After three months in New York, seeing family, friends, doctors and other medical professionals, we boarded a jet plane and flew back to Kalunamoo in Trinidad. Labor Day was approaching and despite global warming, September promises falling temperatures. I don’t trust the weather when light jackets are required. Don’t call us snowbirds as we dare not wait for the first snow to fall. Arriving on that Friday afternoon at Piarco International Airport one can feel the heat and humidity kick in. Both are underrated. Maybe it’s an acquired taste but so be it.
There was a long line at Immigration as many Trinidadians were returning home. It took almost an hour and a half to clear immigration and another half hour at Customs. We were in no rush as a fellow cruiser, Will, was coming in from Miami an hour behind us and we wanted to share the taxi ride to the boatyard. Turned out, by the time he arrived the line moved quickly and we were ready to go together. A stop at Customs at the port was required as we both were carrying “Yacht in Transit” boat parts that must checked. No duty or tariffs are paid, just paperwork. That is something, Trinidad is famous for. That, and carbon paper!
During the four-hour flight, I imagined what our season in the Caribbean would be like. We would stay in Trinidad until the end of October, finishing up the boat work that Ali and Quincy were working on. In addition, we will try to do some touring with Jesse James and we hear that there will be a cruisers Cricket game organized. I have no idea how Cricket is scored or played other than there is only one base to run. It should be fun.
Upon entering the boat, it is on the hard out of the water, the first thing I noticed was that the lights didn’t work. I saw that the batteries were dead and the charger was not on. The flashlights worked and the air conditioner was on but no 12 volt power. It was getting late and everything looked ok except no charging. More investigation would be done in the morning.
The next day after much investigating, I got the small bow thruster charger working to charge the batteries and provide 12v power. The electrical distribution switches are such that the house, engine starting, bow thruster, generator starting batteries and the main charger/inverter and bow thruster charger can all be interconnected in many configurations. That worked and in two days, the batteries were fully charged.
In the meantime, I started investigating the best way to replace the large Xantrex charger/inverter. The closest ones were in the U.S. Long story short, got quotes for replacement and shipping but also contacted Avi, the local electrician, to come by and figure out what happened. Probably when they moved the boat in the yard, not an unusual occurrence, they didn’t reconnect the shore power. Since they were now recharged, all that was needed was to reboot the charger. That worked and we were back in business with power! Until today. The Xantrex is now showing faults and refuses to be on-line. Avi will be called again but I see a new charger/inverter in my future.
Initially it was a simple fix compared to what our friend Bob on Pandora just wrote on his return to Pandora in Sardinia. He needed to replace his charger/inverter and engine alternator. Fortunately, he had them on the plane from the U.S. Yes, fixing things in exotic places is part of life on a boat. I’ll have no choice but to have one shipped in. Hopefully that works out.
In the meantime, I began working on our refrigeration system to be able to work while we are out of the water. That entailed some plumbing work and relocating the circulating pump to use the boat’s freshwater tanks or sea water to cool the system. It took a few days but that saves us getting a bag of ice a day to keep some food cold while on the hard. After it was done the freezer box didn’t freeze. Cool Keath, the refrigeration guy, was called as there was an issue with the thermostat control but that was quickly solved. Maureen started provisioning now that we have refrigeration!
Ali and his workers installed new Plexiglas in the cockpit, repainted the boot stripe, will install a new rub rail and apply the anti-fouling bottom paint before we splash. Some other minor work including new shelving below the cabin deck was installed. All in all, typical M&R to keep Kalunamoo ship-shape.
So what do we imagine the season will be? As we have done in the last few years, our cruising pace is slow while we enjoy our time in the Eastern Caribbean. There are always new people and cruisers to meet, get togethers, musical interludes, and spirited discussions.
It is said that time appears to fly when your brain doesn’t need to record new events. Summer seemed to last forever when we were kids as we recorded new events every day. Today, not so much. The brain may measure time in events, not hours or days.
That may be a good reason, to entertain new events every day. It may not keep you young, but your sense of time may slow down. Hopefully new events don’t include boat repair. Certainly, we could sail beyond the Caribbean as many others have. The Caribbean, and Trinidad in particular, is a major hub for worldwide cruisers coming and going. We meet many and listen to their stories or wish them well on their adventures. Whatever long-distance travel we may undertake will be by air! In the meantime, we stop and smell the salt air, if not the roses.
Kalunamoo 