Sea Star and crew, Dan and Kathy are still in Cartagena, Colombia. Day to day fun and games continue with visits to other cruising boats, daily chores, restauranting-but we just took four days off to live up-in-the-air mechanical lift at the haul-out facility at Club de Pesca.
Dan, who is walking much better now-thanks for asking, "Sea Star recoated decides that needed her bottom from the waterline down to better repel the nasty is growth, barnacles, mussels and slimy grass, in these warm, tropical waters. She also the max-prop needed through hull fittings greased and checked. We arranged for a haul-out on Monday, March 15th. Today is Thursday and we are back in our slip with the job, Which we feel was a good one, completed.
The preparation for having the work done on Monday morning was the same as if we were going to go to sea, make an appointment with the boss and pay the bill, check the weather, tides and wind to determine feasibility of the maneuver, remove the plastic bag that was covering the Max-prop propeller to protect it from the above named is growth, open the cooling water is cock for our Yanmar engine, and close the sea cocks for the water maker system, generator and sinks.
As we climb out into the cockpit Monday, a bit later than the 8:30 time but not bad time by Colombian standards, we unplug our land lifelines-electricity and water hose, adjust the fenders to make sure that if we are pushed by wind as we exit our slip we do not do too much damage to another boat - and bring to life Sea Star's engine for the first time in quite a while. A feeling of relief occurred for both of us when she started up as Dan turned the key, just as she should do. Other days while listening to our radio we learned of many finicky engines that just start to refuse to allow their owners to leave Cartagena!
The next step is utilizing Dan's expert piloting, dock with two men aboard to cast off our two long bowlines attached to two different pilings by edging the boat slowly forward and sideways crabwalking her with the bow thruster to precariously balance the coiled lines on the poles and ready for our return. My jobs among others were to untie our neighbor's sailboat from ours while releasing the two stern lines from the cleats on the concrete piers and receiving them onto the boat. Meanwhile our two dockhands two additional lines attached around the base of our mast. For what we did not know until we arrived in the slip and realized that those two lines only when tied to the cradle would support and balance Sea Star while we were lifted.
After we were free of our dock slip, Dan drove the five or six boat lengths to the lift.
Then it became interesting as the dock on the lift equipment men shouted instructions in Spanish of course, to those of us on the boat and basically Dan was driving blind as men scurried around our deck grabbing, adjusting and tying lines multiple times until they were satisfied Sea Star that was centered correctly in the heavy, awkward and dangerous looking, black metal cradle. One pictures a soft and comforting item when one thinks "cradle." Well, not really. Along both sides of the sailboat the 6 "diameter cylindrical metal pipes of the cradle could be seen just a foot away from Sea Star's fiber girth. The wind was directly over the port beam of the boat, pushing strongly and making it difficult for the men to steady her in the cradle so the rest of the adjustments could be made and the metal floor lift the entire boat, all 18 tons of her, well out of the water. I hurried along those sides trying to install rubber fenders between the boat and cradle, especially on the four vertical columns Cubical that attach to the bottom plate of the metal floor.
At last a diver was sent into the water to install three wooden blocks of proper size and thickness to support the boat hull as it rests on the metal floor. That must have been quite a job with the boat gently rocking in the bulky cradle. The diver did not wear dive tanks, just a snorkel, mask and fins and I often gasped for air after trying to arrange just the right size and shape wooden block. He worked under the hull with others on the boat holding the bow steady and stout tying lines to the cradle
The final step was the Dockmaster pushing the button to ever so slowly lift the boat. Like Neptune emerging out of the water in her cradle Sea Star was pushed up out of the sea. At that point the dockmen told our interpreter, Oscar, that usually Gringos buy soda and snacks for the dock boys. We were especially glad To provide sustenance to the diver who by then was very tired. By about 11:30 dock our hired men were hosing to wash, and wet-sand the bottom and shapely hull of Sea Star To make a long story shorter, three men over three days full three roller applied coats of red paint at about Hempler ablative $ 130US/gal, using the full 5 gallons in the pail. Dan and I greased the Max-prop, spray-painted the propeller, shaft, and strap with zinc-coat paint Pettit (3 light coats), supervised and in general got in the way of our workers who were always all smiles. Then we let it all harden and reversed the process to move gingerly out of the cradle and back to our boat slip at the dock. If you were a fish you would know how great-looking Sea Star is now. We will be attentively watching to see if our barnacle and sea life incubation site is growing less friendly to the creatures with the copper residue applied.
There were of course inconveniences. Maybe the biggest was not being able to keep the refrigerator and freezer on as we had anticipated Because there was electricity. But with a keel-cooled refrigerator system it could not be run when out of the water. We had to impose on our fellow cruisers frozen goodies and buy ice from the gas station next door to keep the cool boxes as well as cook some foods from the freezer as they thawed. After cooking there was no way to use the water in the boat through the sink, the drains had to be shut to protect the drying paint, so water was dumped from a bucket off the boat and into the water from our 10 foot height. We were high enough to enjoy a hell of a breeze each night and see lots of new birds.
Every time I climbed the ladder my baseball-type cap would leave my head and land on top of the bimini. An inconvenience of the ladder connecting the boat to the dock below, was that the ladder stood inside of the cradle causing us to limbo under the cylindrical side greasy pole to arrive in the cockpit-difficult carrying the bags and bundles of tools, paints, rags , sandpaper and so on. down the ladder and back up at the end of each day. The dock men warned us not to leave anything off the boat. I hid the 5 gallon can with the last gallon of paint in a black plastic garbage bag like the Stealth bomber Camouflaged by the black metal cradle and it was still there for the last morning's work.
Dan's recent surgery made a bit difficult climbing ladder. He avoided the issue by making fewer trips up or down on the ladder, so there were more for me. I valiantly soldiered on with his jobs, sitting on a kitty-litter bucket avoiding kneeling or rolling around while working in tight spaces.
The last inconvenience when the water is out of the bathroom plumbing. Well, suffice it to say there are simpler systems than Vacuflush heads. The marina has full facilities also, so just one more trip down the ladder.
The workers at the marina have a concrete floored, roofed gazebo with picnic tables where they rest and eat their lunches. Where is this facility? Right beside the lift. We provided many happy hours of entertainment for the boat dockmen and especially the boys at exclusive fishing club who are hired by the dozen for the Colombian or Panamanian motor boats-washing, waxing and boat care for a full time job on one boat! They rarely see especially boat owners and owner's wives doing any of their own work. Someone at the club has hired an Français teacher for the boys. During their lunch break they practice how to interact and "eempof comuneecasheen" with the new crop of Gringos or English speaking owners. Instead of "like this" you ", after they pass the class by saying," Hauwa doeeng already? "They are doing great and we are all a little friendlier to each other on the dock as we understand how hard it is to learn to language for both sides. For the workers it may mean the difference between a menial job of boat boy and a higher paying job such as line handler or even a chance to become a "substitute Captain."
For me continuing to study Spanish might mean a reasonable haircut Next time, instead of the butcher job I just got.
Here are just a few "Lift" pictures.
Click on the blank square-not sure what happened.
 Up in the Air-OL
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