A maze of memories

The 41 hours from La Paz to Mazatlán were beautiful, extremely arduous, fascinating, scary, extremely easy, extremely difficult. It was up and down and up and down and up and down. I have noticed that this is what I struggle most with since living on Milagros. The constant changes in mindset, morale and level of happiness and comfort. Nothing is ever constant on a sailboat. Everything can change within short periods of time. A lot of people say that that’s where the beauty of cruising life lies for them. Not for me.

A storm of thoughts

What we have both noticed on our crossing to Mazatlàn is nothing new, really. We still don’t like being underway at night. Once the sun sets and the night covers the boat, we feel like we just have to give up a little too much control. We both feel that way. Sometimes, even in daylight, I have the feeling that I’m constantly pushing the limits of my comfort zone, and this is even more noticeable at night. Even the smallest occurrences or unusual things stress me out and my reaction to them is not always the best. I quickly degenerate into a grumbling bundle of nerves that just thinks everything is shit. Boating sucks, the sea state is horrible, waves are the worst, fuck sailing in particular, all is crap.

Change in mindset

Just as quickly my mindset can change in the other direction. It only has to be a shooting star crossing the sky at night or a fish jumping out of the water during the day and I’m completely zen. And it’s been like this for more than two years now. Up. Down. Up. Down. Up. Down. The constant swings can be exhausting. I feel that I’m exhausted a lot. Not physically, but mentally.

Next stop – Isla Isabela

All of us were exhausted after our trip from La Paz, not only me. The fact that I also slit my hand the next morning only helped to a limited extent. But what the heck – show must go on, after all we wanted to arrive in Panama at some point, so we started the passage planning. The next stop was going to be a very special one, one that was highly praised by every single visitor. Isla Isabela.

Yet another nightly passage

Located almost 85 nautical miles southeast of Mazatlán, it is a breeding ground for hundreds of thousands of seabirds. There were hymns of praise for the place from all sailors who have visited. But what was the name of the visit? A passage overnight. Argh. It takes almost 17 hours to reach the island from Mazatlàn. The skippers and crew almost went crazy with anticipation. Not. But we had no choice.

Next stop – not Isla Isabela

While on the phone with my parents I was just about to announce our departure while Pati was checking the oil on Burrito in the engine room. She came back with a sober expression on her face. “We’re not going anywhere” she said. We had oil dilution. What that means is that an unfamiliar substance has found its way into our oil. In most cases, this is diesel or cooling water. Departure cancelled. There are many causes for oil dilution, one of them being a leaking cylinder head gasket, which would involve a lot of time and work. We really hoped it wasn’t the gasket because we wanted moooooove. But the cause was quickly found: we had diesel in our oil, because our BRANDNEW lift pump broke. Now we also knew why the engine didn’t want to start during the crossing. After our ordeal back in Peñasco, at least we knew what we had to do.

Pulling our hair

It was just horrid. After months of our engine purring wonderfully, our confidence in it was back to zero within a few days. Up. Down. Up. Down. Up. Down. The pump was quickly bypassed with a piece of diesel hose with a suitable connection that we still had aboard. And with the addition of a small electric diesel pump, we were able to temporarily fix the problem. After an oil change and a 3-hour test run of the engine to see if it worked, we were able to start our journey towards Isla Isabela with a day of delay.

On the way in the dark

The crossing went smoothly. We set out in daylight and a good wind, set the sails and had fantastic weather. The waves were moderate, the wind was steady at around 15 knots. Just like Milagros and we like it. Unfortunately, all the fun was over in the evening and Burrito had to go to work. This time he started up smoothly and moved us through the night to the southeast. The most exciting thing that happened? We moved passed a sailboat that was sitting completely still with its sails set and flapping, and we passed the buoy of a fishing net way too close for comfort. Those kinds of threats are simply invisible in the dark. So much for night time passages and giving up control.

There she is – Isla Isabela

At the crack of dawn and with the first light of day, Isla Isabela National Park appeared. And wow, we weren’t promised too much beforehand. The place is often called «the Galapagos of Mexico». The sky was full of frigatebirds, blue boobies, pelicans and many other bird species. They circled overhead over and around the island in the warm morning light, and their “talks” could be heard loudly from the shore. Unfortunately, we had already seen from afar the many anchor lights that lined the island.

Easy Come Easy Go

It quickly became clear that a stay would not work out. We wanted to make ourselves comfortable on the east end of the island. The closer we got to the island, the more anchor lights from other boats appeared along the shores of the rocky island. At the east end, three boats were already gently rocking over the sandbank that would have been our target anchorage. We still tried to find a spot, tough. However, we didn’t feel 100% comfortable dropping our anchor ultra-close (by our standards at least) next to another vessel in 12 meters of water with no idea of what to expect of the seabed. So, we called off “Operation Visit Isla Isabela”. But not without a little sightseeing tour around the island.

Safety first

In the main bay at the southern end of the island, which is known for its rocky bottom with only small sandbanks, there were a mere 8 boats at anchor. Maybe all the anchors had found sandy bottom, maybe they had found boulders. Who knows? But we didn’t want to anchor there anyway, we’ve heard too many stories of snagged, broken, fouled and lost anchor gear. So, we embarked on a leisurely cruise around the island and are now even more interested in visiting it. Then we turned back to the southeast and thus to the bay of Chacala.

And then I stabbed myself again

And guess what happened on the way there: I stabbed my wrist with a knife. Great, right? I did that when I wanted to kill a fish that we had caught on the way. The big unlucky animal that bit the rubber squid was a beautiful Pacific Crevalle Jack. The other big unlucky animal who now had two holes on the same arm was me. It wasn’t deep or big, but I must have pricked a tendon. Now I couldn’t use my right hand anymore at all and Pati had to make use of the fish. I was so fed up, you cannot even imagine.

Hello Chacala!

Luckily, we arrived in Chacala soon after. A sandy beach, palm trees, beach bars and the good side of sailing life awaited. However, we also had to be prepared for possible uncomfortable nights. In our navigation program sailors wrote of swell, which could roll undisturbed into the bay. So, it was time for yet another first time: We had to make use of our stern anchor. A stern anchor prevents the boat from turning unfavorably in wind and current, possibly putting your boat sideways to incoming waves or getting too close to possible obstacles. With the use of a stern anchor, you can thus move the bow and stern of the boat in the desired direction and prevent the ship from moving around too much. This keeps the ship aligned at the right angle to the waves or keeps it away from dangers in small, sketchy or crowded anchorages.

No problemo!

Said and done. We wrestled our big stern anchor and anchor rode into our dinghy and took the equipment towards the beach. Flo gradually let out line from the stern of Milagros and when we found a suitable position, we dropped the anchor. Everything worked like a charm and soon we were able to enjoy the view comfortably rocking in the cockpit.

Discovering the beauty of Chacala

Chacala is a small village on a beautiful, long, picture-postcard sandy beach lined with many small restaurants. Behind the village, lush greenery borders the hilly landscape. It was very nice to look at and of course we had to see it up close right away. After a quick zoom ashore in our trusted deflatable dinghy we stood barefoot on the beach and sipped on three ice cold margaritas. The next few days we spent with everything that makes life on a sailboat beautiful. Balm for our battered souls.

Finally, greenery!

We were especially looking forward to the vegetation after two years in the desert. So of course, we didn’t miss the opportunity to go for a walk in the forests that surround the cute little town of Chacala. We were accompanied by a friendly doggo, which we quickly christened “Schoggi” (which is swiss German for chocolate), because of its brown coat. She accompanied us all the way up into the forest. We were only stopped by the guard at a pompous entrance to a private property. Back on the boat, we met up with friends from all the boats we knew that were also anchored in Chacala, enjoyed tacos made with the fish we had caught, or walked through the village, where, among other things, I was finally able to have the threads of my knife cut removed at the local health center.

Florian gets the full range

Our good friend and crewmate Flo got the full range of highs and lows on a sailboat. The dark clouds had lifted again and we were sitting on a palm-lined beach, sipping alcoholic beverages of all kinds. Where Flo had recently been seasick burying his head in the toilet, he now buried his feet in the sand. Our idea that we could continue from Chacala to La Cruz only met with limited approval from him. He would rather stay in Chacala a little longer. Enough of the sailing adventures for now. Enough of the constant Up. Down. Up. Down. Up. Down.

Flo’s conclusion

This is also Flo’s conclusion of his sailing adventure with us on Milagros. Highlights for him were visiting Chacala, meeting other sailors, experiencing bioluminescence, spotting whales and dolphins and being adventurous with friends. On the opposite end of the spectrum are the technical issues we encountered, the moral lows, seasickness and David’s hand accidents – I would say it was a 360° experience for him with all that entails the cruising life. It’s not just summer, sun, sunshine and champagne sailing.

We continue to La Cruz

The time we had together was short and soon we were getting Flo to the early morning bus that was supposed to take him to the Puerto Vallarta airport. We also packed our belongings, raised both our stern and bow anchor and motored comfortably in the direction of La Cruz. At anchor there we had to prepare the ship again for the next visit of two friends from Switzerland.

You know what’s also going up. down. up. down? Our beer stash. You can contribute to our beer kitty by clicking the button below to choose your favourite method. You can also become a monthly contributor by heading over to Patreon. Thanks a lot!

Help maintaining our beer stash!

Der Beitrag Up. Down. Up. Down. Up. Down. erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

Our maiden voyage is forever. Once again, we made an experience that we will remember for the rest of our young lives. We started our journey on Milagros with a firework of emotions and very valuable lessons. We couldn’t even have imagined such a maiden voyage in our dreams. Chaos and panic in between, then complete calm, control and concentration and a Milagros that performed like an absolute championesse. We didn’t feel unsafe for a second on our boat, not even when she sailed us instead of us sailing her.

Time to arrive

It is no coincidence that we chose Puerto Escondido as our alternative port. We knew we had everything we needed here. A place that is protected from all wind directions, has other sailors, a well-equipped marina and a small town, Loreto, nearby. In addition, we were independently recommended the same mechanic by various sources. So many positives! But first we had to arrive in Puerto Escondido. After a good night’s sleep, we first put the dinghy (our small inflatable boat) in the water and went ashore to explore the facilities of the marina.

It’s a rich man’s world

Puerto Escondido (Hidden Harbour) is one of the best sheltered bays in all the Sea of Cortez. Completely surrounded by hills and headlands. For mariners, the site has for decades been a haven from rough weather or even hurricanes that get a little too close for comfort. Formerly an anchorage free to use for anyone, in 2003/2004 the Institution for sustainable tourism of Mexico installed mooring balls in the anchorage and started the construction of buildings. As is so often the case in Mexico, the whole idea and operation was abandoned at some point and another consortium took over the anchorage. With a little help of some deep pockets in the background, a whole Marina was built. We think it’s a pity that natural anchor bays otherwise open for anyone can just be taken over. But that’s how it is. Money makes the world go round.

Marina Puerto Escondido

The marina itself is top of the line. From a small, well-stocked supermarket, to all kinds of offers for maintenance and ship-related work, a small restaurant and a fully equipped “Captain’s Lounge”, which one could only dream of at the Cabrales Boatyard, Marina Puerto Escondido offers everything a boater’s heart desires. Of course, all of this comes at a price. While we pay just under $400 for a mooring ball in the bay, it would be a good $1,000 per month in the marina. Eeehm, no thanks. But: all the marina facilities are included in the price when you’re moored on a buoy in the bay. The internet is good, the showers are next level! Life at the mooring ball is a good compromise that doesn’t ruin our cruising kitty completely.

The best shower in years

The showers in the marina are the highlight for us and many other boaters. We can really only let the pictures speak for themselves. We smell like flower gardens because of the L’Occitane shower gel provided by the marina. In addition to the showers, we also benefit from the internet in the lounge every day. For example, while Pati is putting hours into her new part-time job, I made a website for our friends on the catamaran «Charly». This way, we not only throw money at Milagors, but also earn some of it back. And then we take showers. For hours and days.

Burrito is still broken

Finally, we got to enjoy life on and by the water. A whole new feeling. We went on dinghy tours, explored the area on the various hiking trails in the area or even caught our own food. What a great way to recharge the batteries. Nevertheless, we mustn’t forget one thing: our engine was acting up again! So, we contacted Lauro, the local diesel engine whisperer, and asked if he had time for our Burrito (we christened our engine “little donkey”). A few days later he was our (very expensive) guest on Milagros and quickly identified the issue.

In the engine room. again.

Something was wrong with Burrito’s diesel pressure, as already suspected by the other mechanic in Puerto Peñasco. He identified our injection pump as the source of our engine problems, quickly removed it and took it into his care to have it examined. While we were there, we informed him about our defective lift pump. We wanted to have that one replaced, too. So, a few days passed, during which we continued to explore our surroundings. When Simon on SV Kudra, a former resident of Cabrales Boatyard, also showed up in Puerto Escondido, we set out to explore a nearby canyon.

A true Milagros adventure

Since it was time to fill up our fridge and stock up on water supplies anyway (our watermaker wasn’t working yet), we rented a car and headed out into the wilderness. The description for the drive to the start of the canyon hike sounded pretty straight forward. But nothing about it was straight forward. And so, we ended up with our rental car on a loose gravel road, in which we almost got stuck. With a little pushing, painful scratching around the undersides of the car and a few drops of sweat, we made it back. Once again lucky after all, Milagros style.

Our merry little hiking group

By chance, we met an American couple and their dog who were also on their way to the canyon in their 4×4 campervan. Without further ado we were allowed to hop on and so we all set off together. “Follow a river bed before you head off sideways into the canyon.” said the directions. Easier said than done. The river bed itself was fairly easy to identify, the only problem was that there were all sorts of small junctions heading into little valleys to the left and right. Long story short, we were unsuccessful in finding the described canyon, but still had a beautiful little hike in the desert. After all the scratching and banging, Weirdly, our rental car lost a bit of (brake?) fluid after its trip and also made a few other strange noises. Of course, we know We have no idea how that could have happened.

Repairing Burrito

Shortly afterwards we received word from Lauro, the mechanic. His diesel pump specialist had actually found a few defective parts on the injection pump that were responsible for the low pressure. She had to be rebuilt. We had no other choice anyway, and a day or two later Lauro was back in the engine room at Milagros working on Burrito. In addition to the injection pump, which looked like new, he also had a brand new lift pump with him. All our injectors had also been checked and serviced. After the installation we tried to start the engine. Vrooooooom! Burrito woke up from his sleep. In fact, with less vibrations and a much better sound than before. Burrito is back! A big thank you goes to Lauro from Lauro’s Diesel Services. A good, competent man who was warmly recommended to us by a number of people.

Low tolerances

What we can say (with a bit of pride that is) is that the problems with the injection pump have nothing to do with our change of the pump cover. The problems lay deeper. As a hobby mechanic, you should only dare to service the injection pump of a diesel engine in an emergency. The injection pump is the heart of an engine’s diesel system and consists of many small parts that only have smallest tolerances. Tiny particles of dirt or even minimal wear on certain parts can affect fuel pressure. Lauro brought us the “defective” parts to show us how little it takes for an injection pump to cause problems. The discoloration on the parts in the following pictures was enough to seriously affect the diesel pressure on Burrito. Crazy!

Out for a ride

To make sure everything was as it should be, we took Lauro on yet another test ride on Milagros. This was associated with a bit of nervousness on our part, because we have never undocked and docked with Milagros from a mooring ball. We read up on the matter a bit and got started on a nice, quiet morning. And what can we say: it’s not as difficult as we thought. At least when there is no wind. The test run was completely uneventful in a positive way, we just did a few laps in the bay outside of the harbour basin and put Burrito through its paces together with Lauro. Burrito did a good job, but we still had a leak in the transmission that needed patching. No big deal, said Lauro, just a small seal needed replacing.

We’re ready again!

Said and done. And now we’re ready to head out again and have gained a ton of new knowledge about Burrito, especially from Lauro, since we always looked over his shoulder while he was doing his job. He was patient and answered any questions we had. Nothing to be taken for granted, compared to the mechanic back in Long Beach. Now it is up to us to define a departure date and a destination. The goal is still to head for La Paz and maybe even catch up with Iñaki and Carmen before they head to Costa Rica. After almost two years in Mexico, they are headed further south. Good on them, Costa Rica has been calling them for a while now. As for us, we don’t want to head any further than Mexico yet. The Sea of ​​Cortez wants to be properly explored.

We had plenty of beer time during our stay in Puerto Escondido! Feel free to offer us a beer or two by clicking on the button below. Or you could become a monthly supporter on Patreon if you feel like it. Many thanks!

Beer with us in Escondido!

Der Beitrag Stranded in Paradise erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

We were happy that our burrito (as we affectionately call our engine) was purring like a kitten again. We immediately took advantage of this to take Milagros for another test drive. This time Doug from SV Cat’s Paw accompanied us. At the same time, we decided to change marinas again. The Fonatur Marina only brought us bad luck! In addition, strong winds from the northwest were forecast, against which one is not very well protected in Fonatur Marina. This wind also prevented us from leaving Puerto Peñasco at all.

Miscellaneous projects

So, we turned our attention to the other projects on our list. For example, David serviced our Jabsco pump toilet. He took it completely apart, cleaned all the parts and installed new seals. We also removed the remains of our shaft brake and changed the oil filter and oil in the engine twice. Also, we took care of Betty, the yard car. We were convinced that she was still roadworthy. So, we fitted the spare wheel and took her back to the yard.

Voltage drop

Now that the engine was running again, we started it every morning to make sure it still was. But we were still not completely satisfied. It was difficult to get it going, especially in the morning. Sometimes it took several attempts before it started. Since we had already installed a new starter battery, a voltage drop in the cables or problems with the starter motor were possible. Together with our electrical consultant Cavu Dave, we took various volt measurements at different points in the starter system. We found a total voltage drop of 1.3 V in the thick cables to and from the battery.

A trip to the USA

We cleaned the terminals of the battery cables but found no improvement thereafter. In discussions with other sailors, we also found that the cables were too small. So, we decided to replace them. Since you couldn’t buy these cables in Peñasco and it simply took too long to order them, we decided to make a spontaneous trip to Phoenix. The next day, we packed what we needed and went to the nearest car rental agency, hoping that there was a car available for us. We were not disappointed. A short while later, we were on our way to the US. We had 360 km or 4 hours of driving ahead of us.

Beer and rest

Phoenix is not exactly a cheap place, but we found a hotel in Scottsdale that didn’t look too bad, and the price was still reasonable. And after all, this was our first holiday in half a year. By cvhance, the hotel was only a 5-minute walk from a brewery in the “old town”. We really enjoyed the peace and quiet, the cleanliness of the streets and the craft beer on offer!

On a shopping tour

We had a big shopping trip planned for the next day. The most important stop was at WestMarine, a shop for boat’s accessories, where we wanted to buy the cables. Apparently, there was a big demand for electrical cables at the moment, as we bought up the last metres available. Luckily, they still had exactly as much cable in stock as we needed. Unfortunately, there weren’t enough cable lugs of the needed size left. We left the shop a little depressed. The many wonderful things that can be used to improve the boat just cost an insane amount of money. The cables alone cost us$200…. We consoled ourselves with beer and chocolate from Trader Joe’s and 3 kg (6.5 pounds) of Skittles from WinCo.

Clichés fulfilled

We also didn’t miss the chance to stop at a classic diner. We were not disappointed – every cliché was fulfilled: heavily bleached hair, a thick layer of make-up and ornate fingernails on both waitresses, watery filter coffee à discretion, burgers for breakfast, the Vietnam veteran who thanked David with “thank you, young man” for holding the door open, and so on. And after the breakfast we were ready for the booster shot we had organised online at Walgreen’s the day before. Speaking of clichés, we also visited a gun shop where you could try out any weapon you wanted for $80 and up. There was even a Valentine’s Day deal for couples for $125. We didn’t shoot anything, though.

Other projects

Back in Penãsco, we installed the new gear we had bought in Phoenix. Now we have CO2 and smoke detectors in both bedrooms (so none of us can die unnoticed underway in case we have an exhaust leak). We also cut the new battery cables and pressed on cable lugs using SV Liquid’s hydraulic press. The start-up and testing of the engine were successful, and we felt that it started more smoothly now. In preparation for the big voyage, we also sealed the mast where it goes through the deck into the boat.

Getting the boat ready

We prepared the boat again for leaving Puerto Peñasco: we provisioned water and diesel, fruit and vegetables and everything else we needed. We had chosen a weather window that promised little wind. The new departure date was set for Friday, 11 February at 12:00 pm – 2.5 weeks after our first attempt. Like last time, the harbour master wanted to document our departure. But as he was off that day, he sent a deputy to be on site at 11.50 am sharp.

Where is he?

Fortunately, I had asked for the deputy’s number the day before and was able to call him when he still wasn’t there at 12.00 pm. Not that 10 minutes usually matter, but it was a flat tide that day and we didn’t want to get stuck at the harbour exit. On the phone he asked me which marina we were in – so he didn’t really have a clue where to go. Thirty minutes later, he was finally there. And David already had a bad feeling when he saw him: neatly polished black leather shoes in combination with a uniform are never a good sign.

And so it happened that he spent about half an hour asking us about the boat (fire extinguishers, signalling systems, life jackets, horsepower of the engine, etc.). We were starting to get nervous, and even the few Cabralians who had gathered to see us off were wondering what was going on.

On our maiden voyage

Just when the harbour master had finally finished and wanted to hand us the departure documents, we realised it was still the old one from our last leaving attempt. He still had to rewrite it and go back to the office to make a copy. We mentally prepared ourselves to postpone our departure to the next day when he said it would only take 5 minutes to do so. But lo and behold, 10 minutes later we had the document in our hands and could leave – with just over an hour’s delay. Accompanied by cheers, we cast off. The time had come – we started our maiden voyage!

We sail Milagros

As soon as we were out of the harbour, we hoisted the mainsail and set our tiller pilot on course for Santa Rosalia. On the way, a light breeze came up and we immediately unfurled the genoa and switched off the engine. WE SAILED MILAGROS! David took the first shift until 2:00 am and I the second until 8:00 am. So, I experienced my first sunrise on Milagros. It was a special feeling to be alone – just David, Milagros, and me – gliding over the glassy water in the middle of the ocean. Just a year ago we could not have imagined sailing the boat alone. At some point, sure, but not right away on our maiden voyage. But we were well prepared and had confidence in the strength of Milagros.

Right of way?

The first night was uneventful and the morning was also quiet. I took the opportunity to whip some line ends that were beginning to fray. During the day, the wind picked up, and we had to reef for the first time. We also had to dodge a large fishing boat that cared little that we were under sail and therefore had right of way.

Downwind

As we had the wind from behind, we had to sail downwind. This is quite a difficult course, especially when there is swell. And the danger of a chinese gybe, the unintentional turning of the stern through the wind, is high. The Chinese gybe is dangerous because the boom slams from side to side, describing an arc of about 180°. Many sailors have been gravely injured when hit in the head by the boom, and the forces involved can cause great damage to the rig. Therefore, we have installed a so-called boom preventer, a line to hold the boom in place.

We were happy

Normally, on the downwind course, the headsail is stabilised with a spinnaker pole, for example, so that it doesn’t collapse in the lee of the mainsail. However, we didn’t know how to do that and therefore had to settle for a collapsing sail once in a while. We found that it collapsed less if we reduced the sail area a little. Overall, we were happy with the sailing and the speed. If the wind were a little weaker, we could have hoisted a light wind sail on this course. But we only had one, which we would have had to exchange with the headsail, and we clearly didn’t want to do that.

The second night

Towards the evening we decided to take down the mainsail and sail only with the headsail. The wind had picekd up, and we didn’t want to be surprised by stronger winds at night. The foresail is quickly furled from the cockpit – for the mainsail someone must go forward to the mast. A Chinese gybe with the headsail is not too bad – the sail is then just backwards (on the wrong side of the boat) and you can steer onto a correct course and let it come back to the other side. As the waves also got bigger due to the wind picking up, it became more difficult to maintain the downwind course and we started the engine to help.

The wind picked up

As the night progressed, the wind got stronger and stronger, reaching up to 7 Beaufort in the morning. According to the Beaufort scale, that’s about 50-60 km/h of wind. The scale ranges from 0 to 12, with 12 being a storm with a wind force of more than 120 km/h. The sounds of the boat below deck were sometimes eerie, creaking and scratching. And we were a bit worried as our rigging was not yet 100% tuned.

The swell was also increasing, reaching up to around 9 feet around noon. In the meantime, we steered by hand and had no more sails up, because the course to Santa Rosalia was not very favourable, since on a good course the waves were at a weird angle to the boat, which made the movements of the boat uncomfortable. And we didn’t want them straight from the side. Nevertheless, every now and then we got a wave over the bow.

Santa Rosalia

When Santa Rosalia came into sight, we hailed the harbour to find out about the wind situation in the harbour basin and if there was a place for us. But no one answered. We began to wonder if we would even make it into the harbour in these conditions and if we could dock. We decided to go a little closer and have a look at the situation. As before, no one answered our radio query, and we began to doubt our radio range. And we were not sure what to do. Try or go somewhere else?

The disaster happens

When we were still about two nautical miles (about 3 km) from the harbour entrance, the engine suddenly stopped. There was brief panic on board – what should we do? Did we run out of diesel? But we should have been able to motor at least 60 hours with our tankage, which means 30 hours per tank, and we had switched tank 19 engine hours ago. It was 2:00 pm and we had been underway for 48 hours at this point and had covered 160 nautical miles. We were tired and all we really wanted was to finally arrive. All we knew was that we could not lose speed. Because no speed means no manoeuvrability.

We immediately unfurled the headsail and changed our course away from the harbour. We remembered what Carmen and Iñaki said: you can also sail a downwind course with just the headsail. In the meantime, Milagros was briefly up for sale, again. Fortunately, we had mobile phone reception and were able to contact other sailors who immediately offered advice and assistance.

Weighing up the options

Over the next few hours, we weighed up various options together. Should we anchor in a bay on a small island nearby? But what if we had no mobile phone or radio reception there and were stuck without an engine? And was it sheltered from the predicted westerly wind coming up in the next couple of days? Or should we sail around the island close to Santa Rosalia and anchor to the south, where there was a boat going back and forth to Santa Rosalia? Would we still arrive in daylight? Were there actually diesel mechanics in Santa Rosalia? And how do you anchor under sail anyway? Or should we just sail on for another night? Because there was enough wind according to the forecast. And as long as we could sail, we were safe.

Our new destination

In the end, we all agreed that we should go to a place where we wanted to be, where we were sheltered from the wind and where there were plenty of resources and services if needed. Puerto Escondido proved to be the obvious choice. It was about one hundred nautical miles from Santa Rosalia, had a marina and mooring field and we knew two boats there. There are no words to express how grateful we are for your support: Mike and Katie on SV Alegría, Dave and Marla on SV Cavu, Marc and Laura on SV Liquid and Marga on SV Dogfish!

We sail on

Sailing into yet another night that we had not planned for was special – our night shifts had dissipated. We were both tired and just took turns sleeping without a fixed schedule. But we treated ourselves to a homemade pizza, which turned out surprisingly well considering the conditions. The next morning, the wind had dropped a little and we were able to take care of our engine. While David sailed the boat, I prepared a diesel bypass below deck. Because we hoped that the engine had just sucked in air in the strong swell, and we could make it happy again with diesel and venting. Unfortunately, Burrito wouldn’t start even after the 5th time of bleeding. And we mentally prepared ourselves for having to organise a tow.

A perfect sailing day

Sailing under these conditions (approx. 20 knots / 35 km/h) was fun! Within a short time, we learned to reef (reduce sail area) and gybe with Milagros. The best crash course you can imagine. We also learned how to set our Hydrovane, our wind steering autopilot correctly, so we didn’t always have to steer by hand. If we hadn’t had the broken engine in the back of our minds, it would have been a perfect day of sailing.

The towing is organised

When we had mobile phone reception again, we contacted Merijn from SV Dappere Dodo and Pete from SV Mazu and described our situation. We also called the marina in Puerto Escondido and informed them of our situation. A little later Merijn got back to us with the good news that they had organised the tow into the marina. But about five nautical miles from Puerto Escondido, the wind died. Fortunately, we were in the middle of the channel, so there was no immediate danger of trashing Milagros on shore anywhere. After an hour of rocking back and forth and trying to be as comfortable as possible (unfurling a little bit of headsail gave us the best angle to the waves without the sail chafing against the rigging), word came in that they were on their way to us.

A happy ending

They had organised the dinghy of a superyacht, which with its 1’000 hp would have no problems with our fifteen tons. To tie Milagros to the dinghy, it suited us just fine that there was no wind. So we chugged leisurely towards Puerto Escondido. And with the last ray of sunshine, we picked up a mooring ball. Phuuuuu, what a maiden voyage! It took us about 75 hours to cover the 380 nautical miles (700 km). At the end of the evening, we were invited to dinner on Dodo and then fell into bed dead tired.

At this point, we are convinced that Milagros simply did not want to go to Santa Rosalia. She knows very wells that she is a sailboat and not a motorsailor and that we should sail her accordingly. Serves us right!

Wanna congratulate us to our pretty successful maiden voyage? Feel free to buy us a beer or two by clicking on the button below. Or you could become a monthly supporter on Patreon if you feel like it. Many thanks!

Click here for !

Der Beitrag Our Maiden Voyage – a Hell of a Ride erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

Two days before our departure from Peñasco, our adventure almost came to an end. When we returned from an errand run, I noticed that Milagros was no longer moored in the same place. She must have moved somehow, because the water and electricity panel were right in front of where we boarded our boat, which they weren’t before. But we didn’t think about it any further. Then the boat neighbour told us that in our absence a steel fishing boat had crashed into the dock. All of a sudden, we realized the damage to the dock when our neighbour told us that he had seen the fishing boat graze Milagros. We immediately panicked: Had the metal colossus damaged our new paint job??? But we quickly realised that “only” the bowsprit and the anchor roller were bent, and the navigation light was damaged.

It could have ended badly

When our neighbour told us how the collision had happened, our hair stood on end. The fishing boat’s reverse gear had jammed, and the boat had therefore crashed backwards into the dock. Just a few feet to the right, it would have been our boat, not the dock. And Milagros might not have been there anymore. What a shock! Milagros has once again lived up to her name!

And we still think the name is great, despite a comment we recently overheard from a Sea Shepherd crew member about Milagros when they were in Peñasco with their boat “Sharpie” and moored behind us with their dinghy: “Yet another shitty boat name”. In their campaing called “Milagro”, Sea Sheperd is fighting illegal fishing with gill nets in the northern Sea of Cortez these days. Good thing they are here, but obviously they don’t have taste in boat names.

Costs, work and annoyance

The harbour master had already issued a no leave order for the culprit, so they could not leave the harbour until the damage had been paid for. Marga from Dogfish Boatworks made a damage report on the same day, which we submitted immediately. And the various party boat operators at the docks of Fonature Marine were pretty confident that we will receive compensation. The damage amounts to about 1,500 $ and means work and annoyance, of course. Fortunately, this damage didn’t stop us from leaving Peñasco. Instead, something else did.

It’s not happening

On Monday morning, the 24th of January 2022 at 8.00 am sharp, we wanted to untie the lines. It was high tide and there was a nice weather window to cover the 140 nautical miles to our first anchorage. Doug and Marga came over to wave goodbye and even the harbour master was there to bring us our papers. David started the engine and 5 seconds later it stopped again. We tried a few more times to start the engine, to no avail. That was the beginning of the end. It was not happening; we were not heading out! We then made coffee. What else was there to do? We quickly realised that it might take longer to solve the problem.

Diesel engines are frugal

In theory, diesel engines are not very demanding: they need air, diesel, compression and, of course, enough cranking amps to run. If the engine simply stops, it is often due to a lack of diesel supply. This can be caused by empty tanks, clogged lines, closed supply valves, non-functioning valves, air in the diesel system, insufficient venting of the tanks, a defective diesel pump, dirty filters, and algae, among other things.

Air in the system?

We had full tanks, a clean air filter and enough cranking power – we knew that for sure. Marga brought us the necessary tools for a pressure test of the system to find any air leaks. We spent the rest of the day feeling sorry for ourselves and finding the leak(s) in the system by testing different sections. In the process, we pressurized our diesel fuel lines and smeared soap foam on all the fittings. We found a leak at the diesel lift pump, appearing as soap bubbles rising from two small screws.

Bad ventilation?

As we had suspected already that something was wrong with our fuel tank vents, we also opened the deck fills. We could hear air being sucked into both tanks. There was also a loud popping noise, which indicated a vacuum. So, the vent hoses had to be replaced. Our theory at this point was that we had created a vacuum in the diesel system during the last test run. The leaking diesel lift pump then caused the system to fill with air. This meant that the injectors were not getting enough fuel.

Larger hoses needed

So, our next task was to get larger diesel hoses for the vents. The previous diameter of 3/16” was far too small, and we wanted to upgrade to 5/8” hose. Our friend Lionel from the Caterpillar store recommended a small shop just around the corner where we immediately found what we were looking for. Unfortunately, they only had 12 ft in stock, and we needed 50 ft. But the shop owner was able to order the hose we needed for the next day. And since we had to disassemble the whole boat anyway, we also ordered a hose to improve the vent lines of the water tank, which was also inadequate.

An art project

In the meantime, we devoted ourselves to a long-delayed beautification project on Milagros. Some time ago, we had the French artist Marine Marcus make us a table inlay with animals from the Sea of Cortez. So, we unscrewed the top of our dining table, put it in the next best place sheltered from the wind (the marina shower) and doused the inlay with tabletop epoxy. It was nice to just take care of a nice, cosmetic project for ourselves during this frustrating time.

As if a bomb had hit

Once the new hoses had arrived, we began one of the most tedious jobs we’ve ever had to do on Milagros. Not only did we have to get behind the wall liner by clearing out cabinets, but we also had to take out the recently installed water tank again, as it is directly above one of the diesel tanks and its fittings. Inside Milagros it looked like a bomb had hit the boat. And since the new hoses were much bigger than the old ones, none of the fittings fit anymore, nor did they fit through the holes. At one point I even damaged a 110V power cable trying to make the passage bigger. It was a completely and utterly shitty day.

But in the end, everything was installed as we wanted. Nevertheless, our engine wouldn’t start even after sufficient bleeding. Somehow less diesel arrived at the injectors than we remembered. We had checked our Racor primary filters for clogging, only to find that the connected electric diesel pump was mounted on the wrong side of them. Instead of pulling diesel through the filters, the pump was pushing diesel into the filters. We fixed that immediately. We also replaced 2 valves that we didn’t know exactly how or if they were working.

More to be found

We also found out that our starter battery was dead, which was disguised by the way it was wired into the system. The fact that it was dead didn’t matter as we could also start the engine from our house bank, but a new battery was still needed. The next day we took our old battery to a battery shop where it was tested. Of the 900 units of cold cranking amps, there were 29 left. However, as befits Milagros, the new battery had slightly larger terminals, so we had to drill our cable connectors larger to be able to connect to the battery.

We were at our wit’s end

After all, we contacted Doug, a local diesel mechanic, because we were stuck and needed help. Together with him we found out that the diesel lift pump was stuck in priming mode and therefore not enough diesel was coming into the distribution. So, we set off again to get the parts we needed to bypass this pump. But after that, there was still not enough diesel coming out of the distributor. We also checked the secondary filter there, which looked OK. Therefore, we removed the whole distributor, cleaned it thoroughly and replaced the filter. Afterwards, when we bled the engine, the diesel did indeed squirt out of the bleed screws. But the engine still wouldn’t start.

Algae?

Doug suspected from the small black particles and the yellowish colour of the diesel in our primary filters that we might have algae. These are micro-organisms that multiply in diesel tanks and clog everything up. They need water and air to do this. We had made the mistake of not filling our diesel tanks to the top (=air) before hauling out and in summer the humidity was quite high (=water), which could well explain an infestation. Since the construction of our diesel tanks is far from optimal and we have no inspection hatches, an infestation could be super annoying. However, we were able to rule out a diesel infestation by circulating the diesel from both tanks through the filters, and the contaminants did not multiply. Lucky us!

Poor Betty

That same evening we were less fortunate. At 10pm there was a banging on our boat – it was the night guard. Something had happened to Betty, the boatyard car. Betty was parked on the road in front of the marina and no longer looked like herself. Betty had broken windows, a flat tyre, and a big dent. The security guard told us that a car came speeding along and hit poor Betty. Of course, he had committed a hit-and-run after wrecking the car an entire boatyard relied upon. What in the hell was going on this week?! The police took an accident report, but it was impossible for sure to find the car involved in the accident. Although the vehicle must have been quite damaged, it would not be noticed here as a lot cars are on the roads in such a condition here in Puerto Peñasco.

The last straw

5 days after our failed departure, our engine still wasn’t running. We also missed our next good weather window, which was additionally annoying. Nevertheless, we met up with Marga from SV Dogfish and Marc & Laura from SV Liquid for tacos and drinks. Marga suggested that we could play around with the engine before dinner, which we did. To eliminate sources of error, she suggested running the engine on a jerry can. So, we changed the diesel supply and bled the engine again.

A miracle!

On the first try, the engine wouldn’t start. But on the second try, it started. Cheers broke out on board Milagros. We had really earned our dinner! The next day we reconnected the engine to the diesel system and it started immediately. What exactly had made the difference, we don’t really know.

An instructive week

We had changed all the filters, had rebuilt and cleaned the diesel distribution system, relocated the electric diesel pump, bypassed the diesel lift pump, replaced two valves, enlarged the vent hoses and pressure tested the entire system. So, within a week, we had taken our entire diesel system apart and put it back together.

At this point we would like to thank Marga for her fantastic continous and patient support with her knowledge! Also the cruising community has been super supportive in word and deed and sympathised with us. Although this was probably the worst week since we started the refit here in Peñasco, we were glad that we were able to solve the problem here in the marina and not somewhere along the way or at an anchorage without internet access. We still can’t believe how much bad luck we had in just one week: the accident with the fishing boat, the engine damage, and the accident with Betty. Things can only get better from here.

Wanna cheer us up? Feel free to buy us a beer or two by clicking on the button below. Or you could become a monthly supporter on Patreon if you feel like it. Many thanks!

Cheers!

Der Beitrag It’s Not Happening! We’re Not Heading Out! erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

Known problems

We had helped launch several boats before and knew from experience that two things in particular could cause problems: leaking thru hulls and disobedient engines. With the former, we couldn’t do much more than order new thru hulls and fast cure sealant, just in case. For the latter, we wanted to do an engine test on the hard. We had always shied away from that, because the engine was still a kind of black box for us. You supply it with water, oil and diesel, turn the key, then water and exhaust gases come out the back and the propeller turns. Could be easy, right? But it just had to be done. After all, we didn’t want to be stuck in the slings and not be able to take off just because – because what, actually?

Holding hands

As Rob and Sarah’s departure with SV Mapache was delayed (they had to wait for spare parts for their freshly overhauled engine), we asked Rob to help us with the engine check. He had completely disassembled and reassembled his engine, so he was the perfect man for the job. Soon after, the time had come. We filled two big barrels with water and got a hose so that the water cooling of the engine could do its magic. Actually, we could have run the engine from our internal water tank. The new sea cock has two inlets: one for fresh water and one for raw water. But our engine needs about 10 gallons (about 40 litres) of water per minute, so our 42 gallons don’t really go very far.

We are ready

Before we started the test, we strenghtened ourselves with apple fritters from Candy Cake, which Rob had brought for our peace of mind, or maybe just because they’re the best in town. Afterwards Sarah and Doug posted themselves down by the barrels to secure the water supply. David took over the key, I was down by the engine and Rob stood with us in the cockpit. I was quite nervous because a major problem with the engine could delay the launch by weeks or even months.

Top or flop?

When David turned the key, the engine immediately started and purred. And we cheered. But it was too easy to be true: a short time later, the engine simply stopped. With diesel engines, there is usually only one reason for this: no diesel. This can be due to clogged filters, closed taps, air in the system or empty tanks, among other things. So, we filled both tanks with 5 gallons of diesel each (about 20 litres), checked all the taps to see if they were really open, and checked the filters. Then we had to bleed the engine. David already had experience with this, because on the trip to Peñasco the Milagros crew had already had to do the whole procedure once.

The air must come out

We consulted the engine manual and opened all the bleed screws, one by one. Somehow, we couldn’t find one of them, and although we sprayed WD40 into the air filter as a starting aid, the engine wouldn’t start. There was air in the diesel system and we couldn’t get it out. After a few hours of unsuccessful attempts, we gave up and treated ourselves to tacos. Also, another new problem appeared: the threads for the bleed screw on the aluminium cover of the diesel injection pump were stripped. It is actually a banjo bolt, i.e., 2 bolts inside each other, the smaller of the two being used for venting. However, judging by the condition of the threads, the larger of the two was always (more often) used in the past, which eventually led to the threads now being stripped.

Different possibilities

As the injection pump is the heart of the engine, pumping diesel at high pressure into the injectors, a solid solution was needed. We started looking at different possibilities, researching on the internet and finding spare parts mainly in England, as our engine itself is English. I was a little annoyed that I had ordered a complete set of gaskets for the engine in England only a few days ago and they were already on their way. But well.

Three options on the short list

1. Press the bleeding screw into the hole with Quick Steel, a two-component epoxy putty, and tighten it there for good. Since it is a banjo screw, the smaller, inner screw would still be able to move. But this would have been a temporary solution, simply to allow Milagros to splash and properly address the problem later.
2. Order a new cover and replace it. This would have taken 1 – 4 weeks, depending on where you ordered it, and would have cost about 120$.
3. Have the entire injection pump removed and rebuilt. This would have taken at least 4 weeks and cost about 400$.

Hive mind

With the help of the hive mind (a running gag in the boatyard, you ask the “collective memory” for advice), some discussions and an unexpected surprise, we decided on option 2. As luck would have it, we found a complete injection pump in the depths of our spare parts storage. Together with a YouTube video of a beardy Australian tractor mechanic, we took this pump apart for practice. And we came to the conclusion that it should be possible to remove and re-install this cover. We skilfully ignored the seals and the advice not to tamper with it ourselves.

Viva Mexico

Before we ordered the new cover from England, we asked our friend Lionel from the Caterpillar shop if he could get one too. 3 days later we had a new cover including seals for 30$ in our hands. Viva Mexico! David removed the old cover, then we disassembled it into its individual parts and mounted them all on the new, freshly sprayed white cover. And then I mounted the new cover.

Cover on

Of course, it was not as easy as with the practice model – both attaching and removing the cover. The biggest challenge was to hook the big spring inside into the right hole. And not losing the small pin and its spring, and, if possible, not letting any dirt or foreign objects fall into the pump. And all this overhead and with the wrong hand. The little pin with the spring did indeed come loose – we found the spring right away in the bilge, but not the pin. So, we just took the pin from the old pump and postponed the search for the pin until later. In the end, the cover was on after all.

Almost successful

Before we tested the engine again, this time together with Mat, we ran the diesel from both tanks through the filters to get any air out. But even after several bleeds, the engine wouldn’t start. Finally, we found the last bleed screw and with the help of starter spray the engine finally started. Unfortunately, our water barrel idea didn’t work, so we ran it over our internal water tank for a few minutes. Yay! But unfortunately, we had a new problem: a leak at the compression fitting of a diesel line at one of the injectors. But the solution to this problem was to be a problem of future Milagros. At least the engine ran!

Hello gooseneck

After three long months of waiting, we finally received word that our new gooseneck had been shipped. Finally, the last piece of the puzzle was on its way to us. When we held it in our hands, it was clear that the manufacturer had screwed up – again! The new piece was as long as it was supposed to be wide and the other way round. Once again, it was not what we wanted. However, after getting some professional advice, we decided to fit the gooseneck as it was and make the boat fit once again, rather than the other way round. At least we got the money back. But we would have preferred to have had a gooseneck that actually fits.

3 times longer

The installation took 3 days. We had to drill 26 holes, tap threads into the holes and insert metal threads called helicoils. Unfortunately, the helicoils we had didn’t fit and the insertion tool also gave up the ghost. So, we had to order new matching helicoils and a new tool to Lukeville at the US border. The next day we drove there with Doug and crossed the border into the USA for the first time since the travel ban was lifted on 8 November. The entry procedure took an eternity, and the border official – who was still learning the ropes – stapled the visa directly onto the first page of our passports. But our mission was successful, and the very next day we were able to assemble the gooseneck and put the boom back up.

Woodwork

There was also some carpentry work on the schedule. I built wooden boxes for our new storage space under the galley and David painted them white. Also, the bottom of one of the sliding doors in the engine room was splintered and needed a new piece of wood, which we had made at a carpentry shop around the corner. Smoothly working through the to-do list was fun.

Superstition?

Together with Marga from Dogfish Boatworks we did a pre-splash check and inspected Milagros from bow to stern. We found a few things that needed tweaking later, but Milagros was now ready for launching. One of the things we did while waiting for a suitable weather window was to paint our name on the wall in the Cruisers Lounge. They say that if you don’t do that, you’ll have problems when splashing. And we didn’t want to risk that under any circumstances. So, we got a projector and David painted our logo on the wall. With black Totalboat paint, haha.

Comet observation

We also took the unique opportunity to observe comet Leonard. The last time it passed the earth was 80’000 years ago and the next time it will do so in about 70’000 years. Armed with binoculars, we went to the beach and searched the evening sky to the west. It should be visible on the right above the horizon in the extension of the axis of Jupiter, Saturn and Venus. And indeed, we saw the greenish flashing comet slowly moving across the sky. A true ‘once in a lifetime’ experience. And we were so ready to leave the boatyard by water – once and for all!

All these successes lead to a huge beer thirst! Click on the button below to offer us a cold one! Also, you can become a monthly supporter on Patreon if you want to. Many thanks!

Wanna buy us a ? Click here!

Der Beitrag We’re Diesel Mechanics Now! erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

After we had successfully removed the propeller, the dripless seal and the pillow bearing, the shaft coupling now had to be removed. We then will finally be able to remove the shaft and drop the rudder. But you might ask yourself, what a shaft coupling actually is.

What is a shaft coupling?

The propeller shaft transmits the drive from the gearbox to the propeller. For this to happen the shaft is connected to the gearbox by two coupling halves – the prop shaft coupling and the transmission coupling. They are due to their nature located close to the engine, i.e. in the engine compartment. And anyone who has ever been on a sailboat knows that there is usually not much space – same with ours. Since the prop shaft coupling must fit very precisely on the shaft and sit well, the coupling part (unfortunately) ideally does not “just” come off.

If you are interested in the technical stuff: Further below you can find more technical details about the coupling and the two methods to remove it.

What’s our experience with the shaft coupling removal?

Since we didn’t want to risk a gearbox damage under any circumstances, we built our own tool. To do this, we strayed across the boatyard and searched the waste wood and scrap metal collections. We struck gold with two possibly matching parts, one made of wood and one made of metal.

The manufacture of our tool

Using the shaft brake, which was also removed and had been mounted between the two coupling parts, we were able to mark the holes on the piece of wood, drill them with our Bosch cordless drill and test the finished part directly on the coupling. We got the nuts and bolts we needed from the Ferreteria. Then we transferred the holes to the metal plate, drilled the holes and our tool was ready for the shaft coupling removal.

So easy?

No of course not. First the metal plate had to be cut. To do this, we went to the workshop on the boatyard, where we first had to find a power connection. When we then wanted to cut the metal plate with the angle grinder, we noticed that we only had a disc for grinding and not for cutting. So, we asked a few workers at the shipyard who were just building a new steel boat. They kindly cut the plate for us.

When it came to drilling holes, we noticed that we had a wood drill bit the right size, but not one for metal. So, Gabe lent us his drill bit of the right diameter. When the first hole was almost finished, Gabe’s drill bit broke off.

Just drill the holes

I remembered seeing a bench drill somewhere in the shipyard – right, among the shipyard workers. So, we asked for their help again. The problem, however, was that they didn’t have a drill bit of the correct diameter either, just a slightly smaller one. Since we were getting desperate, we agreed to the smaller holes. As a thank you, we brought them Swiss chocolate. And we stopped at the Ferreteria to get smaller nuts and bolts. Note that this fun lasted almost a day.

Removal of the shaft coupling

Now we could attach our tool and push the shaft out turn by turn. We started with a small ¾ inch nut from our DeWalt Mechanics Tools Kit and Socket Set and exchanged it twice for a longer one. The process of evenly tightening the bolts was tedious and took several hours.

Dave was sitting in an uncomfortable position in the engine compartment and I was lying on the other side of the engine on the floor because the coupling is in a good position for the engine, but not for people. But all’s well that ends well! We were able to remove the coupling and pull the shaft for inspection. Yeehaaw!

We were surprised by the massiveness of our stainless-steel shaft: it is approximately 9ft (275cm) long and has a diameter of 1 ¼ inch (3.2cm).

And how is the shaft doing?

Before we could do anything with the shaft, we had to clean it. Stainless steel protects itself from rusting by forming a thin layer of oxide on its surface. This and all other impurities had to be removed to be able to check it thoroughly for straightness, abrasions and pitting corrosion.

We went to a nearby machine shop together with Dave from SY Cavu whose shaft needed to be inspected too. They’ve unfortunately caught a fishing net in their propeller right in front of the haul out point. As this caused the propeller to jam and forced the engine to stop, there was the possibility of damage to their shaft.

At the machine shop, when the mechanics clamped our shaft in their machine, it was obvious: it wobbled! We kind of knew already beforehand that something was off with it. The knocking noises in the shaft compartment when the engine was in idle and the worn out cutless bearing had indicated it. And now we had the proof.

Straighten the shaft?

Now we have two options: either getting a new shaft or trying to straighten it. The second option costs about a third of the first one, but its success is not guaranteed. In addition, we still have a question mark regarding the existence of our pillow bearing. A quick survey in the Kelly Peterson owner group revealed, that there is no clear answer to it – neither the necessity of this bearing nor the presence.

A shaft can be unsupported for up to 40x its diameter, which means for us for a length of 50 inch (127cm). But before we decide on our next step with the shaft, we are going to bring the pillow bearing to the machine shop to get their professional assessment. Stay tuned!

Housekeeping like in the past?

In addition to such technical things, we also learn a lot of everyday things. For example, neither of us knew in advance how much time we would have to spend on household chores. Every day we spend a total of around 3 – 4 hours cooking, washing up, cleaning, washing, shopping, etc. We both agree that doing the dishes by hand is one of the worst things in the world, in the ranking just after polenta and cold showers.

Our stove by now bothers us so much that I’ve decided to treat myself with a new stove for my birthday. Even tough we manage to make yummy pizza – the other day we even made pizza twice in one evening because we needed more – the stove is useless for most other things except heating water for the coffee in the morning.

Sonoric weather capers

At the moment it’s still winter time here, but we didn’t think it would be that cold. Last week we woke up several times freezing. And a look at the thermometer confirmed it: it was 6°C (43°F) in the boat. Heater? Nope … We have one, but who doesn’t like to snuggle up in the warm blanket in the evening? And we don’t know when we’ll be able to experience that the next time.

In addition to the fact that it rained every now and then, which is uncomfortable in itself with our leaky dodger, it also winded heavily for a few days. Since Milagros has its stern pointing west and the wind was coming precisely from the west, it hit her with full force and we were shaken. But the stands kept Milagros in place.

Find out how we’re getting on with our other projects in our next blog post.

As mentioned above, some more technical details about the coupling and the two methods of removing it will now follow.

The right tool to remove a coupling

The coupling consists of two similar halves. One half (the prop shaft coupling) is connected to the shaft, the other half (the transmission coupling) is connected to the gearbox output shaft. The two couplings are connected to each other with several bolts. After disassembling the two parts, there are two different ways to remove the prop shaft coupling: without an additional tool or with an additional tool.

Remove the coupling without an additional tool

In the first method the two coupling parts are reconnected to one another with 2 – 4 temporary bolts. These bolts should be 2 – 3 cm longer than the original ones and be threaded throughout their length. A nut is inserted between the two couplings, the diameter of which is slightly smaller than the shaft. Then the bolts are gradually and evenly tightened crosswise and thus press the shaft out of the coupling. The disadvantage of this method is that the transmission can be damaged if the screws are tightened unevenly.

Remove the coupling with an additional tool

For example, a steering wheel puller can be used, or a self-made tool. For the DIY tool you need a metal plate with holes that match the coupling. Then, as with the first method, the plate is mounted to the shaft coupling, a nut is inserted in between and the bolts are evenly tightened crosswise. The advantage of this is that the gearbox cannot be damaged when the coupling is removed.

If you like what we do, you can support us with a monthly contribution on Patreon. Thank you so much!

Der Beitrag Twisted in the Engine Room erschien zuerst auf Milagros.

Our first night at anchor

We deserved this quiet night. After four and a half days on the open sea we enjoyed the morning sun with a coffee. The anchor had held perfectly on the sandy bottom. That gave us a good feeling. We hadn’t arrived in Mag Bay yet, but now we were able to inspect our anchor bay Bahia Santa Maria in daylight. It was much bigger than I expected. In the north, stony hills protect the bay from northerly winds. There are also a few fishermen’s huts there. Besides us only one large motor yacht was at anchor. The southern half of the bay is characterized by a sandy beach stretching as far as the eye can see. The pelican that had kept us company when we arrived wasn’t alone. Dozens of pelicans and many other sea birds had taken up residence in the bay.

A pelican-show just for us

We liked the fact that we almost had the bay to ourselves and were surrounded by impressive wildlife. Therefore, we decided to postpone the trip to the neighbouring Mag Bay and enjoyed a whole day without rattling dishes, without cooking as a tightrope act and without liquid background noise in the bunks. We were rewarded when all the pelicans went hunting around the ship at the same time. Dozens of pelicans tried to get hold of a fish in the evening light. What a great spectacle.

Let’s go to Mag Bay

The next morning, we started to our actual destination. The entrance to Mag Bay was about 4 hours away. There was no wind, so we made the trip using our diesel engine. The track took us along a barren moonscape. Again, sea lions were on the hunt jumping dolphin-like, rays performed belly smackers par excellence. As in the days before, the sea creatures around Mag Bay were not stingy with entertainment. But where were the dolphins?

Engine problems at the stupidest time

While in the passage into the bay we expected (according to Navionics) a slight current from the open sea into the bay. But the opposite was the case: We had the current against us, and it was also a little stronger than expected. As a counteract, we powered up the engine. Instead of an increase in performance, however, this resulted in the engine almost dying. What was going on? Fortunately, the engine did not stop and we were able to chug on. Nevertheless, there was a brief red alert.

What if?

There is hardly a more stupid time for engine problems than in a passage. In situations like this you simply have no leeway. Space is limited and depth is fairly tight. Then there are current and waves and we were surrounded by rocky banks with stony foothills. Of course, we could have just let the current drift us out of the Mag Bay Passage. But what then?

Taking a break in front of Punta Magdalena

After all the thrill, we arrived safely two hours later. The anchorage “Man of War Cove” lies in front of the tranquil fishing village of Punta Magdalena. But first things first: A cold beer. Mag Bay is huge – we couldn’t even see the east bank opposite our anchorage. The only major city near the anchorage is San Carlos. From there, the two huge chimneys of the diesel power plant spewed dark, yellowish-brown clouds of smoke across the entire bay in an extremely inviting way. A stale aftertaste to our after-work beer.

Culinary tour in Mag Bay

Well rested, we watered our dinghy to explore the village the next day. We strolled through the village, where we met all kinds of friendly faces. In the end it got so hot that we had no choice but to settle down in the pretty village restaurant and order a couple of cool Cervezas. In the hot sun, the beer quickly showed its effect and we got hungry. When the owner of the restaurant offered us three plates of freshly caught crawfish tails, we couldn’t resist. Should we have asked about the price beforehand? We should have!

Let’s get out of here quickly!

The food was great, the beer ice cold and the bill left a salty taste in our mouths. Over 1500 Mexican pesos, almost 75$, were scribbled on paper. We could hardly believe our eyes. Even persuasion in fluent Spanish by Iñaki didn’t help. We hadn’t expected such prices at all, so Carmen and I had to go back to Milagros in the dinghy to get some extra cash. Yet another Mexican lesson. If there is no price shown, ask for it. Finding a sea turtle cemetery behind a few fishing huts in addition soon after was too much for us. Au revoir Punta Magdalena.

Panga traffic

Iñaki wanted to practice anchoring manoeuvres in Mag Bay with us anyway, so we seized the opportunity and moved to a quiet corner far away from the village. Our new anchorage was along the main traffic artery from Punta Magdalena to San Carlos. Pangas crossed back and forth. These small, elongated fishing boats can be found everywhere on the Mexican coasts and were out and about from early morning until night. Even the ex-harbourmaster of Punta Magdalena stopped by for a chat with his Panga. He had recognized Milagros, as her previous owner Brent had also stopped in Mag Bay on his Tour de Baja California.

Diesel Engine problems everywhere

On our trip to Mag Bay, we picked up two stories of engine problems. On the one hand, Steven and Susanne had reported engine problems during their visit, and on the other hand, the captain of the local Diesel Panga told us about an 83-year-old man who was stuck in Mag Bay for over a year with a broken diesel engine. Our engine issue was just one of many. There must be a curse upon the bay.

Easy come easy go

When, after a few days of rest, we wanted to set off for the 300 nautical miles to La Paz in the morning, the curse of Mag Bay struck. Our diesel engine suddenly stopped. Therefore, an emergency anchor manoeuvre was immediately practiced under real conditions. We sailed back to our well-known spot in best Lake Thun conditions and set anchor under sail without any help from the engine. Everything went very well. We rolled in the foresail rather early and controlled our speed with the mainsail. We continuously reduced speed until we could finally lower the anchor into the water. Our capricious anchor windlass did not fool around and worked as it should.

Avid readers on Milagros

We dug all our books on diesel engines out of the bookshelf and began researching. It quickly became clear that the problem had to be with the fuel system. With a process of elimination with the kind help of the great book “Troubleshooting Marine Diesels” by Peter Compton, we were able to isolate the problem. Possibly we had to deal with clogged diesel filters. This may also have resulted in the drop in revolutions of our engine in the passage. So, we inspected and changed the filters, and with the fuel pump switched on, we noticed rising air bubbles in the sight glass. Our diesel lines sucked in air somewhere.

The Mag Bay professionals

Carmen had the idea of the day. What if the connected diesel tank was simply empty? After a quick check it was clear – it was empty. Great job! No wonder our engine just sucked in air and stopped working. The curse of Mag Bay turned out to be a mistake on our part, at least in this case. But how could the tank already be empty? Our tank capacity was 117 gallons (approx. 440 litres). Compared to our engine hours thus far, our diesel engine must have consumed nearly 2 gallons (ca. 7 litres) per hour. The normal consumption of this engine on cruising speed (1500 rpm) should be about half of it. Was our diesel engine simply consuming too much fuel? We should be able to solve the riddle soon.

Question after question

At least we now knew where the problem was and switched the feed to the full starboard tank. We now had to bleed the diesel system before we could perform a test run. Of course, air had now accumulated in the tiny fuel lines which would have prevented the engine from starting. We used our books and instructions for our Perkins 4-154 to locate all of the bleeding screws. These were of course attached in various places on the less accessible side of the diesel engine. When our engine started without any problems after bleeding, we were happy. Again, despite an avoidable mistake, we had learned a lot about Milagros. Always take the positive with you.

Dolphins at last

In the end, it all turned out well. Mag Bay also seemed to have noticed that its curse had been broken. Just as I was wedged in the engine compartment, our dolphin alarm called Carmen went off on deck. A large group of the marine mammals had gathered near the ship to hunt and jump. Could we ask for anything more? We had our engine back and the dolphins finally granted us an audience.

Mag Bay Munchkin Party

An eventful day had come to an end. We treated ourselves to a few cold beers and played a game of Munchkin. This extremely fun card game targets the fantasy genre. We played it for hours and hours on our Cape Verde trip.

The next morning, we would finally continue our journey towards La Paz. What other surprises would this trip have in store for us?

Did you like this blog post? If you want, you can support our work on Patreon with a monthly contribution of your choice. Thank you for your support!

Der Beitrag The Curse of Mag Bay erschien zuerst auf Milagros.