Day 1: Portsmouth to Cape Charles (Kinda)

After one month and 6 days of wasting away in port, Alana finally set to sea today, eventually anchoring off Cape Charles on Virginia's Eastern Shore.

We left slip D-49 without drama; a good thing when one considers that I was one of the harshest critics of some of the not-so-great maneuvering I had occasion to observe during the previous couple of weeks. We motored until we were north of the Norfolk Naval Base, then set sail and tacked our way down the Thimble Shoal Channel, over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, and out beyond the 3-mile line to get rid of some sewage. After feeding the appreciative fish and crabs, we headed back into Chesapeake Bay, turning north toward Cape Charles where our cruising guide described a small anchorage, inside Cape Charles Harbor, just north of the channel. No sooner had we dropped the hook and started to secure the mainsail, when some minor official calling himself "Harbormaster" called us on 16 to tell us that the entire harbor was a Federal Channel, that anchoring prohibited, and that we were placing our vessel in danger. Rather than risking a confrontation with the Federal Channel Czar, we weighed anchor and found an acceptable spot a couple miles south of his fiefdom. Here, Dad prepared a not-that-great meal of canned pasta on toast. The 1-star meal was not his fault; we had originally planned something a lot better, but the delays caused by the Channel Czar combined with the fatigue which usually accompanies a day on the water, caused us to opt for something quick and simple.

Following dinner we secured the generator after a successful battery charge and settled into our bunks to read a little before sleeping the sleep of the just.

There is no solid plan for tomorrow; we'll take a look at the weather and formulate a plan accordingly. The winds are forecast to be 12-13 knots out of the south, perfect to make some distance up the bay.

Dad: the supper was not the only disaster today: to make my caffeinated coffee as unhealthy as possible I asked Keith where the sugar was and poured a generous amount from the bottle of white crystals with a red lid. I took one small sip and rushed on deck to spew it out - the white crystals were Sodium Chloride. Some of my helmsman ship was almost equally inept. I am just hoping Captain Bligh is not insisting on an early departure tomorrow - he may have a mutiny aboard. All around it was a pleasant day travelwise and weatherwise and I got to see where some of my taxes went at the Norfolk Naval Base.

Unfamilliar Sound of a Generator

After 10 days of delays, frustration and crippling bills, Charles was able to restore Alana's generator to near-new condition (the condition one might expect an engine with 217 hours on it) about 6:00 p.m. last night. After nearly $4,000 in repairs, it does feel good to know that it should remain in this condition with minimal maintenance and regular use. The repair entailed a new starter, new injector, new piston, new cylinder, new exhaust valve, new gaskets and some head work. Once Charles finally departed, Dad and I worked through supper to square Alana away, and clean away all traces of Hurricane Charles.

We sailed from Tidewater Yacht this morning and are on our way to Cape Charles on Virginia's Eastern Shore.....more to follow.

$3,000+ Down the Toilet

The generator saga droned on again today. Charles installed a new injector with no result and then pulled the head and cylinder. There was plenty of fuel in the cylinder, so the only thing that could really be preventing ignition at this point, is insufficient compression. We found no obvious issues with the valves, rings or piston, so I am left scratching my head. I suppose, and Charles agrees, that it is possible to have a number of small leakages (both valves and the rings) that collectively add up to enough of a leak, but I'd feel a lot more optimistic if we had found a broken ring, burnt valve or other obvious issue. Charles took the parts back to the shop to clean and measure them and should be back tomorrow afternoon to put the thing back together.

Unfortunately he also discovered that all four motor mounts have rotted away. This explains why the generator seemed to buck around more than I thought it should during start-up and was apparently caused by being immersed in the oil that accumulated in the foam insulation that lines the generator's enclosure.

So far it appears this little repair will cost me at least $3K. I'm a little discouraged at this point, but am not ready to give up just yet. The trip planned with my Dad is on hold for now, but I'm sure we can still enjoy a trip next week.

I'm now going to go drown my sorrows in rice and beans.

Charles in Charge

After installing the new starter Saturday, I was disappointed to find that the generator still would not start. It's not the end of the world, I'll just enter the old one into Alana's ever-growing inventory of spares and be ready when I really do lose a starter, perhaps in the middle of some ocean. Luckily I was able to reach Charles Portner of Lafayette Marine Service and he came out this morning to see if he couldn't succeed where I have so far failed. Charles has been terrific, sharing all sorts if information and troubleshooting tips free of charge over the phone, so I'm glad to have him on the job. He has also patiently answered all my questions, even the dumb ones, and has been very willing to tell me what he is doing every step of the way. More contractors should be like Charles, even if they have to fake it to promote business.

After a couple hours of checking this and that, Charles eventually identified a faulty injector as the likely cause of the problem, so the project is again on hold until a new injector gets here from New Jersey some time tomorrow afternoon. I also have new rings and head gaskets coming in case the injector proves not to be the problem. Like the extra starter, I'll just keep them as spares if they prove unnecessary.

This delay has necessitated a delay in the Chesapeake Bay cruise I've been planning with my dad. He was to have driven over from Ohio tomorrow, but will now hold off until I give him a call to let him know the generator is either fixed or beyond repair. It was a real hassle to remove the generator from its cramped shelf, so I really don't want to go to the effort of putting everything back until the generator is finally fixed.

Damn You, Generator!

After returning from two terrific weeks of relaxation with Jessica in Florida, I have turned myself to once and for all getting Alana's generator fixed. This thing has been nothing but trouble as long as I've owned Alana; really the only disappointment I have experienced with her, and it is now time to fix it. A replacement starter should be arriving via UPS tomorrow and I am keeping my fingers crossed, hoping that it will cure the generator's starting problems. Charles, the Norfolk-area Panda representative, was kind enough to give me some troubleshooting hints which I used this morning. There was little voltage drop between the battery and the starter, so I am proceeding on the assumption that the starter is "tired." I'm not sure why a starter should be "tired" after less than 200 total generator hours, but it does look like it has been subjected to a good deal of salt water from a leaking fitting above the starter. I have, I think, repaired the leak and can now only hope that this new starter does the trick. If not, I'll have a spare starter and will just have to call in a pro.

Today I removed the old starter, a job which required the removal of some surrounding cabinetry, repaired the raw water leak, and now have nothing to do but wait for UPS to drop off the new starter tomorrow. I just hope the right part is delivered.