Preparing for our next adventure

Anyone reading our posts would be excused for thinking that life on board is one rum punch after another. Whilst there are many rum punches, there is also a less romantic side to cruising life. Boats are in constant need of some kind of maintenance and the job list never gets any shorter.

Those of you who have read our posts from the beginning will know that Escapade had a major refit in the years prior to leaving the UK.  We had done many of the essential jobs whilst at Fox’s Marina, however we have still had our fair share of jobs on route. Fortunately, so far, most have been maintenance, rather than major repairs. Long may that continue!

Understanding the importance of proper preparation, we knew that we needed to make the most of our five months in Grenada to be ready for our next adventure – sailing through the Panama Canal into the Pacific. We knew that once we set off, there would be limited time to do things and also, sourcing of parts and services would not only be more difficult, but also more expensive. As usual, we had a long list to work through.

First job on the list was to get Escapade hauled out for a clean and polish and to do any ‘below water’ jobs. These are always much easier on dry land! We checked out the local facilities and chose Tyrell Bay Marina in Carriacou. The yard had plenty of room, access to power and water and the staff were very efficient.

Martin was busy too, working through his list of more technical jobs: checking the anodes and changing them as required, repainting the antifoul on the skin fittings, saildrive leg and rudder skeg, changing the oil in the saildrive, greasing the propeller, repainting the bowthruster propellors, cleaning out the toilet and kitchen sink hoses, replacing the sea water hose for the generator and drilling a hole in the water tank for a gauge. Never a dull moment…

Once below the waterline was cleaned up, it was time for me to start on the gel coat. I was up the scaffolding for several days, washing, waxing and polishing. I definitely had a work out, climbing up and down the scaffolding and trying to keep control of the electric polisher! Not sure who was in charge sometimes.

All in all, we had 10 long days of manual labour. But it was all worth it …. Escapade was shiny and clean again and ready to go back into the water. Fingers crossed the next haul out will be in New Zealand in just over 12 months time.