Sep 16

Working Days

Number of View: 0

Image00001

Due to the warm humid days, it is hard to complete our chores to prepare Mistress for the next leg of our journey. We would like to be ready to leave around the first week of October. Hurricanes can still be a problem, so we will have to keep an eye on weather. Right now the winds have been very light, but they will increase to give us a comfortable ride.

Image00002   Image00001 

We adopted 2 marina dogs, we called them, Itchy & Lady.  We feed them leftovers, and have a bowl of water beside our dock light. Both dogs get along well with people and are a great security service . Lady is a spayed female, has some Doberman in her but is very docile. Itchy on the other hand is a Alpha male, who challenges every other male dog that comes into his territory. He is not neutered. About a week ago, a fight broke out with a cruisers dog. They owner a lady, tried to separate them and apparently got bit. By which dog, she doesn’t know.

Itchy was sitting by our boat when a guy came down the dock with a broomstick to punish him.  “Is this your dog?” ….” No”,..But you are not going to hit him with that stick”…

They then caught Itchy, put him in a boat and took him to Isla Grande, two miles away. We feared that they had taken out and threw him in the water. We were reassured that, to save him from further abuse, it was better to let him live out his days with somebody who wanted him.

Image00003  Image00004

All the systems of the boat must be checked, to make sure we are ready. We have made new bags to stow things in the cockpit, made new covers for, and got our flags ready. Our engine has had the injectors cleaned and serviced, next week we have a Rigger coming to check the mast. We have been busy……

Image00005

Image00006 Image00010

Image00009  DSCF0549

Image00002

Image00006

We had to rig up a thread holder, from a wooden spoon tied to the overhead handholds. The large industrial spools are economical but couldn’t fit on our machine. Everything must be sewed with good quality UV thread.

Image00003  Image00004

Image00005

Since, we were doing all these repairs, it was a good idea to change the impellor which brings in cooling seawater. The one on the left is new, compared to the out of shape old one. Still had all it’s fins, which is good to see, otherwise we would have to search the hoses for stray pieces. We found an old broken piece from the previous replacement in the housing, that could have been a problem.   Lucky!!!

Image00002  Image00001

New awning to keep us cool and dry.

Image00008

We did a short video showcasing our marina, which has been our home.

https://youtu.be/h5izzisTlfc

Sep 09

Rainy Season in Panama

Number of View: 0

Image00003

We are back in Linton Bay Marina, preparing Mistress for the next leg of our journey. When ready we will travel north to the  small Colombian island of San Andres. It is still hurricane season til the middle of November, then there is a short break before the Christmas winds kick in. Right now, here in Panama the rainy season is in full swing, the seas are calm and the wind very light.

Image00004

By the time we got back, the bottom of the boat had grown quite beard. It took 2 local divers more than 2 hours to scape all the barnacles and growth off. The bottom looks good, the paint is in good shape. Humidity is around 85%, with the temperature most days in the mid 90s. Need to get things done early in the day.

Image00001  Image00002

While going over our systems on the boat, we discovered a faulty alternator. This was caused by the sea water bath our engine took last season when the heat exchanger broke. We had washed everything down with fresh water and sprayed with WD 40, but I guess that wasn’t enough. We now learned about, a new to us product called, Corrosion X, which if performs as stated should rid or stop any ongoing rust. So far it seems to be doing a great job.

Image00004  Image00001

We found a company in Panama City that service Starters, Alternators, and other electrical components, so we caught the bus early in the morning to visit them. It involves a 2 hour ride to town, where you cross the highway and catch the Expresso to the City, as it’s known.

We were kicked off about 1/2 way due to a demonstration that had the only road blocked off. Apparently the small town are not happy with their officials. So a group of women decided protest, the police stood by and made sure it didn’t get out of hand. We had to walk past the blockage and get the bus on the other side, to continue our journey. We were only held up for about 1 hour.

Image00004

Around 11 o’clock we finally arrived at Internacional De Partes Electomecanicas, a leading dealer in downtown Panama city.It seems the more we come here the easier it gets to find our way around. The cabs are great.

Image00005  Image00001

After determining that our expensive Balmar alternator could not be fixed, we were offered a replacement at a very good price. Successful shopping trip.

We treated ourselves to lunch in the mall before boarding the bus to return to the marina.

Image00002

Everything here seems to take all day to do, it was a long day. we arrive just in time to see the sun go down.

Image00002

 

Installing the new alternator will be put on the list of things we have to complete before we are ready to move on. Hopefully we get in done quicker than some of the residents here, who have been working for years.

   Image00006  Image00003