Logistics 101

Pictures:
Charming rainbow as we headed toward St. Thomas for provisioning.
One of many Iguana found at the Ferry Dock. They were climbing in the trees overhead.
Real Cruising Ships as seen from the Hotel Pool where we lounged in the afternoon with poolside drinks
Jim outrunning said cruise ship!

Logistics101

Some of you have asked about the logistics of this experience in your various communications so this is aimed at answering your questions.

Internet: We have set up the Blog Spot. We are really enjoying the comments that you are leaving. Please note, we cannot respond to your comments directly from Blog Spot. We can only respond to emails to yorksafloat@yahoo.com. Even this is difficult as it is typically done at an Internet Café so we tend to only upload our updates and quickly review incoming mail. Our AOL accounts are even more tricky as AOL requires a lot of memory and some of the Internet Café sites are dial up or have tight security preventing AOL access. So, we apologize for this being a one-way communication.

Water: The boat has two water tanks. As a result we have about 100 gallons on board. This water is delivered to the sink and to the showers (both the indoor and outdoor shower). We have a hot water tank so we can have hot showers and warm water for the sink. We use the water sparingly but can purchase more water at the larger marinas. I have done some laundry in the little sink and dried it on the rigging using clothespins. We tend to rinse the dishes/pots off in the ocean and then wash them in the sink. We rinse ourselves off in the ocean, lather up and rinse off with fresh water – all of this done off the back deck. On the colder days (under 80 degrees) we treated ourselves to a hot shower.

Toilet: The toilet runs off ocean water. It is a standard marine toilet than must be manually pumped out by the user.

Fuel: The boat has one fuel tank. The single engine runs on diesel. This can be filled at the larger marinas. So far, we have been doing mostly sailing and run the engine for one hour in the morning and one hour in the evening (to charge the battery). This only uses about 1.5 gallons each day. We think (but are not sure) that the boat has a 35-50 gallon fuel tank. The fuel gauge doesn’t work, however, so it’s a bit of guesswork. We fill up whenever we can.

Batteries: There are two batteries. One is like an auto battery for starting the engine. The other is a deep cell battery for running the lights, radio, ventilators (small fans in both the berths and the salon), etc… The lights are pretty good for reading, playing cards etc…

Refrigerator/Freezer: No freezer. The refrigerator runs ONLY when the engine is running. This is another reason to run the engine twice a day. For this reason, we have to augment it with ice. The best is block ice, which is placed at the bottom of the refrigerator, but mostly we can only find cube ice. It lasts about three days at our current rate. The refrigerator is a chest type so stuff tends to be stacked. Kind of a pain…

Food: The provisioning has gone better than we had thought. We brought about 75 lbs of food with us. Tuna and Chicken (in the pouches), oatmeal, raisins, nuts, pasta etc… This has been a great augmentation to the fresh foods we have been able to obtain at the grocery stores. The oven is small with a two-burner stovetop. This runs on propane. There are two propane tanks aboard – a primary and a back up. We tend to make coffee in the morning (Jim with his instant and Lara is using a peculator). We have had everything from eggs, blueberry pancakes, and sausage for breakfast. Lunch has also varied from tuna salad, to cold cuts and salads. The boat has a small BBQ fixed on the back railing. It seems to be prominently featured in many of our pictures. We have par-boiled meats and then cooked them on the grill. We also have a beverage cooler where our drinks are kept cold (most of the time). We seem to use a gallon of drinking water (separate from the fresh water in the boat tanks) per day so this item is always on the top of our shopping list.

Other supplies: So far, we have been traveling in the more remote areas so it is not easy to find stores. This results in careful use of our precious items. We reuse when possible and don’t waste much. I have kept a close eye on our only pen and pencil on board. Tomorrow I think we will actually be in the larger port and be able to purchase another pencil and pen. It costs from $3 to $5 per bag to have someone take your trash.

Storage: Not much. Most of the benches in the cabin have boat support systems. We tend to put stuff in every nook and cranny.

Sleeping: It took a vacation for Jim and I to decide to sleep apart! There is the forward “V” berth. This really is not meant for two 6’ folks like us. The larger berth is at the Stern of the boat and kind of wraps around – Way too enclosed for Lara who seems to have developed some claustrophobia as she has to low crawl over Jim to get to the door then up and around. Apparently the salon converts to additional sleeping. I guess we will have to figure this out when the girls get here! I have a feeling that someone might be sleeping on deck.

Bumps, bruises and first aid: I have more bruises than ever! The interior doors (hatchways) have a lip on the top and bottom. This design (for strength) combined with the fact that the boat is rocking too and fro creates many opportunities to whack your head and feet as well as be tossed into cabinets and stairs. We aren’t doing any close up photography! In addition, our family physician gave us several prescriptions and we created a custom first aid kit. Let’s say that we have used it more than a few times for the various ailments from foot gung to infection and an allergic reaction. The one really bright spot has been the lack of seasickness (Lara). After MANY worries on this topic, it has turned out to be a non-issue. I guess I got my “sea legs” right away!

Communications: We brought along the Satellite Phone (from the airplane). Our cell phones don’t work as the Caribbean Cell phone company has tight control over access and we did not purchase their augmentation plan. The Sailboat comes with a CD player (music really cannot be heard on the deck) and radio. We managed to forget to bring any CD’s and radio reception is poor – downright annoying. I am looking forward to the girls arrival as I know they will bring good tunes! There is a VHF radio used for weather reports, communications etc… but its reception is also spotty. This can be really annoying to just hear every third word…”winds …. Seas 6 to 9’… Small craft advisory…. Much… week… cloudy”. This is delivered in a computer voice with an interesting accent that makes all reports seem ominous…

Navigation: We have several maps that we use as well as two excellent Guide books that describe the routes, anchorages, hazards as well as the places to shop, gain fuel and water etc…

Fishing: Initially poor. Sailboats are not meant for fishing. We seem to have found that live bait works the best. We hope to figure this out and have better stories to tell on this topic.

Entertainment: We go out snorkeling several times a day. So far, we have seen barracuda, reef sharks, many colorful fish, jellyfish, sea turtles, puffer fish, sand crabs, conch, leopard rays and lots of sea urchin. This is not an area where sharks are known to eat people and barracuda are only rarely a threat (don’t wear jewelry in the water).

I have read three novels just this week alone! Jim finished the entire set of the Narnia Chronicles and two other novels. There are excellent book trade stations at most of the marinas. You can pick up a few books and drop off what you have finished. We tend to read at night (it gets dark at 6:30pm) for a few hours before going to sleep (at 9pm!).

Planning our next days adventure is our post dinner discussion.

Interesting Characters we have met: Although not required by the Charter Company, Jim and I decided to hire a professional boat Captain for the first three days. Due to our inexperience in sailing, we thought it would be a good idea. This was a HUGE success. Captain Neil Perk was a great teacher, as we needed to improve our hands on with anchoring, mooring, docking and overall sailing skills. He worked with us on obtaining fuel/water as well as how to use the various boat systems. His alter ego, Chef Maurice seemed to appear at most meals and teach us how to cook great meals as well as provision wisely. In the short three days he was with us, we stopped at four Islands, three bars and several marinas. He has a rich history and shared many a tale of his adventures in flying, sky diving and entrepreneurial adventures. See his girl friend’s web site at http://www.donnalange.com/ who is currently on a solo circumnavigation in a 28’ boat!

Losses to date: Two glasses that flew out of the cabinet during a 6 knot heeled over sail. One snubber line not properly tied on. One flash drive left behind at an Internet Café. One pair of surf shoes that disintegrated after only a week’s use. One pair of sunglasses that fell off during a dingy ride.