Still Looking For Crew

Mana Marina (near Wellington)

Wednesday 8 April 2020 & Thursday 9 April 2020

Is it Wednesday, or is it Thursday?  Must be a sure sign that time is taking on a new dimension aboard.  Although, having been retired now for almost two years, it’s not the first time I’ve forgotten what day it is.  After all, every day is a Saturday, when you’ve retired.

Between cups of coffee and video-editing – my new field of discovery – my online search for crew to help me sail home, continues.  Although as I’ve mentioned before, the chances of finding someone seems to have been getting smaller and smaller with the passing of time.

I was reflecting on this earlier today, and in thinking back to high school maths, I thought it might be a problem well represented by “Set Venn Diagram”.  The key sets being …

1. Number of sailors in New Zealand …

2. Number of sailors in New Zealand, who have Australian permanent residence status…

3. Number of sailors in New Zealand, who have Australian permanent residence status AND who want to return to Australia – by yacht.

4. Number of sailors in New Zealand, who have Australian permanent residence status and AND want to return to Australia – by yacht – AND, live within a very close distance of the Mana Marina AND can get here without breaking the Lock Down travel restrictions … you get the idea.

For example …

Although yesterday, I DID have an inquiry from a New Zealand passport holder, who is also a permanent Australian resident – from Melbourne no less – who travelled to Christchurch in January to spend time with their grandma, and now can’t get back to Australia because of the travel restrictions.   They even had a friend who might also, possibly, maybe … want to come as well.  The only problem to overcome was the Christchurch to Wellington travel restriction.  Although there was news of this restriction being relaxed slightly for those wishing to meet connecting “flights”; from Auckland.

Well, that was yesterday, and today, I’ve heard no more.

In trying to get the word out to more people, I even sent an email to the local media company www.stuff.co.nz … in the guise of what you might call a … “human interest story”.   Anyway, they followed up with a phone interview and a visit from a camera/video chap who took shots from almost every angle. 

He didn’t do any filming on the boat of course, or even on the marina, or the cruising club property … but from the nearby “public” breakwater, which is conveniently located just a short distance off our starboard side.  He certainly had some serious gear with him, and a very long fluffy microphone on an extendable pole, that looked straight out of Hollywood; or at least a low-budget, suburban sit-com, or soapy.

Looking back, I should have asked if I could take a photo of him.  Because the two of us, out on the breakwater, surrounded by sunshine, sand, blue sky and rippling water lapping at our sides … could have been taken for a warm-up photo-shoot for a re-make of the Calendar Girls.   But it definitely wasn’t. I deny that completely.

At one point though, as he changed lens on his big format camera and adjusted the tripod, I found myself having to resist the urge to give a “Zoolander Stare”, but I was very good and stayed on pitch throughout.  Basically, putting the word out that … “I’d love to hear from any stranded Aussies who’d like to sail home”

One good feature of sailing back to Australia, as opposed to flying back … or, heaven forbid, arriving on a cruise ship … was that the Australian Border Force website says that … “self-isolation commences from the day of departure from your last international port” …  

Which basically means that if the voyage takes 14 days, and on arrival everyone aboard is fit and well, then you are allowed to “go free’” so to speak.  HOWEVER, upon further investigation, I was informed that each state is applying different rules and that in the case of Victoria, they DON’T count “time at sea” towards the self-isolation requirement. 

Via email, I asked my helpful man at Border Force, “how many yachts have you cleared into Victoria under these new regulations” and his answer was … “none yet”.  And in signing off his last email to me, under the heading … “For-Official-Use-Only”, he closed with … “It does seem that lately I bring you nothing but bad news.”  This being the same guy that informed me that my last two crew hopefuls … “do not have Australian permanent residence and cannot enter Australia”

So, at the moment, I’m seeking further clarification, and if necessary, an exemption (from the Victorian Department of Health) – or at least consistency with the sensible, common-sense approach of Border Force.    But I’m not holding my breath. 

In Vanuatu “Cyclone” news, it seems all our friends in the affected areas have come though, although damage is significant.  A recent Vanuatu Daily Post report is included below:

LUGANVILLE MAYOR PLEADS FOR URGENT HELP, 8/4/2020

The people in SANMA Province are in urgent assistance of food, shelter and water after category 5 cyclone Harold.

Mayor of the Luganville Municipal Council (LMC), Peter Patty, conveyed this to the Daily Post via satellite phone yesterday.

He said: “We are badly affected.

“We urgently need water, food and shelter at the moment.

“Many have lost their homes. Schools are destroyed. Electricity is down.

“I’m urgently calling for help. This is one of the worst experiences of my life.”

According to Mayor Patty, the worst affected areas in SANMA are West Coast, South Santo, Malo, Aore including Luganville.

Currently, communication networks in the affected islands are still down thus, assessing the impacts of the cyclone is difficult.

However, the government has begun deploying teams to conduct aerial assessments and also to restore communication networks, water and electricity.

https://dailypost.vu/news/luganville-mayor-pleads-for-urgent-help/article_43abe1da-791c-11ea-9c4d-3bce13ffdb85.html

On the “food and catering front”, and I vowed I wouldn’t turn this blog into a culinary-calendar … but I hit on a revolutionary new idea last night that has the potential to take the world by storm.  The emphasis being on the word “potential”. 

It all started as I considered the dinner menu …  “Maybe pancakes”, I mused … “or what about a stir-fry of finely chopped potatoes, bacon, onions and gherkins, topped with a fried egg and a side salad”

OR … how would it be if I combined the two?    A pancake … AND … the other thing.  Maybe I’ll leave the photos to tell the story, but I had to resist the temptation to add maple syrup, sugar and lemon!     

Whilst I’ve been treating Chimere much like an apartment-by-the-sea, every now and then I’m reminded … “oh, yes … this is an ocean-going yacht … with a motor, sails, a generator and lots of moving parts – not just a kitchen, a fridge, a bed and a DVD player”  … meaning that I need to keep operating all the systems onboard to ensure they still work. 

Chief amongst these “onboard systems”, is of course the diesel generator – that produces 240 volts – and the water maker – which, makes … water. 

After running it for 30 minutes or so, the good news is that everything worked perfectly … the diesel motor, the generator and the 240 volts, the low-and high-pressure water pumps … and the all-important water maker itself … out came fresh water at a rate of 3-4 litres per minute.  

One small problem, however, was that the fresh water wasn’t as fresh as you’d like.  Not that you could tell by just looking at it. And even the taste was OK.  The problem lay in the amount of salt still left in the “fresh” water … over 900 parts/million according to our little measuring machine.    That was the bad news …

… but the good news again, was that after cleaning two of the in-line water filters, and replacing the third filter, the salt-count was down to just 100 parts per million; pretty close to a personal best!

In closing, I’ve got to share with you one of the cutest photos I’ve found on a yachting website for some time.  Even cuter than kittens, puppies, or let’s face it … dolphins.  It’s a guy at anchor in Namibia where a local baby seal, which they’ve named Slipper, has taken up residence aboard.  Gotta get one for Chimere!

Smooth seas, fair breeze and still looking for crew

Rob Latimer