Going east tomorrow - we hope.
Pelekan
Tom & Jos Hollway
Tue 8 Dec 2015 22:15
Since the last entry, in Virgin Gorda ( though our GPS put us out to sea-does this bode ill for the passage?) we had a trip down to Nanny Cay. We left yesterday morning, motor sailing. All went well until about a mile outside the marina entrance. Incidentally we passed a container ship with about 30 yachts strapped to the deck. To me it looked like a great way to travel. Anyway an enormous squall surrounded the boat so we drifted around until it had gone through. The idling was not good. The engine stalled when the throttle was opened, restarted then stalled and refused to start. Tom dived into the boiling engine compartment and changed the racor filter whilst we drifted towards the reef. The fuel in the water separator was full of large lumps of gubbins, and the filter was full of soot. The new filter worked miracles and we were able to get into the marina, park and rush to Budget Marine ( a misnomer if ever there was one) and buy LOADS of spare filters.
This morning we bid a fond farewell to our friends next door, who nurtured us royally after our traumatic entrance yesterday, and headed back to Virgin Gorda. It was a great sail - phew. Just sitting in the convivial Saba Rock Hotel swallowing a beer ( and using their guest wifi). Tomorrow we will check out of the BVI and head out in an Antigua direction if the winds permit. We have x19 2 micron filters for the 180 mile journey - will it be enough?...............
In anticipation
The captain and first mate.
Sent from my iPad