Z E P H Y R

M y  S t o r y
P A G E   2 1


September to November 2008


The "Tito" flats in the industrial town of Ploce
On the 1st day of September 2008, we were up by 6.00 am, had coffee, and I took a boat shower and we left at 9 am, motoring in completely windless, flat seas to the town of Ploce. I could not understand why Helmut wanted to go to Ploce as this was an industrial town and coal terminal and there were some good bays nearby. Besides, the folks from "Gal" had advised us not to waste our time visiting Ploce as they had been there previously. However, the reason soon became clear to me once I realized that Helmut only had two beers left in the fridge and would soon run out. Little did I know the drama that would unfold in Ploce the next morning!! We dropped anchor in the tiny bay at 3.45 pm, surrounded by "Tito" high-rise apartments and a concrete church. Shortly after dropping anchor, Helmut went ashore and I never saw him again that evening. He was supposed to come and fetch me so that we could have dinner, but he never did. I don't know what time he got back to the boat but it was after 11.00 pm which is when I went to bed. I was quite upset that he did not come and fetch me for dinner, as all I had to eat was stale bread and chocolate spread (ag shame....)

Although Croatia, Montenegro and Southern Italy were very beautiful, and I was thankful for the opportunity of sailing there, the thought had crossed my mind that it was time to quit as things between Helmut and I were not healthy anymore. Low and behold, the next morning while we were having coffee, Helmut informed me that he had had a chat with his brother, Herbert, the previous evening, and that "they" had decided that it was time I left the boat. I thought about this for about 2 seconds and told Helmut that I will go and pack my bags. After we had sorted our finances out and agreed on a price for my computer's GPS, which he was desperate for, I helped Helmut move Ferilee over to the fuel jetty and fill up with diesel. I then took a walk to the nearby bus terminus and bought a ticket to Split. I was allocated a seat next to a pretty young lady who was the editor of a local teen music magazine and who spoke excellent English. She advised me to go to the capital city (Zagreb) instead, as this is where flights to London leave from. So I extended my ticket to Zagreb, a distance of 245km from Ploce, arriving there at 9.00 pm. Unfortunately I missed the last flight to London so I had to spend the night. Early the next morning, while having breakfast at the little hotel I stayed in, a group of four people came in for breakfast and they were all speaking Afrikaans. After greeting them, they all came over to my table and we had breakfast together. They were from the South African Military and were in Croatia on a "fact finding mission" but they would not elaborate further. After checking out, I caught a bus to Zagreb International Airport and bought a ticket to London, arriving there at 2.00 pm. I managed to change my existing ticket to South Africa for a small penalty, but I was on the 7.30 pm flight to Johannesburg. The Emirates flight, which went via Dubai, was quite uneventful as I slept almost all the way. Once I had reached Johannesburg International Airport, I booked a flight to George where I was picked up by Ken and Paul who drove me to Mossel Bay and dropped me off at the home of Tertius and Elsabé at 9.00 pm. Once again, I was warmly welcomed by the Cloete's and it felt like I was home again!!

The first order of business the next morning was to get my car out of storage. So Tertius took me to my store room, and once we had cleared the way and pushed my car out of the store, I tried starting it, but the battery was stone dead. We tried jump-starting it from Tertius's vehicle but this did not work either. So we took the battery out and Tertius drove me to a battery shop in Mossel Bay where I bought a new one. After fitting it, my car started first go. By now it was quite late and as I had delayed Tertius quite a lot, he decided not to drive to his office in Albertinia, some 50km away, but to "work" from home. Besides it was Friday and I think this was as good a reason as any for him to stay home...

I was booked to fly back to Trinidad on the 13th October which meant that I had 5 weeks available. I visited all my friends and sailing acquaintances and it was really good to see them all again. Things at the Yacht Club had changed quite a bit. There was all new kitchen staff with a new manageress as well as a new club Commodore and President. Wilhelm von Schutz was the Commodore (again) and Louis Harris the President. I could not help noticing that most of the main committee members were "yotties" with hardly any angling or social members present. Hooray to the yotties for stepping up to the plate and taking charge during a somewhat turbulent time for the club.

On top of Table Mountain
On the 12th September Vanessa arrived for a weeks visit, her second trip to South Africa. I met her at Cape Town Airport and we went straight into Cape Town to go up Table Mountain. I had been watching the weather, which unfortunately was not going to play ball as there were at least 3 cold-fronts approaching the Cape, so we had to make haste. We managed to see the pretty view from on top of the mountain but although the sky was mostly clear, the wind had started picking up. After coming down the mountain (traa laa laa...), we drove around the peninsula, stopping in Hout Bay for a late lunch and then onto a guest house in Pringle Bay called Villa Marine that belongs to Tertius's brother (thanks Elsabé for arranging it !!) By the time we got there it was dark, cloudy and windy. Later we went into town for something to eat and while we were eating, Vanessa was admiring the Perlemoen Shells (Venus Ears) that were on display. Low and behold, the owneress said that Vanessa was welcome to take a few, very kind of her indeed. The next morning we were treated to a delicious full English breakfast at Villa Marine. While we were eating, we were fortunate enough to spot a couple of whales splashing in the bay. After checking out, we headed north into the wine-lands aiming for Spier Wine Estate where we wanted to visit their Cheetah sanctuary and spend the night in one of their (very affordable) guest suites.

Petting Cheetah cubs
However this was not to be as on the way there it started raining and was getting quite chilly. The Spier wine estate is spread out over three locations and the GPS coordinates that I had was not where we wanted to be. Eventually we found the Cheetah sanctuary and had a look around. Vanessa even got to pet some cheetah cubs. As the weather was not playing it's part, we decided to head for Mossel Bay instead of spending the night at Spier. We arrived in Mossel Bay late afternoon and Vanessa was warmly welcomed by the Cloete family.

Getting friendly with one of the "natives" in Oudtshoorn
By the next morning the bad weather had caught up with us so we decided to drive inland heading towards Oudtshoorn were Vanessa could see some Ostriches up close. After Oudtshoorn we went to the Cango caves, had lunch and went on a cave tour. After the cave tour we took the scenic route back to Mossel Bay. In total we went over five big mountain passes, Robinson, Schoemans poort, Swartberg, Meirings poort, and the old Oteniqua. All in all, it was a beautiful day.

The next day, the 17th of September, we decided to visit the newly established big cat reserve (who's name is avoiding me) just outside Mossel Bay. We arrived at the cat reserve not knowing that they have set tour times and as we had just missed a tour, we decided to drive into Dana Bay as Vanessa wanted to go to the beach and get her feet wet. Once again we were treated to whales splashing in the ocean but they were just a little too far out to get any decent photographs.
A regal male Lion
We had to get back to the cat reserve by 11.00 am and we were now late due to the showing of the whales. However, when we arrived at the cat reserve we were the only people on the tour so nobody minded that we were 10 minutes late. We had an interesting tour presented by Natalie who seemed very knowledgeable. Unfortunately some of the cats did not want to come out of their dens as it was close to midday and they were sleeping. We did get to see some pretty cats such a Lions (regular and white), Bengal Tigers, Leopards, Cheetahs, Red Lynx, Egyptian Lyra etc.
Hint: If you ever do visit this reserve, called uhmmmm..., it's situated near the fuel stations just outside Mossel Bay on the Cape Town side, and go on the 4 pm tour as this is also their feeding time and apparently all the animals come out.

A view on the Cape St. Blaze hike
On day 5 of Vanessa's visit, we decided to do the Cape St. Blaze hike. Not that strenuous, but very scenic and rugged. We set off in glorious sunshine just after 9am and reached the golf estate around midday. As we did not feel like going back the way we came, we decided to try and cut through the estate and walk back along the road. This was not that easy as there were security gates within the secure complex and only after asking a couple of workers how we could get out (they gave us the gate code), did we manage it. The walk back was also enjoyable and we arrived home feeling tired but relaxed.

On Friday, the 18th of September, we went to the yacht club in the evening for the usual lucky draw and to have dinner. Our table was lucky that night as we picked up three prizes between the five of us, but I missed out on the meat hamper which, between Craig and I, we have won 4 times in the past.
Racing inflatable's on Diaz beach
On Saturday morning, we had arranged to meet Craig and his girl friend, Shevonne, at the inflatable boat race which was being held at Diaz beach. Shevonne works for a company that markets the energy drink called Red Square and was manning a promotion stand for her company. Before the race started, Craig, Vanessa, and I went to the mall to have breakfast at Wimpy. By the time we got back to Diaz, the racing had just started so the four of us sat there watching these mad people crashing through the surf at a break-neck speeds in their fragile looking craft. When the racing stopped for lunch, Vanessa and I went to the Mossel Bay harbor to visit my friend Gerhardt on 'Seven Seas'. As it was a beautiful day, we decided to go on the 'around the island' trip that he offers. Gerhardt also used the opportunity to ask me if I could help him again with Seven Seas as she was due to come out of the water for her annual inspection and there were some repairs that needed to be done.

Sunday dawned bright and clear and Vanessa started packing her suitcase as she was due to fly back to Germany. After she bade fair-well to the Cloete family, I drove her to the George Airport where she caught her flight to Johannesburg and then Frankfurt. It crossed my mind that this was not the first time that I was driving somebody to the George airport not knowing for sure if I will ever see them again... I then went to Craig's apartment in town to pick him and Shevonne up so that the three of us could go and have lunch as previously arranged.

The small sailing dinghies at the SA Champs. in Mossel Bay
Over the next three weeks, I did a host of things such as helping out at the South African dinghy championships between the 27th and 29th September which was being held in Mossel Bay. On day one I had fun skippering Jan Hoevers' magnificent catamaran which was being used as one of the finishing boats and on day two I spent a couple of hours on one of the rescue boats until the regular skipper returned. Day three saw me skippering Wilhelm von Schutz's rescue boat with his son Mark. But we only stayed out until just after lunch as the rest of the days racing was cancelled due to a complete lack of wind. I also helped Gerhardt from Seven Seas as promised, rebuilding one of the P-brackets, repairing the other one and welding anodes on.

I helped Tertius build some shelving in his "new" garage and also helped him move a lathe and milling machine that he had bought. We moved the fairly heavy machinery from 'Klein Brak' to his house with the aid of my trailer and his Land Rover, and eventually had it all in place by late afternoon. Tertius then discovered that the lathe chuck was not centered properly, so he spent some time getting it within 0,02mm of center. I also had new tyres fitted to my vehicle and while they were busy, I took the opportunity to replace the front brake-pads quickly. As my laptop computer's keyboard was giving me trouble, I replaced that too (just the keyboard).

The day had come that I had to say goodbye to everybody as I was on my way back to Trinidad again. Both Tertius and Elsabé had offered to drive me to the airport but as I knew that this would disrupt their busy schedules, I asked my friend Ken if he would take me instead, which he kindly did. Again, I don't know how to thank the Cloete's properly, as they really made me feel at home and part of the family.
Thank you so much Tertius, Elsabé, Andrew, Jeannie (and Taylor), Buks, Toffee and Kiddy !!

I flew to Johannesburg International where I had a lay-over of 4 hours and then caught the SAA flight going from Johannesburg to Dakar, and then to New York where I changed over to Delta Airlines for Trinidad. On the New York to Trinidad leg I was upgraded to first class without even asking - it was a very pleasant experience!! After being on the move for over 31 hours, I was back with Zephyr at last.

I was really surprised at the amount of work I faced on Zephyr though. Firstly, the stainless-steel bowls that I used to put chlorine into (to supposedly stop mould from growing) rusted right through and spilled liquid chlorine in 3 places - the fore-peak, the kitchen and the toilet. This caused a lot of damage which took over a week to sort out. Those damn bowls were chrome plated steel and not stainless steel, yet they were labeled as stainless when they were bought !! Also, because the chlorine leaked out, the boat was full of mould and smelled quite stale. There was white mould on any type of cloth, leather, or material and nasty black mould on most wooden and plastic surfaces. The black mould even got into some of the food that should have been OK, like Marmite, golden syrup, jam etc. But not a thing on the honey. Even the outside of the boat had mould - this time green stuff that looked like moss - it was on all the ropes and has stained the deck in places.

Not having a working fridge is also lousy as the day-time temperatures are in the mid to upper 30° C, with over 80% humidity, and nothing cold to drink is not nice. I also have to use powdered milk because fresh milk lasts less than a day in this heat (and I soooo love powdered milk...). One day I tried walking to the nearest pub for a tall, very cold beer, which was really nice but the walk back killed the idea as I was hotter when I got back than when I left!!

My "Rolls". And free on top of it !!
Not long after this walk, I fixed a computer for one of the boaters and in return was given a folding bicycle. So now getting around is much easier. Only later when I was cleaning and oiling my new bike, did I fully realise what a good product I was given. Made of aluminium and equipped with 5 gears, it is very well constructed and should last for a long time. I refer to my dinghy as "the Ferrari" because it is red so I think I will call my bicycle "the Rolls" because it is silver and made out of aluminium.
    ("Should we take the Rolls or the Ferrari my dear?.....")

It took me nearly 3 weeks to repair, clean, and scrub the boat, inside and out, working up to 16 hours a day. I found that sleeping during the day with a fan on me and working from around 3pm to 7am was the best. But I had to work very quietly otherwise the other people at IMS might complain. They, including the night watchmen, thought I was crazy anyway.... I also get more done this way because it rains every day at around midday for about an hour - regular as clockwork.

Once Zephyr was all nice and clean again, I started checking the various systems and a bunch of things were not working. So then I found out that most of the fuses had blown. All I can think of is that Zephyr was struck by lightning while I was away. I thought I was well protected being parked between two big boats with much taller masts than mine but apparently not.

I was lucky with my fridge as I managed to buy some good used parts from another boater and re-build them into my fridge. The parts, air evaporator and fan, only just fitted in the available space underneath, and the cold plate just fitted the inside of the fridge. After completing the job I got a fridge mechanic out to re-gas the unit. The whole job cost me US$240 (R2,160) which is much better than new parts which would have cost US$760 (R6,840) plus US$20 (R180) for the gassing!! We won't even discuss a new fridge's price - US$1,680 (R15,120) for one similar in size to mine. So I bought some fresh milk and Coke and now I can enjoy my coffee with fresh milk, have cold drinking water, and cold Coke in my brandy!!

The only item I could not repair was the external GPS unit. I priced a new one but it was treble what I paid for mine so I decided to wait and see what I could find amongst the other boaters in the area. When I put my request out on the radio during one of the regular morning "cruisers nets", I was asked by one of the boaters if I had checked the internal fuse. I did not know that my GPS had an internal fuse, nor was this documented. Besides, it is a sealed unit and one can't open it to get to the fuse in the first place. Not so I was told. There is a tiny grub screw under a label that must be loosened and then the base screws off the housing. Low and behold, it worked and I managed to replace the tiny glass fuse, plus get two spares, and now the GPS is working 100% again. I still can't figure out why this is not documented as it could be a huge problem if the fuse blows while sailing. I think it is just a money-making scheme by the manufacturers. (Are you listening Garmin ¿¿¿)

I also serviced the main, outboard and generator engines. I fitted a fiddle (not the musical instrument) in the toilet on the vanity top to stop things sliding and banging around, I fixed a leak in the one water tank, varnished the saloon table, scrubbed the carpets, and completed a host of other smaller tasks.

My refurbished keel
(the red on the bottom plate is leftover Propmate 44)
I then started on the preparations and repairs on the hull outside. One little shock was how badly the keel had rusted. Not deep rust but surface rust just enough to force me to strip the whole thing down to bare metal and start again with etching primer, then tar-epoxy and finally an epoxy tie-coat before I could apply the anti-fouling paint. I thought that when I did this job originally, it would be a once-off but it seems it needs to be re-done every few years? Or maybe the products I used originally (Ivory products from SA) were not that good? This time I have used Jotun products which come from Norway, so we will see how their products perform.

Once I had finished re-doing the keel, I repaired the damage on the starboard bow side where a patch of anti-osmosis epoxy had been knocked off when we hit something in the water one night crossing the Atlantic. I then measured, marked and masked the water line (which I raised 150mm) and was ready to do the last big job - apply 4 layers of anti-fouling paint.

Working outside at the IMS Boat Yard, the mosquitoes' and fire-ants were a real challenge. Especially the fire-ants!!! If you have not experienced these little buggers, let me tell you that either God was having a bad day when He created them, or the devil slipped something into His wine that day. Man... so small yet so potent (a third of the size of the little "sugar ants"). Most bites were on my ankles but on a few occasions I was bitten on my hands, which swelled up so much, they looked like inflated latex gloves!!! And the itching lasts for 4 or 5 days. I had a look on the internet for a remedy, either something to rub on which will chase the ants away, or for something to soothe the itching - and guess what? there is no remedy that I could find. I even asked Caroline in the USA if she knew of something as she had also had a bad experience with fire-ants.

          
Atlantic crossing damage being repaired           
The end result

As prevention is better than cure, I tried everything to keep them off my feet, I sprayed Doom on my shoes, tried Peaceful Sleep / Tabard, Tea Tree oil, Vanilla essence, Oil of cloves, Olive oil, Citronella oil and vinegar. Nothing kept them off - they seem impervious to everything. Then one day I soaked my work shoes in diesel. This worked but the diesel irritated my skin, so I put plastic bags on my feet as a barrier, but after working in the hot sun for a day, I really wanted to donate my feet to science as I was sure they did not belong to ME, and would have made an interesting research subject..... After trying all these things, I found that Aloe Ferox Super Gel mixed with a little Hydrocortisone helped the most. Aloe Ferox is where Tertius and Elsabé work and their web address, if you are interested, is available by Clicking Here.

A new Jotun product, Propmate 44
Over the next 6 days, in between rain showers and chasing fire-ants away, I finished applying the anti-fouling paint as well as a new product from Jotun called Propmate 44. Propmate 44 has been developed especially for sailing vessels and comes in a complete kit which includes an etching primer, undercoat, and special anti-fouling paint. I hope this product works as well as advertised because cleaning the propeller and prop-shaft every so often is a pain in the neck, and besides, the cost of the kit was really low as it was on a special introductory offer - I could not resist, so I am giving it a try.

Zephyr was looking her old self again and I was ready to go back into the water. So I booked the travel-lift crane for Friday morning, 21st November. On Thursday afternoon, the travel-lift was positioned around Zephyr and they lifted her about 500mm so that I could clean and anti-foul the bottom plate of the keel, which was standing on wooden blocks. I also replaced all the anodes. I put two ball-anodes on the prop-shaft, one on the P-bracket and 3 big ones on the keel. Hopefully they will last a long time.

"Down to the sea I must go..."
Friday dawned clear but windy and we started the journey to the sea at 7:30am. I was also glad to say goodbye to all the sad abandoned and rotting sailing yachts that surrounded me at IMS. It amazes me that there are so many boats, at all the boat yards in Trinidad, that are just left to rot and rust away. There are millions of $$$ going to waste and it is a real shame.

By 8am Zephyr was back in the water and I headed over to TTSA where we were at the beginning of the year. Things are much more comfortable now - no mosquitoes, no flipping fire-ants, free internet, and it is also much cooler being on the water - life, as it should be, can start again...












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