Quel Desastre!

Friday 3 June 

After another good night, we have awoken to a clear, sunny, cool day.  Now that everything is dry, we will wrap the mast in cling film and tape and get everything ready.  Our VHF antenna was poking miles out the back of the boat so Mike disconnected it  - as it came loose the wake from one of these bloody fishing boats set us off rocking - and he dropped it in the water!  It is seven meters deep here so after about a half hour of fruitless diving in dirty, dark and very cold water, he gave up.  He’s lying in bed now, shivering.  We will buy another. 

Olivier left at lunch time for the marina at Port Saint Louis, lucky chap. He was a good neighbour but we are glad not to have a boat against us.  I phoned the marina to book a berth but they told me to call back later - they are obviously very full.  We really hate it here on the wall.  And to add to our woes it has begun to rain again which is very annoying as we have not yet finished the mast. It is looking very black and thundery, there’s even a bit of lightening about.  Never mind, we have no deadline.  In the afternoon we went in to town to draw money to pay various people and got caught in an amazingly heavy shower – that should fill the rivers up!  Harry came sliding up the canal and detoured past us to say ‘Hello and Goodbye’, he’s on his way to Port Saint Louis where he’ll spend the night and then take the early morning lock opening.

Right  now, I’m finding this liveaboard life very stressful.  Good thing there is so much delicious bread around or I’d be as thin as a boat hook!  Ha - I wish!

Saturday 4 June

After a very nice last evening with Phil and Elaine and Birgit and Johan (a nice Swedish couple on the wall further down) for drinks last night, we left today at lunch time and motored gently, under a thunderous sky, up the canal to Port Saint Louis. 

On the way I checked the motor and everything looked perfect, no leaks and the regulator lights shone green and correct.  Having been unable to book a place we didn’t bother with the marina and just tied up against the wall.  Then, in continuous heavy rain we proceeded to collect our (repaired) foresail, refill our gas bottle, do four loads (using a supermarket trolley) of 50 litres each of diesel to fill our tanks plus some to spare, buy bulk quantities of wine, beer, UHT milk, sparkling water, whisky and Ricard (just to feel totally French), loo rolls (an economy pack of 32), torch batteries, and a few other essentials (chocolate) – and then discovered our domestic batteries were flat and the entire system seems to have failed.  Neither the solar panels nor the alternator are giving a charge and they don’t even seem to work.  Everything was so completely dead, we wondered if we’d been struck by lightning.  It continued to rain and clothes and jackets are sopping.  Everything in the boat seems damp. It’s a horror! 

We ate an early dinner and went to bed when it got dark.

Tuesday 7 June

So, here we are, back at Navy Service with our tails between our legs, but very happy anyway to be back amongst friends and with access to shower facilities.  We’re slightly hung-over this morning having passed a very pleasant evening – sundowners with Camilla and Chris on Juno and dinner with Jean Pierre and Jacqueline on Gayatri (who returned to Navy Service late on Sunday night).  People are so kind. 

On top of complete battery failure we’ve also found a serious leak in the salt water cooling system.  One good thing is that the weather has improved and it is now lovely and sunny.  I should be in Arles by now!!!

Mike spent most of Sunday trying to repair the leak (and thought he’d succeeded), and then we motored back up the canal in the late afternoon.  There are no marine chandleries or workshops at Port Saint Louis.  Yesterday morning we had Phil and Chris aboard who were very helpful with equipment and ideas on what to do.  Everyone eventually decided we needed new batteries.  (I’ve been begging for new batteries for weeks but now that the decision has been made, it was Mike’s idea, of course!)  So we replaced the worst two with brand new, fitted them and, magically, everything appears to work fine – the solar panels are giving a charge and the regulator on the alternator has glowing green LEDs.  Thank goodness.  Last night Mike attached the two remaining old batteries to the shore power charger and miraculously they read 12 volts this morning!  Perhaps they will revive enough to give the new bank an occasional rest.

Today Mike has re-assembled the salt water cooling line.  Everything works, no leaks, charging is good and we have given the motor a good long run.  Hooray.  We plan to leave here early tomorrow morning for the first lock.  We feel confident that we have ironed out most of our problems now.  Let’s hope so.  Our VHF radio is not receiving a good signal.  The antenna has of course been disconnected and then lost to Davy Jones’ locker, but the radio works anyway.  We no longer have a hand held (foolishly sold it back in Turkey) so contact on the rivers is going to be dodgy.  I have my mobile phone though.

I have cycled over to Port Napoleon to do some emailing and blog posting – the system at Navy Service is very erratic and everyone now just goes over to Napoleon.   Darling Jacqueline is going to run me into town later to do some last minute shopping and we will both buy fresh mussels for dinner – yum.  Next blog should be from Arles!!!