Author: kerri

Cape Town and off to Luderitz, Namibia….yet again!
May 18th, 2013 (Eastern Hemisphere)

We were able to get out of the V&A Marina on the 0930 bridge openings. There are two there. The Bascule (which in French means draw bridge) and the Swing Bridge. This is a long walkway that is spun 90 degrees along it\’s entire length to open. The tourists waved, so did we and with a call to Cape Town Port Control said our good byes.

Now, I\’m back tracking a bit as I forgot to put this in the blog where we left Cape Town the first time.
Every time I undertake a long voyage, I either have the rig (mast, boom and all it\’s wires) professionally inspected or do it myself. I always however like a second set of eyes on it. When in Indonesia last year, friend John Wolstenhome of \”Mr. John VI\” took a look and gave me a good report.

As we were about to leave on a 5000 mile (7500 km) trip, I has Associated Rigging do the inspection. They found a small crack in our staysail tang aloft. I\’ll put it in the photo log when I catch up. Anyway, they fixed it and we were then … good to go. Unfortunately due to our steering failure and \”boom, boom\” we had to return. I thought Associated did a great job the first time and was happy to have them do the boom repairs when we returned.

Yesterday was a typical get away day. Everything was ready to go. HOWEVER, the day before was anything but. I have rarely come across Immigration officials who are an intentional pain in the rear; but we found her…

When Nikki and I went to clear Immigration, she asked us where the boat was? Our clearance paper said, the \”V&A Waterfront\”. She informed us we needed to move the boat 3,000 meters to be \”inside\” the Port Authority or she couldn\’t check us out. No one has been told this in years! She wouldn\’t budge. Now it sounds easy enough to move the boat but think it through. Power cords, water disconnects, all the dock lines, two bridges (each way!) and negotiating a small tight anchorage and docks at the Royal Cape Town Yacht Club. And, we weren\’t their slip tennant, so we would have had to A) Find a space which is very tight there and B) Pay fees, etc. C) NOT be able to go back to the V&A. Hence, this was no small matter and would have taken most of the day.

The Marina Mgr at the RCYC was very creative and assured Immigration that we were \”too large\” for their current dock space (which was true BTW!) and is why we were at the V&A. \”Oh, she said, if they\’re too big for your docks, then we\’re allowed to clear them\”. This wasted about 3 hours and several layers of stomach lining. The day before we leave on a long trip is like getting the Space Shuttle ready. One hick-up and your aborted for who knows how long? Remember: Winter is Coming and we had a weather window issue. Further, Immigration should have cared less where the boat was; it\’s Customs who want to be able to inspect if they want too. They almost NEVER do. This was a first for the V&A management. They say, they\’ll try and get it fixed. Another boat we know came in the Immigration office right behind us. They were 60 miles north of Cape Town. Guess what they got told! They are still there as I write and will be for at least another 7-10 days now due to the weather. This is the kind of stuff that makes cruising unpleasant and it was totally a power play and as they say in the UK; \”Jobs-worthiness\”….. Nuff said…

We had lovely weather for our departure and from Dessen Island (about 35 miles north of Cape Town), we sailed all night in 10-15 knots of wind. We gave it up once we could no longer maintain 5 knots boat speed. The swell is up due to big Southern Ocean storms, but fortunately, they are not near us! US Sailing Vessel \”OZ\”, Steve and Pat are about a half day ahead of us. We made first contact this morning with the SAM HAM Net which assists we boaters in weather across the Atlantic. Once across the pond, we\’ll be able to get the Maritime Mobile Nets which will do the same from the other side.

So, we\’re back to motoring for the moment, expect to be in Luderitz on Tuesday afternoon….
I think I hear a song?….:-)
KIT,
Scott and Nikki

Namibia…..

To see the Photo Gallery associated with this Ship\’s Blog: CLICK HERE

April 13th – 18th, 2013…..(Eastern Hemisphere)

The sail to Namibia turned out to be a 72 hour motor boat ride.  The good news was that it was calm, the AIS was working well and we could see any vessels either on the AIS system or radar.  The plan was to stop in Luderitz, re-fuel and head to Walvis Bay; 235 miles further north.  From there we would visit the famous Sossesvlei Sand Dunes of Namibia.  These are extraordinary as they are amongst the largest dunes in the world and they can be pink or red in the morning light.

We arrived in the sleepy mining town of Luderitz and explored it pretty thoroughly in about 2 hours….:-)  We waited for the weather window and set off for Walvis Bay two days later.

Nikki at the Luderitz Visitors Center. This was a bit of an oxymoron btw!

Then all heck broke loose.  First, the steering failed while sailing almost dead down wind.  This in retrospect was due to a technician in Cape Town who improperly bled the hydraulic system.  Once this happened, we attempted a course correction manually and the steering was so loose that the boat couldn\’t be controlled.  We did an accidental gybe and when the boom came across, it broke our traveler system, the preventer system and most importantly, sheared the back bearing right off the boom and that was that.  Other damage occurred, but would be far more minor.  The drama of the moment was that it was blowing 25 knots and building.  The main had to come down and therefore lowered onto the deck (we couldn\’t roll it into the boom per usual).  As the boat was unmanageable due to the steering failure, the main sail blew overboard twice (half of it).  The sail weighs around 200 lbs (100 kg).  Amazingly, Nikki and I were able to maneuver the boat so the wind would start to blow it back onboard and finally after about an hour and a half struggle (with the wind now at 30+ knots), we got it on the deck.  The steering seemed to re-habilitate itself.  This was due to the air bubble finally working through the system.  We had to motor 10 hours at 3.5 knots against 10+ foot (3-4 meter seas).  We re-arrived at Luderitz at around 8pm and promptly went to bed.  It was quite a day!

Bent Boom Mandrel…. (This wasn\’t the half of it!)

The next morning, we determined it could only be fixed in Cape Town (a back track of 475 miles!).  On a boat, that\’s like a drive from LA to Chicago!

We quickly found that we could get a rent-a-car in Luderitz and decided while the wind blew, we\’d re-arrange our Sossevlei trip for the next day.  All the plans fell into place; fortunately for us.

\”Big Daddy Dune\”  If you look close, you\’ll see a person at the very top of the dark section and others at the bottom right…..

Dune Hike…… We didn\’t go all the way up Big Daddy, but you get the picture; a truly slippery slope

We drove 6 hours each way and stayed in a lovely B&B recommended to us by Kathie and Dave of \”Sunflower\”.  Hoodia Lodge   see:  http://www.hoodiadesertlodge.com   The owners were lovely, the food delicious and the accommodation delightful.

We were very lucky in the boom incident that it wasn\’t worse and also at how or plans to visit Sossesvlei managed to work out in a B&B that was booked solid for months!

Next…..Back to Cape Town for repairs and some R&R at the V&A!…..

Scott and Nikki

Just to let you know, we are back at the anchorage at Luderitz, Namibia – 475 miles north of Cape Town.

It\’s good we like the place, we\’re going to get to know it much better!…:-) Safe and sound…. Off to sleep, we\’re tired and it\’s cold outside! Scott and Nikki …..