February 2018

It’s a dreary day (the weather not family) here in MD where Brenda and I are visiting.   I have spent the last few days helping our son Rob with a remodeling job in the basement, which has been fun but we will be heading north to CT tomorrow.  After a few more days there back to Martinique on the 5th and then south, with Pandora, toward Grenada before heading back to Antigua in April.

Even though I have been back north for more than a week now, it’s still a jolt to wake up each morning to cold and winter dreary verses sunny and balmy, the conditions that I have gotten used to down in the islands.   I prefer this sort of view to grey and rainy, that’s for sure. After much back and forth discussion we have decided that I will bring Pandora home for the summer as I have plenty to do before I take her back to Antigua again next November.  In particular, I am considering the addition of a wind generator.

I actually have plenty of solar on Pandora but as we have gone further south I have found that the 600 watts hasn’t been quite enough when we are anchored in the lee of some of the more mountainous islands.   You can see below the four 85w panels as well as the single 300w panel over the davits totaling 600w. In Antigua, where the maximum elevation is something like 1,300′ it doesn’t have much of an effect on clouds and precipitation with most clouds being small and moving over us fairly quickly.   However, as you journey further south through the Windward islands, such as Martinique, the mountains are three times higher and the mountain tops are constantly covered with clouds.  These clouds form over the peaks and run off to the leeward side of the islands causing there to be more cloud cover and showers than the islands with lower elevations.

It’s remarkable how much of an effect this has on production from the panels.    Besides, there is nearly always wind so even if a wind generator was only putting out a modest number of amps, the fact that it’s happening nearly 24/7 means that the amount of power can really add up.   In full sun, between say 10:00 and 14:00, the panels peak at about 30 amps although this quickly drops off to between 10-15 amps, or less, when it gets cloudy,  This isn’t not enough power to keep things up to snuff when it’s cloudy which has been a bit of an eye opener for me.

So, I am going to consider a wind generator over the summer.  I have also been talking to Hamilton Ferris about their new towable water generator and they have expressed interest in my doing a test for the unit so that they can see how it works in actual field conditions over a long run.  Well, we will see if they come through on that.

I have done a preliminary energy audit for our power consumption at anchor and underway with all the equipment running and the 150-160AH/24hrs consumption at anchor each day seems about right based on my experience.

Our largest energy user at anchor or underway is the fridge which burns 30A when it’s running.  I have a hour meter on the unit so I know that it generally runs for 2.2 to 2.5hrs/24hrs, which adds up to about 70-75AH/24hrs.   Half of my total consumption or more at anchor.  There is one particular unit on the market, made by Technautics that is a lot more energy efficient, so I’ll have to see what’s involved in switching out to those compressors.  I don’t know why this unit is better from a tech standpoint but I put one in my last boat and it was a lot more efficient, drawing less than 5A when it was running.  As it’s a smaller compressor it will run a lot longer as the fridge and freezer are larger and the holding plates are bigger too.   I guess I’ll have to do an audit and talk to the manufacturer about it when I get home. One way or the other, It’l cost a lot as we have two zones which means I’ll have to put in two separate units, a significant expense, even if I can us the same cold plates.   However, an added benefit is that the new compressors are nearly silent and the current one is really loud.  Additionally, the new unit will be air cooled which means that the risk of water pump failure is eliminated.  And, it’s failed already at least once since I have owned the boat.  I just loved cleaning out the freezer and maggot ridden spoiled food.  Yum!

As much energy as we use at anchor, our “under way” consumption is a LOT higher at perhaps as high as 400-450AH/24hrs, which is an alarming number and perhaps right based on my experience with the two plotters, instruments and autopilot on all the time.    As near as I can estimate, we generate perhaps as much as 150AH/24hrs at anchor and less than 100AH/24hrs under way.

We generate less underway because of the sails shading the panels.   This is particularly acute in the fall on the run south because the boat is generally on a port tack and headed south (of course).  As the sun rises in the east and runs through the southern part of the sky before setting to the west, this means that the sails, south of the panels in this scenario, block much of the sun.  Of course on the trip north, this is less of a problem with the boat on a starboard tack with sails set on the “northern end” of the boat.

All of this explains why we come up so short each day when we are under way and yet do pretty well at anchor.   One way or the other, I’d like to do something to improve our output when we are at anchor as well as underway so there’s lots to do to figure this out.

But, all those decisions are still months away so, for now, I’ll just focus on the coming two-plus months of cruising that remain this season.   So, instead of shots of compressors and water pumps, how about closing with a shot of the Pitons in St Lucia, the remnants of long extinct volcanoes, our next stop on our way south. I guess I’ll sign off for now.  The basement job awaits.   Besides, while I’m down there I won’t be reminded of the dreary conditions outside.   I wouldn’t want Seasonal affective disorder to kick in any time soon.

As I sit at the kitchen counter here in CT I must report that the temperature outside is a balmy 46 degrees and all the snow, including what I  posted a photo of just yesterday, is gone.   However, 46 is a long way from the 80s temperatures of where Pandora is in Martinique and I am none too happy with all that.  Anyway, I guess it’s not all that cold.

Happily, the Caribbean 600 race is underway, with nearly 90 entries, a record fleet, which is good as it will give me something to write about.   This video is a pre-race overview and is worth watching.  And, I’d better write about it PDQ as the leading boats are more than half of the way to the finish line and the race only left yesterday.   Actually, the leading boat, Phaedo 3, a 70′ go fast trimaran, no make that go EXTREEMLY FAST racer, is owned by a 36 year old Lloyd Thornburg. It’s interesting to note that his father, Garrett, co-founded a mortgage company back in 1993 and made a lot, no make that a LOT of money.  The company went bankrupt in 2009.  Remember the crash of 2008?  However, it seems that Lloyd’s dad made out alright in spite of the market collapse as now his son Lloyd can spend his time racing around the world.   Phaedo isn’t his only boat as he also owns a large 60′ carbon Gunboat cat that he cruises, I guess.

This is an interesting quote from an interview he did with Forbes Magazine.

“This the scariest thing I’ve done,” he confides. “I fly, skydive, drive fast cars, but the MOD is scarier. All those other things are scary for a minute or a few minutes at a time, but this boat shows you what you’re capable of after being miserable, and tired, and soaked in fear for 24 hours, 30 hours. You could wake up upside down in the freezing cold water in the dark…”

His newest boat Phaedo 3 is a real screamer and is leading the 90 boat fleet.  This boat, only a few years old, took line honors as the first to finish in the 2015 Caribbean 600 race and that was  the very first regatta that she was in.I’ll bet it was upsetting to some of the race veterans to have a first timer skunk them all. She’s a really fast boat. As I watched that video I was struck by how many of the boats and sights I recognized from our time in Antigua. It’s a really nice place to visit if you are into sailing like I am.

Another yacht leading the pack is also a trimaran, Paradox.  This boat is particularly interesting as it’s set up as a racer/cruiser, unlike most other fast boats, this one is also used for family cruising.  She looks fast and is capable of speeds in the 30s.   I’m not sure if this information is current but it appears that she’s for sale.  Want to get there fast?  She may be the boat for you.   Check out her listing here. Multi ulls, yachts with more than one hull, two or three, are really tricky to sail in strong winds as the risk of capsize is high.   Actually, last night one of the cats in the 600 did just that, the 70′ Fujin.   This photo is of her at the start of the race yesterday from Yachts and Racing.   I guess she’s not going all that fast now. Read about her capsize and see a few photos of her by following this link.   I am sure that there will be plenty of commentary about this in the coming weeks.

And speaking of things going bump in the night.  Another competitor among the leaders of the pack is Rambler 100.   She’s one of the fastest monohulls in the world and her owner, George David, former chairman of United Technologies, if I’m right, also owns Rambler 88.  She’s leading the monohull feet, even ahead of her bigger sister Rambler 100.    With two major ocean racers to keep up David must have quite a payroll.

His bigger boat, Rambler 100, lost her keel in the Fastnet race in 2011.   Imagine what it’s like to be blasting along one minute and upside down the next.  And, that’s what happened.   Fast ocean racing is a high stakes game, that’s for sure. These boats are certainly different than the type of cruising boats that most of us have.  This video, a series of interviews with skippers of some of the fastest boats in the 2015 trans Atlantic race gives a pretty good feel for what these boats are like.  Some great footage of them underway including Phaedo 3, Rambler 88 and Paradox.It’s remarkable to see these videos but even better to be sailing in these waters over the winter and seeing these boats first hand.  Last winter Brenda and I were making a run from St Barths to Antigua and ended up right in the middle of the fleet during last year’s running of the Caribbean 600.  To see these boats scream by as the sun rose in the east was a sight to behold.   Follow this link to the post that I wrote about that chance encounter with the fleet that day.

As I finish up this post it’s mid morning and the leaders are closing in on the last third of the leg.   That’s a lot of boats.  And, here are the leaders, rounding the south side of Guadeloupe.   The tri to the right is Phaedo 3, the green one on the bottom is Rambler 88 (green) taking a different road, number three Rambler 100 (white) and Paradox after that.

I guess we will hear more as the race finishes.  If you want to check things out yourself, try this link to the race tracker.    So, there you have it, the Caribbean 600 race is underway and nearly over for the leaders already.  Me?  I’m up in the north with snow, well at least snow was on the ground yesterday, and Pandora’s in Martinique, waiting for us to return in a few weeks.  Meanwhile, the biggest and fastest kids are duking it out in heavy conditions down in the Caribbean.

Oh yeah, I have had a cold for a while and Brenda might be coming down with one too.  Oh boy.  I sure hope that doesn’t keep us from seeing Rob, Kandice and little Tori.   Fingers crossed.

Well, it’s happened, we are now back in CT and home for the next two weeks.   As we have for the last 6 winters, we had made sure that the house was thoroughly winterized with antifreeze in the boiler, had been inspected by a professional who has undergone hvac training for heating repair as well as heat pump repair, all domestic water pipes blown out and antifreeze in the toilets, dishwasher… before we shut the front door to head south.

So, now it’s late February, the house is warm (sort of), the water turned on and all that work, getting the house closed up is, well, down the drain, literally.   

We arrived late yesterday afternoon to a wintry landscape of snow and ice.   This is the view out of our front door a few moments ago.   Note the nod to nautical, the anchor on the porch.  Contrast that to the sunset behind Pandora, our last night aboard.   “Behind” is the operative word.  Sunsets in the Caribbean are always behind the boat as the wind is always from the east.   How inconvenient it would be to have to crane our necks if it wasn’t always behind us.   Love those trade winds. So much for tropics for the next two weeks.

So back to arriving home.   I had set the furnace to a cool 40 degrees for the winter when we left and somewhere along the line the furnace failed and when I went to turn up the heat, NOTHING HAPPENED.   Yikes, it was 43 in the house and no way to make it warmer.

After a quick call to the oil company and our plumber, I realized that I could try the reset button on the furnace and voila, it turned on.  However, I still want to have someone out to look things over as I have no idea what caused it to fail and somewhere along the way it had gotten VERY COLD inside.   So cold that water inside the fridge froze.   That’s cold.

Well, it’s now warm in the house, although that is a relative description as I now have on an undershirt, long sleeve shirt, fleece, long pants, socks.  Well, you get the picture and that’s in contrast to my normal tropical attire of shorts.  Just shorts,  that’s it with the addition of a shirt to keep the sun off as needed.   Oh yeah, while the water here is frozen, the water in Martinique is “dip worthy”.  Hmm…

And, speaking of Martinique, Pandora is now on a mooring in Le Marin, which has the least expensive moorings I have ever encountered.   Believe it or not, Pandora’s monthly rate for the mooring is about $135 a month.   A MONTH!  Can you believe it?  Not to torture the price thing too much but a mooring in Sag Harbor, The Hamptons in NY,  for Pandora at 47′ is $94/night.  That’s for ONE NIGHT!   In Martha’s Vineyard it’s in the $50/night range and Nantucket around $85/night.

And, to tie up Med Moor on the dock is cheap too, something like $35/night.   The place is so reasonably priced that the entire year is booked, with short windows sometimes available for transient visits, by December of the PRIOR YEAR, including summer in-water storage.   Amazing.

t’s no surprise that the place, with 600 slips, some say as many as 1,000 and hundreds of moorings, is always full as it’s so reasonably priced.   Pandora is actually in this shot but she’s so far out in the harbor that she doesn’t even show up.   I’d estimate that in the general area there are perhaps as many as 2,000 boats in slips, on moorings and at anchor at any given time.   And, as you can imagine, just about any sort of marine related service is readily at hand and at reasonable prices.
So here we are in CT for two weeks, punctuated with visits to MD and our family, before heading back to Pandora to resume our visit to the Windward Islands, south to Grenada.

After that?  Not sure but I am leaning toward bringing Pandora north this spring in spite of the fact that it’s such a long trip back north,  a real slog.

For now, I’ll just focus on staying warm and look forward to the fun of re-winterizing the house once again before we head back to Martinique.

After a few months in tropical weather, all I can say is “wow, it’s different up here”.

It’s rare to see a classic boat here in Martinique where the only really old ones are generally nearly or totally derelict.   However, as we moved from St Anne to Le Marin today, to put Pandora on a mooring, this lovely motorsailer passed us going the other way.She’s a beauty, built in the 50s, a steel motorsailer.   This video talks about her recent refit in Belfast Maine.It’s indeed rare to see classics south of Antigua and a treat.  I only wish that I had seen her when she was anchored in St Anne so I could have gotten some better shots.  Anyway, we saw her.   Her cruising schedule is taking her far and wide this season although she was shipped from Newport to the American Virgins by ship.  Want to follow her?  Check out her FaceBook page.  Not a lot of current information there although it seems that she was designed by Walter McGinnis in Boston and build by Abeking and Rasmussen in Germany, the same yard that built the iconic Concordia Yawls.

On another subject, yesterday Brenda and I went for a hike along the shore near St Anne.  It involved some ups and downs, more than Brenda wanted and als0 was a bit longer, no make that a LOT longer, than I had expected.  Oops.

Anyway, it was a beautiful walk.   This view, of the anchorage, shows how many boats are anchored off of St Anne.  A bit farther down, a view to the south toward St Lucia, where we hope to visit when we return from CT in early March. Along the way we saw a number of specimens of this very interesting tree, a Caribbean Birch, called that because the bark peels like a north american birch.   It’s also called a tourist tree, because it is red and peels like a sunburned tourist.  They are very fast growing and look impressive.  Their wood is a dark red like mahogany.  Beautiful. The walk was nice but being longer than expected and the fact that we had to bum a ride with some random Italian tourist and his family at the end didn’t go particularly well with Brenda.   Oops.  And, as our Son Rob would say,  “Nice work.  A CLM, career limiting move Dad”.

For much of the week the locals in Martinique have been celebrating Carnival and even in little St Anne, there was something going on each day.   In the evenings the music would blare and a small parade would make it’s way through town.   This truck had some impressive sound equipment aboard.  You could feel as well as hear the music a long way off.   After it passed, “oh, that’s a lot of speakers”.    No wonder it sounded like it was right in Pandora’s cockpit with us.  Many locals dressed up and marched, or danced along with the parade.  I particularly enjoyed this girl in her costume.   Store bought perhaps but fun never the less.   Cute kid. Well, that’s about all for now.   Tomorrow we pack up for our trip home to the states for two weeks.   Lots of details including someone to keep an eye on Pandora and to water her plants.   Plants you say?  Yes, plants.

We are excited to see the kids and our granddaughter Tori.    Will be fun.   Back to Pandora and south for more exploring after March 5th.

As always, details to come.

Seeing Little Vigilant today reminded me of the coming cold weather up north.  A taste of the coming weather when we head home, a taste of Maine here in Martinique.

Well, it’s another windy day here in St Anne, and only a few days till we catch a flight back to the US.  Interestingly, it’s not expensive to fly to CT or NY from Martinique as the discount airline, Norwegian Air flies here non-stop several days a week.  Brenda and I were able to get pretty inexpensive flights of about $250 each, round trip.  Not bad compared to some islands where it costs a lot more, takes two stops and sometimes two days to get home.

One thing for sure is that there isn’t any salt on the decks of boats here as it rains every day here, sometimes for a few brief moments and occasionally in great torrents.   And with the wind, it seems like just about every day somebody’s boat or dink breaks free and must be captured and re-anchored because of the strong winds.   That and the fact that there are about 350 boats anchored makes for a lot of action, wind or not.

Normally, squalls and rainstorms in the Caribbean come with an increase of 5-10kts of additional wind but with the wind already in the 20s, and a wind increase of sometimes 20+ kts, makes for some impressive moments with horizontal winds lashing Pandora.

However, wind or not, there is still plenty of sunshine here and that all comes with temperatures in the high 70s and low 80s, very pleasant actually.

Now that we have been here for about two weeks due to the wind, it’s becoming somewhat difficult to keep myself occupied as witnessed by my more than regular posts.   Actually, to keep everyone from getting cabin fever from being pinned down with strong winds, today there will be a valentine’s pot luck on the beach.  Brenda’s made a terrific almond cake.  I expect that it will be a big hit.

The town center of St Anne is dominated by the Catholic church, the first thing you see when you arrive at the dock.  It’s a busy place with services or activities most every day.   It’s a beautiful building.   The church is famous for it’s pathway depicting the stations of the cross, set up on the hillside behind the church.   Each station depicts an event associated with the Crucifixion of Christ.  As you make your way up the hillside, you go through a series of switchbacks with a station at each turn. From the top is an impressive view of the harbor and mountains in the distance.  Pandora is out there too. The congregation of the church has gone to great effort to make everything just right with whitewashed walls lining the paths.  There are even floodlights and loud speakers lining the pathway, designed to manage thousands of pilgrims that make the journey on special occasions.

Down near the water is a beautiful cemetery with many family crypts.  Not a bad view.I guess that this post is a bit light on detail but I thought I’d share it anyway.

Oh yeah, Happy Valentines Day.  Pandora’s crew will enjoy some bubbly and sauteed duck breast for dinner aboard.

In a few days, back to the US and family.  Happily, a local cruiser will be keeping an eye on Pandora while she’s on a mooring in la Marin.   One less thing to worry about.