Well, they cant always be warm breezes, cocktails, and beautiful sunsets. Today….today was a very trying day…tiring as well. It started off so well too. I guess thats what everyone says in hindsight.
We were up with the sun. I've noticed that we're now in synch with sunrises/sunsets and mores as the days go along. Something about being out there in the elements with no TV and limited internet (although this is much easier now with 4g phones with tethering). Knowing that our trip today would be a quick hop, no more than a couple of hours, we planned on taking it easy. It was supposed to be a day of kayaking at Pennekamp.
So, we had a nice breakfast, listened to the radio, got the weather report, dropped the dink (to tow), and generally meandered. We got a bit too greedy with the amps thinking that we were motoring later…but more on that later. Soon, the itch to move bit us and we made ready to raise anchor. Before starting the engine, I noticed our battery bank was down to 68%…I don't like it going below 70%. We were in the "amp hole" and I didn't think we could dig our way out with the motoring ahead to take it above 90% so that our reefer could keep things cold.
At around 10:30 am, the anchor came up and we were off. Leaving that beautiful cove was tough, but we had miles to go! Well, only about 8 miles
We navigated into the channel and entered Jewfish creek. A bit surreal, but Jewfish Creep is bordered by dense mangroves that border a deep (by Keys standards) channel. Periodically, there are side creeks that all make for a cool little maze that seems much too small for anything small skiffs to pass through. Soon though, we were in Blackwater Sound.
This sound would be fun to sail, but we decided to motor through. The batteries being depleted wore heavy on me. We did see what appeared to be a boat being ready to be sold. Being trailed by a dinghy, they were doing several tacks back and forth, while the person on the dink was taking pictures. I was impressed to see her able to get the dink on a full plane, stand up, balance her camera and take what I would assume be the leading shot on Yachtworld,
By and by, we were leaving Blackwater Sound. My charts had this showing as low as 4 feet, but we never saw less than 6. As we rounded the channels towards Tarpon Basin, we knew we were in Key Largo proper. We saw pockets of what could only be live-aboards with a few outlying houseboats for the hardy ones that wanted to be left alone. Even boats that seemed to have turned into reefs themselves…attached tot he bottom by their growth. Wow. We turned off the ICW and felt our way slowly into the basin.
Now, my charts had me running skeered here. Although I was sounding good depths, thoughts of going clunk-clunk on the bottom kept us far into the basin and right in the teeth of a gusty NE wind. We put down the Rocna and it caught on the first try. Ok, caught isn't descriptive enough. It basically pile drove into the bottom then YANKED us bank with authority. This anchor was *BURIED* and I knew we were set for the evening. So, we snubbed off and made ready to launch the dinghy. After all, we had a great day of kayaking planned in Pennekamp. Oh the plans of men….
So, get the engine all rigged up, turn the diverter valve to the internal tank…and I see fuel dropping into the dinghy through a hole in the cowling. Balls in throat moment here. Not only is this bound to be engine trouble that could sink the rest of our trip, I am dropping fuel mere inches from the Florida Keys, a protected sanctuary where the mere thought of discharging anything can result in what I assume is major jail-time…so the rumor goes :-( Luckily, I am quick with the diverter valve and had an oil boom is nearby. The mess in the dinghy bilge was sopped up and the diagnosis began.
Off with the cowling and immediately I see the problem. It was a cracked fuel line…but it could not have been in a worse place. Tohatsu/Nissan/Mercury decided in their infinite wisdom to use molded elbow fuel lines to connect external tanks to a diverter valve. Not only that, they used, low-profile thin walled 1/4" fuel line. I had replaced much of the lines in the engine with normal 1/4" fuel line and beefier in-line filters…but the crack was in a location I hadn't gotten to. And my spares aboard weren't enough for the run I had to replace. *UGH*
Gears started grinding…and the kayak was deployed. It was decided I would go ashore and find parts. The wind was getting stronger by the minute, and recall, we had anchored far into the basin. I was worried bout being blown off into some mangrove eddy, never to be found again…but surprisingly, the normally unstable cheap-o kayaks I had was in a groove! It handled the chop exceedingly well, and soon I was tied off to the dinghy dock and off to find West Marine, supposedly a quick hop from Key Largo gov't center.
What felt like miles of walking and I found West Marine. Made my way to the hoses/lines section…and they're *OUT* of 1/4" inch line. Unbelievable. The only thing I could think of was to now get OEM inline filters (ones I had thrown out for being crappy) and split the lines I did have to make it all work. Nope….no Mercury/Tohatsu/Nissan filters. The off-brand ones they did have were so big/bulky that they'd never have fit under the cowling. I talked to a guy there and he recommended I go to Napa. One problem, I'm on foot…and Napa is 4 miles away. He then recommended a harley rental outfit that services motorcycles and may have fuel line and inline filter. Off I went..but I did buy hose clamps and two collapsible water containers…$40 (ring ring goes the register).
Sure enough..the harley place is shuttered. As in out of business. Now i'm getting steamed, and its not just from all the walking in the sun. Insult to injury is that I'm walking back/forth across the highway from the entrance to John Pennekamp…where we were supposed to be kayaking through mangroves at this very moment. arch…back to West Marine to see what I could jury rig up.
They were out of 1/4" fuel line, but they had plenty of 3/8" inch line. My thoughts were to splice in an expander to take 1/4" inch line to 3/8", swap out the barb on the inline filters I have with 3/8", then reduce it back down to 1/4" at the carburetor. More hose clamps and barbs were bought…and off I went back to Government Center. Get into the kayak, not so gracefully, and off to the boat. When I arrive, the wife has held down the fort valiantly, and she is running the generator because she noticed the batteries were low….I'm so proud because usually its me thats tweaking and fiddling the power management aboard.
Now the fun really began…I rip off the cowling on the mercury while in the dink, and it seems like *EVERY* attempt to do something would be coordinated with a gust that would knock my screwdriver out the slot it needed to be in. The fuel fumes were sickening, the sun was hot, and the wind was howling. All in all, I was not a happy camper. But, thankfully, was able to gut through it, and as the last hose clamp was tightened, I said a silent thank you to the powers that be. Cruising does not foster atheism
Two pulls on the starting chord…and we were a stinkpotter!!!
Now, it was off to shower…and I used precious amps, but the smell of fuel oil, sweat, and what may have been mild heat exhaustion was worth the expenditure. I emerged human. It was right around 3 pm and I was starving. So we loaded up the dink with our new water containers, lights, miscellaneous safety gear and *OARS*. Back to the dinghy dock and of course, the outboard sputtered at low speed and cut out. Thankfully, we ghosted in and caught a piling. It started right up again, but I am thinking a carb rebuild is in the cards, which sucks because I just this nasty chore 2 months ago.
But we were ashore, and it was off the find a place for luner (like brunch with lunch/dinner). I'd been hearing good things about Hobo Cafe, and at only .25 miles away, it was winner in my book. This was the beginning of our day starting to look up. Spectacular food (conch fritters, yellowtail snapper with artichoke lemon sauce, brownie a la mode), coold drinks, and air conditioning. Aaaaaaaaah
Leaving refreshed, we made our way back to Government Center with a slight detour for 20 lbs of ice for the cooler. We stopped at the water hose and filled up our ten gallons of water (this will be useful for washing hands, dishes, etc as we mount it right at the kitchen sink), hopped in the dink and cranked. Engine roared right up but would stall at low speed or idle. Again, I suspect the low/idle jet is clogged. But we managed to get it going and off we went back to the mothership
Now, I'm listening to the Monday night football game on Sirius and writing this summary as the generator tops off the batteries. Winds are piping up really making me reconsider the whole solar vs wind gen debate...seems like even calm anchorages have enough winds to crank amps (and boy do we use power). Alls well that ends well...