New intercom phone to replace the nasty old nicotine stained one. Nothing has changed in the design and construction!!
Finally
New intercom phone to replace the nasty old nicotine stained one. Nothing has changed in the design and construction!!
Life’s little difficulties
Sometimes life just has it’s moments that seem to get in the way of a boat building session. Yesterday I was off and running for the UPS store to pick up my new motor mounts. Almost about to cross the border when the oil pressure in the ole’ IROC goes …
ENVOY CONTINUES CRUISING SOUTH
After leaving Lefkas Marina we cruise south to Argostoli, the port capital of Cephalonia, and anchor in the harbour seeing turtles for the first time this season as they pop their heads out of the water, take a look around and dive back to the depths. It’s a quaint town that suffered considerable damage during an earthquake in 1953 and was then largely rebuilt in its original Venetian style.
Vista of Argostoli from Envoy at anchor
Chris and Laurie enjoy ice cold Mythos beers at Argostoli – someones gotta do this!
For the first time we visit the island of Zakynthos and anchor one night off a great beach at Alykanas before going into Zakynthos harbour so that Envoy will be safe while we hire a car to look around the island. The marina cost is a reasonable 35 Euros (about NZ$58) per night including power and water.
Envoy in Zakynthos Marina
Alykanas is a great settled weather anchorage
In Zakynthos we have a rare bad dining experience with poor quality and over-priced food costing 100 Euros (about NZ$167) for the three of us. To be fair this is partially our fault for not checking the price of off-menu specials so that we end up paying 50 Euros (about NZ$83) for a small snapper that we’d throw back in New Zealand. After Chris makes our complaints known on behalf of all of us, they offer free meals for the following night although get off lightly as we don’t take up their offer.
We loved this rustic old stone building
On the south side of Zakynthos is a marine reserve where turtles return to sandy beaches to nest and breed. Understandably boats are not allowed in most of this area but are allowed at nearby Ormos Keri where we spend two nights and we’re able to replenish our fresh water supplies from a tap at the local small boat harbour.
Gathering fresh water is a regular activity
Ormos Keri and its local boat harbour
Two miles off the anchorage the island of Marathonisi has numerous sea caves that we are able to explore taking our RHIB completely inside.
Marathonisi Island looks like a giant turtle
The sea caves of Marathonisi have exceptionally clear water
We are inside the cave looking out at Envoy
From here it’s about 50 miles east to the mainland Peloponnese coast where we ‘ll spend the next several weeks, so we break the journey about halfway at the remote and lonely Nisidhos Strofadhes Islands. We are the only vessel here and the cruising guide says gales from any direction cause the seas to be like a giant washing machine swirling around.
We don’t encounter a gale but even the 15 knot winds causes an uncomfortable swell to enter our anchorage making our flopper-stoppers necessary. The islands are inhabited by a solitary monk who looks after the 13th century Ay Panayis monastery, built like a fortress to withstand historic pirate attacks.
The fortress-like 13th century monastery
TECHNICAL
All fuel used by Envoy is filtered (or “polished”) using a 7 litres/min !2 volt pump feeding a 2 micron Racor filter and a magnetic DeBug unit into our in-use fuel tank before being used by any of the engines. Before if gets to the engine it then goes through a Racor primary filter and secondary on-engine filter. Shorty after leaving Lefkas Marina the 12V polishing pump fails, emitting just a faint clicking noise, so we replace it with our on-board spare – a simple exercise except for the time required to remove the pipe fittings from the failed pump and refit them to the new pump. As a new pump costs about US$500 and there was nothing to loose we decide to utilise Chris’s expertise and attempt to repair the failed pump, which consists of three separate parts – a rotary vane pump, a 12V DC motor and an electronic controller – any one of which could be at fault.
Chris fixing the failed polishing pump motor in Envoy’s pilothouse
June 24 – Bloomsburg, PA
“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.” ―Helen Keller
We’ve spent the last week helping our son and his family move and get settled into their new home in Pennsylvania. It’s a pretty little town and the surrounding countryside is beautiful.
CONTINUE READING HERE…»
SUSUI WOMEN GARDEN CLUB
| Sea Mercy Volunteer and Susui Sponsor Gretchen (S/V Peregrine) and the Susui Women Garden Club |
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| Weeding through the Chinese cabbage (Photo Tessa Irvin) |
One island at a time, one village at a time, one garden at a time, we’ve distributed seeds to 12 gardens already, and Susui Island was our 13th distribution. Like in the other villages, our little group of volunteers was overwhelmed by the kindness and ardor of these hard-working women.
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| While we wait for the women to gather for pesticide instruction, the kids draw caterpillars and bugs and fish and pigs…. |
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| Bale’s daughter lunch: dry ramen noodles tucked into her shirt |
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| Bale learns how to seed carrots with Sea Mercy volunteers JP, Willie and Gretchen |
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| Let’s get this weeding party going…. |
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| Susui’s kids (Photo Tessa Irvin) |
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| Domino delivers water in Susui (photo Tessa Irvin) |
SEA MERCY – AVEA ISLAND GARDEN
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| The younger generation at work |
Avea is a very small, low island north east of Vanua Balavu, and Winston hit it hard. The school and community center are gone, a good chunk of the beach has been washed away, and the soil in the village is salty and sandy, not very fit for gardening.
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| Deep in the valley… irrigated plots |
But away from the village, there is a fertile land at the bottom of the hills, where fresh water flows abundantly and the alluvial soil is very rich. The problem is getting there! It’s either a 30-minute walk, wading along the shore at low tide (unreacheable at high tide) or a very wet long-boat ride, racing the tide.
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| Transplanting Chinese cabbage: too small… JP instructed in bigger tanspland (“Petite salade, gros chou!”) |
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| Rich, thick, wet soil |
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| Sea Mercy Volunteer Willie (S/V Dream Catcher) gives it a go! |
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| Nana Sarah brings home Chinese cabbage and coconut |
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| Teaching the next generation |
SEA MERCY – SEEDS OF HOPE in BOITACI
| Boitaci women, ready for work |
On our third visit, all the seeds had been planted and we started a composting pile. Still the garden’s topography was a disaster. Water had been water logging the bottom of the garden, stumps had been burned and left in place, piles of garbage had been burned, nothing looked right.
| Sea Mercy Volunteer Anita Damiani checks the spigot: let’s order 100 yards of garden hose and a clamp! |
We returned for a fourth visit with three ARC volunteers, three young men happy to help. Within seconds of the Loma Loma Hospital Pick-up truck dropping us off, all the women were in the garden, giving our boys working orders.
| “Facebook! Facebook!” The young women ordered our boys around and wouldn’t let them leave! |
“Take this clump of banana trees, divide it, and replant each tree along the fence.”
| Clearing charred stumps and debris |
Meanwhile, JP was teaching how to seed carrots, a first for all the women.
| Heavy soil for carrots, added ashes to lighten it up… |
On the edge of the garden, I joined Vuli in sifting though the ashes of the rubbish fire. With her bare hands, she was removing broken glass, spiky roofing straps, melted metal meshing, a charred bicycle chain, blackened tin. We soon used sticks, but that wasn’t doing the job very fast. So I grabbed my folding camp shovel/pick combo out to my backpack. “I dig, you pick!” Within minutes we had sifted through the entire pile of ashes, now clear of solid debris. Vuli looked at my hand tool, the only one in the village. Of course, I left it with her, this little camping shovel her most prized gardening possession.
| No watering can, no garden hose: Gretchen delivers collapsible water jugs |
When we finally etched a plan for amending the soil, the women were carrying handful of ashes in their bare hands, fault of any other type of bucket or shovel or hand tool, except for the machetes we distributed.
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| Carrot bed, sheltered from the harsh sun and pecking birds |
We didn’t have a chance to say goodbye to the women. On our last visit, they were sitting with the grief counselor. Winston took 4 lives in this tightly close community, scarring children and adults. But Vuli sat with us for a last chat: our pesticide presentation. We left her, our samples of garlic spray and white oil, getting away in our Police ride, cheered along by a throng of chirpy and unforgettable Boitaci kids.
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| Vuli is thrilled with her pesticides and the kids ran along the car, singing their goodbyes (photo Tessa Irvin) |
Until the next village…
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| Boitaci Kids (Photo Tessa Irvin) |
Sitka to Sitka – June 8-13
Among the communities in SE Alaska, Sitka is one of the most popular. In population, it ranks 3rd, behind Juneau and Ketchikan, so most services are available. Its harbor only has one dock capable of a cruise ship and that is a couple of miles north of town so even when a cruise ship is in, it doesn’t feel overwhelmed. Tourism other than cruise ships is high as it is a sport fishing destination and a community with a rich history going back to the Russian ownership of Alaska. The commercial fishing industry is quite vibrant so it has an economic base besides tourism.
We know of several pleasure craft that spend 3 to 4 weeks in the Sitka area using it as a base from which to go fishing for a few days then to return for reprovisioning. We thought we’d try a reduced version of that concept this year.
We headed out on Wednesday, June 8, towards the popular fishing area on the north side of Biorka Island, about 15 miles SW of Sitka. As we approached, the wind and seas picked up and we couldn’t see anybody fishing We decided to fish a more protected nearby area but no bites and no evidence of fish on the fish finder. We spent the night in Herring Bay, an anchorage on an island about 8 miles away.
The next day, we reached the fishing area earlier and there were other boats present. The conditions were better than the day before but still “lumpy” with a 15 knot southerly wind coming over the island and a westerly swell coming in from the ocean. Despite the conditions, Marcia was able to hook and land a nice king salmon.
That evening we gave Annie-cat a subcutaneous infusion of lactated Ringer’s solution using the new setup Marcia obtained from a Sitka veterinary office. Rather than needing to restrain Annie while we gave her injections, the solution is infused through a smaller gauge needle attached to a drip bag as she naps on the helm chair.
We hoped to repeat the fishing performance on Friday, June 10, as we went out to Biorka again. Unfortunately, despite excellent sea conditions, the fish were absent. We anchored for the night in deGroff Bay on Krestof Island, an anchorage new to us.
For Saturday, we traveled to the fishing area near Kalinin Bay on the north side of Kruzof Island. We were too late for the morning bite so we anchored for a few hours waiting for the afternoon bite. Marcia took the opportunity to make cinnamon rolls while we waited. Once again, no salmon were hooked.
On Sunday morning we were out bright and early. As we were finishing up the final pass before leaving, Marcia hooked a fish which turned out to be 33″ ling cod. While not the salmon was looking for, it was a nice fish with plenty of meat on it.
As we were crossing Sitka Sound intent on trying some more fishing the winds kicked up similar to the week before. Soon we were bashing through 25 knot winds and steep 3 to 4 foot seas. We altered our course and headed towards the secure anchorage of Samsing Cove.
All was calm by Monday morning as we pulled back into Eliasen Harbor in Sitka, just a few steps away from the slip we had vacated five days earlier.
Sea Mercy – One Garden at a Time
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| In Malaka, preparing a bed to seed the first carrots |
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| Found in the sweet potatoes |
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| In Boitaci, Sea Mercy volunteer Anita Damiani presents a sample pack of seeds. |
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| Megan (S/V AMELIE IV) presents white oil and chili-garlic spray to the women, attentive in spite of their grief |
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| On board DOMINO, JP and Tessa (S/V REWA) prepare a batch of chili-garlic spray, Recipes sent by our son James via Iridium communication… pretty cool! |
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| Mua Mua: green beans coming up |
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| Pesticide presentation is a hit! |
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| Smell of garlic in the morning! |
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| Gardening day in Boitaci: fenced against the pigs… so much to do! |
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| Boitaci’s kids, always following us imitating us |
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| Mavana’s overgrown school garden |
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| JP & the ARC volunteers are joined by the village’s men to dig new beds. |
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| Va’s beautiful garden at the back of her house |
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| Mua Levu’s struggling sweet potatoes |
Losanna’s garden was being eaten by doves? It was a job for young Megan who returned 2 days later to build a scarecrow.
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| Betty’s crop ravaged by caterpillars and beetles |
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| In the back of the truck, JP going to work! |











































