Work and Fellowship
Many things happen over the next few days. The weather is very warm, with temperatures over 30’C but the southwest breeze keeps us somewhat comfortable.
The CAA sends local response on Wednesday morning. Our flat tire is swapped out for our spare and taken to Campbellton for repair. We pick it up on Thursday to learn there are none of this type of tire available in Newfoundland. We contact our VW dealer at home who promises to try to find a good alternative. Driving home in the fall on this repaired tire will not be ideal.
Pachina Mia sheds her winter skin.
We are raised again for another night in the travel lift and slings, so a few more high climbs to our living space.
Jim and Harald continue work on the centreboard, replacing the centreboard cable with dinema and eventually installing some strips of teflon on the sides of the centreboard to stop the banging. We will travel with the board down 12 inches.
Harald installs the hook for our jack lines (safety lines) at the entrance to the companionway.
Work to organize the cabin continues, especially after each session with the mechanic.
Burger night Wednesday turns into burgers and fresh crab, thanks to Dennis and his friends.
We buy fresh mussels on the way back from Campbellton and steam them with wine sauce on Thursday. Delicious and so fresh!
Friday morning we are lowered again and launched, for the second time, at 7:00am. No leaks and smooth docking back in our slip.
Pachina Mia is launched after lunch and we celebrate with spatchcock chicken and Ann’s Caesar Salad for dinner. The four of us are joined by Tammy and Roy who indulge in my strawberry rhubarb crisp. What a wonderful meal with good friends.
We are all glad to be in the water and anticipate a good night’s sleep.
Canada Day brings reason to continue the celebration with our first breakfast in the cockpit. Harald makes cheese and bacon omelettes and I attach our Canadian flag to the stern. With positive anticipation, we believe this will be the first of many such breakfasts before fall.
It is a day to rest so we invite Ann and Mike to join us on a little tour to find ice bergs. We know there are a couple of big ones north of Embree at Little Burnt Bay.
We brave the washboard road through the construction zone and are rewarded with a clear view of the two ice bergs as promised - Ann zooms in with her “big” camera and Mike wanders the shore, finding old car parts.
Harald and I happily accept the invitation to fish and chips at Chelsea’s for an early supper. Some very threatening weather moves down the bay but escapes us at the marina.
Now well-fed and relaxed, we assemble in the clubhouse with Craig and Paula and Randy. The sky has cleared and the promised fireworks begin at 10:15, just off the freighter wharf.
Ann and Mike thank us for including them in this special day. It was indeed a pleasure for us to celebrate Canada with new, good friends in a place we are currently calling home.
Back in our slip
These new friends came to our aid on Sunday night, after several days of us waiting to install our foresail. It has been too windy with the lulls between gusts not long enough to complete the task. Five of us tackled the job at 8:30pm, with the lull just long enough for Ann to secure the last piece of hardware while Mike secured the jib sheets and the rest of us held the large sail from blowing out. We had more people in our cabin that night than ever before…great fun!
It was with sad hearts, earlier in the week, that we learned Kashmir has begun her journey back to Lewisporte. The fog, the many ice bergs and frequent bergy bits just made transit too difficult for Mark and Michael. Their dreams to visit Labrador have been squelched for this season. Michael has travelled home to PEI and Mark is making his way down the peninsula from St. Anthony. We wish him a safe journey and hope he will enjoy Notre Dame Bay for the remainder of the summer.