Don't rush me, old swede

Life comes into the anchorage field. The square rigger, which has been moored at the dock of Rikitea for a week, moves into the anchorage because the supply ship has announced itself. In the evening a 35 meter long motor yacht arrives, with all the bells and whistles. Unfortunately, the equipment, such as jet skis, e-surfboards and the like can be used only a little, because we have wind with 20 knots from the southeast, and an uncomfortable wave in the anchorage field. My regret is limited. One day later a French catamaran arrives from Panama. He made the crossing in 26 days, which is just about half the time it took us. The three are quite nice and so we quickly get into conversation. Since we now know the Gambiers quite well, we can give the newcomers some valuable tips along the way.

Bad Weather

Once again we have to do some repair work. Gaby holds a wet towel under my nose from one of the lockers. My clothes are soaking wet. I suspect that once again a window is leaking, but unfortunately I am wrong. When examining the same everything looks dry, although it is raining outside again in torrents. From the outside it is then clear. The silicone used to seal the pettings in the deck passage has evaporated. First porous, and then torn out completely. Yawning, deep holes look at me. You could say that you can see right through to the schapp, which of course is again exaggerated beyond measure, but for water this is no longer an obstacle. So what are püttings? They are also known as "Rüsteisen". They are steel straps that are laminated or screwed into the hull. They hold the shrouds, which are connected to the mast at the other end to keep it standing. That is why they are called standing rigging. Four of them have lost their silicone sealant and need, now again, to be sealed. No big deal, if only it were done by then. Gaby thinks that this must be done immediately. I say first of all, in order to win time, that this must dry. Since she looks at me doubtfully, I push: "Don't rush me", afterwards. Yes I know, sometime I have to do it, but I have a good excuse, Christer needs me again. Since Trinidad, he has been dragging a water maker around with him, which is still, originally packed, waiting to be installed. "Trinidad? When were you in Trinidad?" I ask him in passing. "2019," he replies. Old Swede! That's typical Christer again. The watermaker would probably be lying around for another four years if it wasn't so difficult to bunker fresh water here on the Gambiers. Now it must be evenly and we discuss, where we can install which components in the boat. It takes us half a day to do this, because the "Old Swede's" sense of order is not exactly strong. To get to certain places in the boat at all, tons of material must be hoisted from one side to the other. For example, he sails five diving bottles through the area, although Christer has not been able to dive for years for health reasons. On this afternoon then also the saying came frequently: "Oh, I have looked for this for a long time, I knew that I had it somewhere". Anyway, we find a place for everything and now we have a plan how to install the watermaker. Since Christer is a man for the rough stuff, and with him the open-end wrench starts at 32 upwards, I will probably install the watermaker before it runs out of water. But in calculating the "Old Swede" is still top fit and so he has calculated that we have at 120 liters, still four weeks time. So don't rush me, old Swede! At least it gives me the opportunity to work off my own construction sites, because much worse than old Swedes, are German life section companions, who can be stalled only conditionally. So this week, I will work intensively on our püttings, unless something more urgent comes up. Up to now, outdoor work is unfortunately not possible because of the rain showers that keep occurring. So I hear then also in these days again increasingly the saying, "It's getting brighter up ahead," which means: It's about to stop raining, get your butt on deck and close the hole. But unfortunately the next rain shower keeps me from doing that again, until it gets brighter in front again. As you can see, we are busy and therefore wish you fair winds for this week and keep a stiff upper lip.