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(P)We just made the decision to return to the States with the Salty Dawgs at the end of May. We were going to zip to the Bahamas next and work our way back but we dilly dallied too long in Antigua (enjoying it immensely) and have some other issues to resolve so yesterday we leaped from Jolly Harbor to West End Tortola. Forecast winds of 15-20 kts in 5-8 seas – thought it would be a walk in the park – Ha!. Let’s try winds 20-30 with two surprise sustained blows at 38 knots + gusts (no clouds or squalls, just bang from 25 to 38 under clear skies). We had a challenging gibe when the first one hit at about the same time as a ~14 foot wave hit that slewed us faster than the autopilot or duty watch could react. Continued under doubled reefed everything and were ready for the next one. Such is sailing. Nothing broken, no one hurt, except egos. So we got here in 27 hours (took us 47 hours to go the opposite way direct upwind), the whole way at 150 degrees apparent, always dicey in a cat (and slow, but not so slow this time in those winds) but more comfortable motion than our previous Catalina 380 in a following sea – so we were all fine. We will stay in the BVI, deal with business, relax, wander a bit, join the Salty Dawgs pre-trip event and try the big leap back to Hampton tentatively scheduled to launch May 17. Last year we went through the Bahamas then direct to Hampton and found that easy. Hoping the direct shot back will not be as challenging as the ride down last Nov! We can always hide out in Bermuda for a bit if the weather becomes too challenging. Now to do some work/snorkeling/learning/relaxing. Haven’t been in the hammock for a bit so need to get rid of these “taxing” stresses.

Last night we joined Molly , Baxter, and Kala the dog on their boat Tarrapin. We kept looking at their boat anchored next to us saying, ‘that boat looks so familiar’. It turns out that they we’re in the rally to the BVI and we may be remembering the boat from the marina in Hampton. They invited us and a few others for drinks and appetizers.  We enjoyed great conversations and learned we are not the only vegan cruisers out here. What a delight.

Today we met with the vet to clear Charlie out of Antigua. He provided us with an updated health certificate for clearing Charlie in to our next destination. Next we cleared ourselves out with the Port Authority, Customs, and Immigration. So we are set to depart in the morning for the BVI.

You may be wondering why we are returning to BVI when our original plan was USVI and then the Bahamas. Well while we were sitting here in Antigua we signed ourselves up with the Salty Dawg Rally for the return trip to the USA. We tentatively leave from the BVI on May 15th and there are events beginning May 1st to organize the fleet. Besides we want to go back for the snorkling and hiking that we enjoy there, plus we need to get our mail and do our taxes (that doesn’t go away just because your cruising).

Antigua and Barbuda have so many sandy beaches and we’ve enjoyed it here. But it’s time for a change of scenery. So we’ll be offline for a few days while we make another passage.

It was indeed the oil pressure sensor. With a new one, the genset works like a charm – what a relief. If it hadn’t been the sensor then it might have been the control board – $1,200 or worse yet actual low oil pressure which could mean big bucks. So I don’t feel so bad spending $100 for the sensor and a manual oil pressure gauge (to confirm the sensor) and another $100 on brokerage and expediting fees. Unable to get a clear answer online or from Onan (buy our part number xxx), I took a chance on a generic from Budget Marine which they had to send from St. Martin. All has come up roses for now. So we are once again flush 🙁 with water.

The making of water on Blue Sky consists of running the generator while the water maker is running. We opted to save a few thousand dollars on the water maker and utilize the large generator on the boat rather than have it sit idol. So we’ve been running it every 4-5 days since December 24th when the water maker became fully functional. The generator has been good for the most part. It has had days when it would shut down after 25 minutes or so with an error code that states ‘low oil pressure’, but would always restart and run another 25 or more minutes following that. We could live with that. In fact, it even improved over time. Then just last week it ran the 25 minutes, stopped and would not restart for any length of time. This means no making water beyond 25 minutes. Problem solving is in order.

Paul got out his trusty meter reader and watched the generator closely. He changed the oil with no improvement. We can’t get a new oil filter, but the oil appears clean. So we’re down to figuring out if it’s a faulty sensor, a faulty control board, or a serious engine problem. So the next step was to order a new sensor. Paul did that two days ago and we are crossing our fingers that it will arrive later today.  So we wait here in Jolly Harbour, Antigua hoping for a quick resolve of the generator issue. If the sensor replacement doesn’t work it looks like we’ll be seeking an engine mechanic for help. We can’t go without making water or risk ruining a very expensive asset on the boat.

So I’m not washing clothes and we’re being water misers again.  We hope to depart Antigua at the end of the week, with luck that we can fix the generator before we leave. I’m ready for a change of scenery and ready for another passage. So I’m putting it out there to my angels to guide us in solving the generator problem so we can sail off to another destination.

So what happens on those days where something “writable” isn’t happening. Well, let’s see. Yesterday we traveled from Barbuda to Deep Bay, Antigua. 15 knot winds close hauled sending us to Nevis (west of where we wanted to be) but with patience and a small prayer, the winds veered to the east then even northeast as we approached Antigua and we were able to spin back to south then southeast and sailed into Deep Bay, close reach all the way averaging 6.5 knots. A beautiful 4.5 hour sail soaking up some sun and some z’s (for part of the crew). Of course the weather turned overcast on arrival with rain (not forecast) at night and more rain today – a lot more. Actually we were happy about that since we have had little rain in the last 2 months and it gave the boat a good wash down (desalting). So ordinary life kicked in with a scrub of the boat (topsides and snorkel/diving the bottom – not minor, a couple hours here by G & P encouraging the bad guys to detach from the boat), two trips ashore with Charlie, bread making (refining the art of baking bread in a pressure cooker – much lower energy consumption – is excellent bread), yogurt making (didya know it is easy with powdered milk and a thermos?), a little work on taxes (ugh) and the web site (still learning) – you know, the routine stuff, just on a boat. Ending the day with G’s fabulous curried cauliflower and chick peas. Yum! For a change, a lousy sunset scrubbed out by the clouds. And the generator which has been on its best behavior now refuses to run for more than 25 minutes making water making difficult. So now we will have to finally sort out what the intermittent, now seemingly not so intermittent problem is. Boat = Sherlock challenge. Never ending. But loving it. Oh, and spotted a turtle a couple times – and I have a mascot here, twin to the one in Barbuda – a little fish, maybe 3 inches long that has attached itself to me when snorkeling. Freaks you out a little bit because he loves to nibble at your ear then swim around to have a look at you straight in the eye about 6 inches in front of your face then back to your vision’s periphery. Just hangs there. I have gotten used to him and him to me, I am sure. Kinda feels like a buddy. Swirls around my toes when I get out of the water – like he is saying “where are you going? Can I come too?”. Or maybe I have had too much sun now that the fish are clearly communicating?

So now, time to sleep, perchance to dream. Okay, too dramatic. But it is somewhat soothing to get ready for bed with the showers sprinkling by outside, highly reminiscent of our beloved Vancouver, with a small difference – a temp of 26 (79F) inviting us to a peaceful slumber. We shall see what the dawn brings.