Saturday 3rd November 2012
Bright, hot sunshine today, as I busied myself with several jobs while preparing to leave around 4.30pm on an ebb tide. The diesel leak, as I suspected, looks to have been from two jerry cans which were not firmly enough tightened up.
With the boat finally all tidied up, I was about to hoist the main, when I realised the pole was still lowered onto deck.from when I'd had to re-tie the release line to one end.. As I went to raise it, I spotted a pin about to come out of the mast jaw fitting... lucky I saw it... Hammer was needed to knock it back into place and a ring found in my spares to secure the end....
I raised full main and genoa and let go the buoy mooring line, to leave on the ebb tide - but NO GO!!! Do you ever have that feeling that Fate is conspiring against you?? The ebb was weak and the wind soon became nearly non-existent...!
A boat came up, recognised me and offered help .... Jake with 8-mth pregnant wife Petiana - a boy - already named William..!! Jake came back later to take some photos & stayed around for quite a bit, seeing I was in trouble getting anywhere in the oh-so-light conditions- kind of him! We very slowly got part of the way towards the Bridge, but after drifting around in the dark for several hours, worried I'd be taken into deep water (or over to Angel Island or shallows across the way from it) and definitely 'not under command', I had to get out my ground tackle and anchor while the depth wasn't too bad - found that the windlass isn't working, of course...grrr!!!
So, as well as having to lift the anchor out of the chain locker and over pulpit, I then had to manhandle the chain and gypsy so the chain could run freely... 30m of chain is now waiting to be raised when some wind comes with an ebb tide... Couldn't get anywhere near Sausalito YC to pick up the buoy again - but not for want of trying!
So here I am in a flat calm, with a fabulous night view of everywhere in the Bay area, under a lovely starry sky with a bright moon over Angel Island - and with the same CG boat as when I entered overnight Wed/Thurs very close by us again, tied to their buoy overnight...!!!
We'll see what tomorrow brings... Don't know if I'll get away - wind must come up at the right time to catch the ebb, of course...
