A recent Labor Day weekend outing on Most Precious was a series of blunders. While I’m proud of the way my first mate and I handled the situation, we had our learning moments.
We left Everett, Washington, on Saturday afternoon and anchored at Sucia Island in the San Juans. We spent all day Sunday hiking, entertained by a beautiful lightning storm that thankfully stayed a mile away. On Monday, when getting ready to head home, I noticed that the water pump on my starboard engine was dripping from the shaft and would likely need replacing. There wasn’t much I could do about it on the island, so we headed back.
We had been cruising for about 30 minutes when I heard a popping sound in the engine compartment, and the system powered down the engine. Yep, the water pump had failed. I shut down the engine and made sure water wasn’t pouring into the engine compartment. A small, steady stream of water was coming from the water pump, but it wasn’t anything the bilge pumps couldn’t handle.
We decided to pull into Cap Sante Marina in Anacortes for repairs rather than try to limp back to Everett on one engine. I made some phone calls to get help. Even though it was a holiday, the stars aligned for us … somewhat.
Since I had an active leak, it was important to get a slip with power so my bilge pumps wouldn’t drain the batteries and let my boat sink. Cap Sante was accommodating, giving us a slip that was open until Wednesday.
We also needed someone to work on the boat because I didn’t want to do water pump work in the water. I was able to get hold of a mobile mechanic who had left his business card in the office. He removed the old pump and ordered a new one. Of course, the new pump wouldn’t be available for several days, and it was going to cost more than half a boat unit—ouch.
I got onto the fuel dock fine, so well actually that I felt invincible. I decided to try to dock at the new slip without dock hands—dumb move.
Furthermore, we needed to get home to Everett, a couple of hours south, because I had to work the next
day. A friend of mine who lives in Anacortes was nice enough to give us a ride back. On Wednesday, I left work early and drove to Anacortes, hoping the boat would be fixed and I could make the run back to Everett. Of course, the pump wasn’t in yet, but I still had to move the boat because I was losing my slip. I got a new slip assignment and decided to gas up while moving the boat.
Keep in mind that I have twin engines, and the power steering is on the dead one. I got onto the fuel dock fine, so well actually that I felt invincible. I decided to try to dock at the new slip without dock hands—dumb move.
Apparently, my head had gotten too big. I managed to get into the slip well but not perfectly, so I used the boat hook to pull the stern in, which was a mistake. That exposed the port bow to the breeze, pushing it away from the dock. With my starboard engine dead, I couldn’t use the engines to drive the bow back in. Thankfully, there wasn’t a boat in the adjacent slip, so the bow swung around and I was able to start over. Of course, by that time I had spectators who were ready to assist me and give advice. The second attempt looked like I knew what I was doing. Once secured, I tucked my tail between my legs and went home.
We returned to the boat Friday evening. The water pump was fixed, but it was so late that we opted to stay another night. Thinking everything was repaired, we decided to go for a cruise the next day and enjoy the rest of the weekend.
As we were leaving Cap Sante, I noticed the starboard engine wasn’t showing a full charge on the battery. I checked the alternator, and, sure enough, it wasn’t charging. Back we went to work on that.
Even though I’d changed the alternator on the other engine before, I decided to call the same mechanic again, Aaron at Protorque Motors. I was glad I let him do it. He tinkered with the alternator, trying to rebuild it, but unfortunately couldn’t. As it turned out, the leak must have been there for a while, spraying salt water on the alternator.
We lost another day to getting parts, but Aaron’s labor charges were reasonable. While in Anacortes, my first mate and I enjoyed an evening of dinner, dancing and relaxing.
We finally made it back to Everett late Sunday, the weekend after the outing began. The entire cruise
probably cost me two boat units in parts, labor, fuel and moorage, but it could have been worse.
This experience highlights one thing that I tell anyone who is planning to go boating: Be flexible. If you can’t be flexible, you’re never going to be able to enjoy yourself.
