Well the last few days have seen us busy with more parties, more provisioning, more seminars, more headaches (colds and alchohol - not issues) – and as a direct result of those blooming seminars, more work on the boat.

It’s not too bad for us overall, as we were pretty well prepared before we even arrived.  Plus have had the 4 weeks here to slowly do other things as they cropped up.  But lots of the other boats - especially new ones or those with large guest crews just arriving - seem much more frantic.  The jetties are awash with technicians, workmen, as well as the newly arrived crew.  Lots of loud discussions, people being hoisted up in bosun chairs, rows erupting with workmen running late, torn hair by some owners, and lots of frustrations with non arrived spare parts. 

On Swagman we like to think we are more chilled.  Kind of ‘do-it-yourself’ as new ideas get adopted.  Frankly, if we left tomorrow, the boat might not be perfect, but we think it would be OK.  But when you get a good idea from even another skipper - it's nice to copy it.

I've added a hand pump for fresh water, plus a silverised carbon filter to get rid of bad taste from the dock water, at the galley sink.  I've traded all the halogen downlights we might use at night for LED versions.  I've packed up and stored the dinghy on the coach roof.  Put away the davits.  Run all the spinnaker / code 0 lines.  Organised and re-organised the lazarette to make sure we've room for the fenders as well as the huge amount of fuel containers in there.  I've cleaned the deck God knows lots of times (messy sometimes at night - what with vino tinto, nuts and broken chocolate bar bits) - and every day think we've covered everything.

But the recent seminars have 'helped' with further ideas and tips.  A lot of which we're implementing.  Really useful sessions. 

The rigging presentation has led to a lot more taping and padding of possible chafe points, plus replacing all key rings with split pins, plus mousing of all shackles.  Plus we've devised a daily rigging check procedure we’ll adopt for the run over that might help stop the mast falling down.  We also hauled out and up our spinnaker to check it also – and subsequently carried it off to have a small section of loose stitching re-sewn by the sailmakers.  Sue came up with a simply brilliant idea for when we're hauling down the spinnaker sock.  This task normally ends up with the person doing the hauling (normally me) being lifted skyward with the loads in the sail.  Sues idea was to add a snatch block fixed to the deck in the downhaul line – and for me to pull upwards on the rope rather than downward from the sky.  Means I can get full arm / leg power into play, and don’t rely only of body weight.  Simple eh?  And it works.

Bet you’re now going to think ‘that’s bloody obvious’ ………but it’s taken us 5 years to come up with it...........

Have also stocked up on rigging clamps and having sections of 12 mm wire pre-cut to use to bridge any wire damage.  I know the chance of us having to use it is remote - but once on the boat we'll have those bits of safety kit for all time. 

The radio comms seminar also led to us completing our own radio checks.  And fortunately for us, we then found (and fixed) a loose connection.  Better now than when we were about to make a position check.............Plus took time out to learn how to use our MS Meteo software to receipt weather faxes underway.  Its just sooooo easy when you know how………….

The provisioning seminar led to Sue buying up some new food product we had not previously considered.........so underfloor spaces are now being used for cans, whilst soft packaged stuff fills the cupboards.

The power management seminar had led to us devising a charging regime.  We're now aiming to run the engine only once per day, for  possible 2 hours, but only each evening once darkness has fallen.  Whilst its going and we have unlimited power to use, we'll run the watermaker, heat the water, prep and eat our evening meal, fill the fridges to the max and turn temps right down, and prepare our kit needed for the night watches.  We’ve also made up a couple of thick insulation panels of foam and tape to place over both fridge and cool-box top at night – as we’ll now be switching those off when we do the same with the engine.

And we’ve also taken time to organise and pack out both aft cabins so as to create two single berths in which the occupants won’t roll around when trying to sleep, even if the yacht is rocking wildly from side to side.  We’ve all got our own sleeping bad liners and colour coded pillows – so can readily hot bunk without picking up any of Gerry’s disgusting bodily bits or him having to place his head on my dribble spot.

Add in a goodly number of tolerably alcoholic parties and you can see we’ve been busy enough.  Best bash so far was ‘Don Pedros Dinghy Party’.  Pedro the boss who runs the Texaco fuel station in the marina and each year he hosts a fun dinghy race across the marina after the ARC opening ceremony and flag waving bit.

Guess maybe 50 dinghies took part. 

Most were elaborately decorated and set up with participants in all kinds of fancy dress.  Most were kitted out with the vilest concoctions of flour, bad eggs, rancid milk and cream, and soot, for throwing over the other participants.  Bit like a down market Henley regatta and great to watch even before the start gun went.  Even the spectators and police control boats were targeted for some of the missiles.

What was good was to see so many Canarians also entering into the spirit of the day.  A super laugh all round.  And followed up by a freebie BBQ that had the whole harbour rocking until the wee hours.

I’ve still got a few more seminars to attend, and despite full to busting below decks on Swagman, we’ve still got to find space somewhere for an added 5 slabs of beer, 120 litres of mineral water, goodness knows how many kilos of root veggies, and three weeks of salads that Sues ordered but yet to have delivered.  Looks like best plan for veggies is to turn the aft shower into a vegetable store – meaning we need to source stackable plastic racks it can all go into and still get some air ventilation - and us having to use either the foreward head (bit bumpy) or the transom (bit exposed) for showering our dainty bodies clean. 

The water and grog (along with spinnaker and code 0 sails) will need to go forward on the floor of the forecabin, which will not be used for sleeping when we’re crossing.

Still havn't worked out what we are going to do with trash on the trip over.  Sure, bio degradable stuff can go over.  But the idea of burning plastic was rejected due to dangerous fumes prbably blown into the cokit from aft running winds.  Can you visualise a boat with three crew dead from cyanide poisoning from the aft mounted BBQ, being self steered past the finish line in St Lucia?  Gerry could.

Even the idea of mounting the BBQ on the front only led to a view we'd still all sail onward dead - but at least we'd be highly visible for a while with our flaming spinnaker!

So its looking like the anchor locker will become our 3 week dustbin - crammed with the stuff that can't go over the side.  Good job it will be downwind from the crew - as temperatures are only going to rise as we enter the warmer tropics.  They actually predict water temps will rise from current 21C to 28C en-route - and the sun will be some 20% warmer when we're down to the St Lucia latitude.

Lots more crew for other boats have arrived this past weekend.  You can identify them due to generally lighter colouring and the swagger that comes with the 'I'm off sailing and I know boats' party mode.  In fact with sterotyped sailing white T shorts, beige shorts, and overloaded pontoons that rock back and forth, it looks like a lot of milk bottles are wobbling around a production line on speed.

But the ARC party bar is packed chokka most evenings with most of these guys and gals - and boy does the bar pump out the music.  Guess people are lured by the 2 for 1 drinks offer - but it is strange.....  The Sailors Bar just opposite sells double the volume for less than half the price!  It might not be as trendy but the maxim ‘no such thing as a free lunch’ (or drink) is does exist in Las Palmas.

Weathers still holding up nicely.  The high pressure moving into the area south of us has caused some temporary southerly winds which tend to build midday and early arvo.  But the suns out most times and its still mid twenties until sundown at 1800.  All the other yachts on the more exposed pontoons numbers 16, 17, and 18 are bouncing around a bit in these winds, as are those in the anchorage.  The southerlys flow directly into the harbour area.  We’re still snug (and of course very smug) on our secure pontoon 10.

Local wi-fi facilities are creaking under the strain of lots more sailor users.  Luckily with the booster antenna I'm now using a hotel a mile away.  Used to be 'where's the bar?' was the first question sailors asked. Now its 'wheres the wi-fi?'. God bless technology. 

Sue and Sara have teamed up with our pontoon 10 livaboard mate Shash to prep a specially GOOD curry plus a suggested stack 60/70 veggie samosa’s for the trip over.  Shash's relis came from India - and we already know she's a beaut cook.  They will be more than just useful for night watches, and being cooked already won't need refridgeration.  The boat is sure to smell good as they do that.......but as we are all sharing the one toilet on the trip, what's the odour going to be like when underway?

I’ve got T shirts being picked up today to smarten us all up, a diver coming Thursday to scrub our bottom…….and I’ve got to work on a way of testing our water maker without leaving the harbour………plus still got to check out the Code 0.  So still a bit to do.  And obviously a few more seminars and parties to attend. 

Phew.  It will be like going on a well earned relaxing holiday when we finally slip the ropes and get out of here!  C’mon Sunday!

JOHN