Galini Delivery Voyage

[Miker]

Shouldn't be too bad, at least the well is from the south, wind forecast at about 10 knots SW. Providing that doesn't change, you'll have a pretty easy broad reach. Enjoy the trip!

Nearest marina to Barrenjoey is Careel Bay Marina, they have short term swing moorings, a public wharf and fuel and water. Plus shelter from southerly winds if you're planning to spend the night.

0 four one 4 four 04 0 six one if you need any help, I'm not too far away.

[Alyosius]

Well that was quite an experience. Firstly the overall good and bad:
Good: We made it to Brooklyn
Bad: We had a mechanical failure close to the end and will be in Brooklyn until thats complete.

Now for the long version.
My friend and I arrived at Sans Souci just after 7pm, loaded everything then slipped lines and motored out of the marina. Shortly after passing under the bridge we hoisted sails and sailed across Botany Bay. A clear night, nearly full moon and stars, it was beautiful. Eventually arrived at Frenchmans Bay where we pulled up the public mooring and went to sleep for a few hours. Given the swell it wasn't the best place to "set up camp" so to speak but we both eventually got some sleep.

Next morning we rose at 5, checked in with Marine Rescue Sydney and headed out into the ocean. The swell was exactly what was predicted, unfortunately the wind didn't seem to be. what little wind there was we couldn't catch at each swell knocked the wind out of us. We had maybe 1-2 good hours where we made ground and had full sails but after that lost the wind again. We therefore fired up the iron sail and made good time towards Sydney. Around Sydney we made the decision to head in for more fuel and water, lost a couple of hours but were feeling confident about our ability to continue with the iron sail. This decision served us well, the iron sail was going all the way into Brooklyn.

Going up the coast we passed another Top Hat of the forums, Night Cap, who we chatted to on the radio in passing, was good to say hi.

We made good time, logging off with Marine Rescue at around 1600. Gradually we proceeded up river, slowly putting away everything we had taken out for the journey. However this is where the trouble started.

As we approached the Brooklyn Bridge, I knew from discussions on the forum that we should be able to fit under it, even with 1+ meters of tide. However I was still feeling cautions. I pulled the engine back to idle to slow us down. Shortly there after I put it back into forward and....nothing, engine revved but no response from the ship....ummm....okay....well guess we are going under the bridge no matter what. Fortunately we fitted under the bridge, but this still left us going, with quite a significant current towards the rocks.... Help arrived in the form of a couple of guys in a tinney who pulled us clear of the rocks to where we could drop anchor. VMR was called and we were towed into the marina.

It turns out the skipper of the VMR boat just sold his top hat and it went down to Tasmania - based on recent posts to the forum it might be 'Possibilities'? Anyway, he was very cautious, and told his team "These are a very old, very love boat, be careful"

Anyway, at that point we shut up shop and the VMR guys took us into port and put us on a spare mooring. Both the marina that owns the mooring and the marina we were meant to be going to had messages left on their answering machines, with Dolphin Boatshed calling me back a couple of hours later. She will be moved onto her semi-permanent home today by Dolphin Boatshed and then someone will have a look at the gearbox.

My expectation is that the gearbox control box has gone. It was noted as probably requiring replacement in the survey, I just didn't expect it to go out before I got it to a mechanic.

What did I learn from this trip:
1. 2.5 meter swells are very easy for a top hat - less comfortable beam on, but still quite capable.
2. Never be afraid to divert course (Sydney for fuel), If your worried about something, it reduces your worry significantly.
3. ALWAYS think "What could go wrong now?" As I proved things will go wrong at the most in-optune moments. Always have a plan for what to do if something goes wrong.
4. If there is maintenance to do - if possible get it done before you go - while it won't stop there being a risk - it will reduce it.

Well until next time

[Phillip]

Well done in Galini, welcome to cruising in Top Hats

[Alyosius]

Well....the engineer went and had a look at Galini today....and came back with a laundry list of things to fix....

When he got out to the boat there was about a foot of water over the floor of the boat
After he cleared the water out he eventually determined that the water ingress was from the stern tube, which had lost a significant portion of its packing during the trip up.

Why did that happen? Well because the engine mounts are shot and the engine was vibrating everything out of alignment. So solved the basic problem of why water was getting into the people tank, now identify why the engine stopped.

*Checks gearbox - oil comes out milky* Right water in gearbox, damn, problem with salt water pump, add to list. *Checks throttle/gear cables - one breaks in his hand* Okay those two will need to be replaced, so will the control box.

So all in all not a good day for Galini (besides the fact the water was caught in time and she didn't sink). End result, Galini is not going anywhere for a few weeks, and I'm looking at 30+ hours of labour (plus parts) to get her seaworthy. *cringes and hides*

That being said, what are my alternatives: cut my losses and run? not really something I'm keen to do, and with the defects I know of, I'd get next to nothing anyway. Open the outboard well? I have a serviceable inboard - not really keen on that idea either. Fix it? well thats really my only option. Doesn't stop my wallet hurting though....

More to follow as it comes to hand...

[Troppo]

Ohh, a serious case of BIWP.

Boat induced wallet pain.

I'm sorry to hear about the problems arising with Galini. Certainly can be a stressful time when things like this happen. Have had a couple of times like this with Windchaser. I have found that once the repair has been done and done well, then it is amazing just how much better the boat works. And that increases satisfaction when the boat is used. So, hopefully you can pull the dollars together to get it done. Once the money is spent you have an excuse to use the boat more and I think you will enjoy it more.

cheers

troppo

[Phillip]

I've had my Top Hat Seaka for over ten years now and I stopped recording expenses and repairs when I reached 50% of the purchase price!!!!

Sent from the Newry Islands.

[Troppo]

I've had my Top Hat Seaka for over ten years now and I stopped recording expenses and repairs when I reached 50% of the purchase price!!!!

Sent from the Newry Islands.

And that was likely to be the 2nd or 3rd year.

[Shaun]

Alyosius,
Are you here mate,
Thanks

[Ianb]

Sadly, it seems like Galini was the boat and crew lost on Friday.
http://www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Sail ... 2#lastpost

[RodM]

You're right Ian, it's not looking good. I'd thought from his last post that there was too much work to be done for Galini to have been back out to sea two days later, but the Seabreeze forum members seem to know the owners name. Perhaps a Tophat site administrator could check and notify Police if required, as past posts could add to their information about the boat and planned routes etc.