Second Day on Hard Stand

This is Tuesday, the second day of Pachuca's hardstanding at Abaroa's “Don Jose” boat yard and things are going extremely well.

Hull Not Too Fouled at Haulout

Scraping the Lead Keel

Under the Cockpit Before Cleanup

Yesterday Bob Carroll arrived at 8.30 AM to help me fand soon we were on or way to the boat lifter which is only a few hundred meters from the marina. Bob was well ahead of me when he reminded me that the boat would have to be turned around 180 degrees and backed into the lifter. We set up our lines accordingly. Fortunately two men at the jetty in front of the lifter helped us out and soon we were turned around and being pulled into the lifter breech first.

Soon after the high speed spray was put on the keel I saw the problem, and after the hull cleanup Antonio told me that big patches of old antifouling were peeling off the lead keel and it should be sanded back to the bare metal so that two coats of primer could be applied before the antifouling was rolled on. I agreed. The labor and materials for sanding and priming both the keel and the “boot topping” at the water line was quoted at $465 USD and I gave the OK. This was one of those jobs that I was going to do in Fremantle but is being done in La Paz.

The rest of the day was quiet. Somebody began to prepare the keel with a chemical remover and scraper, and we engaged in some discussion about the Dynaplate. I presented to Antonio an inside view of the problems of selecting the best site for the Dynaplate.

Keel Scraped and Primered

Fitting the Dynaplate (Antonio at Right)

Batteries on Cabin Sole

Bedding Dynaplate on Epoxy

Dynaplate in Position

The real action was today, Tuesday, and as far as I am concerned we are “over the hump” with the hardstand project.

We started by Antonio removing the two large batteries. During his effort I heard a crack and said “cuidado por favor!” (carefully please!) and later discovered that he had knocked one of the surge protectors off its mount when I noticed it plaintively blinking its light from below the batteries. With the upper batteries removed we had a look inside and it became obvious that the lower batteries would have to also be removed. I asked him for some time, and he said that he'd be back in 20 minutes. He came back in 20 Mexican minutes, which was more like 60 minutes, but that suited me fine because by the time he returned I had the two lower batteries on the the cabin sole and was almost finished removing their supporting platform. Soon that platform was out and for the first time during my ownership of Pachuca we had a clear rand elatively unobstructed access to the area under the cockpit.

Antonio drilled his first pilot hole from inside the hull and the position on the outside of the hull looked good. He then drilled the other three pilot holes, using a cardboard template that he had made.

We then fitted the Dynaplate on the outside of the hull over hull and saw immediately that the compound curves of the hull presented a problem. Pachuca has more curves than Bridget Bardot in her prime. The resultant gaps between the flat Dynaplate and the curved hull looked much too large to be dealt with 3M 5200 compound, so I suggested spacers. We agreed to use spacers of 2” diameter of “starboard” plastic material.

When I returned from the lunch break Antonio told me that there was a change of plans. His
boss, who I take to be Senor Abaroa, who owns the yard, deemed the spacer solution “feo” (ugly). He didn't want Pachuca hauled out in Australia to have people see what an ugly job had been done in La Paz. Professional pride. I liked that. The new proposal was to sand that area of the hull then bed the Dynaplate a layer of West System epoxy. It would be very strong, impervious to water, and provide a perfectly fitting bed. As soon as Antonio said that I could see that it made beautiful sense, I thanked him, and gave the OK.

At the end of Tuesday the Dynaplate had been located, its holes drilled, and it was seated on a bed of epoxy which would be cured in the morning. The keel had been sanded with a machine, primed, and faired in spots with epoxy. The first coat of antifouling had been rolled on the hull.

In addition of playing the role of anxious and ever watching boat owner (“Don't worry” said Antonio. “I've got to get all of the way to Australia!” was my reply.) I spent 4 or 5 hours of serious hot and dirty work cleaning the dark recesses of the under-cockpit space. On the surfaces I cleaned off the wood and fiberglass dust of Reggie's teak effort. At the bilge level I dredged out years of accumulated muck that had settled into a hard layer of mud. In that mud was rusted bolts, washers, bits of wire, shards of timber, etc. There is a “dead” section that holds probably 20 liters of stagnant water that would remain so unless there was massive flooding into the bilge. This water was seriously smelly, and unpleasant to remove one cupful at a time, followed by one spongeful at at time. I also reconnected the aft drain hose that we had removed for the teak work, firmly clamping it instead of having it merely slipped on as before.

I was VERY happy with the progress and the standard of work. We were on track for a splashdown on Friday.

I celebrated this hopefully last successful hurdle during my working summer in La Paz with my first beer in over 3 months. In the last week I've been easing up on myself in preparation for my reentry to “normal” life, but more on this later.

To the Boat Yard

Bob Carroll is due at 8.30 AM and together we'll ferry the boat to the boat yard for a haul out at 9.30 AM.  The big item on the agenda is the installation of the Dynaplate RF grounding shoe, to be bolted below the waterline at the stern of the boat.  There will also be the routine anitfouling, which I hope will see me through to Australia.  I've told the the boat yard that the boat must be back in the water no later than Saturday, six days away.  During this time I will have limited access to the internet, though I have a plan of visiting my slip at the end of each working day with my Acer netbook and internet cable, and use the internet while sitting on the plastic steps of the boat next door.

I've spent the last 3 days preparing the boat by giving it a major cleanup inside and out.  The cleanup got down to rinsing every item of cutlery and wiping every jar and box in the galley cupboards. 

Chain in Crates, Anchor at Right

The chain locker required a lot of attention because of the huge amount of sawdust that would likely turn to sludge and block the drain holes at the first sign of moisture.  I emptied it, removed the upper level, then swept, hosed down, and hand wiped the interior.  I detached the 12 meters of chain from the 80 meters of rope that normally resides on the upper level and stored it in a plastic crate on the forecastle sole.  That operation worked as planned.  I was able to feed the chain straight into the crate through the forward hatch with little trouble.  This 12 meters of chain represents about 55 lb that has been moved from the end of the boat's long and narrow bow closer to the center of buoyancy.  On a calm day when I am far out at sea I will move the 37 meters chain representing the primary rode to a second crate stacked on top of the first one.  This will represent another 170 lbs removed from the bow. 

The photo shows the crate with the 12 meters of chain.  To the right you'll see the hanging closet where I plan to stow the 45 lb plow anchor that I will be removing off the roller.  At present the lower section of that closet is filled with shoes, boots, and a portable vise.  I'll move the shoes to the forecastle and place the anchor in that compartment.  This will have the anchor closer to the center of the boat, below the waterline, and best of all, wedged in where it cannot shift when the boat rolls.  I'm hoping that these measures along with my newly sealed chain locker will do wonders for the performance of the boat,  particularly in heavy weather.

To make room for the crate I moved the heavy rope bag holding 100 meters of thick nylon rope of the para anchor into the cabin, on the port side of the mast.  This will nicely balance out the anchor on the starboard side.

FM3, Finally

I showed up at Immigration at 9.30 AM.  The man attending to me looked up my case on the computer then as me if I had paid the money for the tourist visa.  I dropped my head and shoulders in exasperation. Si, pagado hace once dias   Si,  recibo hace once dias  I said in a bored here-we-go-again monotone.  He understood: I had dealt with this 11 days ago.  Fortunately the guy who I had given the "high seven" two days previously was in the next cage and leaned over and told my attendant about my case.  The man went away for 10 minutes then returned and asked me to return at 1 PM.  He said something about "firma" which suggested to me that a signature was required.  He actually looked apologetic when he asked me to return.

I peddled my way back in the heat of the day and hallelujah, the FM3 procedure had been completed.  The man took my thumb prints, pasted my photos on the various forms, and produced my laminated FM3 card.

Then I asked him for my U.S. passport.

He replied that they never keep passports.  They may have looked at my passport but would have given it back.  He was so emphatic that I figured that he must be correct because he would be enunciating organizational policy, and I must have forgotten that I had put it safely away.  ... Except that I couldn't find it either in the apartment or on the boat.  I looked in every likely place.  I couldn't understand how I could have lost it because I handle my passports with great care and respect verging on reverence.  Let's just say that I wouldn't stick one in my back pocket and go shopping at WalMart.

I decided to take the big step of alerting the U.S. consulate of the situation.  Fortunately I looked in my blog to establish first day of the FM3 process and that's what saved me. In the entry for 12 July was the statement " I am to return in 10 days to pick up my new FM3 card - and my US passport!" I knew then that Immigration had - or was supposed to have - my passport.  It was 4 PM so I got on the bike and raced to the immigration office hoping that they were indeed open until 6 PM, otherwise I would have to wait until Monday to deal with it.  I found the place open, sort of.  The door was open, there were a few men talking in the waiting area, but all of the computer terminals had been removed from the counter.  The place was functionally closed.  Soon I saw the same guy who had gotten a face full of my 7 fingers two days earlier and told him  that I needed my passport, it was very important, and they had it.  He looked under the counter then shook his head saying that they didn't have it.

Let's think about this.  They've just moved into the new premises, so why would my passport be under the counter?  I told him that I needed to speak with someone in English because this was very important.  He went away for 5 minutes and returned with my passport in hand, explaining that it had been separated from my file.   So much for the earlier very emphatic statement that they never keep passports.  Had they not found the passport I would not have had a leg to stand on because they do not give a receipt when one hands in this most important document.

It left me thinking that Immigration is an organization driven not by policy and procedures and protocols, but rather by the whim of whomever happens to be at the counter at the time.  Bob has told me that he has gotten an adverse answer from them, returned the next day, and received the desired answer from somebody else. 

I peddled back from my 9th visit to Immigration - 3 on this day - hot and tired but satisfied that I finally had both my FM3 and passport.

Teak Work Finished

Reggie finished the teak work yesterday when he tidied up and put a nice bead of caulking around the perimeter of most of the work.  Previously the water was allowed to collect between the teak and the fiberglass where it turned up, and this cannot happen now.

In the photo of the bow you can see where he beaded around the windlass.

I paid Reggie the equivalent of $2,000 USD in cash, in a plastic food back that contained an account specifying the exchange rate for the day, the number of bills and subtotal of each denomination, and the grand total.

I told him that he is an ethical and honest man who didn't cut any corners, and I greatly appreciated that.  His work was first rate and he had saved the boat for certain water damage in the near future.  Fine words, but I also put my money where my mouth was and pointed to four 500 peso bills folded separately in the bag, which was a bonus to show my appreciation.  He seemed surprised and thanked me very much.

He then went off to pick up with his wife his recovering daughter from the hospital.

This morning he dropped by for an hour to tidy up the work that he had done yesterday and thanked me again for the bonus.  I told him that he had earned it.

The entire job cost me about $4400 USD.  Most of that went for the teak.  There are various grades of teak.  Some of the fast grown teaks have very little oil in them.  Reggie uses top grade European standard teak that has plenty of oil in it.  And as I said earlier, he uses 5/8" thick planking instead of the usual 1/2".

Reggie AWOL, Immigration Frustration, but there's always the Mangos.

Reggie was AWOL this morning.  By 10 AM I figured that something was wrong but Skype chose that time to go on the fritz and I could not contact him.  Not long after, Rick passed on the message that Reggie's 13 year old daughter had had her appendix out.  The girl had rung Reggie several times yesterday afternoon complaining of vomiting, stomach pains, etc.  I've just Skyped Reggie and he told me that his daughter had her appendix removed at 8 PM last night, her mother flew back early from her visit to the US, and all is well.  He expects to be here at the boat early tomorrow to finish the job.

With that knowledge I rearranged my schedule and decided to visit Immigration at their new premises.  First I dropped by the boat yard and arranged to have Pachuca hauled out on Monday at 9.30 AM.  Bob Carroll has kindly agreed to assist me with the boat.

The new address of Immigration was posted as "Boulevard 5 de Febrero, e/Frojadores y Durango, Col. Los Olivos"   I still haven't figured out what "Col." stands for, but I'm pretty sure that the "e" represents "esquina", making it the corner of Frojadores and Durango.   However, according to the map Frojadores and Durango to not converge.  I peddled in the heat for over an hour searching for the place.  I showed the address to a senora in a barbershop and her direction didn't make sense to me.  I then went into a shop on 5 de Febrero and the English speaking man started getting confused himself about the conflicting address.  Fortunately a colleague overheard me mentioning that I was looking for the new premises of the Immegration department and he knew where it was: on the other side of 5 de Febrero within sight of the store.  It's where "Mexico" street intersects with 5 de Febrero - nothing to do with Frojadores or Durango, so go figure.

The move appeared to have been planned with the same precision as my FM3.  The painters were still working, electrical outlets were missing, the queuing system wasn't up, etc.  I noticed that the waiting room is only half the size of the old one and there are about half of the cages for dealing with the clients. 

The man attending to me claimed that he does not speak Engilish and I admit to poor Spanish, so we communicated pretty well in Spanglish.  He told me that my FM3 wasn't ready.  Why, is there a problem? I asked.  He looked up my case on the computer and asked if I had paid the money for the tourist visa.  I replied Yes, about 10 days ago.  He went and got my file, thumbed through it, then asked me if I had presented my receipt for that payment.  Yes, about 10 days ago to a senorita who speaks English.  He went away for ten minutes then returned to inform me that all was well and come back on Friday.  My guess is that the bilingual senorita who impressed me with her crisp professionalism did nothing that she promised - Didn't enter my date into the computer the first chance she got, Didn't place my receipt into my file, Didn't have my FM3 ready within a day after the computer became available.  As far as I can tell, my receipt was still still sitting on her desk and the 5 minutes of her time to complete my case is going to cost me another 2 days.

I know that I am a guest in this wonderful country and must play by their rules, so getting agitated and aggressive would be discourteous as well as counterproductive.  However, I rightly or wrongly I decided to remind the man of what they are putting me through.  I fully extended my arms, hands up,  with 7 straight fingers in his face and said "Siete Visitas!" (7 visits!)  He shrugged with a sheepish look on his face.  An American woman waiting for service gave a knowing giggle.

I then peddled to Chedraui for groceries.  My receipt gives a good indication of what I am eating this days: 2 cans of fresh pineapple juice, mangos (6), bananas (10), pears, broccoli, tomatoes, red peppers, non-fat yoghurt, and 1 kg of fresh fish.  The bananas cost 9.9 pesos a kilo.  That's about 80 cents, compared to the astounding $18.99 a kilo that people in Perth were recently paying because adverse weather has wiped out the Australian banana crop. 

The mangos were 7.5 pesos (60 cents) a kilo, and I've finally learned how to manage them.  I keep between 6 and 12 mangos lined up on the shelf.  Every day I pick the two softest ones and put them in the refrigerator.  Today I purchased 6 more mangoes, leaving me with 10 on the shelf and 2 in the refrigerator.   The payoff is the delight of two cold, sweet, juicy mangos at their prime per day.  I can't think of a better fruit available to humanity.  They even top grapes, which I love and can eat by the crateful (which I've done).  I'll miss them very much when I get back to Perth.

Fittings in Place

Fitting Fairlead on Caulking

Reggie worked hard today to install the fittings on the new teak work, and I worked almost as hard supporting him.

All Bow Fittings in Position

He started at the bow, installing the fairleads, a padeye, and the hinges and latch for the chain locker lid.  The latch required a lot of effort because it had to be carefully mortised into the wood for a flush fit.  The result was very good, with the latch engaging nicely when a small amount of downward pressure is put on the lid.  The water seal should be excellent.

Then he shifted is effort to the cockpit where the big jobs were to cut holes for the emergency steering access plate and the two forward drain fittings.  The forward drains were flush mounted as before, and now the rear drain is also flush mounted which represents a big improvement.  Before, the flange of the rear drain sat on top of the wood, resulting in 1/4" of water pooling at the rear of the cockpit.  This work would have frayed my nerves because one false calculation or move could have ruined the cockpit sole, but Reggie worked with the speed and confidence of a professional.

Cutting for Emergency Steering Access

Cutting Forward Drain Hole

All of the fitting except the latch were bedded down in teak caulking compound.

While Reggie held the forward cockpit drain fittings down I worked below, spinning up the big nuts tightening them with the multigrip pliers.  Then I connected up the drain hoses.  Tomorrow I'll connect the aft drain hose which will allow to wash down the cockpit without getting water in the bilge.  

Things went so well today Reggie thinks that he can finish the job tomorrow, a day earlier than he had expected.  He needs to caulk the perimeters of the wood work an do some tidying up.  I figure that collecting and loading up his tools will take 45 minutes.

Drain Fitting on Caulking

Forward Drains Flush and Tight Fitting

Aft Drain Fitting Nice and Flush

I am looking forward to getting control of the boat again.  It is as dirty as it has ever been, both above and below decks.  Below decks I'll have to clean every item and surface of the dust that has permeated every nook and cranny of the boat.  I'll hose down and scrub the topsides.  I figure that this effort will take a full day

Sanding Finished and Flights Booked

Using Caulking for the Rubber Seal

Reggie showed up with his son Nahum and quickly got into the work.

First Reggie fitted the rubber seal to the chain locker lid.  He had chosen the dimensions of the rubber well because after he had cut and bedded down the rubber with teak caulking the lid fit perfectly flush with the surrounding teak. I told Reggie that if the seal kept even just 50% of the water out it should be sufficient to allow the drains to stay ahead of the incoming water.  He figured that the seal would keep out 99% of the water. 

Laying Down the Rubber

He then got to work with sanding, using a sanding disc on his heavy angle grinder for the rough work then his vibrating sander with 60 grit paper for finishing off.  I noted with pleasure how Reggie could sand across the join between the chain locker lid and the surrounding teak as though it was one continuous surface.  Amazing fit.

Tomorrow he will begin to reinstall the various fittings such as the cockpit drains and the hinges, lock, and fair leads at the bow.

Rough Sanding

Beautiful Result

He gave Thursday as the likely finish day so on the strength of that I'll book the lifting of the boat for next Monday.  I've also booked my flights for the visit to Seattle.  I fly out of La Paz on 17 August and return on 17 September.

Finishing Work with 60 Grit Paper

The two uncertainties are Immigration's holding of my U.S. Passport and the duration of the hardstand effort.  I've been told by Immigration that all is in order and I'll be able to pick up my U.S. passport and new FM3 on Thursday.  Regarding the hardstand, there will be a full 7 days in which to get the work done, which should be plenty.  Unfortunately I don't have the luxury of being able to book my flight after these risks are resolved.