Category: Turks and Caicos

One Year On The Boat

We moved onto Sava a year ago today! It seems like such a long time and we have been through a lot: good and bad. We love it most of the time and plan to continue living on the boat and exploring the Caribbean. These are some of the things we’ve learned after one year on the boat.

We Do Not Need Much

Seriously, none of us need much. We’ve been conditioned by advertisers and merchants to think we do, and then we’ll be happy.

We moved onto the boat and this lifestyle knowing it was completely different from our Toronto existence. There is not much room on board, and a lot of it goes to ship equipment and systems.

luggage for a boat
What we brought with us when we moved on board Sava one year ago today

At different times we have had to sacrifice what we thought were key elements of a life well lived. Things like heat and hot water, plentiful showers, ice cold beers, sleep, wifi, fresh veggies and sun protection were not always available. Now that we have put lots of work into Sava, and learned a thing or two, life has improved. Cold beers!

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What’s Broken On Sava

You may be under the illusion that everything works fine onboard Sava. Not true. While our autopilot is still going strong, a lot of other boat parts don’t work. Below, a comprehensive accounting of what’s broken on Sava, and some things that broke and got fixed.

Also, I am not a handy person so my explanations are very basic because that’s my level of understanding. Thankfully Brian is at a much higher level than me. If he wasn’t so handy, we wouldn’t have made it out of Florida. Brian also recommends a good resource for these jobs, the Boatowners Mechanical and Electrical Manual.

Freezer

We thought we got this fixed after the engine debacle, but this freezer is finicky. A couple of times we noticed it was off and we are now very vigilant about ensuring the freezer is plugged in. We also keep the vents clean – got to get rid of the cat hair.

Yet still the temperature regularly creeps above freezing. This is understandable when we haven’t been under power or it’s cloudy, but we don’t know why the freezer doesn’t work when the solar charge is full and we run the engine.

This freezer is driving me crazy. I obsessively check the temperature, which is not easy to do. Because the freezer is strapped into our salon sofa, we have to peek under the table to see the power and temperature indicators.

freezer
A view under the salon table of our freezer indicators
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4 Ways of Checking in For Cruisers

Checking in for cruisers is a different experience than when you fly into a country. Every country is different. Every check in has been different too. So far, we have sailed to 4 different countries and had 4 completely varied experiences checking in.

Often when we arrive in port, we are led around like dazed children, not knowing where to go next or what to do. The basics are the same: have passports and boat ownership papers on hand. And money, or credit card.

It’s all been good – we’ve ultimately gotten in everywhere – and we’ll continue to jump through the hoops for the pleasure of visiting these intriguing new places.

Checking In – The Bahamas

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Our First 24 Hour Crossing

We waited a long time for this. Without a working autopilot, we struggle to do long trips on board Sava. The crossing from Turks and Caicos to any island south is longer than a day. Which is why we hired Jeff to fly down from Florida to accompany us to our next destination. Our luck still being bad, as soon as we tried to leave, the engine conked. By the time we had a new part shipped from Florida, cleared through customs and replaced in the engine, it was almost exactly one week from when we originally tried to do the crossing.

Waiting for a crossing weather window

In that week, the winds were mostly from the north and not too strong. All those days we were sitting in Provo waiting for the part, the weather was perfect for the trip. And then the part came. And we looked at the weather again. If we didn’t leave on Wednesday, we were going to be stuck for another week. We didn’t want to do that, and we weren’t going to pay Jeff for another week of waiting either. Rather than the 250 or so knots to Puerto Rico, we decided to make a smaller jump of 145 nm to Luperón, Dominican Republic. On Wednesday April 3rd, at around 6pm, we made our exit from the lovely Turks and Caicos.

weather and wind

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Stuck Outside of Provo

Proof again not to make plans on a sailboat came this week in Provo, Turks and Caicos. We brought Captain Jeff on board on Wednesday and were ready to go for our passage to Puerto Rico. Provisions were in, boat was clean, we were ready. It wasn’t to be: the engine conked out on our way to the fuel dock and we are stuck outside of Provo, Turks and Caicos.

Engine Problems

We hadn’t even left the island. An hour in, heading to a marina to fill up the water and the fuel for the journey, I smelled burning. I mentioned it and Jeff saw smoke. Brian turned off the engine and we went down below to check out the damage. Based on our history, we tried adding coolant. Then turned the engine on and looked. It looked like we needed a water pump.

After sourcing a pump from the U.S., we think it will be here on Tuesday. Maybe we will get out on Wednesday. But I know better than to make any plans!

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