ALKIRA - Ermioni 25 April, 2017 - N 37:23.256 E023:15.057

Ermioni 25 April, 2017 - N 37:23.256 E023:15.057

ALKIRA

Charles & Maggie Bevis

Thu 27 Apr 2017 05:33

Beware - ancient mariners at work!

Charlie became very ancient this week!

To celebrate a really indecent birthday on Wednesday Charlie elected to inspect and clean the fuel tanks and clean the fuel tank change-over valve located below the galley sink, as you do on all such great occasions.

The work was necessary as our engine faltered and died on our way over from Porto Heli on Monday, a sure sign of the presence of diesel-bug - a microbial infection that thrives out here in the warm Med promoted by moisture in the fuel and the current prevalence of bio diesel. Past experience has revealed that sludge is transferred from the tanks and then becomes trapped in the banjo pieces of our change over valve, blocking the fuel flow and stalling the engine. Interestingly the wretched stuff doesn’t make it through to the filters.

All of these exciting birthday activities involve dismantling furniture, emptying cupboards and generally disrupting the smooth operation of our fine vessel. Access to the tanks involve dismantling the seating in the saloon while he aforementioned valve is located below the galley sink and access involves emptying Maggie’s store of cleaning materials and removing our drinking water filter.

Having completed an excellent job on all of this and discovered in the course of this that the starboard fuel line had been effectively choked by a half egg-cupful of this noxious sludge, his lordship (Sir Charles Bevis) was feeling particularly pleased with himself and the chaos he had generated in Maggie’s hereto pristine domaine. Our Charlie, in his wisdom, then elected to finish the day by easing the normally inaccessible seacocks located beneath the sink and cleaning the sea water filter for the fridge and freezer. Quite forgetting that the fridges were still running on a "dry-dock" system after the boatyard, he left the sea cock for the fridges in the open position. Now feeling doubly pleased with himself he rebuilt the kitchen cupboard and replaced all magpie’s stuff in good order. In the meantime the boat is slowly sinking because the water hoses that normally supply the fridge condensers are presently disconnected and sea water was running freely into the bilge at an appreciable rate.

Becoming distracted by another outstanding job in the aft toilet this situation went unnoticed for some time. Charlie pumped the bilge but still failed to appreciate the boat was sinking. Eventually the penny dropped! Anno dominae creeping up on you dear boy?

We are berthed in a lovely little town called Ermioni awaiting the arrival of David & Marylin, our friends from Lincolnshire. who are joining us for a passage to Crete Ermioni is pretty place with a fairly typical mix of old and modern whitewashed buildings straddling an ismuth that extends southward leaving the harbour to the west and an open bay to the east. The wooded headland, to the south of the town was the site of an ancient venetian fortress complete with a number of temples, that is until the Turks turned up here and sacked the place. Most of the historic stonework has now gone but the headland has been kept as a national park and the pine wood now covers what is left of the site of the ancient fort and temples.