First Officer, Sue (Soon to replace the Captain who is ready to resign) reporting:
Leo has always lived by his only motto: "Don't tell anyone your intentions." AND he is sticking to it!
Reliant is in Port Colborne, Ontario, after cruising 20 nautical miles NW from Buffalo NY. It was an easy trip, until the very end when the engine lost all its power. In fact, the marina's mechanic is surprised we made it here at all! Reliant and her crew will now wait until Tuesday, June 9, to have her fuel tank pumped out and the sediment, clogging the fuel lines, extracted. After a good tank cleaning, Reliant should be in good shape once again. This process will keep us here another week. The cost -- $$$$$???
Upon completion of the work, Captain and crew will at that time decide our next step, forward or backward.
Which brings me back to Leo's motto -- "Keep your own council....."
CAPTAIN'S LOG SUPPLEMENTAL:
A note from the soon-to-resign captain:
In the nine years Susan and I have owned Reliant, I have personally supervised the over-haul of every system on the boat. The only thing I didn't do was cut into the fuel tank, inspect and clean it. So, here we sit - a victim of sludge!
The good news is that the engine quit where the water is quiet and service is available. Had the fuel lines clogged somewhere in the currents of the St. Lawrence River, this message might not be so amusing.
While we're stuck here in Port Colborne, Susan and I are determined to do something different each day. Tomorrow (Saturday) we're going to buy a pineapple and cut it into bite-sized chunks. We haven't discussed Sunday, yet.
Life is good!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Leo and Susan,
ReplyDeleteIts good to hear that you've slowed down and are taking things easy, but 20 miles in a week might be too slow. Mary Martha says to tell you 'rough start .. great finish'. I think I'll add fuel tank clean out to my to-do list.
You guys are still our cruising hero's.
Doug and Mary Martha Radabaugh
be of good hope.
ReplyDeleteJanie and I went to see "Up" in 3-D this afternoon. It was sweet and so very funny. We were laughing out loud most of the time! It was the best movie I have seen this year. It was as good as the first Ice Age. It is very cool and somewhat rainy here today but the trip to Benton Harbor saved us and my birds are happy because I bought 1500 meal worms to feed to them. As for your trip maybe you can reverse direction and go back to Chicago where you started. Only kidding. It will be fine when the fuel tank gets cleaned. Then away you go......
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize that sails were subject to fuel conditions!
ReplyDeleteI can't figure out how to get my picture into my icon shadow box. I see Chris and Marcy accomplished it. Any ideas? How are things in Port Colborne?
ReplyDeleteI feel that these minor setbacks are a means whereby you can liven up the entries in the ships log. Here is a sample from the entries to the log of Walrus/Reliant:
ReplyDelete- Rear engine mount failed after descending Marine railway at Big Shute. Fabricated new one from bed spring found in nearby dump. (maiden voyage)
- Short in wiring harness entering Welland Canal necessitated overnight re-wire before preceding.
- Bilge filled with engine oil (twice) on Erie Canal due to faulty oil cooler. Re-worked cooler while on anchor in Hudson.
- Bolt on gooseneck failed crossing Gulf Stream. Boom and sail arrived prematurely on deck. Anchored on Bahamas' northern banks out of sight of land overnight while fixing same.
These trials, while annoying at the time, are more than made up for by the wonderful adventures ahead.
m&M