Not a lot to report today, we’re basically waiting out the weather right now.
Some locals fishing on their bamboo raft behind Charisma.
We need to head south. The wind is coming from the south. Thus we wait for the wind to shift as we can’t sail straight into the wind, we need at least a 45 degree angle. Looks like Monday or Tuesday we’ll get more favorable winds from the southeast. So in the mean time we do a little boatwork and wait.
Today, I spent the morning troubleshooting our electronics issue. The helm instruments work for a while, then all data stops. When I unplug just the network that goes to the helm, everything else starts working again. Frustrating. I’m going through lots of isolation strategies to try and identify what is causing the issue. Nothing found yet. Bummer. Not to be upstaged, Ann got in the dinghy with sponge and scrub brush in hand and cleaned the waterline. 37 feet up one side and down the other. Cruising isn’t always romantic adventure. Sometimes it’s just grinding wok!
This afternoon we refueled. That means schlepping 5 gallon fuel jugs between Charisma and the gas station in town. We have two (diesel) jugs and needed about 33 gallons. That’s four trips in the dinghy. Turned out we took just a little over 35 gallons so our estimated fuel consumption is very close. I’ve been going on 0.6 GPH and we actually took 0.625 GPH. Not bad. We also got one of our propane tanks filled. That’s what we cook with. We have two 20lb tanks. Each lasts just about three months for cooking, baking and a little heating-our heater is propane, but little used down here.
Tomorrow, we fill the dinghy fuel jug (with gasoline) and do some final veggie shopping at the Saturday morning market. We’ll likely leave for Cousteau anchorage on Sunday and while the time there waiting for favorable winds to head south.
Also on tomorrow’s agenda is posting pictures from the last month’s adventures to this blog. It’s very time consuming, but I hope to get it done by end of day.
Is there anywhere between Mexico and NZ to fill your propane cylinders? I guess the alternative is to eat sashimi. (Oh well!)
Yes, there are a lot of options, you just have to ask around. Also, make sure it’s propane they are selling and not butane, which is the standard in some countries.
We filled up in Papeette, and Neiafu Tonga and just yesterday here in Savusavu Fiji. New Zealand is a little tricky. Most places there want to charge you to certify a US tank, but with some looking we found a gas station who agreed to fill it. I would make sure to have two tanks if possible so you have the ability to fill the empty when there’s an available source. Some islands are butane only and if you run out there you’re out of luck if you don’t have a spare.
Also, worth it to get the tanks recertified in the US before you leave if they are even close to expiring as it saves a lot of hassle. No one wants to fill a tank here that’s not current and they charge a lot to re-certify. If you have to buy one here you’ll find the sizes are slightly different and might not fit in a tight space where the old US one did.