I did a dock day today and didn’t leave the boat much at all. In the early hours I worked on the computer and planned on going topsides to wash the decks. Then the sun came out and it got hot, so I postponed that task.
The generator needed some TLC so I started work on seeing what the starting issue might be. No luck, I need to get some more tools out and crack open the fuel lines to see if perhaps the cylinders are getting starved of fuel. The air filter is clean and there are no blinking error codes to be seen. With the main engine and the solar panels, I have enough power and don’t need to rely on the generator, but I am going to miss my redundant systems.
I received a call around noon from the car rental agency asking me about returning the car. I’d thought that I’d extended until tomorrow but didn’t really need the car anymore, so I acceded to their request. I jumped into my steed and filled her up at the gas station, also filling up my outboard fuel canister. It was rather expensive, considering how little I had driven!
Once I was back aboard Zanshin I opted to stay below and away from the heat. The two working A/C units are trying to keep up and barely managing. I still need to do some Pine-Sol cleaning work. Once the sun gets low enough and the air cools down, I’ll wash the decks and get the dinghy into the water.
While it is hard to get motivated to do much after the Caribbean sun and a beer, I am still working with a cloth, bucket and Pine-Sol.
Afternoon
Some cloud cover moved over the boat, and I went topsides to clean the boat. Armed with a bucket, brush and dishwashing detergent I proceeded to scrub the gelcoat vigorously and the teak carefully. The wash-off was cloudy white, which means that I’m going to have to apply wax to the gelcoat. I got the first round of cleaning finished and then showered on the boat and went ashore.
Evening
The boardwalk along the shore housing restaurants and the eponymously named bar was hopping. It turns out the annual Mango Bowl Regatta is underway in addition to being a Saturday night. I chatted with Nick from LSD diving (yes, that’s really the name) and after a few libations I looked for a seat at a restaurant. There were none to be found, so I went back to the boat to cook some dinner.
