Update on Mark

A couple of days ago everything from Bering Straits up was packed in. Now there is that huge piece heading out of the strait.  Note the southern part of that is further south than us here in Nome

We got finished in the Columbia River on time and were making record time to Kodiak when weather hit us.  We spent a day doing round turns in Whale Bay and when the front left us we raced to the other side and hung out in Uyak Bay doing round turns for three days while the next terrible low hit.  We made Dutch Harbor in a total of 16 days with almost four days of hiding from weather.  Very respectable.  After Dutch we raced to NakNek and knocked it out within 24 hours.  We were beginning to think we were on a roll until the ice report alerted us the Bering Strait and all points north were socked in with ice.  Even Port Clarance which is south of the Strait was blocked.  New plans were set and we are heading to Nome tonight, to wait for the break up.  Predictions are for about ten days from now.  The good news is we had a pretty good low pass over us on the way up here.  And the ice map today looks infinitely better.  Port Clarence has cleared out and a huge mass has broke away and is floating south of the Bering Strait.

Up in Alaska Again

Well, Mark has found his way to Alaska again.  He flew up to Seattle on the 13th.  They picked up a barge and went down to Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington to load it the rest of the way.  They then shot north.  The weather picked up so they hopped into the inside passage just north of Vancouver Island.  Just now they crossed into Alaskan waters.  Heading for Dutch Harbor, NakNek, and then Cape Lisburne .  Cape Lisburne iis well up into the Arctic Circle and further north than he has ever been!  I guess he will miss another summer.

New Winch

The New Mizzen Halyard Winch Mounted and Loaded

Pauline arrived back on Sari Timur last week.

Mark just arrived back to Sari Timur on the 23rd of April.  The last five days of the trip they ran into system after system creating enough seas that they had to slow the barges down to sometimes under a knot in forward speed.  Frustrating when they were so close to the destination.  

They were several days over the original estimate and therefore earning a bit more cash.  Mark decided to take some of this cash and purchase a winch for the mizzen mast halyard.  Fisheries Supply in Seattle was selling them at a reasonable price so once they passed 22 days offshore he ordered it and one of the guys shoreside picked it up for him.  It is a two speed Andersen 34 and is self tailing.  The winch it replaced was a single speed 16 and not self tailing.  So we now have more than double the power to deal with the mizzen and the ability to use both hands.  Not to mention it is a pretty piece of boat jewelry.

Update

 Pauline is currently in Singapore dealing with the myriad of items essential after the death of her mother.  Mark is on a tugboat heading from Honolulu to Seattle.  It is also his first tandem tow.  Both plan to be back on Sari Timur mid April.  Because once again we are very late in the season we will have to take a closer look at our plans.

Silver Anniversary

 Wow 25 years ago today Pauline and Mark were married.  Been a fantastic run so far.

Yes, We are Still in Ensenada

We haven’t posted in a while, and yes we said we were leaving.  We wanted to get down to Mag Bay before the grey whales migrated out but we missed that.  We had some issues installing the new lithium bank and of course the cruising kitty funds were dangerously low.  So Mark took a job which should finish mid March.  Too late for the grey whales but still ok to hurry around and get some time in the Sea of Cortez before hurricane season.

While we were waiting we knocked out some jobs that we were going to do further down the road.  We have started the process of laying out the new design for the spray dodger.  Pauline has assured us she will have something made before Mark returns.  Since this is her first she is not promising pretty but with all she learns on this attempt version two will be much better.  Mark thinks she will be fine as she always does a pretty fine job on the projects she attempts.  

We finally got the lithium bank in and the Battery Bank Management System is doing its job keeping the house bank fully charged.  We put in two 300 AHr LiTime batteries and Clark and Emily’s BBMS.  This gives us basically 480 more amp hours of battery time when on the hook basically adding 3 times more life than we had before.  

We changed motor mounts.

We fixed some rotten wood which was the ceiling in a hanging locker and the sub floor for the starboard counter top where our radios sit.

We also took time out to visit the dentist.  Pauline cracked a tooth and needed a crown.  Mark hadn’t been to a dentist since Seward and took the opportunity to get all of his old fillings replaced and a crown as well.  So hopefully we will have good teeth for the next few years.

All in all we are making use of our stagnation

Batteries solar controllers and battery monitor

New Mounts

Locker With a New Ceiling

Sister Ships

We think we mentioned in an earlier post that there is a sister ship to Sari Timur here in Ensenada.  We have talked with Jakub the owner of Kallista several times via email but never met as he is currently based in Europe.  We did of course look at the boat.  As far as we know there were only three of the Freedom 45’s built and of course the yard went into liquidation just after our hull was laid up and the boat was finished by outside contractors.  We have also been in touch with the past owners of the third one, Bequia Chief and exchanged photos but again never met.  

While we were in Singapore, Jakub contacted us and said he was in Mexico.  The slip next to us was empty so he moved his boat over to do a photo op.  He left the day we came back to Mexico so alas we have still not met but he did send us a bunch of photos so we thought we would share.

There are several noticeable differences; the most obvious is our taller rig.  We also sit lower in the water, part of that is the rig.  Another big part is both of us have changed engines.  He went to a lighter engine while we went to a heavier one.  We are also full of spares and fuel and water and he was almost empty of each.  That is two tonnes right there.

In any event Jakub, we hope our paths cross again some time because we would love to check out the interior.

Back On Sari Timur

November was filled with travel and visiting.  We flew back from Singapore on Halloween and went to stay with the Skerritts, to help them pass out Trick or Treat candy.  We also received four solar panels and various solar controllers there.  We made arrangements with Bill and Titus, and John and Ivy on Ruby Slippers for the eight of us to meet up at the dock in Shelter Island.  Bill and Titus had received two 300 AHr LiFePO batteries for us.  John and Ivy agreed to carry them and the solar stuff down to Ensenada for us.  So after loading up the boat we all headed over to the Point Break for dinner and drinks.  It was great getting three different groups of our friends to meet each other and visit.

The next day we headed back to Ensenada.  When Mark flew off to Singapore, he had not finished fitting the life line stanchions and didn’t have a chance to bed the ones he did mount.  This meant that there were leaks, so we needed to hurry up and finish off this project before the rains came.  Ruby Slippers pulled into Ensenada on Monday and we offloaded everything and went out to dinner. 

Tuesday, we were off again to San Diego and the Skerritts who were also hosting Chris, Kerry, and John from Guam.  We hadn’t seen Kerry or John since they came to stay with us for Christmas in Japan in 2014.  Pauline had a chance to meet Chris for a very short time when she was in Alaska on a business trip back in 2017. It was great meeting up and spending time together.  Thanks again Jan and Steve for opening your home to us and making this all possible.

Friday, we boarded a plane for North Carolina.  Saturday, Laura and Steve came to Charlotte to pick us up and we headed to Wilkesboro to see Mom and Dad Blasky and have dinner with them before heading up the mountain to Glendale Springs.  Laura and Steve are renovating an old inn there while living in it.  Sunday, we had a big get together.  Mom and Dad drove up the mountain, Stephenie drove from near Charlotte and Jacob, Baylee, and Emerson all got together for a meal.

We spent just over two weeks visiting family. We also took a quick side trip to meet Walt in Roanoake, Virginia.  He lives near DC but was willing to drive halfway to meet us.  We had a great time together.  Sadly Jane, Walt’s wife passed away earlier this year.  She was sadly missed but fondly remembered.

On the 25th it was back to San Diego.  We hit the marine stores on the 26th and met up again for dinner and drinks with Bill and Titus.  The 27th we stopped by to see Jan and Steve for a few minutes to pick up some more packages we had shipped to them.  We only had a few minutes as our driver back to Ensenada had a tight schedule but we made promises to come back for a visit before we head south.  We got back to Ensenada in time for Thanksgiving and are now trying to get the boat back together with the new battery bank and solar before the surveyor comes on the 5th of December.

Family Get Together

Walt and Pauline

      

The reuniting of the team that concurred Mt Kinabalu 

Chris, John, and Kerry

Mark, Pauline, Kerry, Chris and Johnny hiding

Steve, Kerry, Mark, Chris, and Jan

There is a picture of us all in the Point Break but we can’t find it.  Stay tuned hopefully it will show up. 

Update from Singapore

We heard Pauline’s mom was heading for the hospital again.  Things didn’t look good. We had just over a week to go in dry dock, but we felt Pauline needed to be in Singapore and Mark would join as soon as possible.  So Pauline left on September 23 and arrived in Singapore on the 25th.  

Mark stayed behind and with the help of some friends got the boat launched and left on the 6th of October.  By then mom was already sent home and hospice care was being set up.  He arrived on the 8th wondering if she was going to make it through the night.  She did and after a few days some medical specialists were contacted to see if they could ease her discomfort by draining her lungs.  At 97 any procedure is incredibly dangerous but she opted to give it a chance.  The operation was a success and we feel that she is the strongest she has been in over a year.  We have since put hospice on hold and feel she may make a 100.

Mark scheduled an eye appointment with the Singapore National Eye Center and they set up appointments to do cataract surgery.  Both are completed now and he is on the follow up visits hoping to get the clearance to fly next week. 

It’s been a whirlwind trip but thanks to everyone for their support and prayers.  THEY WORKED!!!

We are wet again

Sari Timur is back in the water. We still have a lot to do before we go sailing. We also are both traveling to Singapore and NC. Sari Timur is resting nicely in her berth.