This has been the spring season where things just seem to break when you least expect. The first thing that went on the fritz was my GPS/Plotter, which I mistakenly left aboard the boat all winter - big mistake on my part. I thought I brought it home when I winterized the boat, but apparently, I didn't. I think it may have taken a hit from condensation forming inside and hopefully, it has healed itself, or at least it seems that way. If not, well, there goes another $795. Fortunately, I was turned on to an app that saved my bacon by forum member MarioG, who is currently working in a marina in South River next to the Route 2 Bridge. The app is Navionics Boating HD, provides all the charts, with great detail, and has lots of wonderful features. Worked like a charm when my GPS was acting up.
The next thing to crash was my battery monitor. I ordered a new one last night, which should arrive at the end of the week. Fits in the same hole the old one is coming out of and is much more user friendly.
Discovered my bilge pump float switch was stuck when I gassed up the boat, turned off the engine and heard something running - the bilge pump. Shut off the panel power, pulled out the switch which was just installed last fall, and it was shot. I ordered a new electronic switch that has no moving parts - the old style float 8switches just never held up very long for me.
There are three things you don't want to run out of on a cruise, especially one with a relatively young lady aboard - toilet paper, ice and propane. I thought the propane tank was at least half full, but I was wrong. After cooking dinner for my sailing partner, Christine, and my guest MarioG, the stove went out and I quickly realized that those tanks you get from the grocery stores and drug stores are only half filled. This led to the discovery that there are very, very few marinas that have propane. Fortunately, my old friend Sonny Forrest in Solomons came to our rescue and had our tank filled at a nearby propane company in town. Now I'm good for most of the season.
When it comes to ice, most marinas have it, but in many instances, those 8-pound bags of ice are often just one chunk of ice that has been partly melted and frozen back together into a bag shaped block. This happens a lot, and I really don't like chipping ice in a bag with an ice pick. I solved this problem by purchasing a counter top ice maker that makes 26 pounds of ice cubes in 24 hours. It is very fast and efficient and will run on my inverter, drawing just 1.2 amps. I can dump a bottle of water in and within 7 minutes have a pound of ice cubes. I LOVE IT!
So, after I finish fixing all the stuff that needs fixin, I'll be restocking the bar, pantry and freezer and heading out again for a week or two. I think I did pretty good this past trip, despite the adverse weather conditions, and managed to do just about everything without any help from my sailing partner, Christine. There were several times when I had to use my rescue inhaler, but I was able to get along without supplemental oxygen for short periods, which allowed my to raise and lower the sails, and take care of anchoring.
Just another fun day in Paradise,
Gary