With Philipp and Jessica (the German couple) having departed, it was back to just Eitan and me on SV Sierra Wind. We spent the day motoring up the coast to Caleta de Campos, which reminded me of the coast of Northern California, with houses on steep cliffs and rocks rising out of the sea. Apart from this, it was similar to many of the other towns we have visited and seemed a little dilapidated. Although the preference was to stay there for another day or two, we couldn’t ignore a break in the northerly winds, giving us a window to keep heading up the coast. At 6 am the next morning, we checked the weather forecast and set out on a full day of motoring in the calm seas.
I have to admit, I really enjoy, and almost prefer, the dead calm days on the ocean. Seeing the sun rising, reflecting colors off of the mirrored water, while reading and drinking a hot cup of tea is simply dreamy. The water was so placid, you could see the shells of dozens of sea turtles bobbing at the surface. We also saw a number of whales and dolphins making for quite a pleasant and peaceful day. The only disturbance was the drone of the motor.
About 70 miles up the coast, instead of stopping at a potential overnight anchorage, we decided to keep motoring through the night for the final stretch to Manzanillo. The wind hadn’t picked up yet and there was no swell, making for an easy and comfortable ride. Eitan and I decided to make an evening of it. He cooked a pasta dinner and we enjoyed a glass of wine as the sun set on the horizon. At the rate we were going, we would pull into the harbor around 1 am. With some time to kill, I placed my iPad over the chart plotter and we started a movie (Star Wars, Episode IV) with plans of taking a hot chocolate break with a little stargazing to complete the evening.
Around 11 pm, Eitan jumped out of his seat, listening intently as the motor dropped in RPMs and then cut out altogether. Silence. Normally, turning the engine off give you a sense of relaxation, either we are sailing along or have made it to the destination. An engine stopping unexpectant is quite the opposite feeling. Since I have no mechanical background, my mind immediately jumps to the worst-case scenario: stranded at sea. We were about 5 miles offshore with 35 miles to go and 90 miles from which we came. No motor and what little wind there was is coming straight from the bow of the boat.
Luckily, Eitan knows his boat very well and immediately diagnosed that it seemed to be a fuel problem. Even though he had made the fuel calculations before we left, we seemed to have an empty tank. Knowing Eitan, he is so meticulous with everything related to the boat and accidentally running out of gas seemed impossible. He records the engine hours and fuel volumes every time we get gas and repeatedly calculates the burn rate. According to his earlier calculations, we should still have 300 miles worth of fuel left.
As always though, there is a backup plan. In this case, we take the 15 gallons of diesel stored on deck in jerry cans and pour it into the tank. Once this is done, all that is left is to bleed the air from the fuel lines. I wait in the cockpit as he tells me to press the ignition, hearing the engine turn over without catching. The wind began to fill in and pick up to 9 knots, right from the direction we need to go. My anxiety also started to build. After a few unsuccessful attempts to bleed the fuel line, Eitan diagnoses the problem as a faulty auxiliary fuel pump. It seems that problems come in pairs and the system needed to be blead the old-fashioned way. He instructed me to get us sailing, so I begin to bump the autopilot to 50 degrees off course to an angle where we could start sail upwind. After several minutes of work, the lines were bled, we tried the engine again. An immediate sense of relief rushed over me as I hear the motor purring. We corrected the course and motored the remaining 6 hours into Manzanillo, arriving at 3 am.
The next morning after fueling up and rechecking the numbers, we still weren’t sure how we ran out of gas. The only explanation is that the engine efficiency had decreased and we were burning more fuel per hour than previously observed. Sensing my underlying panic, Eitan was quick to remind me that we couldn’t have run out of gas in better conditions and were never in any danger. This is exactly why we carry an additional 15 gallons of diesel in jerrycans and continuously record and recalculate the engine performance.
What a fantastic/exciting adventure. Eitan’s mechanical competence and your writing skills, Amanda, seem complementary.
Deberiais publicar mucho mas temas como este… Muchas gracias Saludos
Quien no se consuela es porque no quiere.