If the leaves on trees around Annapolis are red and gold instead of green, and we wake in the morning huddled under a down comforter, it’s time to head south.

Harmonie has been at Jabin’s Yacht Yard for two months. A couple big projects were completed, and a slew of minor ones.

A Tangled Web

When we arrived in the Chesapeake we had the first hints of a problem with our C-drive. A trace of water was showing up in the oil. This was definitely not normal, and surprising since the seals had all been replaced a few months before. We arranged an overnight haul to do the repair.

A first for us, sleeping on the boat while it was hanging in the travellift.

As soon as the boat came out of the water, the problem was obvious. We had an assortment of fishing lines and ropes wrapped around the shaft, and they had damaged the seals.

It took about 4 hours to drain the oil, pull the prop, take out the old seals and get a fresh set installed and get everything put back to seaworthy condition.

Keeping Things Cool

Second project was a full rebuild of our Volvo’s cooling system. It had been showing signs of unstable temperatures, and a loss of circulating coolant. Pulling and pressure testing the heat exchanger, replacing seals, flushing out old coolant, and reassembly, and now she’s running like new. The operating temperature is spot on design specification. Not bad for an engine with close to 11,000 hours.

Let the Sun Shine

Last project was a repair and upgrade to our solar power system. Our old panels had a nameplate capacity of 630 Watts, the new system upgrades the mounting system and wiring, and gives us 1180 Watts. Hopefully further reducing our generator run time.

The Migration Starts

We dropped lines this morning, filled the diesel tank, and headed down the bay. Underway for a couple hours now, we have yet to see any sailable wind. The surface of the water is glassy, with no trace of the smallest ripples. The forecast for the trip down to Brunswick, Georgia is good. Hopefully we’ll be getting some wind in a favorable direction in a few hours, and be there in about four days