Well actually it was a little more than a week ago. Not all of the projects were done, but the important ones were.
The shakedown
cruise has certainly been eventful. We knew going into this that adding so many different things to the
boat at one time could complicate things. We have had issues everyday, sometimes two, to troubleshoot. Most seem to be related to
power in one way or another, thank goodness for the new
solar panels. Calmly talking through the problem and figuring out how to fix the problem or figuring out a
work around has been very empowering for both of us. We had been dreaming about this for so long, but the closer the time came to finally live the dream I know both of us had doubts about whether we could actually do it. Now we both know we can!
At the end of the day, as we sit in the
cockpit, a drink in our hands and watch the sun go down, we can't help but grin at each other. We both have admitted that we have never worked harder in our lives and we are bone tired at the end of the day, but still we smile. I am covered in bruises, every joint in my body aches and still I smile.
Today, I am sitting in a slip at Sopher's Hole Marina on the west end of Tortola, while Barry is
racing to get to Golden Hind
Chandlery before they close for a new starter
battery. Thank you to everyone who responded to my thread about spare
parts and tools, we had a good idea what we needed but we added a few more thanks to you. The one thing I do not remember seeing was a
battery charger, we brought one on board because we had it at home -- what a godsend today! We probably could not have started the
boat twice, but once was all we needed to get us here!
We are still chasing down the
charging issue on one of the house
batteries. However, I think we will complete the install of the
wind generator first. The
refrigeration can't be fixed until we get the new probes, but I have moved everything to the
freezer and turned up the temperature. It is good that the probes went at the beginning because I didn't get a chance to fill up the freezer!
I believe I read somewhere that cruising was just boat repair/maintenance in exotic places. I'm not sure the
BVI would qualify as exotic, but it is a great place to replace a battery!
Ahhhhhh ... Robyn (& Barry)