Stuck in Paradise

I know we should have left Hawaii by now, but we are still here.

The good new is - we like it.  We are surrounded by wonderful friends and amazing scenery.  Can't complain!

Practicing for Whack-A-Mole

Plus, there has been a lot going on - and we hate to miss any fun stuff!

Doug finally quit work - yeah.

It was great to have a paycheck and all of those discounts, but it was sure hard to get our projects done.

Doug's re-retirement party

Doug's gang at West Marine threw a get together at the Aloha Beer company.

As you can see, his new buddies are very young. Ha!

We had a great time, plus treated ourselves to one more night in a luxurious hotel with a tub - ah...

The Last Bath...

It is going to be a very long time before I get to soak in a tub!

Not complaining, just saying.

Beautiful shot of the surf in Waikiki

So, we enjoyed ourselves in the big city one more time. 

More good news - we are actually getting our projects done:

The Chain Gang

Our new seat covers

• Got our new chain - just need to put it on the boat
• Finished re-bedding ports - finally
• New bilge switch installed
• Sewing projects completed (thanks to Tiana)
• Fuel tank retrofit complete
• Engine has been checked and blessed
• Windless is being rebuilt
• Varnishing in progress
• Craigslist is trying to sell our excess stuff
• And lots more going on

BBQ at the marina

On top of all of the projects, we are having a great time with our dock buddies.  There are several of us that are leaving Hawaii, so we are all busy working on projects, sharing, and celebrating.

Doug relaxing...

Another beautiful sunset

Mai Tai walks, Marina BBQs, Bon Voyage potlucks, and lots of time spent on the dock just socializing.

No wonder we haven't left yet, we are way too comfortable!

Don't get me wrong, we still have stuff to do.  But we think we will get out of here before the end of May.

Good thing or I am going to have to go provisioning again.  Oh my!

No Wind!

Egg delivery

It is very strange - our NE trade winds always blow - sometimes too much.  But not for the last month! 

We either have zero wind or it is blowing out of the west.

Both are bad for us, so we aren't going anywhere until the trade winds come back.

Grocery receipt - wow

Which is good, because we aren't ready to go.

We are still working on projects and provisioning - of course. 

Rebedding another port

But, we are getting closer:

• order/buy list is down to 1 page
• only 2 ports left to rebed
• 1 locker left to inventory
• provisioning 75% complete
• stashing and stowing 50% complete
• need to do more work up the mast
• final check on the rigging
• that kind of stuff!

Plus, we need to get out of the marina and do a final calibration on our new autopilot and check out our new anchor system, plus run our watermaker.

We want to make sure everything is working perfectly before heading south.  Next stop is 10 days away!

Celebrating Kara and Aaron's upcoming wedding

Of course, we still are making time to spend with our dock buddies - we are going to miss them.

We aren't going to be here for Kara and Aaron's wedding celebration, but wanted to throw a party in their honor.  Lots of fun and food was had by all!

Hope their lives are happy and full always.  And we are looking forward to meeting Aaron one of these days...

Awwwww

The latest weather forecast shows the trade winds are coming back Wednesday - yeah!

So, guess we will stay for the big Marina party on Saturday and start looking for a weather window.

We better get busy!

PS:  A few provisioning tips:

• The best place to provision for non-Costco size stuff:  Don Quixote.  It caters to the Japanese, but they have lots of stuff at great prices. 
• Non-refrigerated eggs are very difficult to get in the States.  We were fortunate that Kalei Eggs made an exception and sold us 120 of them - score.
• Don't buy too much. Of course, I am definitely not following my own advise!

 

Now we gotta go!

Everything is happening way too fast - except for the projects of course.  Here is what we have been up to!

Presents and Schnitzel!

Our wonderful dock buddies threw us a great going away party. Lots of fun, laughter and gifts.

Plus, Ed and Karen made a huge batch of Jaeger Schnitzel. Our favorite from our Germany trips. We all loved it!

The Beater

We sold The Beater - our car!

It sold to the first person who saw it - less than 24 hours. Amazing.

It's a relief, but now we are without a ride. Good thing we have such a great sharing group here at the dock and have access to the community Car Pool!

Bill and Rise come to visit!

Bill and Rise, great friends from New Mexico, just happened to be in the neighborhood and stopped by for a visit.

We loved spending time and catching up with them.  Hope they meet us again in Fiji!

Barnacle Bill

We are definitely not ready to leave the first of May, but we are making progress.  Here's what we have wrapped up:

Wonderful friends - going to miss them!

• Furler has been rebuilt
• Jib is up
• Life Raft has been re-certified
• New halyards are spliced and put in place
• Lockers have been purged and inventoried
• Provisioning lists have been made and major shopping has started
• Collected a bunch of goodies for Fanning Island
• Sourdough starter is active and ready to make some bread
• And lots more...

Enjoying the sunset

Still lots to do and lots to buy!

We also need to anchor out for a couple of days to make sure all systems are working perfectly.

Our first stop is 10 days away, so we don't want any surprises.

Mystery tree?

If we get out of town by May 15 - we will be very happy.

In the meantime, we are enjoying every minute with out dock buddies.  We are going to miss them and beautiful Ko Olina!

Making progress!

It's been a bit of a blur, but we are making some progress. Here is what we have been up to!

Hope we never have to use it!

 Life rafts are expensive, but necessary.

We had to get ours recertified, which was interesting and informative.

They unpacked it and blew it up.  Now they are checking everything and replacing all the expired water, food, and other products.  All for about $1400 - ouch!

We were excited to see that it worked - good to know!

How many people....

Our new forestay is in place - thanks to the help from our dock buddies.

Now, Doug is re-fitting and servicing the furling system - making sure everything works.

Next, we get to raise the jib.  Almost a sailboat again!

Splicing new halyards

One of the benefits of working at West Marine - great discounts on line.

Doug has been replacing all of our dock lines and halyards.  The new halyards are Endura, which Doug is learning how to splice.

Supposed to be stronger, smaller, and lighter weight. Hope so!

Medical kit - oh my

I have been overwhelmed - organizing our medical kits and ditch bag. There is too much stuff, too many things to plan for, plus too much data to sift through.

But, I am getting close!

When Pigs Fly!

Doug is still working on the re-bedding project. Trying to plug all the leaks before we head out. Plus lots and lots of shopping.

Our list is getting shorter, but we have a long way to go.

We are still shooting for the first of May. Wish you were all here to help!

Moondance is back in the water - safe!

And it was fast - hauled out of the water on Thursday; back in the water on Monday.  Of course, fast doesn't mean cheap.

You have to pay for the haul out/haul in; lay days; plus the actual work.

Humpies off of Waikiki

Like having the bottom sanded and painted, replacing the cutlass bearing, and the really expensive part (drum roll please) replacing 9 seacocks. Ouch!

But, it had to be done. Our seacocks were over 30 years old and we were afraid to touch them (not good).

Ready for haul out

Keehi Marine Center was very professional and took good care of us.

Restrooms, but no shower facilities, and a mini-mart with a really old grumpy guy - avoid him.

The spooky part!

Bonus - L&L Drive Inn (close by) has wonderful egg and bacon (tons of bacon) breakfast sandwiches for $3.40.  Worth a stop!

La Mariana Sailing Club is close by:  food ok; drinks ok; service very slow... But, we had a great time celebrating with our dock buddies!

Burgee party at La Mariana

We were satisfied with the work that MRM services did on our bottom and thru-hulls.

They worked all weekend to get us back in the water and Moondance didn't leak - yeah!

Back in our slip

Glad we can cross that off the list and get busy on the rest of the stuff.

We are very grateful for having our friend's boat to stay on during all of this, plus their vehicle.  It made life so much easier and less stressful. 

Thanks Ed and Karen!

And now, the really good news, I am retired - again. 

Life just keeps getting better and better and our sailing date closer and closer - oh my!

Is bigger really better?

Hope so - cause we just spent a lot of money upgrading our anchor!

The new Rocna

Our new anchor - a Rocna 33kg = 73 lbs.

Our old anchor - a Bruce "type" = 44 lbs.

That's a big difference and should really keep us from dragging (piece of mind). 

We chose the Rocna because:

• Design allowed us to go bigger - it fit on our anchor roller.
• Known for "superior" holding 
• Plus the price was right with Doug's West Marine discount!

Of course, we still have to figure out how and what to deploy for our second/back up anchor.  But I know that Doug will make it happen.

Big event tomorrow! 

Sailing/motoring down to Keehi Marine Center to be hauled out for bottom maintenance.  A fresh coat of paint and new thru-hulls - Moondance will be good to go.

Great friends we have!  Some have "volunteered" to make the trip with Doug; others have offered us their boat to sleep in, plus their van for transportation. 

What a wonderful group!

The Plan

Well, The "as far as we know right now" Plan!

Hawaii to Fiji - with lots of stops along the way!

Looks like short hops, huh? Except for the first one - it is about 10 days sailing to Fanning. Fortunately, it is supposed to be a downwind sail (going with the wind - better!).  And, we won't be in a hurry. We are going to enjoy the adventure and see as many places we can - probably our only chance. The best part of cruising - no schedule.  Well, except that weather thing! Thanks to friends on Tao for letting us copy their route!

Inventory Time

Love these sunsets!

So, the work on Moondance continues.

We are inventorying every locker and making our lists - and definitely checking them twice.
 
Who would have thought that a cruising boat needed so much stuff?  But, it does!  Especially when you are heading to remote destinations.

We have definitely changed.  It used to be hard to shed personal items, clothing, toys, etc..  It is definitely getting easier.  We always need more space for provisions and spare parts.

Guess we really are Cruisers!


"Not all who wander are lost." - JRR Tolkien