Catching Up & Miscellaneous Ramblings

 

Checking my engine while underway.   What do I check, you ask?

• Oil spots under the engine
• Excessive belt wobble
• Coolant still in the overflow reservoir
• Hydraulic fluid still visible in the sight glass
• Diesel fuel levels
• Saltwater intrusion (or any water for that matter)
• Excessive vibration or noise
• Engine/shaft smoothness (I want no vibrations)
• And then with my heat gun, I measure temperatures at the exhaust manifold, turbo housing, heat exchanger, drive shaft, transmission housing, etc.
• I watch both stabilizers to make sure they are moving smoothly
• I sniff for anything that smells like burning electrical or exhaust as that shouldn't be there

I do this once every few hours.   And more frequently if I think there may be a problem.

This is the Cape Mudge Lightstation just south of Campbell River.   We passed this a few days ago and I forgot to include the picture in that blog.   So, you get to see it now.

When the going gets rough, this is how we strap the doors on the fridge shut.   It wouldn't do to have things flying about the galley!   It may not be elegant, but it works (so far).   This is the first season with the new fridge, and we are very happy with it so far.   In the same size space, this new fridge offers 50% more capacity and is more energy efficient.

Tomorrow at 0600 (6:00am) we are off to round Cape Caution.   Our route will be the blue line.

The total distance from Port McNeill to Green Island is about 80 miles.  Cape Caution itself is about 50 miles of open ocean between Vancouver Island to the south and Calvert Island to the north.   This is no big deal, except for a number of factors that make this challenging.

• It's open to the North Pacific Ocean
• It's still very early in the season so storms and storm swells are likely
• There are very large fjords that empty a ton of water out around the cape
• All of the outward waterflow carries trees and logs out into the ocean where the outflow competes with the incoming waves and currents into Johnstone Strait, Rivers Inlet, and Fitz Hugh Sound
• This area is full of rocks, some of which poke out above the water...

Those all combined, make this an aptly named cape.

If the weather and timing are all good, then this passage will be a walk in the park.   If not, this can be very challenging.   We are leaving tomorrow because we have what looks like a nice alignment of weather (wind & waves), tides, and currents.   Let's hope so!