A long break, and then some surprises.

Running rigging

We were away for a long time, and I apologise for the silence. A great diving holiday in The Country That Must Not Be Mentioned gave me the opportunity to see how real working sailors do their ropework. As soon as we were back I put that knowledge to work in making up my running rigging. And had someone tell me that this was the wrong way to make eye splices in braided rope, and that I was using the wrong whipping twine. Well, the approved method does not work for me, as my braid is too tight to get the core out of the cover, and in any case I was making eyes around the beckets of blocks. Vindication came in video's of some old sailing ships, the tars made the eyes in a similar way. As for the right whipping twine, I used what I could find, which is far better than the stuff they used on the Cape Horners. So there.

Puzzling it out

And the masts go up

Our neighbour knocked down

Keketso and Reinhard came to help put the masts back up again. We had to change our date at short notice, so I did not book the mast crane, which resulted in us waiting for most of the morning as the yard worked on some of their boats. Then we rushed, and of course made mistakes that slowed us down even further. We did learn some interesting lessons in navigation: the automotive tides around big cities must be well taken into account when planning trips. We came home well after dark, instead of some time after two.

Another boat badly damaged

And thereby hangs a tail: We were anxious to get home, and the yard promised to park Dreamtime in her usual slot. Well, four days later a tornado went through the area, toppled the boat next to us, and Dreamtime went walkabout because the workers had not pulled the handbrake. Which is why I believe that you should do, or check everything yourself.

There was serious damage to the marina, the town and nearby villages. Houses knocked down, people hurt, and apparently someone killed nearby. Dreamtime came through her first major storm with no damage.

It is fun working with tar

I finished off some painting, and took the time to wirebrush the rusting trailer and to paint it with Chassis Black, a genteel name for tar. And so re-discovered why sailors were called tars. It gets everywhere, sticks to everything, and it smells nice. Of course I managed to dilute one batch with thinners instead of turpentine. I will insist that it was a scientific experiment. In any case, the bottles look the same. We will see if it makes a difference. 

Sea chest, with black water tank behind. 

Most of the sea chest, or standpipe is done. As usual I bought fittings for a 15mm pipe, only to find that the previous ones are 20mm. Well, the shop has a good returns policy, and I will post the finished product next time.

Diesel?

I also found someone selling a small diesel. An electronics engineer, he pulled his motor to fit a fancy electric system. Five minutes of conversation convinced me that an electric motor is not for me. I made an offer. If it goes through you will have a few more posts to look at.