tree is dazzling this year, and we enjoy it to the fullest, keeping the lights sparkling from morning into the night. Son David and his family join us for Christmas. What fun to share the excitement of family gift-giving with 2-year old grandson, Henry!

 

 

 

 

 

The child loves to be outdoors, and we head out for hikes with him. Though happy to be on Dad’s back, he is now at the age where he wants to walk on his own.

Granddaughter Berlin joins us for her annual New Year’s Week visit. It is a fun time having her with us, but the real activity we enjoy doing together at this time of year, skiing, proves a non event. With unusually warm winter weather and no snow, skiing is limited to man-made snow runs ribboning down brown dirt mountains. We ski only twice for about 2 hours until the boredom of skiing down the same few beginner to low intermediate slopes wears on us. We keep hoping for more snow, for a monster blizzard to be honest, but each day’s weather forecast shows sunshine and warm temperatures.

 

 

 

 

 

January 22nd – To commemorate The First Mate’s celebratory 70th birthday, David and family drive in for the weekend and son Eric flies in from New York. That’s all The First Mate wanted for her birthday – family to be with her for the day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Everyone leaves, except Henry, for he is spending his first solo week with Nana and Poppy. What a fun time we have with lots of laughing, hugging, playing, and reading, though first and foremost in his mind is riding around the ranch and bumping through the woods on the Green Machine with Poppy.

Our plans for a full January of skiing go bust. There just isn’t enough snow. We only take on the mountain 3 times for short 2-hour tours, and given how avid a skier The Captain is, that is a testament to how poor conditions are.

 

 

 

 

Earlier, in mid December, we had received some disconcerting news – the scheduled rally to French Polynesia on which we had been planning and working had been cancelled.  For several months, Lyn and John Martin, who were leading the rally to French Polynesia and were planning to sail on our boat, had been in negotiations to sell their company, Island Cruising Association.  Initially, it was contemplated that the new owners would take over the company, and John and Lyn would continue with the coordination of this particular rally.  The final details proved problematic, and the new owners opted to simply cancel the French Polynesia rally.  With 10 – 12 boats already signed up or showing interest in the rally, this was surprising news. The distances to and from French Polynesia require at least a 6-month commitment, and many, like us, have been planning for more than a year. People have been tuning up their boats, updating health and safety certifications required for off-shore New Zealand boats, lining up crew and, in short, have already spent a great deal of time and money in preparation for this significant trip.

Since John and Lyn have a non-compete clause, they could not continue to organize the rally. As far as Avante is concerned, if they still want to go, then the four of us will sail. From emails going back and forth, it appears that many of the other boats feel the same way. However, without an organized rally, there is a customs clearance issue that must be addressed. The main port of entry into French Polynesia is Papeete. In 2010, when we first entered French Polynesia on our Pacific crossing from the Galapagos, we were allowed to check in upon arrival in the Marquesas. Once that was done, we could freely cruise around and even stop to explore the Tuomotus. All this was under the acknowledgement that we were proceeding westward to Papeete for final clearance and eventual departure. Our planned 2018 itinerary has us checking into the Austral Islands and then continuing further east and north to the Tuomotus and the Marquesas before turning west to Papeete. Clearance procedures appear to have changed. One can still sail these outer islands without initially clearing into Papeete, but one must now present oneself at each local police or gendarme station on each island one visits to show one’s credentials and get a stamped clearance. We know instinctively that this procedure is going to be a real time-consuming pain. This is confirmed when we read on noonsite.com, a global cruiser’s network, that not all of these small gendarme stations are up on current Customs regulations. It further cautions, “Remember that the gendarmes are not Customs officials and in fact often know very little about the latest Customs regulations.” We can foresee lengthy waits and bottled frustration as officials ponder what to do with us and our documents.

With the organized rally, we were going to pay to fly in Customs Officials from Papeete to the Australs to give all the boats a complete and official French Polynesia clearance. Then we would be able to sail all the islands with no attendant gendarme visitations. These officials are more than happy to do this, for who doesn’t want an all expenses paid boondoggle? The cost is several thousand dollars, but split among all our boats, it is a manageable sum. If the rally had gone on as planned, all boats would be departing New Zealand at the same time, and thus all would be arriving in the Australs within days of each other. Flying those officials over would have worked perfectly. Without the structure of the rally, everyone now wants to choose their own best dates of departure. Some are looking at April. Other at the beginning of May, and some even to the end of May. Getting together to fly those officials out is not going to work. Perhaps, we hear, if we hire a French Polynesian agent, he can handle officialdom so we don’t have to do all this checking in with the gendarmes. Obviously, more research needs to be done.

Saturday, February 3rd – We have returned to New Zealand for three weeks but not to sail. In preparation for this rally and for having another couple aboard for several months, we had commissioned a mountain of work to be done on the boat.  We need to check on the progress of this work or, as happens with boat work all over the world, the lack of progress. What is the work being done?

• Purchase and install new Yanmar Diesel Engine
• Overhaul Generator
• Purchase and install new Batteries
• Replace Sail Cover
• Recut jib
• Replace jib sheets and main halyard
• Purchase new mattresses in aft cabins and new topping for owners’ cabin mattress
• Repair worn part of dodger.
• Purchase and install Solar Panel on top of bimini
• Purchase and mount new Hydro-generator on stern of boat
• Purchase new dinghy to replace leaking one
• Purchase new outboard motor for new dinghy
• Commission new stainless steel anchor roller to replace bent one
• Repair hydraulic backstay adjuster
• Touch up varnish
• Have life raft inspected and certified

This is the biggest list of boat work that we have ever had. We know that once we leave New Zealand, we are not planning to be anywhere with great marine services for several years.  If we think that we might need something done during that period, best do it now. Also, Avante is now 18 years old and has sailed extensively. We are very cognizant of the challenges ahead and want to make sure every system on our boat is in top working order before we sail forth.

As we had anticipated, we are disappointed with the amount of work that has not been completed on the boat. The new engine is in place but not connected. The new batteries are in place but not connected. The generator is being worked on, but not yet finished. Everything is either a work in progress or has not even been begun. The Captain sets to work …. on people and things.

Within a week, the batteries are all connected properly. The engine is fully connected and runs smoothly, but we are not supposed to use it until it passes operational testing out on the water. Frustratingly, that we cannot do now or any time soon because some of the rigging holding up the mast has been disconnected to remove the bent anchor roller, and obviously it would not be wise to leave the marina until the mast is secure. The generator motor is reassembled and is soon running. Running it is, purring along nicely, eating up diesel, but not producing electricity! That is why one has a generator on the boat in the first place. Now what is the problem? No one knows. We have never had a problem with the electrical generation side of this machine, and it was not something that was worked on. One person after another comes to take a look at it and fix it.  The solution is always just a few days away, and by the time we finish up our three weeks, it is still not working.

For a while now, we have known that an early April departure was not going to happen. Due to unsettled weather conditions being experienced all over this globe, the weather gurus are cautioning any boat contemplating heading out across the Roaring Forties to wait at least another month. Let the cyclonic summer weather dissipate and the more settled winter weather of the Southern Hemisphere take hold. With the continued delays in the projects on Avante, we are somewhat relieved. A bit of pressure is taken off us, though the downside of this delay is that our cruising itinerary in French Polynesia is going to have to be truncated. With not-ever-to-be-messed-with plans to return to Telluride in August, some part of our cruising is going to have to be cut short.

In between and around all the contracted work being done on the boat, both The Captain and The First Mate have their own lists of things to do, clean and repair. We expect these next three weeks to be very busy ones. One very important and time consuming task The Captain wants to do is clean all the winches. Each winch has to be broken apart into its many intricate gears. In the case of the larger winches, that’s well over 100 parts. Then each part has to be cleaned in kerosene, dried, then lubricated and put back in the same order it was taken out. Several sunny days are desired for this, as the work is all done out in the open on deck. New Zealand is known for its rainy weather, and this summer seems to be working to beat the records. Dismally, The Captain delays this project a number of times, because of the rain.

The First Mate also has her list of tasks she wants to do. Most of that entails emptying out every nook and cranny on the boat, checking for mold, cleaning thoroughly and then updating all her inventory spreadsheets.  Looking around the disarray below decks, she is dismayed as she realizes much of what she needs to do is undoable.  Everything that is normally stored in the 2 aft cabins  is now strewn throughout the boat, as the aft cabins are being kept clear to allow workers to access the engine and generator.  The Captain seems to take over any free space to do his projects.  Stuff is stacked everywhere and waiting for her to trip over – which she does much too often. There is not a place to sit. The dining table is piled high. The galley is unrecognizable as such with no counter space in sight. The First Mate is stymied. To begin her tasks, she needs a place to work. If she is going to empty out cabinets and drawers, she needs a place to put things. There is hardly room to turn around let alone pull more stuff out into the clutter. Additionally, to begin all the intense cleaning, she needs hot water. Not just a little tea kettle heated up, but lots of running hot water. Our water heater does not work off battery power. It will work if plugged into 110 shore power, but this is 220 New Zealand. We need the generator, but that’s not a promising prospect at the moment. The First Mate does what little she can, but the get “down and dirty” tasks are going to have to wait.

In all honesty, she does not have that much time to do anything. Her friend, Jane Minor, is arriving from Australia for a week-long visit ostensibly to get out of the blazing heat Australia has been experiencing this summer, but also to jointly celebrate our 70th birthdays. Who would have known what 2 little girls from Rye, New York were going to end up doing with their lives and that they would have stayed in touch all these years? Celebrate, we will. How? Why not with a bicycle trip form one side of the North Island to the other? “It’s the Twin Coast Bike Trail,” Jane tells The First Mate who hasn’t been on a bike in 5 years. “It’s mostly flat”. (flat? here in New Zealand?) “It follows an old railroad bed and then meanders along a stream down to the coast”. The First Mate googles information on the trail. It looks manageable. Okay, we’ll do it. The Captain rolls his eyes convinced that he’ll somehow end up on a rescue mission.

 

Did I mention that it rains a lot in New Zealand? It does, and our chosen biking dates show nothing but rain. See all that blue on the chart? Following The Captain’s advice, our first day is to be a short 8 miles to the town of Kawakawa where a B&B awaits us. Our bikes are delivered in the rain on the morning of our departure. They look fine, feel fine and ride fine. We take them back to the boat in the rain, peel off our wet stuff and go below to check the weather forecast again. Studying the radar, The First Mate notes that the rain should be easing a bit in the afternoon. We only have about 2 – 3 hours of riding to do. Let’s wait. We do.

 

 

 

 

Following a nice lunch at the marina cafe, we no longer can put off our departure. Fortunately, as the radar had shown, the rain has indeed lessened. It’s still drizzling, but that we can ignore. Wrapped in plastic bags, we wedge our back packs onto our bikes, pose for the obligatory farewell photo and head off. The bike trail begins at the end of the marina.

 

 

What a great ride! What a memorable trip! The rain kept up, but never so hard that we could not see where we were going. In fact, we decided that the rain actually kept the temperature quite comfortable. We were never too hot nor too cold. Though the bikes and our backsides got incredibly muddy, the trail was well maintained and never slippery.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wobbling slightly, we crossed an old hanging trestle bridge.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mesmerized, we gazed down on turbulent muddy waters from the deck of a suspension bridge built over the old train tracks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cows do not mind the rain, and there were plenty of them enjoying their lives in verdantly green pastures.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The First Mate actually asked a man hosing down his car if he would not mind hosing us down. We and our bikes were so plastered in mud that The First Mate felt guilty about showing up so despicably attired at the next B&B. Our mothers did not bring us up this way!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our bikes were walked through a dark, slippery tunnel, but that was of little concern, thankful as we were that the tunnel was there so we did not have to traverse the mountain.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We shared a family pizza dinner at the Center of the “Umaverse” EcoLodge not far from the little enclave of Umawere.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, we savored a glass of wine and a glorious sunset on our last evening looking over the water at the Historic Horeke Lodge near the end of the trail  ….  and talked about plans for another bicycle trip next year! We can do it!

 

 

 

 

 

Jane has left. The First Mate is back on the boat, and nothing has changed. Why the generator is not working is still not resolved. In less than a week, we will be flying back to the States. The Captain is still scrambling to get everyone to finish their work. A list is made for all the various contractors of what needs to be done and when they should be doing it. The boat is off limits for the first week we are gone, as Ruth, who does great varnish work for us, cannot have the mechanics going in and out of the boat while she is varnishing the entryway.  All understand, but will it be followed? The intent is honest and good, but this is a boat. Working on boats is somewhat like remodeling an old house. One never knows what one is going to find or what glitch might crop up. All know of our plans to sail to French Polynesia. All know that the clock keeps ticking toward our departure date. Once we head back to the States, The Captain knows that all he can really do from afar is watch, wait and hope.