Settling Down

I'm steadily settling down after the fast pace of the last two months.  My awareness is expanding from minutiae such as whether or not that painted edge is dead straight or those screws are perfectly aligned to the environment around me. And I must say that I enjoy life at this marina.  There is always something interesting to see and I've gotten to know enough people that I can't walk anywhere without saying hello to somebody. 

And the weather is superb.  The season changed about 4 weeks ago and I now sleep under a blanket wearing track suit pants.  The days are sunny and crisp and the wind either low or gentle.  The current temperature at 8.30 AM is 63F (17C) with a predicted high of 89F (32C), which feels perfect to me after the torrid summer.  It's a great time to be in La Paz.  All of the Gringos and Canadian Snowbirds can come back.

After speaking with Roger I feel comfortable in uttering the "H" word that Bob Carroll banned me from using.  It looks like the danger of hurricanes in the Baja area has passed.  The temperature of the Sea of Cortez is dropping and the northerlies are starting to blow. One person told me that this has been one of the quietest hurricane seasons in the history of La Paz.  We got one tropical cyclone very early in the season that passed well to the left of the Baja peninsula and died.  Then there was a low pressure area heading this way that spooked Brenda and myself enough to interrupt our short cruise of the islands  for a couple of days to take shelter in the marina.  That threat faded too.  Otherwise nothing, and that suits me just fine.  This is in contrast to the other side, where the Gulf of Mexico has gotten its usual allotment of hurricanes.

Yesterday morning I finished the floor carpeting.  It looks and feels very good, though I may have to figure out a non-invasive way to hold it down. 

After lunch I prepared with great care a rectangle of ply board that I can screw onto the bulkhead behind the navigation table for my microphone brackets.  Today I will give it a second coat of varnish and tomorrow I will mount it.  This is a temporary measure because during my visit to Kingston I hope to find a nice piece of solid wood for the job.

I then spent 90 minutes cleaning the 3 old fenders that had once again become gummed up with a thick oily coat.  I grumbled to Ib that I suspected that their plastic coatings were degenerating but he suggested that I have a go with acetone and then possibly coat them with hull polish.  The acetone worked well.  I then scrubbed them with engine degreaser (biodegradable, would you believe).  Today I will polish them.  This is their last chance. 

This marked the beginning of turning my attention to Pachuca's deck and hull.  Today I will give the deck and cockpit a much needed scrubbing.  I am trying to prepare the boat for a day sail that I hope to take with Ib and possibly Bob Carroll later this week.  After that sail I will arrange for a diver to remove Pachuca's propeller.

As luck would have it Ib will be sailing his boat to Mazatlan for a short stay in order to get his new engine checked out.  He has offered to take the propeller to have it re pitched.  I have been in touch with the company, Total Yacht Works, and everything is arranged.  This will save me the practical and possibly bureaucratic hassle of taking the propeller with me to Port Townsend.