Boat Work

During the winter, we made the most of being tied to a dock in Cartegena where it was fairly easy to get hold of boat parts. We (Paul) spent quite a lot of time sourcing parts so that we could start tackling some of the jobs on our list to maintain and improve ZigZag.

Everything was carefully measured to ensure that the correct items were purchased for compatible replacements.

Paul carried out the usual engine maintenance along with several plumbing and electrical upgrades, seeking out and repairing a couple of small leaks, replacing ageing pipes and wiring. He also replaced water pumps and fitted new navigation lights. All this meant that he was often either in the lazerettes or with his head in the bilge…and the boat was often taken apart in order to get access.

I obviously helped him with these jobs and the best way for me to do this was to keep out of the way, so while Paul got on with the hard work, I spent plenty of time out running and walking around the bay; to the beach and in the town.

The water was bracing through the winter but I had to give it a try, it wasn’t very popular and five minutes was definitely long enough!

The town was very well looked after and there were always colourful displays of flowers everywhere. Floral heart shaped decorations were around the town for Valentine’s Day.

I came across an interesting building and statues that had a very Gaudí inspired look to them. They were unlike the ancient ruins and art nouveau architecture found in the old town.

I did actually do some jobs and one of the most satisfying projects that I completed was making a new sprayhood. Our old one was about 15 years old, it had lasted well but now was beginning to fail, the zips were gradually breaking, the plastic windows had gone cloudy so you couldn’t see through them, it had got some mould forming inside and it was the wrong colour to match the rest of our canvas, so definitely time for a new one.

It was a challenging job that required much careful measuring, sewing, and fitting. It took a while but finally it was finished and it transformed the cockpit which made all the effort worthwhile. We now have windows that we can see through.

With Safety onboard a priority, we upgraded our onboard equipment and splashed out on new lifejackets with AIS transmitters so that if anyone should fall overboard, their exact position would appear on our chart plotter. This could make all the difference especially at night or in rough seas. We also invested in an improved man overboard rescue system. None of this equipment comes cheap, but it’s one of those investments you hope you’ll never actually have to use.

Another major job was fitting a new furling inner forestay. We had always wanted an inner sail for downwind sailing and heavy weather conditions, as it provides a much better way of reducing sail area than reefing our Genoa. This upgrade was way beyond our capabilities so we left it to the professionals. They removed the existing inner stay and replaced it with a furling system, along with fitting additional deck hardware. From the amount of hammering that seemed to be involved, it sounded like a far more complicated job than we’d imagined, thankfully they knew exactly what they were doing.

They also installed a whisker pole on a track running up the mast, allowing us to pole out the sail when sailing downwind. This keeps the sail properly positioned, improves its shape, and helps prevent it from collapsing or flapping as the boat rolls.

After a hard days work, we still managed to join in the social gatherings with evening drinks and the marina’s weekly barbecues, which brought fellow boaters together from many different countries sharing experiences and stories of voyages. We met lots of new friends who we also shared evenings on board with games, and maybe a little wine and beer was consumed.

We celebrated Paul’s birthday in Cartagena with brandy and the local liquor coffee, Café Asiático. It’s made with condensed milk, a special local liquor with secret ingredients, brandy, coffee and topped with frothy milk and a dusting of cinnamon. Sounds like an odd combination but is really nice, so long as you give it a good stir first. I made the mistake of trying to drink it in layers, which left me with a mouthful of coffee at first and a pool of sickly sweet condensed milk at the bottom of the glass.

With some of the boat projects completed, (although there were still plenty left to do, as the jobs list never seems to end), we were just waiting for our new staysail to be ready so that we can test out our new equipment, but this was going to take another couple of weeks.

It was already a late start to the sailing season, due to a couple of planned trips back to the UK. With a favourable sailing forecast, we decided it was time to leave rather than wait for the new staysail. The plan was to return back to Cartagena at a later date to collect it and finally put our new equipment to the test.

Having already stocked up with a large supermarket delivery to the boat, which should keep us going for a while, we finally slipped our lines and headed out of the marina, following the coastline of rugged brown cliffs as we left the bay behind. We are looking forward to exploring more of the Spanish coast and islands over the coming weeks.