Prodigal Prep and Departure to USA

Saturday Prodigal finally 
starts USA bound

Cousin Rick is returning to help sail west to the USA and my destination of Ft. Pierce, FL.  Rick wrote me saying, “do all the work and have everything ready before I arrive.”  To that end I have been working hard.  Or rather I’m finally starting to do things that should have been done months ago.  I changed the oil and filters.  OK, check!  Next?  On the trip over here I had ‘some growth of barnacles’ on the prop that I had to scuba dive down and scrape off.  So I decided to put on my mask and fins and just snorkel down below to check everything…  Surely it cant have grown back?  But it’s one thing I learned to check..  HOLY CRAP I’ve got an entire reef system growing on my hull.  Great Wooly green sea plants all over everything.  I guess I should have checked it more often than ---- never.

The hull below the waterline

the bow

I’m using the ‘new guy’ card.  It’s my first boat, my first trip to the Bahamas and my first thick wooly bottom growth.  Yuck.  I knew it’s not gonna be cleared up with a snorkel.  This is a major scuba diving work task.  I gathered up all my dive gear and my scrapers and thick firm bristle brush for the assignment.  *Then I went over to the local scuba dive shop and rented an air tank and weights.  (now I’ll answer this before you ask.  I have an air tank on board which I keep filled for emergencies in route should I have to dive on something.  But no, I don’t have any weights.) 

I figured it would take an hour and IF it took longer I could get another tank and finish it that afternoon.  WRONG.  I dove the first dive Friday morning for about 45 minutes and barely had the strength to climb the ladder up out of the water onto the boat.  I accomplished about 1/5th of the task.  This was going to be a lot more than I expected.  You know how swimming makes you tired and hungry?  Well include a scraper, a brush and a bouncing boat.  Now YOU swim to stay against the hull while you scrape and brush.  As you push against the hull, you also have to swim toward it to stay in place.  I was using up my ‘skip energy’ faster than my tank air…    I get into the cockpit and strip off my wet wetsuit and gloves, boots.  I’m salt slime sticky and dehydrated.  So I drink a lot of water, eat a PB&J with milk, then pass out for an hour.  Oh yippee, now to put back on all that wet sticky slimy stuff and dive a second time…   I lasted about 20 minutes before I was too tired and my hands too sore to continue.  Friday Day 1, not impressive.   After another shower and fresh clothes.  I gather up my used tank and motor back to the dive shop to get tank #2, only to find a note on the door.  “Closed for Labor Day.” Well darn!  They told me they would be open…

 the anchor CHAIN

the prop where i hit it with the brush

Saturday I met the owner of the shop at 9am and swapped tanks.  About 10:15a I’m making dive #3 and get quite a bit accomplished – till I run out of energy – 11:22am.  At least I made an hour.  My hands are cramping and I’m starving.  So, I’m getting better at this.

Currently it’s Sunday, thank goodness it’s the day of rest.  My hands ache.  I am thrilled for a day off.  I’m about 5/6^th done but ran out of air before I could finish.  Cousin Rick – I hate you!

HERE ARE SOME EMAILS written during this process:

May 31st.
well i'll spend a few hours under the boat tomorrow.  i went down and checked.  it's furry and will take some work to scrape off.  Damn!  my stiff bristle brush will handle it.  but it's a lot of square footage to cover.  i took my dinghy to a dive shop and rented an air tank and some weights.  I'll get'er done tomorrow.  it's on my schedule.
work and then more work.               -scuba skip
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June 1^st  (Rick wrote me asking why not hire a diver?)
have seen a total of zero divers over here.  yes there is a 'dive shop' and I see their  boat go out with customers some mornings, but no commercial - CHEAP - divers.  so, I am the cheap diver....   what else am I gonna do?  Plus today is Bahama Official Labor Day with everything closed.  everything but ME and the dive shop.  i'll rent a second tank as needed but wont stop till she's clean.

when I 'snorkled' on it yesterday I took the brush and it scrubbed off very easy.  it's probably just poop I flushed anyway....    it didn't require any chipping, or scraping of barnacles like in the past.  (knock on wood)  so hopefully the entire - whole hull - is easy?  (yeah right)  she's furry and needs a shave.  i'll start with the prop, then shaft, then rudder.  then hull sides.  it will clean and pristine when you get here.  I believe you wrote, "have all the work done before I arrive."  so, i'm trying.  i'll take before and after shots.  today is the perfect weather for it.  almost zero wind, clear bright skies.  IF the locals will not buzz me and rock everything it will be perfect.  (as if)     OK - gotta run, dive.

June 1st
Oh Shit did I ever underestimate how much time and ENERGY was needed to clean the bottom. 

I got up this morning 'energized' to get'er done.  Figured if one tank was not enough to finish, "I'll go get a second tank and make two dives."  I dove in at 9am and could not go a second longer at 9:48.  crawled to the ladder and just hung on.  The visibility went from 15' down to 10" and I was stirring up all manner of crap.  (I actually saw a small crab living in this clump of seashit on the starboard side.  about 1.5" diameter.)  I scrubbed till I could not lift my arms any longer.  I was ass kicked.  made it down below deck and did a quick shower rinse.  then felt like dying.  instead I ate a can of fruit cocktail and a peanut butter jelly sandwich with a glass of milk - THEN - passed out.  After about 2 hours I felt human again and went back out to strap it all back on for dive #2.

I started the project with the prop, shaft and rudder.  it all cleaned up with just the hard bristle brush.  no barnacles this time, just a mix of plant life.  *tons of photos later.  I'm resting now.  I AM crazy because I think I can finish it tomorrow. 

Gathered up all my gear and took it to the dive shop.  (decided to use their rinse tanks)  Rinsed everything and carried my tank back along the dock to the dive shop, "before 4pm when we close."  Only to find a note taped to the door....     CLOSED for holiday.   I specifically asked the guy yesterday if they would be open today.  Damn them!

Gather it all back up and drag it back onto the boat.  I'll repeat the entire process tomorrow.  I'm a live aboard dive boat now.

They open at 9am, so I should be at work by 10am and worn out by 10:20am....    Truthfully it's really amazing how much seacrap is down there on the hull.  Thank goodness the brush does it.  OK, that's enough report.  photos later.      

-happy labor damn day.     skip

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June 2nd
i'll finish or die trying.  i'm between dives now.  did 10:15a - 11:22a on dive one.  started with the very bottom of the keel.  used both a scraper and then my brush.  *found and photographed a crab on the hull.

im at lunch now and will take a rest for an hour.  much better physically today.  didnt have any coffee and found the caffeine really makes a difference.  plus if I drink lots of water it helps just the salt on the skin dries me out and effects diving bottom time.

I just have a patch up high in the center on both sides to finish.  what I could not reach standing.  I started with the prop and rudder yesterday.  today I let all the air out of my BC and sat on my knees and worked under the keel.  it had some impressive growth.  had to use the scraper and then the brush.  I cleaned what I could reach as I went along on my knees - both sides.  then stood and did both sides again.  finally the water got so thick with 'particulate' that visibility was about zero.  I was holding the hull to balance and just working the brush.  actually bumped my mask on the hull because I could not see it.  then went to the other side and started the same procedure.  i'm almost done.  plan to finish in less than an hour.   "plan."

so funny that before I dove her I thought, truly thought, I might finish the entire project in an hour.  dumb ass me.   nap time now.     -s

June 2nd
well damn it.  I didnt quite finish.  ran out of air.  so I decided to do the last bit on wed, thur just before departure.  that will ensure the prop is freshly clean and all is inspected again.  I got a second dive in and cleared the Starboard side.  But about half way down the Port I finally ran out of air.  Abort the dive and pack it in.  about 1.5 hr underwater today.   So, I DIDNT get any 'after' photos as "after" is still somewhere in the future.  But I did take a couple of shots on the first dive and will forward later.  tired and hot now.  resting in the shade drinking lots of water!

this will make it about 22 mph faster!        -skip

June 2^nd   (Lynn the question sister asked ‘how’ it got like this)
it starts with silt settling on the hull, then plant life starts to grow.  I didnt realize it was there.  just below the surface.  I also didnt realize I need to put that on my to-do list of normal routines.  'Scrub hull.'  *I'm sure it would help if I moved the boat instead of sitting in this nasty ass harbor where all the crap is....

that will happen in a week!  Cousin Rick flies in on Friday and we start heading westward.  Bye now, gotta run scrub my bottom!  I suppose its like mowing a yard.  if you do it every week or so the grass is very manageable.  If you only mow it once at the end of the spring when the grass is waist deep it's very tough to handle.  that's what I did.  sat here not knowing that "grass" was growing down there.  Now it's waist deep.  so I have to work real hard to cut it off.  IF I do the cleaning regularly - at whatever interval is normal, it wont be a big deal.  when I get back to Florida I'll have to do a 'bottom job' were they sand it smooth and you repaint with marine paint. 

I guess I better put that info on my blog.  cause inquiring minds want to know...

THE END.

WHERE IM GOING...link