Delivery day 5

Position: S 23deg 16min 670sec
W 007deg 16min 560sec

We know the tracker isn’t working well, so we’re adding co-ordinates to the blog.

The ocean is full of good times… some of the crew spent the day lamming in the hot sun and thinking about them. Kerryn, fuelled by plenty of Game, decided the bananas were not worth eating, and made a banana bread to be eaten as dessert.

Still having energy, she made pasta to go with the blue-fin tuna for supper. All the cooking was successful and no one minded breaking the tradition of tinned fruit and custard after supper- we ate very well. Even Warrick found the stomach for the meal, despite feeling queasy prior to.

The ocean is full of beauty… the sunset was stunning as they come, and that gave way to a clear, starry night- which was exploited for stargazing.

The ocean is full of challenges… it never fails to test those who venture into its waters. Sometimes, it tests patience, sometimes skill, sometimes ingenuity, and sometimes all of the above.

Last night we had to run the engine, as the wind died. As per usual, this was monitored closely, and in fact, Peter even sat at the alarm panel to watch it for an hour. During that time it was stable, but shortly after he left his station, the engine made a different sound and started smoking.

We all leapt into action immediately- killing the motor and starting to assess the damage. It was found that there was no oil in the engine, although this was checked previously. Tracing where the oil may have gone we found the alternator sparking and disconnected it. It was then noticed that there was oil dripping on the alternator from the impellor pump, which was bypassed so the inline electrical pump could circulate raw water. It was then decided, being close to 03h00 to close up and tackle the problem in the day time.

Today, we spent all day- with direction, but no power- trying to sort out the engine. We really tried everything. The impeller pump was dismantled and it was thought that the gaskets needed to be replaced as there was oil around it. But unfortunately after manging to start the engine some screeching and thumping noises were heard which went away and then came back again. With further investigation it was found that there was water in the engine oil. This discovery happened at 18h00, hence the late blog.

The crew is not despaired or without hope!