039: Marathon Part 3: Broken things, more sites, and zero fish

The biggest news: the weather has been crap as far as going over to the Bahamas, so we extended our stay in Marathon by eight days.   We now leave on the 27^th to head north up the Keys.   Not sure when/if the weather will cooperate for a trip to the Bahamas, but at least the inertia will be broken.

So, what have we been up to?

Well, we finally captured a dolphin ‘on film.”  This one was feeding around our boat.   I only got one quick video, but at least we can prove that Flipper is alive and well in the Keys!

 

There is a saying, “Everything on your boat is broken, you just don’t know it yet.”     As evidence that this is true:

 -We had to fill the water tank about every three days vs. once per week this summer (while docked).  I chased down a leak to where the water line meets the water tank.   My fix isn’t fancy, I drained the tank and, in layman’s terms, “gooped the shit out of the connection joint with silicone sealant.”   So far, so good.

-Our refrigerator seemed to be “on the fritz” as sometimes it was cold, sometimes not.   I went on the manufacturer’s website and looked at the troubleshooting section.   Based on that I pulled out the refrigerator and checked for a bad thermostat which was the most likely cause, but that checked out.   While messing about, I noticed how hot it was in the area the refrigerator fits into.  Then I noticed that the inside of the hull was really warm.  “Then it hit me like a vision burnt across the sky*,” with the boat tied up to the wall the way it is, not in a slip, the full port-side of the boat facing south, the sun was heating up the hull to an extent that the refrigerator coils weren’t able to offload the heat and cool down the inside of the unit.   With the help of Matt from Katmat, I wired up a small computer fan to the refrigerator’s compressor motor to vent away the hot air from the back of the unit.   Problem solved.

Boat with southern exposure on port side where the refrigerator is located:

 

Installed fan:

 

 -Awhile ago I posted how the outboard electric motor wasn’t working.   They shipped a replacement battery cable to the wrong address, it got lost, and I got fed up with the company’s amateur-hour approach to customer service.   I shipped the engine back at no-insignificant cost, for a refund which they promised to honor.   Still waiting for the refund check three weeks later.   (sigh).    I then bought a good old-fashioned gasoline-powered outboard at half the price with twice the power.  Should have done that to begin with, but you live and you learn.

 -I picked up an anchor bridle, but you’ll have to wait to see that in action the next time we anchor out.

 -The bilge pump was cycling on more than normal, and I traced that down to a leaking gasket on the stern thruster.   A common issue with Ranger Tugs apparently.   I can’t replace the gasket without pulling the boat out of the water, but I did tighten up the bolts which was a solid one-hour job.  Seemed to slow, but not eliminate the leak. 

-Our boat is weighed down with gear for this trip.  As a consequence of how heavy we are, our engine was not able to pull the spec number of RPMs at full throttle.  Rated at 3500 RPM, but we are only able to do 3400 RPM.  This means that the engine is working harder throughout all speeds.   Since I had to replace the spare prop was put on the boat (remember “my bumpy”) I decided order/install a shallower pitched prop.   The prop came in and I hired a diver to swap out the props.   The next posting will let you know how we did.  I’m hoping for 3600 RPM’s (better to be over than short) but will be happy with 3500.

Between trouble shooting systems, we have done some more sightseeing.  Went up to Islamorada to visit a few places:

 -The History of Diving Museum.   Pretty cool, worth the $13 price of entry.   Recognized some of the old gear from my first set of circa 1980.

 https://divingmuseum.org/

 -Hurricane Memorial:

-Bass Pro Shops - World Wide Sportsman.  Why?  To see the sister ship of Hemmingway’s famous Pilar boat.    Hemmingway’s is in Cuba, but apparently he was on this one and it inspired him to order his boat.

 

-Of course, we had to walk down the old “smugglers trail” where the rum runners during prohibition unloaded their contraband.

 

Matt, his friend John, and I went on the worst fishing charter ever.   Way too many people on the boat.  The captain left the engines on while we were anchored, which belched diesel fumes so badly that it made it hard to fish from the stern.   And we were anchored over sand, which means no structure for the fish, which means no fish.   We did move to another place:  bottom line I did not catch any fish and there were few “keepers” caught, period.   

 

On happier notes:

 -I found a cigar store where the guy hand rolls cigars that are dangerously good.   I like a weekly cigar, but if I go back to this place, I’m likely to go to a daily one.   Need to stay away.

 

-We found a great breakfast place:

 

-Had a nice dinner with Sol Maria and a friend of theirs, Pete, whom they met in the South Pacific when both were doing their circumnavigation.  (Not to be confused with Cousin Peter from the journey down the river system).

 

-Took a tour with Kathy from Katmat of some of the derelict boats in the bay.

-Had a nice chat with the crew of this 78' Viking Sports Fisherman.   Big bucks.  They "chase the marlin."    They cruise at 35 knots burning over 250 gallons per hour.    That's seven gallons of fuel to go one mile!  Take that Climate Change!

Finally, met two interesting cats out for a walk.  The one in the foreground is a Bengal.   I looked into getting one once, kittens run $6k to $10k.   We went to the animal shelter for a "domestic short hair" instead.

Hopefully this ends the Marathon, Fl portion of the trip.   We have enjoyed the stay, but it is time to shake out the cobwebs and move on down the way....

Dave

*Arlo Guthrie line that I love to quote whenever I can.