May 4-7
Over winter we had La Bamba’s sails off, so we put them back on again and put all the reefing lines back in.
We then got North sails to take the main off again as they hadn’t fixed the chafing caused by mis-placed reefing points, nor had they cleaned the sail which we noticed quite easily as it still had David’s blood on it (!)
North sails will put it back on again for us but at least we know how to do it ourselves and put all the battens in etc. On a boat the owner should know how everything works and how it’s all put together.
We now have a topping lift for the boom when the sails aren’t up which is excellent as it will steady that big boom. And a brand new spinnaker pole for poling out the jib.
We had fun mousing the lines and relabelling all the jammers. Hopefully these photos will explain that:
David played with the electrics:
And he checked and cleaned the impeller:
And to prove my worth I got the kedge out of its box that it has been in ever since we left Sweden, and learned how it goes together and assembled the bits you need to.
Obviously everything came out of the lazarette
So that David could get in
We also enjoyed our usual stroll along the sea wall where the avocet chicks have begun to hatch
Because we are hoping to do the ARC this year (a cruising rally across the Atlantic) we are getting several upgrades to La Bamba so she will be safe and practical on the high seas.
Unfinished upgrades include a spare battery, a hydro generator, a water maker and new sails for downwind cruising. We have also got a new life raft and upgraded the windlass for stronger and longer anchorage when we get to the Caribbean.
How exciting!