16:52.377S 179:27.602E - Peggy is Hot and Bothered
Irene IV - World Adventure
Louis Goor
Tue 21 Jun 2022 02:29
Land ahoy, we get our first glimpse of the verdant hills of Fiji at sunrise
this morning, 21st June 2022. We are now as far east as we can be, having
logged our Latitude, Longitude coordinates as south and west, we have moved
180 degrees and are now logging them as south and east. We will enter the
Savusavu Bay, on the island of Vanua Levu, later this afternoon and hope to
dock and get customs aboard as soon as possible to go through the lengthy
immigration process. Louis has been filling out form after form for weeks,
so hopefully all will be in order and move relatively fast. I have baked
flapjacks to share in the hopes that the famous Irish sweet treat will put
us in the customs agents' good graces!
The last two days of our passage have been pretty harrowing! Wild wind
swings have moved further and further around ending up in a south-westerly
direction. With speeds ranging from 1 to 22 knots, we have had sails furled
in, put away, changed to the stay sail and repeat. The rains have been
torrential and sudden, in true tropical style. Luckily all areas down below
have remained dry, but decks have been doused and doused again, so today
look sparkling in the glistening sun.
Poor old Peggy has been irritable! Peggy, you might remember is our engine,
thus named as that was our grandmother, Irene's, nick name. With lower wind
speeds her assistance was needed. Soon after switching her on, she
overheated. A real case of a high fever! Louis and Rob donned their oily
work gear and investigated what ailed our iron lady. An impeller change, it
was truly mangled, sea strainers cleaned, a few resident crabs unhoused,
cooling system flushed and flushed again, to remove impeller debris, seemed
to make the fever abate for a while. We ran Peggy at low revs for a few
hours, so as not to tax her aching bones. She appreciated the concern, but
late last night the fever returned. More impeller pieces were removed.
Thankfully now, she is purring along peacefully on pond-like shimmering
seas. However, we are worried as there seems to be a chronic problem that
has not, yet, been diagnosed. Makara, a short distance behind us, has
offered to tow us if we run into a problem. Oyster has organized a dock spot
for us, normally we would anchor, so help abounds. This is certainly an
advantage of being part a rally.
Never a dull moment aboard Irene IV! Nonetheless, the crew are in good
spirits, enthusiastic to explore a new culture and taste some of Fiji's
famed Kava!