18:53.945N 087:29.943W

Wednesday June 8, 2011 12:30PM

Our initial plan had us making 2 overnight trips with a stop in Mexico before getting to Belize. We decided to combine the two legs and go non-stop to Belize. Now we are motoring down the Mexican coast with plenty of sunshine and no wind. We’ll be anchoring by English Cay Belize tomorrow morning.

I wish I could say it has been an uneventful trip, but not so. Shortly after leaving Puerto Morelas we discovered a slight fuel leak. I’ve tried to tighten the  suspected fitting but find it almost impossible to get a wrench on it. When the engine is hot there’s no chance and when it’s cold I’ve been less than successful. So it drips away until I can try again in Belize.

I check the leak periodically and during one of my checks discovered that the water pump was leaking. At first I thought it was the hose so I changed that – still leaking, so it’s time to change the pump. No problemo – I have a spare pump so I dig it out and put it on. It leaks too, no problemo – I have a third pump, but it’s made by a different company that the first two. I check it over and discover a big problemo – 3 of the 6 screws holding the cover plate are missing. As one who never throws away an old screw, bolt or nut because it may be needed some day in the future, I dig through my supply and find 2 of the missing screws and one that works so I’m good to go.

Next problemo – the hose connections between the different pumps are different and I’m having a hard time getting the pump connected. Then I start thinking about something Roberta said when the first replacement leaked.”Isn’t strange that 2 pumps would fail the same way including one the you had just put on?”  The spare pump was an e-bay purchase so I was unsure of its history but decided to check it out. On both pumps I covered the outlet and blew into the inlet. The old pump had an air leak the new one didn’t so I must have installed it wrong.

Back in the first replacement goes with double clamps on the hoses and – voila, no leak.