Maintenance – Sail Andante

Winter 2023/2024 Recap

It’s not you. Its us.

Six months have passed and, at least according to this blog, nothing has happened. This is not the first time we’ve dropped the ball and left our loyal readers hanging. And it will not be the last. But hopefully, with this post, we will bring you up-to-date with our activities of the past half-year.

Per Paula’s excellent travelogue last November, we arrived at Bock Marine in Beaufort, NC and settled in for a quiet winter on the hard. The plan was for me (Dave) to train/fly/drive from Cape Cod to NC to live and work on Andante for about a week each month. That actually happened.

The train approach was novel and fun and had potential. But it was hopelessly long with the one-way trip exceeding 28 hours including a 4-hour drive from Norfolk where the train actually terminated. At 2 AM.

Flying was relatively quick but placed limitations on what could be carried back and forth (ever try flying with solar panels, an outboard motor and your shop vac?). Flying would have been prohibitively expensive if we didn’t have lots of airline miles to burn. But we did, so I used that method of transport twice.

In the end, driving (18 hours +/-) just wasn’t that bad and provided the lowest total cost (no rental car) and maximum flexibility in both schedule and payload.

On the first first few trips I enjoyed the hospitality and central heating of my wonderful in-laws. Later in the spring I made use of ample shore-power to stay aboard Andante in relative comfort.

So why did we move Andante all the way to North Carolina rather than spend the cold, dark, miserable winter near home on Cape Cod? Because the difference between 25 degrees F and 45 degrees F is everything when it comes to boat maintenance tasks. Those extra few degrees make possible epoxy, varnish, paint, and general comfort when doing fine work with your hands. It was not balmy and warm in Beaufort all winter. But it was above freezing for at least a few hours every day — and much warmer than freezing most days.

The list of jobs started out long and kept growing all winter. But progress was made. A new bimini was designed and sewn. A new set of solar panels was installed above the dinghy davits. Several new seacocks and associated plumbing were installed to service two new bilge pumps. And of course lots of routine maintenance: Hull scraped and painted; anchor chain end-for-ended and marks repainted; new anodes on the hull and prop; upgrades to various bits of running rigging. And as much varnishing of exterior woodwork as time and weather would allow.

It took nearly 3 years to get all the old varnish removed. Applying the first new coat to the eyebrow was surprisingly satisfying. We’ll see how long that feeling lasts.

There was only one real surprise that required some extra effort. At some point during the trip south one of the four heavy steel engine mounts — the one that also supports our refrigeration compressor — cracked and broke. Once I was able to jack up the engine and remove the mount it was a simple matter for the skilled folks at Bock Marine to repair it for us, welding on additional stiffeners so this will never happen again.

Shiny and extra-strong engine mount after repair

It took a couple of months to design fabricate the aluminum framework for our new solar panels. The array consists of three 115W bifacial panels. As solar arrays on sailboard go this is pretty small .

This year we tried a new and relatively inexpensive clear coat on the prop. It is supposed to be extremely hard and slippery so that barnacles can’t get a grip and should just slide right off. We’ll see about that.

Andante was back in the water in mid-April with fresh bottom paint.

And by the third week of April we were underway towards home. This photo was taken by Kenny Bock from his house on Core Creek.

The trip home was short and all business. Persistent north winds precluded a direct shot from Beaufort to Cape Cod around Cape Hatteras. So we retraced our steps north along the ICW to Norfolk before jumping out into the Atlantic. With favorable winds we completed the remainder of the trip in three days with quick nap stops in Cape May and Sandy Hook.

Andante back home on her mooring in Red Brook Harbor. The water is extremely green but clear in early May.

Winter is coming

The sailing season in New England is always painfully short. Hauling Andante this fall was particularly painful after spending much of last winter in Bahamian sunshine. But there is work to be done both on the boat and off.

One of the several jobs that has been neglected for months is updating this blog with information about our travels this summer. In subsequent posts I’ll share some info and photos from our many pleasant weekends afloat.

On the hard for the winter. In this photo from mid-November the cover framework has been installed and is ready for canvas. Her lumpy bottom still needs lots of work but the water-based antifouling paint applied a year ago in Beaufort held up well.

Andante and Dinghy in warmer days. One addition this summer was a second solar panel that we strapped to the top of the boom while anchored. A little less shaded than the one on the dodger. Not a long-term solution but definitely useful.

Shroud Cay to Staniel Cay

Wifi is a first-world problem. But its still a problem.

It has been tough to find a solid internet connection for the past several days. I’m not really complaining but have felt guilty about not posting anything for a while. Sometimes WordPress works over a weak cell connection and sometimes it doesn’t. Regardless, its been blowing like stink for almost a week and today is the first chance I’ve had to get ashore to an establishment with a fair internet connection. I’ll keep it short and let the photos speak for themselves.

After leaving Highbourne Cay we spend a couple of days in the lee of Shroud Cay, one of several islands within the Exumas Cays Land and Sea Park. The island is riddled with mangrove-lined creeks and little passages that lead to shallow internal basins and some beautiful sandy beaches. Dinghy and I did some exploring and saw lots of fish and rays and a few sharks. Very few birds.

There is a big contrast between the flour-sand beaches and the razor sharp coral rock. Next time I’ll remember my shoes. Andante is the distant white blotch in the center of the picture. You can tell from the clouds in these pictures that some weather was coming. We didn’t stay long as there was no protection here from the north or west.

Shroud Cay, like Highbourne, is readily accessible from Nassau by large fast motoryachts. So even with weather closing in there was no shortage of big boats full of loud people.

We had a fantastic six-hour sail south to Staniel Cay. We are actually anchored just west of Staniel near Big Majors Spot, famous for its beach of swimming pigs. The anchorage (known and charted as “Bay of Pigs”) has a good-holding sand bottom and is reasonably protected from most directions. The water is crystal clear and every now and then a shark or a ray will swim by. We chose to ride out the storm here — and we did fine.

Although it was still blowing 30+ at Andante’s anchorage, Dinghy and I were able to find some small sheltered beaches to explore. We also went ashore on Staniel Cay and walked around the small town and filled our fuel and water jugs and bought some local bread and vegetables.

Yes there are really pigs on the beach. I didn’t see any swimming but then I didn’t bring any food to taunt them with.

The Staniel Cay Yacht Club is a gorgeous spot that is welcoming to cruisers of all styles. They provide a nice beach to land on, have fuel and water for sale and will take your trash for a few dollars per bag. And wonderful fast free wifi — I’m writing this while sitting at their bar.

Finally and just in case you think its all fun and games… The diaphragm in Andante’s fresh water pressure pump decided to retire without notice. I didn’t have an exact spare but was able to fabricate a temporary replacement from some scrap rubber. It works OK for now but probably won’t last long.

Its hard to guess when I’ll have good wifi again so this may be the last post for a while. The plan for the next week or so is to head from Staniel Cay / Big Majors towards the settlement at Black Point a few hours south. Along the way I’m hoping to find some secluded anchorages and do a little snorkeling while the weather is nice.

New Providence

So where is the old Providence? Let’s ask The Google:

“The name New Providence Island is derived from a 16th‐century governor who gave thanks to Divine Providence for his survival after a shipwreck. The “New” was added later to distinguish it from Providencia in Western Caribbean (now Colombia) used by pirates.” Thanks Google.

Almost 75% of the Bahamian population lives on this one island — and there are hundreds of islands and thousands of small cays (always pronounced “keys” hereabouts) in the country. Temporarily add one person (and one boat): Andante and I arrived in West Bay, New Providence this afternoon after a nice sail from the Berry Islands.

Very-long-range view of the hotels and casinos and whatnot in Nassau Harbor and Paradise Island. We are on the opposite end of the island.

West Bay is surrounded by a park, a golf course and the exclusive community of Lyford Cay. And a noisy and smelly power plant. But its still a pretty nice spot to spend a day or two and wait for northerly winds to head further south to the Exumas. Some folks have written about excessive surge and uncomfortable rolling at anchor here but with a 15 kt southeast wind we’re barely moving at all.

Same, but from a lower viewpoint. The water is clear enough that you can see the anchor chain on the bottom. But it is a bit greener than in the Berrys. I don’t know exactly why but imagine nutrient-rich runoff from the surrounding manicured community and golf course may contribute.

The first thing I did after anchoring was jump overboard. The water temperature was finally above 70 (yay) and I’d read accounts of poor holding (uh oh). So I dove in and gave the anchor a check to make sure it was set well.

The anchor. You can see that it did drag a bit before setting. I placed two sand dollars just behind it as a reference and will check in the morning to see if it moved any further. Between the 55 lb anchor and the boat are 125 feet of 3/8″ chain (about 175 lbs). All this chain generally prevents the anchor from being pulled upwards and dislodged. The trip line is connected to a surface float to mark the anchor position and so I can extract the anchor backwards should it get wedged under a rock.

While I was in the water I gave Andante an all-over bottom inspection. She looked good except that the prop zinc (the bit that I inspected in very cold water due to a mysterious vibration way back in Fisher Island, NY) was completely consumed. It didn’t fall off but rather completely corroded off. In less than 60 days. Hmm. Not sure why yet but went ahead and replaced it while I was wet. Will watch it carefully over the next few weeks. Hoping it has to do with the dockside 120V electrical system in Beaufort and not the 12V system onboard.

The prop is a little discolored but had no growth on it. I replaced the missing anode (grey lump on aft end of the hub) with a new one.

Just in case you wondered what a 2 m boat looks like in 3 m of water. This was taken at close to 1/2 tide so we may be another 20-30 cm closer to the seabed at low tide. The bottom is mostly sand with some grass. Actually more (and greener) grass than portions of my yard.

I do not have giant starfish in my yard. But otherwise the ground looks similar. This fellow was about 8″ across and directly under the keel.

It rained last night in the Berrys – at 0230. I know this because my porthole was open and I got splashed in the face. This evening just before sunset it was obvious that a squall was coming our way so I closed everything up tight in advance.

The rain was hard and lasted more than an hour. But no complaints: Andante was covered in salt from today’s sail and always enjoys a good shower. I just wish it would rain soap briefly before the rinse cycle.

When I have a chance (and can find some fabric) I’d like to make some rain flys for at least one or two of Andante’s hatches so they can remain open in all weather. It gets a bit stuffy below with all the hatches and ports closed.

Anyway, the plan for now is to hang out here tomorrow and do boat jobs. Perhaps I’ll do a little more swimming and give Andante’s waterline a good scrub. Then on Thursday we’ll ride the north wind down to Highbourne Cay in the northern Exumas.

Bonus Content!

I didn’t have the bandwidth until today to upload these recent videos. Enjoy.

The other day as we were leaving Bimini a group of dolphins led me out of the harbor. One of them played on the bow for several minutes. Good fun.

And while dockside in Bimini I watched some fisherman throw scraps to a big group of nurse sharks. Pretty spectacular. I was actually more afraid of the greedy pelicans.

Details and Derelicts

The list is actually getting shorter.

The initial to-do list created just after we brought Andante home was pretty overwhelming. The list was huge and there were numerous jobs that I didn’t yet know how to even begin. And just when it seemed like things were going well, tasks were added to the list faster than I could cross them off.

Over the past couple of months notable progress has been made. I’ve been able to complete most of the significant structural, mechanical and safety items. Now the focus can shift to helping Andante look her best and making her as comfortable and livable as possible. Fortunately most jobs of that flavor can be done away from the boatyard at a more leisurely pace. I’m looking forward to that.

The boatyard can’t be described as a pretty place. But it has its brief moments such as this cold sunrise last week with mist over the creek wafting into the yard. About 20 minutes later somebody started grinding metal. Glad I was already up.

Many of the remaining jobs can be divided into inside and outside work. So on a recent sunny day I stripped and sanded and varnished. And when it rained over the weekend I repaired some canvas and worked on a few galley projects. And I’m constantly rearranging things below to maximize storage space — and trying to keep a list of where I hid everything so I can find it again later.

A quick sanding and coat of varnish on the cockpit coaming should keep it looking nice for a few more months. There are lots of damaged spots and the whole thing will need to stripped to bare wood eventually. I’ve completely removed the varnish from the toe rail, the hand rails, and the eyebrow and plan to let those go grey for now.

Before the rain I dismounted the dodger and bimini and patched up some holes and worn spots. There isn’t much holding this old canvas together. I added new zippers to attach the side panels that create a nice protected cockpit. I prefer to sail with the cockpit open but when its cold and wet I definitely appreciate the protection from wind and spray.

Another rainy-day project: Built a new spice corral from 1/2″ plastic lumber that almost doubles the amount of storage along the wall. I hope to replicate this in teak at some point. I’m not a very good finish carpenter so it seemed scrap plastic was the best place to start.

I do my best to take care of Andante because I’m counting on her to take care of me. For whatever reason not every boat receives the same level of care and attention. In fact, walking around the boatyard can be a bit depressing sometimes. Mixed in with boats that are clearly headed for sea are an astounding number likely headed for the scrapyard. I’m not one to get emotional over a junkyard full of cars — but its sad to think that each of these old boats was once somebody’s dream.