Seen better days .....

Wednesday 2nd November 2016

We are stuck in a very expensive marina, and have been for 3 days now.

Having sailed off the anchor in Greys Bay, something I was feeling pretty chuffed about, we then sailed down to Abell Point, Airlie Beach on Monday 31st October. This was a pleasant enough sail though there was not much wind - which worked very much in our favour when we arrived here as getting in on one engine was going to be enough of a challenge let alone if the wind were howling as well.

But we did it !!! Number 2 big pat on the back for today - first sailing off the anchor then getting into an unknown marina on just the port engine. We felt good!!!

Arriving at 3pm the first call was to AllMarine Repairs here at Airlie Beach regarding our starboard engine. They sent a really nice young chap, Justin, down pretty quickly. He assessed it and found the problem to be with the exhaust water lock box - this is a part of the exhaust where the mixture of engine gasses and cooling water are before being pushed out of the boat. Because we had an issue with ours, the filthy exhaust water was not leaving the boat, (luckily bilge pump working well). But this was not the entire problem, as we discovered the next day.

Water lock box innards, supposed to be a nice round pipe
not a screwed-up mess!

New water lock box had to be ordered Tuesday - it would be here on Wednesday's courier (God willing) - Justin would fit it Wednesday afternoon. That sorted, we asked him to do a complete service - then we'd have a start date for the future and know just when things had been done. It was Melbourne Cup holiday in Victoria - lucky for us we were in Queensland else everyone would be closed !! Then he discovered the next problem - or maybe this was the reason for the entire problem. The water intake hoses that had been used on SOL were actually not proper suction hose - so when they heated under use and were put under load they just "sucked" in on themselves and this meant no water getting in to cool engine - engine got too hot - water lock innards melted - exhaust going into engine bay not outside - lots of mess and black smoke !!!!! Then when it cooled down and we looked - the oil level was fine, the coolant level was fine - there was nothing for us to see to diagnose the problem. So - we needed proper suction hoses.

Abell Point Marina at Airlie Beach have a concierge car for tenants use - marvellous as we could use this, race off to ENZED and get hose and joiners while Justin continued on SOL.  And the next problem came to light - the port engine water pump shaft and bearings were on their last legs so this needed rebuilding - Ho Bloody Hum - this would not be ready till late Wednesday afternoon.

Birds perched on top spreaders on yachts
Abell Point Marina

We got organized to leave Abell Point first thing Thursday and decided to head back to Townsville. We would leave SOL there at Breakwater Marina for the next couple of months, till the house settled, then come back up to her and do the trip south again - maybe we'd get further next time. 

At first light Thursday we left - and what a good feeling that was, after a totally unexpected and very expensive three days. Even an unscheduled trip up the mast outside Airlie Beach to fix an aerial did nothing to dampen our spirits.

Sunrise just out of Airlie Beach



Very happy captain as we leave the most expensive marina !!

We overnighted back to Townsville, covering the 136nm in 27 hrs averaging just over 5 knots  - not racing speeds, we used the engines a bit as the wind was very fickle - but we were content with our first overnight sail and arrived back at 0800 Friday. 

Time for a sleep !!!

We now had to "Cyclone Proof" SOL as cyclone season runs 1 November to 1 April.

To do this we took down the screecher, the jib and the storm jib and stowed them in the spare cabin. We will tie the main even though it is fully covered with a boom bag but it is advised to tie it as well. We have tied the wind generator blades so they can't fly around especially as the wind increases. We took the outboard motor off the dinghy. Nothing loose can be left outside - there is the likelihood that things can take off in the high winds. Basically it entails stripping as much as you can from the exterior of the boat and securing it inside. We leave extra mooring lines that can be attached should it be necessary.

SOL stripped and ready for cyclone season

PLAN FOR THE WORST - HOPE FOR THE BEST seems to be the motto.

On our way .....

Left Townsville marina 0600 on Friday 28th October for Cape Bowling Green, a handy days sail away. Wind was only 10-15kt SE, not perfect but we didn't care !!

Along the way we had a bit of fun playing with the AIS and then the Auto-pilot. We were happily anchored in the lee of Cape Bowling Green by 3.30pm and dropped the little Walker Bay dinghy in the water and tootled ashore for a walk around. It's a fairly windswept, barren place, with not a lot to recommend it apart from being an important breeding ground for some birds and turtles.



Turtles at Cape Bowling Green

Sundowners were enjoyed watching the sunset.

Sunset, Cape Bowling Green

Next morning we were off to Upstart Bay, 32nm turned into 40 as we spent the day tacking into the easterlies again, Jamie hand steering a lot of the time as we can't seem to get the auto-pilot to work well when we are close hauled into the wind - yet another thing we will have to sort out over time. Again a pleasant, sheltered anchorage in Shark Bay, Cape Upstart.

Fish and salad for dinner is fast becoming just a dream - we have had the line out trolling a great deal of the trip and I have decided that fish aren't found in the sea, but come from a little man who sells them already filleted.

On leaving Upstart we had an issue with our starboard engine - an alarm sounded, so we shut off that engine and on checking the alternator belt seemed a little loose, the engine smelt a bit hot but otherwise nothing much else to see (of course, the socket needed to tighten the belt is a 13mm - we have on board all the even sizes !! so a wrench did the job).

We passed Abbott Point Coal Loading Facility around 2pm - amazing looking place with huge ships waiting their turn to load up at the end of the jetty which is 2.75km offshore. The coal is sent out to the ships on a huge conveyor belt and around 50 million tonnes of coal is exported from here each year and there are plans for expansion which will make it the largest coal port in the world.

Abbotts Point Coal Loading Jetty - 2.75km long !!!

We entered Greys Bay, just out of Bowen at 4pm and when we turned on the engines to anchor, all seemed fine. But not for long - very soon the alarms were sounding again and the starboard hull was filling with thick black smoke which was also billowing out vent holes just above the engine bay into the cockpit. Engine off, anchor just using port engine, take a breath - and a look ..... grimy black smoke film covered the engine bay and the walls of the little starboard cabin. Nothing seemed obvious at first - the belt which Jamie had tightened was still the same, the oil level was good, when she had cooled we could see the coolant level was good too - hmmm - now what.

Then Jamie spotted the water outlet hose for the exhaust had popped off the exhaust water lock box - so that was why there were signs there had been filthy blackish water in the bilge. We put the hose back together, and test started it - pretty quickly it popped off again spraying filthy water at Jamie and around the cabin. Shouts from Jamie had me turn it off really fast.

This was bigger than we could handle !!

We spent a fair time googling Yanmar diesel marine repairs, not being able to do anything more (Sunday night), deciding we would have to get someone out here in the morning, feeling that we didn't want to negotiate our way into Bowen on only one engine. We would probably have to get someone up from Airlie Beach, it being the nearest biggest place.

Monday morning, awake way too early to call marine repairs and faced with a long wait IF we could get someone out to us, Jamie suggested we head for Airlie Beach and get it fixed there.

We sailed off the anchor, and left Greys Bay. 

Let the fun begin ......

Monday 24th October 2016

And so we are sitting here, in Breakwater Marina, Townsville, on our own boat at last.



Coffee and Banana Bread for breakfast - Yum !!

Ron, boat broker extraordinaire, collected us from Townsville airport on our arrival 7.30pm Sunday 23 October. He dropped us at the marina and we reintroduced ourselves to SOL after a nearly three month absence. Luckily she was just as we remembered!!!

After a not terribly restful night - sounds like water running, electric wires crackling and some sort of scratching kept us alert a lot of the time - Monday was filled with grocery shopping, sorting ourselves, finding where things were and trying to figure how they worked then dinner at our favourite little fish and chip place - Simply Tops - on Palmer St.

Tuesday morning 10am Ron took us out to Queensland Transport Department to change the boat registration into our names. Many forms later and parting with $460 to the nice people in Queensland Government, SOL is officially registered to us in Queensland. If we go to Victoria and register her there - only $82/year - we can cancel Queensland rego then apply and (apart from some various fees and charges) will get a refund for the balance of the year !!

Lunch on board in the marina then it was out to sea for our first trip.

A fairly nerve wracking (unnecessarily it turned out) departure - never having driven a 41 ft long, 23 ft wide vessel before - we raised the main and jib (one reef in each) in 18 kts of wind and set off for Magnetic Island. It was a multi-tack trip in the easterly but that was fine as we got in a fair amount of sail handling practice over the next 3 1/2 hours it took for us to get to our  overnight anchorage in Horseshoe Bay.

This is where we encountered our first real teething problem - the anchor winch (witch/bitch) has a power switch - of course - but where the hell was it located ?????

We found the foot switch and remote easy enough - but on pressing both - nothing. No power to the switch. Come back to main switch board - nothing labelled "anchor" or "winch" or even anything remotely like that. Opened cupboards, searched under saloon seat where electrical cable came through. Nothing.

Getting rather frustrated and just a little bit desperate, we decided to drop the anchor by hand and search again after we had the boat secure. No easy task that. It was getting dark, and windier, the chain was wrapped tight around the winch and I had visions of Jamie losing a finger or two at the very least !!! We dropped about 50metres of chain - well it kind of dropped itself such was the force - there was no stopping it it seemed ! But at least we had the anchor down!

Time for a drink - and a think.....
Where would you hide the power switch for the anchor winch??

Half an hour later, after searching just about the entire boat - we found it - of course, in a locker, in the cockpit, behind the saloon door......obviously.

The night passed well, the anchor held perfectly, all those strange noises we had heard when in the marina were non existent out here, must be just marina sea critters having parties.

Rocks that reminded me of Canadian Inukshuk on Magnetic Island

Up to another beautiful day, we decided to set off for Rattlesnake Island, about 20 nautical miles away, spend Wednesday night, and Tuesday afternoon we'd swim around, clutching our scrapers, and clean the growth from the bottom which had built up over the last couple of months lying idle in the marina.

However about four nautical miles from Rattlesnake up comes a very fast, official looking, powerboat - manned by two young gentlemen from the Australian Defence Forces, who informed us that we best be heading in the other direction as they were conducting live bombing exercises on Rattlesnake - So could we turn around and leave now!!

Live bombing on Rattlesnake Island

So back to Townsville it was.

Thursday was spent provisioning for our trip south, refuelling, catching up with washing and generally trying to make sure that we were ready to leave at first light Friday.

A  really pleasant BBQ dinner at Ron (boat broker) and his wife, Gillian, as well as George and Corry, the previous owners of SOL rounded off our stay in Townsville.

We were on our way south.