Week 9, Dec 7-12, haul out


Now that we are back, it is time to haul Rhapsody out of the water and see if we can find and seal the leak.  The haul out is set for early tomorrow morning, except that early translates into 10am.  We are up and fed and ready when the marina guys show up to help us move.  Because the boats are bow to the wall with the stern lines fastened to mooring balls it is difficult to get in and out unassisted so the guys always show up to help.  We have cleared the deck and taken down the awning so we can see where we are going.  Alan is in the cockpit with the engine running.  As soon as the guys untie the stern lines, the bow lines are untied and tossed to me and Alan puts it into reverse.  We back carefully out of our spot, avoiding all the lines from the other boats, turn around, head the short distance across the marina basin to the travel lift and ease into the slip, only to be told that we will have to turn around and back in because our mizzen mast is too tall.  easier said that done.  Like most sailboats, Rhapsody does not back straight.  I have never quite figured out why but apparently it has to do with which way the prop spins.  Eventually, with not too much yelling and  with a lot of help from the guys in the dingy, we get turned around and in position.  The lift moves into place, slings are passed under the keel, ropes are tossed and tied and suddenly we are being lifted out of the water.  Now we are hanging in the air and being driven along the back to the wash rack.  Scary, scary.  Always before we have gotten off before it was lifted.  I just keep telling myself that they do this all the time and never drop the boats.  Still, not my favorite ride.

We are moved first to a wash rack where a ladder is moved into position so that we can climb down.  Then Rhapsody is washed down with high pressure hoses.  Soon the ground is littered with hundreds of tiny oyster shells.  Then she is moved again, down the way to a “parking spot”.  Gradually and carefully, poles and tires are moved into position and the slings are released.  It certainly does not look very secure.  I walk all around, carefully pushing and kicking all the props to be sure they are steady.  A long ladder is brought and secured to the rail and up we go.  It feels weird to be in the boat but on land not in the water.  Alan and I both keep thinking we are moving.  I even get off and kick at the ropes holding us one more time to be sure they don’t wiggle (they don’t)   One of the problems with being out of the water is that there is no way to drain the sink.  Normally the dirty water is just pumped into the ocean.  We get our the dishpan that we used when the sink broke in Tonga and manage breakfast and lunch  but dinner is too hard.  We have decided that we will just eat out every night and work our way through the menu at the marina restaurant.  It is also a long walk down the ladder and to the bathroom in the morning, since we can’t use the toilet either. 

Next morning the guys show up bright and early and get to work.  The main reason for the haul out is to finally find the source of the leak that has plagued us since we left home and stop it once and for all. There are 2 possible sources; the prop shaft where it comes through the hull is one obvious suspect and the other is the through hull, a valve that needs to be open to draw saltwater into the engine to cool it when we are running but is closed when the engine is not running.  There are also two other through hulls,  one for the bathroom sink to drain and one to pull in seawater for the water maker.   Alan takes all three apart, carefully cleans, greases and replaces them.  The prop shaft is a more difficult problem.  We had crawled into the back of the engine room while the boat was in the water and looked carefully with a flashlight to see if we could tell where the water was coming from.   As best we could tell, it was seeping in around the  bolts which hold on the fitting which holds the bushing which is around the drive shaft. (Can you tell I really don’t know what I am talking about here?)  For whatever reason, this large piece of bronze does not quite fit tightly against the hull, so there is a gap. The bolts came out and all the old caulk was scraped off, inside and out.  Then everything was replaced and caulked.  Hopefully that will solve the problem and we will once more be dry.

 Of course the “while you are at it” syndrome kicks in and we decide to have the bottom painted too.  And then the painters discover a crack along the deck where the rail is separating from the hull.  So that needs to be scrapped and caulked and painted too. But all in all, the work goes quickly.  Everything is complete and dries overnight.  There is one last coat of paint before the lift shows up to move us back to the water.  The process is reversed and  and we are back in the water within a week.  

A day later we discover that the leak was is not fixed.  There is still water in the bilge .  Al least now we know where it is coming from.  It is not likely to get worse.  We just have to remember to pump it out every few days   Maybe next year…..