Bermuda
Persephone... Cruiser/Racer
Nigel & Karen Goodhew...
Tue 23 Apr 2013 22:40
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Well, we made it into St Georges Harbour, Bermuda
at 1630 local time on Monday, 22nd April
The remaining part of Monday, after our posting at
dawn, was somewhat less than straightforward.
Nigel shook out the overnight reef in the mainsail
in order to move Persephone's progress up a notch, as we had set our hearts on
arrival without another night at sea. The wind continued to reduce however and
by 0830 was down to around 8 knots with P trickling along at under 4 knots in
the left over lumpy seas. This meant our arrival was more likely to take place
after dark, (not recommended) so reluctantly, we resorted to the addition
of the "iron topsail", to help restore our speed.
Our engine has some curious traits...one is that,
after starting, there is a time lag, sometimes up to a couple of minutes, before
the smart charger kicks in and harnesses the alternator to recharge batteries
etc. This time there was no exception and we had a couple or three minutes
motorsailing before the revs dropped as the alternator belt load increased atter
this lag. But the extra load was too much for the engine, and with a final
puff of exhaust smoke, it died. All attempts to restart it were in vain. We had
a problem.
Well, we have been here before, and the symptoms
were similar to our fuel starvation issues a few months back. Nigel checked the
filters and did not like what he saw...the fuel looked dirty,
Our expertise with diesels is limited, but, as the
saying goes, "give a diesel air and fuel and it should run for ever". There was
no problem with air, so we neded to sort out fuel. Nigel changed both the
filters and bled the system...after switching off all electrical consumers
except the pilot, but still no joy! An hour later, the wind had picked up again
but we stil had no engine. All we could do was repeat the well rehearsed
manoevres to ensure fuel was getting to the engine and after a further half an
hour, she was coaxed into life....
It is at times like this that one feels very smal
indeed...all alone out at sea and at the limits of one's experience. There's a
well known poster which cites the order "keep calm and carry on" and basically,
that's all you can do....
And having started it, we kept the engine going for
the rest of the day, despite 17 knots of lovely wind to sail in. The Town
Cut...the name of the entrance to St Georges Harbour, is tight, to say the
least, and there is little or no margin for error. Bermuda radio were happy for
us to sail in, but after checking that the engine would not give in once it was
our sole source of propulsion, we downed the sails outside and motored in to the
harbour.
In Bermuda, you come alongside a little jetty to
clear customs before anchoring. The process is delightfully welcoming and
efficient, and we had a little time to briefly explore the immaculate waterfront
side of St Georges, before finding our spot in the harbour.
Noel and Sandy in Whisper are here....last seen in
Grenada, as are Hakuna Matata, officially the first other ARC boat we met....in
Cherbourg on the very first evening out of Hamble.
Tomorrow, Tuesday is suitably St Georges day, and
we expect to have a lazy day in recovery mode, doing very little
indeed!
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