OCEANPOSSE

FLEET UPDATE 2020-02-16

• Head shots reminders
• Huatulco, Mexico
  
• Picture of the Week & Ordeal report of the week
  
• Sail repair tip from Ullman Sails Puerto Vallarta, Mexico 
• Marina Pez Vela, Haul-out, Quepos and Facilities, Costa Rica
• El Salvador Bar Crossing, El Salvador 
• Treasure Map of Golfito, Costa Rica
• Shelter Bay Marina, Panama 
• Uninvited Visitors -  Hitchhiker
• Uninvited Visitors  -  Marine Leach 
• Safety reminder
• Line App Reminder every Monday live call at 16:00 UTC
  
• Submit reports - As always - keep 'em coming
• Opt Out
  

1) Head shots reminder

Please email us your headshots :

AD ASTRA, BAD BUNNY, CONTEXT, CONVERGENCE, CYCLADES, DOTTIE SUE, ELSKA, EMMY KATE, ENTERPRISE III, EVIE, EVOLIAS,HERITAGE,IMPOSSIBLE DREAM, KJALOHA, KOUMBA BANG, LEILANI, MAKANI, MANUREVA, MAR Y SOL, NESHUMA, PILIALOHA, SALPARE, SEAQUEL, SEDNA VI, SHAZAM, SOL GOOD, SOUTHERN CROSS III, STAND DOWN, SUSIMI, TIDAL DANCER, TIVOLI, TRYST, WISHLIST, WOLFHOUND, ZARZAGAN

2) Huatulco, Mexico

Volare’s in Marina Chahue awaiting the 2nd window for TPec crossing so that we can explore the local area. 

Here’s a picture I took of s/v Jean Anne as the sun rose over Jicaral anchorage. We were the only boats here.

Jessica & Adam

VOLARE

3) Picture of the week

Annita in Marina Chahue hugging the used engine oil

so - we completed the last leg without incident and are now safely tied up in Huatulco.
This is a picture of Anita standing alongside the four barrels of engine oil Moonrise
requried to keep the engine lubricated for a little over 100 miles.
Quite the trip!

Thank-you again for the call out to the fleet and for your support,

Moonrise now holds the official Panama Posse record now for most engine oil used on a 100 nm trip
I thought that the fleet would appreciate some feedback on what we learned from our experience:
1. The Port Captains are no help. We presented ourselves at the Puerto Angel Port Captains office and advised them that we were mariners in dificulty and they essentially replied "not my problem". We pointed to their mission statement (on a poster on the wall), that suggested otherwise but they responded "maybe in the past but not now". Their job today is simply to 'control' who comes into the port.
2. Panga operators told us they have no respect for the Port Captains and expect no help from them. When one of them is in trouble they organize their own rescue (much in the tradition of volounteer lifeboat crews in the UK). Recently, a panga was swamped off Puerto Angel and they had thirty boats out all night looking for the crew (who were never found). They said the military will occasionally come out but mostly when it is too late and/or the story has made it into the newspapers.
3. Panga operators will extend assistance to cruising boats but most do not carry radios. One approached us and asked if we needed assistance simply because they saw our radar reflector twinkling in the sunlight and thought we were signaling them. Later at anchor, we waved one down and they gave us a ride through the surf to the beach. That same operator then drove us into town in his pick up to buy some oil and return us back through the surf. We would never have been able to carry that large a quantity of oil in our dingy nor would we have ever have been able to land safely (it was a surf resort). With local knowledge and a 50HP outboard, they had mastered how to safely transit the breaking surf zone.
4. None of the panga operators we asked was prepared to consider towing us, regardless of distance. They believe it is damaging to their outboard, which for them is their livelihood. The one single offer of a tow we had was for an eye watering sum and was not entirely credible as it was questionable whether they could safely carry that much fuel (for the round trip).
5. Most pangas never travel further than 12 miles from home (fuel is expensive and there is no need). Their local knowledge is therefore limited to a small radius and there are large gaps along the coast where no pangas operate.
6. We had a dingy, 6 HP outboard and plenty of gasoline and we have successfully side towed Moorise before. But, that was in calm conditions - in reality, we didnt feel comfortable doing so in a heavy swell and/or at night, so looked for alternatives. After this experience we may consider buying a larger, rigid floor dingy.
7. Obviously, we would have prefered to sail out of trouble but the winds were fickle. Leaving a safe anchorage to rely on marginal winds is a tough call, as you then place yourself at the mercy of local currents (which we never got to understand). Luckily, we were able to devise our limp home strategy, which gave us a margin of safety.
What might we do differently? Obviously, having a buddy boat with us would have made a world of difference. Otherwise, we have always been believers in simplicity and preventative maintenance but not everything can be foreseen. It looks as if our problem was a failed oil cooler (ie a break down of the wall, seperating oil from raw water). It so happens, we had examined our oil cooler only a month previously (shining a flash light through the tubes), without seeing anything troubling.
The mechanic here in Huatulco said he could weld up our oil cooler and get us on our way within days but we told him that, after this experience, we will opt for removing the engine and changing out every gasket, oil seal and vulnerable part - we do not want to go through a similar experience ever again!
Hope this summary is helpful.

Stephen & Annita

MOONRISE

4) Sail repair tip from Ullman Sails Puerto Vallarta

Offshore Emergency Repairs

Be sure to have some of the basics onboard.  The new stitch-less systems are quite good and reliable. They save a lot of time and make repairs easier to do.

The best on the market is Dr Sails.  It is a 2-part flexible epoxy that sets in 20 minutes or less.  It comes with multiple tips so that you do not have to use entire container each time.

After following the manufactures instructions, I found an easier better way to use the product.

It is always a great idea to dry and clean the surfaces first.  We recommend rubbing alcohol since it will evaporate the salt water off of the surface. Dr Sails claims that it will stick to wet sails but I have not tested this theory.

Next layout as much of the repair as you can carefully aligning it as close to original as possible.  Tape this together as you go. 

Once tear is taped on one side, flip sail so that you are working on the side without the tape.

Cut your piece of Sailcloth that you are using for the repair.  Lay it out on top of tear making sure it fits properly and is trimmed to the size you need.  We recommend overlapping each side of the tear by 2”.

Tale the repair cloth, dispense the Dr Sails adhesive onto the piece in a zigzag pattern.  Using spreader (supplied with Dr. Sails) evenly spread adheasive over entire repair cloth piece.

Lay the piece over the tear pulling sail tight, press repair cloth down, using a long arm stapler staple in many places.

After approximately 20 minutes, remove staples , flip over remove tap, and your repair is complete.

Keys to have a long lasting and effective stitch-less repair.

1. Take time to align as close as possible to original.  The better the alignment the better it will look when finished
2. Keep sail as smooth and tight as possible when laying repair cloth down
3. Do no more than 5’ at a time unless you are doing shore-side with a lot of room
4. Set everything up ahead of time and work fast as adhesive will start to set if you take too much time
5. Rub adhesive all the way to the edge of repair, even slightly more to keep edges from peeling up
6. If tear goes to edge of sail wrap repair cloth around edge, this can be done in a second step
7. Be sure to pull every staple, they rust and rust fast
8. Have something to lay under repair while using adhesive, it will stick to your deck

Jason, Chuck & Sabine

Ullman Sails Puerto Vallarta
Av Estaciones 1099 Bucerias, Mexico, CA 63732
pv@ullmansails.com
+52-329-298 2558
https://puertovallarta.ullmansails.com

5) Marina Pez Vela, Haulout, Quepos and Facilities

On a windless overnight passage from the Gulf of Fonseca to San Juan del Sur back in November, the port engine on our Lagoon 380 cat suddenly made an odd sound and we lost propulsion. We spent a few weeks in San Juan del Sur and were able to determine the problem was somewhere in the lower unit of our saildrive which, unfortunately, required a haul out. With our 21.4’ beam there are only a handful of places that can haul us. Marina Pez Vela in Quepos, CR is one. They couldn’t schedule us until Jan 2 because they do not work for two weeks over Christmas and New Year’s holidays.

We had already checked into the country in Playas del Coco but if we hadn’t, Pez Vela charges a large agent fee ($400 I think I heard). Our initial impression of the shipyard was clean, professional, and very helpful as we were pulling in with little ability to maneuver at slow speeds. This was the first shipyard we had been to that actually put a diver in the water to verify the placement of the slings before hauling. The managers, Justin and James, were easy to work with. We spent 3 weeks in the yard. We opted not to do the work ourselves because they charge a daily fee if you do your own work or hire your own mechanic. But they also charge another daily fee just to be in the shipyard whether work is being done or not, and they were slow! They also do not allow you to live aboard while in the yard so there’s another expense of somewhere to stay. Once the necessary parts were determined, it was actually cheaper and much faster for Dennis to fly back to the US to pick them up.

We ended up having a few other preventative maintenance items taken care of as well, since we were waiting for the parts. We had the bottom paint done - completely stripped to the gelcoat, new barrier coat and a couple of layers. The workers damaged the diaphragms around the sail drives (which had been inspected immediately after haul out and determined they were in good condition). The diaphragms had gouges and chunks out of them, but Justin had no problem taking responsibility and covered the cost for the new diaphragms and labor. We had the rudders removed and bearings replaced. We also had a few cracks in the fiberglass repaired.

 

 

 

Haul out Once Dennis came back with the parts it should have only taken a day or two to have everything back together. It was another week before we were back in the water. The days we sat there and no work was done were so frustrating. Thankfully Justin saw this and did not charge us for those days in the shipyard.

 

 

New bottom paint. Waiting for final rudder placement just before splashing.

Quepos is a nice, little town and we met some wonderful people. If you make it to town, we highly recommend Zamir Pizza. They sold it by the slice or a whole pizza for a reasonable price and it was the best pizza we’ve had in a long time! El Santuario zip line tour was fabulous and they’ll even pick you up from the marina. There’s also a non-denominational church service at 9:30 on Sundays on the beach in the bay by Manual Antonio NP.

 

Exploring Manuel Antonio NP

The anchorage just a few miles south of the marina was nice with a decent beach landing on the south side. It was a bit rolly in the early morning and evening when boats were leaving/returning to the marina. The marina wasn’t dinghy friendly though, so it’s not all that easy to replenish supplies from the anchorage. All in all, we were pleased with the work done at the shipyard, and we enjoyed our time in Quepos.

 

 

Church on the beach

Dennis, Brandy & Crew

ANKYRIOS

 

ANKYRIOS

6) El Salvador, Bar Crossing

Nobody mentioned that we would be surfing our sailboat over the bar! Yeaaa for Bill n Jean!

 

 

Entering the Estuary

 

 

Bob & Margie

BLESSED

7) Treasure Map of Golfito, Costa Rica

 

Bob & Marisol(need headshot)
MAR Y SOL

8) Shelter Bay Marina, Panama

Bob & Margie

BLESSED

Caribbean Sunrise

 

 

 

View from the Dock of the Breakwater and Panama Canal Entrance

Dan & Angela

ANGELIQUE

9) Uninvited Visitors - Hitchhiker (this is a prize category this season)

Nick & Gemma

MOIRA

10) Uninvited Visitors - Marine Leach (this is a prize category this season)

Garreth & Audrey

THISLDU

11) Safety reminder

A strong dinghy lock and thick long cable

Season One of the Panama Posse took the brunt and we have identified areas which are prone to dinghy and outboard theft-

 

but as always bring your dingy and outboard up at night and lock it with a hard lock !

ABUS 92/65 Mono-block Brass Padlock
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005UMBCDW/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_kUZODbHH915CZ

12) Get on the LINE app !

Please make sure to sign up with Line.me so you can participate in our weekly LINE calls on Mondays; at 16:00 UTC
and be part of the 24/7 chatroom anytime
Once you have downloaded it - find dietmarpetutschnig ( carinthia ) and send a message

 

we'll add you to the 2019-2020 Panama Posse group

13) As always - keep 'em coming - reply with any relevant updates
- next update next Sunday

SV Carinthia

 

Dietmar & Suzanne

 

 

14) to opt out - reply with opt out 

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by OCEANPOSSE