Norfolk, VA
To see as much of the world as we can,
Using the smallest carbon footprint we can,
Spending the least amount of money we can,
Making as many friends we can.
Cravings. Coffee (good coffee!), Power, and Wi-Fi. A short hop from the beach in the posh resort section of Vero Beach. This appears to be called Ocean Side.
It's a pleasant 1+ mile walk from the marina. Perfect.
Good, fast Wi-Fi helps with our passage planning. We're looking at the …
There's a standing Thursday night party here at the Vero Beach City Marina. Fabulous. We got to meet many of the cruisers who are staying at Vero. Some are leaving soon to get south ASAP. Others are leaving eventually.
And more are showing up, too. Today, for instance, we …
Yesterday we dismounted the windlass to check out it's internals. CA says it feels like it's "grinding" or "rough".
We took off the four huge bolts that secure it through the deck.
We took off the dozen 10mm bolts that hold the bottom in place.
What greeted our eyes …
The problem is stuff that's loose in the head when we're under way. In the ICW, a few things rolling around the counter tops don't count for much. But on an offshore passage, loose bits wind up getting scattered around the head, making life unpleasant.
The commodore saw a …
Three Whitbys left the Ortega River this morning, heading for slack tide at the railroad bridge.
We're so jealous.
We had a kind of a smell the other day on Red Ranger. A new and unpleasant smell.
Found the cause.
Not happy about that.
It was a Samlex/Cotek ST1500-112 Pure Sine wave inverter with a 30A transfer switch and a 30A circuit breaker.
Emphasis on the was …
The BIG rendezvous has traditionally been in October in the Chesapeake.
However, since CA is now the president of the rendezvous for this year, she'd like to see more rendezvous in more places.
What are the key ingredients? Whitby/Brewer …
Here are the symptoms: full pressure and no flow.
Pressure gauge reads 80 psi just like normal.
Propane solenoid clicks just like normal.
And.
No gas. Zero. Nothing flowing.
Here's the secret: turn the gas off at the cylinder. Disconnect it. Wait for the gas to hiss out. Reconnect it …
New Years Eve: Red Ranger, Creola, Joie de Vivre and Voyager II. Pizza, a little champagne. Whitby 42 talk. I waved the camera around, but didn't even get half the group. Rick got some better pictures, I'll try to post them.
CA has washed just about the entire deck …
The Commodore has two safety items for Red Ranger.
Class B AIS Transponder.
Radar.
We've got a good AIS receiver in our Standard Horizon GX2150 radio connected to our Standard Horizon CP300 chart plotter.
But that's not a transponder. We're only visible to big ships as a radar blip, not …
Not related to safety or sailing, but still a priority for Red Ranger. Also, it's something we'd like to do while we've got a few weeks with West Marine and Radio Shack less than ½ mile away.
We have a doddering old marine cassette player. Cassette. It has an auxiliary …
Christmas Day 2013 on Red Ranger.
The iTunes Christmas Mix in on shuffle.
It should warm up from …
Our friend Chris — from way back in the hazy past of high school — stopped by for the day. He was in Florida for a bunch of family-related things (weddings and some vacation and stuff.)
Nothing more helpful than a steady, extra pair of hands to work on a fiddly …
Our hard dodger has two tiny gaps at the for'rd corners.
It looks good, but, there's a path for rain to drip on the bench.
If the bimini cover went down low enough to prevent all dripping, it would be right difficult to get out of the cockpit …
Do you want to hear the good news or the bad news?
The good news is we're launched and back into the A&C canal.
The bad news is that the propane system failed again.
The worse news is that the Tides Marine Sure Seal isn't a sure seal …
Maybe we'll be done with the shaft and seal on Monday. Then we can put the rig back together, top off the fuel and start heading south.
We've talked with Baloo, Sojourner, Puff, and Zephyrus who have passed through and are heading south from Deltaville
Without us.
In addition …
The travelift here at AYB isn't really setup for ketch-rigged sailboats. One of the two lifting straps cannot be moved.
Red Ranger needs a strap essentially under each mast. The straps can be pushed a foot or two forward of the mast, but never aft.
Since one of the …
We're not so much waiting for parts as waiting for help. But it's the same kind of delay. Waiting and Hoping. And thinking and praying and planing and dreaming.
Today we drove a few hundred yards from the dock to the repair slip.
The shaft fitting leaked so badly …
Oil cooler no longer drips into the bilge.
All of the fittings are drip-free!
W00t w00t. It almost makes me feel like someday, I might know what I'm doing.
We have a ton of cleanup to do. A ton. We have old oil and old antifreeze to drop off …
Check out this Picasa album: https://plus.google.com/photos/101418904686202842633/albums/5934218627424385361?banner=pwa
CA took a bunch of interior pictures of Red Ranger. Several weeks ago. Before the engine cooling system rebuild.
Right now, there are tools and parts everywhere.
Yesterday, we did OS and software upgrades …