Day 6 - A No-motor Day

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

We decided to spend the day at Montague Harbor rather than move on to another location like Pirates Cove, or Thetis Island, or even Newcastle Island. A strong wind blew last night just like the evening before at Prevost Harbor, Stuart Island. Maybe that was the gale winds mentioned on the weather radio for southern Georgia Strait. It must have been blowing 25 knots or more. The Zipper moored along side the Independence was making quite a racket, so I untied it and tethered it to the stern cleat of the Independence. By morning the wind had greatly subsided. The weather has been mostly sunny with only a few clouds rolling through, although last night after returning from Ganges I thought we'd get some rain, but it missed us.

Kim, Hank and I took a long walk on the road that leads into Montague Provincial Park walking all the way to the Montague Harbor Marina. It was a nice walk with many nice views of the bay and all the boats anchored and moored there. We then came back and had a few snacks. The rage has been resurrecting the Yahtzee Game with a new battery. By having the battery die, Max's old high score - an impossible 586 score was now gone. Now it was who was going to have the next high score. The electronic Yahtzee game is relegated to the forward head and the unwritten rule is that where it belongs. You cannot take the Yahtzee game out of the forward head and play it. I tried that and was severely chastized. Luckily I got the high score properly - while sitting on the forward head and peace and order was restored.

We had a lazy afternoon, had a late lunch and then did an extended beach trip. We found a shady spot on the N side of the beach with a great view up Trincomali Passage. We also played water fetch with Hank - which he thoroughly enjoyed. I threw the stick fairly far out in the water this time forcing him to swim more. I think he would play water fetch until he dropped dead from exhaustion. As we sat we saw first one large double masted sailboat anchor in the bay, but up the channel we saw more and more approaching. Somebody walking by mentioned that there was a double-masted sailboat regatta going on. It was fun to see these big beautiful sailboats come into the bay and anchor. All in all we counted over 12 large double masted sailboats. We finished our afternoon with a hike on the Point Grey trail. The weather was warm and fortunately there was a steady breeze blowing from the SW to keep us cool. The wind died down later. We were still all so stuffed from lunch that we passed on making any kind of significant supper - just a few snacks.

Day 5 - Crossing Into Canada

Monday, July 12, 2010
Last night the wind howled. At times I believed there were wind gusts of maybe 20-30 knots. But now this morning, there's cloudy skies and only a few remnant gusts and breezes, though definitely not as strong as last night.

We left Prevost Harbor at 0825 to continue our trip N. Haro Strait was very rolly and once again there was a huge ebb tide to contend with. Again we crabbed our way across Haro Strait and into Canada. The current was going W, we were going N, but we angled our way more ENE - its just really kind of funky. Kim made breakfast en route. Because of the waves and the strong current I didn't call early enough to take advantage of the CanPass system. When I called CanPass they simply said, report to Bedwell Customs dock for processing. Okay on to Bedwell then.

Just as we were entering Bedwell Harbor and customs, a very large sailboat passed us and tied up right in the middle of the customs dock. There was no room in front or behind him, rather you would have to navigate more into the marina and around the back to get to the customs dock. It would also put me "bow in" not "bow out" as I preferred. My manueverability was hampered by having to tie the Zipper up on the port side of the boat. So I wasn't too happy. As a result, Josef angrily stood on the bow of the Independence and yelled across the bay, "Move yer boat, or I'll move it." He, like me, was none too happy. Luckily the sailboat skipper moved his boat forward and we were able to tie up in a small space behind him. As we approached the customs dock the sailboat skipper said to Josef, "There's plenty of dock space on the other side." I said in a low barely audible voice to Josef, "Easy. Let's not lose it." Fortunately Josef just glared at him. As I was docking in the limited space provided by the sailboat another boater commented on my great docking job. I did bring the Independence in perfectly in a tight spot without any issue.

I trotted up to the customs shack and got our clearance number for entry into Canada - 20101930209. I finished before the sailboat skipper, trotted back to the Independence and said, "Lets get out of here before he comes back." I didn't want any more challenges with this goofy sailboat skipper. We quickly untied and moved on our way. Our next challenge is going through Pender Canal that separates North and Sound Pender Islands. By taking the Pender Canal route we will save an hour or more cruising. The current was running S (ebbing) and the tide was falling. As we cruised through I had Josef up on the bow just to spot the shallows - the lowest it got was about 4' below the keel. Going through Pender Canal is always a fun challenge.

We now moved around Razor Point, up Navy Channel, and into Tricomali Channel and eventually Montague Harbor at 1212. We got a mooring buoy on the W side of the bay. Listening to the weather radio there's forecasts for gales in S Georgia Strait for later in the day. For now the wind was from the SW at less than 10 knots. We settled in and decided to do a Zipper trip to Ganges for groceries. However, it was decided to leave Hank the dog at the boat instead of taking him. This would make for easier grocery shopping and less stress for all. It was a good decision.

We picked up a variety of groceries and most importantly some good Canadian whiskey. When we came back Josef made a great Greek Salad. Here's the recipe.

• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 English cucumber, cut into small chunks
• 1/2 C yellow onion, diced
• 1/2 C kalamata olives, pitted and halved
• 2 T fresh basil, chopped
• 1 t dried oregano
• 1/2 t dried dill weed
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 T red wine vinegar
• 1/4 C feta cheese, crumbled
• salt & pepper to taste
  
  Cut veggies, add feta and spices and mix well. Then add olive oil and red wine vinegar, chill and let set for 30 minutes or more.

We had a great dinner of Greek salad, grilled steaks and spinach Nan (Indian flat bread) with Tzatsiki. I grilled the Nan on the BBQ until just toasty. Then I dipped the Nan in the steak juice added some Tzatsiki - it was incredible. What a nice evening.

Stats: 18.4 nm, average speed 5.1 knots, 3:35 running time, 158.0 trip miles, ending engine hours 5985.3.

Day 4 - Prevost Harbor, Stuart Island

Sunday, July 11, 2010.
Woke to mostly sunny skies. We had a "rolly-polly" night as there were some winds and swell that entered Fossil Bay from the east. Nothing worse than trying to sleep in your bunk and keep from falling out because the boat is rocking from side to side. I had enough of the rocking and the crowds. Rather I suggested that we move on from our plans of staying another day at Sucia and move on to Prevost Harbor on Stuart Island. I said that this put us closer to our route, Prevost Harbor is much more sheltered, and it's not so crowded. I want to get away from all these people. The crew agreed. So we pulled up our anchor at 0850.

The weather is clear with a light breeze from the ESE. After exiting Fossil Bay we made for Satellite Island just off of Stuart Island and Prevost Harbor. The current was running strong to the S and we were "crabbing" along - that is moving more sideways than forward. It was kind of funky steering for Little Bare Island NW of us in the middle of Boundary Passage, but yet you could tell you were moving W towards the small channel between Waldron and Skipjack Islands. At times we were making 9 knots or more. Cruising from Waldron Island to Stuart Island there was a westerly chop. We arrived early enough in Prevost Harbor to find a mooring bouy and we tied up to it.

We had a light breakfast then all took late morning naps. Why not? We're on "holidays" as the Canadians say. After our naps we decided to hike to the Stuart Island school house. The trail the park wants you to take is a huge round about route - down a steep stair case to Reid Harbor, then across a long beach where you join up with a small county road. Then the road climbs back up a long hill, and winds to the school house. This route adds about 1.5 or more miles one way! Many, many years ago we used to take a more direct route that keeps you on top of the hill and almost directly to the school house. Sure, you leave park land and probably go along on private property, but it sure saves you a lot of time. We took this trail and unfortunately I tripped on a branch and hit the ground with a thud. I definitely bruised a rib, if I didn't break it, with this fall. However, we still made it to the school house.

The Stuart Island School has been in existence for quite some time, although it is in danger of being closed because there's not enough students. Its a small "two-room" school house that's powered using solar panels and batteries and wood for heat. We toured the small school museum looking at pictures of student classes past. We saw one picture that had our good friend Dave Delong in it when he did his student teaching here. Unfortunately the picture had the name of the teacher and students but had "unknown" for the student teacher. We entered in the guest log the name of the student teacher. We also purchased a couple of shirts at the Stuart Island treasure chest "honor" store.

We then finished our hike and returned to the boat for supper. I grilled a couple of brats and made a nice German potato salad. It was a beautiful evening. Unfortunately I didn't feel good from my fall and couldn't seem to get warm. My rib (on my lower left side) definitely hurt when I coughed or laid down on it. Ugh.

Stats: 14.0 nm, average speed 6.1 knots, running time 2:18, total trip miles 139.6 nm, ending engine hours 5981.4

Day 3 - Sucia Island

Left Friday Harbor at 0930 under clear skies and variable winds. Went up San Juan Channet & turned N just after Wasp Island. Then up President Channel, round Pt. Doughty and to Sucia Island and Fossil Bay. Fossil Bay was full of boats; all the mooring buoys were taken, the docks were full, there wasn't even much room to anchor. We found a spot & dropped the hook in 6' of water at low tide. A light breeze from the E was blowing. It was 12:30 PM.

I was hoping a mooring buoy would come available but no luck. All afternoon boats kept on coming and going. They'd pull into the bay, cruise about with a forlorn look, then leave. However there was a small sailing craft rendezvous going on too. These sailboats weren't you popular production craft but looked like home-built sailboats that had a historical look to them. They were either sail or human powered, although a few did have small outboards on them. They were all brightly painted in greens and reds, and the captains and crew looked as eccentric as the boats.

I spent the day doing some much needed brightwork. I put a coat of varnish on the cap rails, hand rails, and a few other items. It was perfect for this kind of work - not too hot out, a light breeze, and no waves. I got quite a bit of work done. Meanwhile the crew slept or read books. Later we went to shore for a short visit. There are so many boating memories here. When we were "young boaters" we spent a lot of time at Sucia. So many long walks, looking for fossils, and just exploring. Its been over 10 years or more since we were last at Sucia. Now they have a pavilion for sitting, a handicap tent site, shelters with bunks so you don't have to use a tent, and many more camp sites.

After our short shore visit we came back and grilled some chicken for dinner and had a relaxing evening. We watched for a long time a river otter playing and splashing just off a small island in the bay. Josef also got the call that he needed to be in Nanaimo on Wednesday and they'll pick him up on Thursday morning. I was relieved since this put some organization on our trip, because until then it was just "wandering about" until we knew we had to be in Nanaimo. This also helped me think of the rest of our trip beyond Nanaimo and I started to work on a schedule.

The day's stats: 16.2 nm, average speed 5.1 knots, running time: 3:09, cumulative trip 125.6 nm. Ending engine hours 5978.9, 3.5 engine hours.

Day 2 - Friday Harbor

Left Kingston at 5:10 AM (same time as yesterday) to continue our trip N. As yesterday, the skies were clear and the winds were calm as we started out. Once again we are going to ride the morning ebb, however this one was much more beneficial than yesterday. We almost immediately felt the pull of the ebb as soon as we got out of Appletree Cove (Kingston). By the time we made Point No Point we were doing 8 knots and it only got better. As we cruised up Admiralty Inlet the ebb current got stronger and stronger. By the time we reached Bush Point just off of Whidbey Island we were doing well above 9+ knots, even hitting 10 knots at times - we were flying. We made Point Wilson by Port Townsend at about 9:30 AM and now were doing 10+ knots. The Strait of Juan de Fuca was calm. We were traveling up the E side of Admiralty Inlet going towards Point Partridge on Whidbey Island. When we hit almost exactly the Point Partridge green buoy we slowed down to 5+ knots. We continued this slow pace to just beyond Smith Island and near Cattle Pass where we started to take advantage of the flood current into the San Juan archipelago. The Strait was calm except for some waves that were caused by the current not wind. Just about Smith Island we were being tossed side to side fairly good. Fortunately these uncomfortable seas didn't last too long. Everyone was asleep in their bunks anyway, so it didn't matter. It was just me skipperin' the boat.

We made Cattle Pass - the southern most end of San Juan Channel at about 11:00 AM. Once again we were riding the current and moving along at over 8 knots! We rounded Turn Rock and then went into Friday Harbor tying up to our slip at 12:30. That's just over a 7 hour run (7:12 to be exact) for 53.1 nautical miles. For the Independence we made some excellent time. Just out of Friday Harbor I snapped this great pic of a schooner in San Juan Channel.

The current was really moving in the harbor. I could tell as we came down the slip way. At one point I was moving more sideways than forward. Hmmm? This could be interesting. Josef met us at our assigned slip after taking the Zipper in. This was good. He motioned to me that the current was running hard E to W. As I turned to go into the slip, we were going more W than S. Fortunately Josef caught me and we got in without any problems.

It is hot here, but the weather is changing. By late afternoon the sky was mostly cloudy and a few degrees cooler. I was disappointed in that my favorite watering hole - The Front Street Ale House is gone. Oh drat. Now what am I going to do? No more authentic Bavarian Hefeweizen or "Bangers, Bubbles & Squeak." We'll have to find a new watering hole. We tried the "Rumor Mill" which is now at the old "Electric Company Pizza." It was okay. Tonight was their grand opening. I had meatloaf with no gravy - what the heck is that about? Meatloaf with no gravy? Sorry didn't work with me.

Again, it's really cooled down. The skies are all overcast which has dropped the temperature by a good 10 degrees F or more. This is a relief. Oh, and one more thing... Friday Harbor is "dead." Many stores are closed and there just doesn't seem to be the crowds. Sure, it might be early July and not August but it still seems too quiet. I think the recession has come to Friday Harbor too.

Tomorrow we are thinking of going to Sucia and maybe staying for more than one day. We still haven't heard from the hockey camp Josef is going to be a counselor at so it leaves our plans up in the air. Hmmm? Hey, don't worry its as the Canadian's say, "You're on holiday."

Stats: 53.1 nm, average speed: 7.4 knots, 7:12 cruising time, 7.7 hours engine

Day 1 - Kingston

Left West Bay Marina at 5:10 AM under clear skies and calm winds. Great to have Josef help with the Zipper. Just as we were leaving so did another boat - the "SV Halcyon Days." We traveled with that boat all the way to Kingston. Sometimes we were in the lead other times he was. While some may of thought that would be fun; I found it to be a pain. I think it would've been different if we would have krown them.

We rode a good ebb up Budd Inlet making 6.6 knots or more. At Dana Passage we did well over 7 knots. At times the sun was blinding me. At 7 AM we were by Eagle Is. By 9:30 AM we were by Pt. Defiance, at 11 AM we were passing Blake Is., and into Kingston at 2:30 PM, just as planned. We rode the ebb all the way to Blake Is. where then we hit the flood tide and really slowed down. Before we were making 6.8 knots average, then we made just above 5 knots. Also the NW wind picked up to 10+ knots. It made for some cool cruising; I actually got cold. The temperature out on the main Sound was 74 F. However once we got into Kingston the temperature shot way up to 86 F. I went from cold to HOT. Ugh.

When we got to Kingston we fueled up. I picked up 85 gallons at $2.95/gallon. Should've fueled up completely last season when it was only $2.39/gallon.

After fueling we pulled into a slip and tied up for the day. Here's the stats: 56.3 nm, avg. speed 6.3 knots, and 8:55 trip time. The engine hour meter said 5967.7 or 9.7 hours.

One of the real treats in Kingston is the restaurant "Bella Luna." We've been going to Bella Luna for well over 15 years. The tradition is to order the "Morgans Special Pizza." This pizza has everything - onions, peppers, italian sausage, jalapenos, green & black olives, and plenty of cheese. Its tradition to order the Morgans Special each time we're in Kingston - this time was no different. What we don't eat we always box up for breakfast the next day. The only difference this time was that it was so hot, eating jalapenos on a hot day just didn't set well.

After a long day of cruising, I closed off the day with a shot of whiskey on ice and that did the trick. As soon as my head it the pillow I was out.

Final Preparations

I've been coming down to the boat each day each time bringing with me supplies or clothes or whatever we'll be needing for the trip N. Each day I check another system... cooling system, transmission cooler, batteries (engine), freshwater, portable generator, and the list goes on. I've learned that preparation is the key to a successful cruise. I am nervous though, worrying that everything works okay and is okay. I want a successful cruise without any problems. Its the sailor's dilemma... "can't wait to get out of port, can't wait to get back to port." I ease my worries by sipping a ration of whiskey and looking out the window. However, I then realize that I really shouldn't worry as this will be our 20th year of going "upcoast" BC.

One of my concerns is the anchor windlass. When we were recently at McMicken Island the anchor windlass didn't engage when you stepped on the switch. And it seemed a bit slow. We do so much anchoring it would be a real pain if the anchor windlass were to fail. I checked all the connections and everything looks okay. The only thing I noticed was that one connection on the battery terminal was kind of loose. I checked the specific gravity on each of the batteries and they were all "good." I did upgrade the chain size a year or so ago which probably is a bit too heavy for this anchor windlass. I didn't think about that.

Another issue this year is deciding on the itinerary. I build a pretty extensive spreadsheet with various waypoints, times, tide & current notes. It's a big help to plan out a cruise and answer cruising questions such as, "When do we go to Nanaimo to drop Josef off for hockey camp, or does he go on his own?" The answer to this question has a big play on our plans. If he doesn't go we can go farther N since we won't have to worry about being in Nanaimo on a certain date. If he does go, then we'll have to adjust. My original N destination was Clio Channel area in southern Queen Charlotte Strait. Clio Channel has some great prawning and crabbing. Unfortunately a lot of the southern Broughton archipelago is now a rockfish conservation area which really limits your fishing opportunities. Oh well we will see how far N we get this year.

The weather looks to be nice for the start of our cruise, maybe even too hot; by Thursday its supposed to be 90F! At least we will be out on the water where perhaps it will be a bit cooler.

McMicken Island Cruise

One more time I had to dive my boat and good I did. The "barneys" were over 2" thick on the skeg and lower rudder, and about an 1" thick on the prop. The last time I scraped was just 2 days shy of 3 months ago and the growth of barnacles was incredible. But once again, I acted as home wrecker and disposed of thousands of the little bastards. Once that was done I relaxed with a good shot of Canadian whiskey. I was happy I cleaned this underwater community off of the MV Independence otherwise doubt I would have been able to have any speed or steerage.

On Saturday morning the skies were cloudy with a light breeze out of the SW. I untied the MV Independence from its moorings at 10:30 AM and headed N out of Olympia Harbor towards McMicken Is. There was a -2.5 minus tide and the max ebb in Dana Passage was about 9:30 AM, and slack about 12:20 PM. By leaving at 10:30 I could still take advantage of a good ebb out of Budd Inlet and Dana Passage and into Case Inlet. I moved slowly out of the Olympia Harbor to ensure the engine heated up properly. This was my first cruise since last August so I was taking it slow. By the Olympia #3 Day Marker every thing was working perfectly, so brought her up to cruise speed at 1,800 RPM and 6.8 knots. As the Independence worked its way up Budd Inlet and Dana Passage the speed increased at one time reaching 8.5 knots. However, once we reached Pt. Wilson on Hartstine Island the speed had dropped to 6.5 knots. Low tide at McMicken was not until about 1300 so I was still fighting a bit of an ebb coming down Case Inlet. I reached my anchorage just inside McMicken Island at 12:45 PM. I dropped the hook in 30' of water at near low tide.

x

The SV Mary O'Farrell was still about 45 minutes away. I dropped the dinghy, tied off fenders on the starboard side in preparation for rafting, and opened a cool beer. Just as I finished the beer, the Mary O'Farrell came 'round the N end of the island. We secured the SV Mary O'Farrell and then went off to the beach - the dog had to pee. The day turned out to be absolutely gorgeous - not a cloud in the sky and warm.

After our beach excursion we came back opened a few beers, had some chips and salsa, and started to slowly prepare for dinner. I had decided to make a Carribean jerk chicken for dinner. I had switched from beer to a nice smooth Scotch. I cooked the chicken low and slow and it came out oh so good and not too spicey. Not too long after dinner we all called it a day. As soon as my head hit the pillow I was out.

Woke to cloudy threatening skies and a light SW breeze. I took the dog to the beach and then came back to make breakfast - a nice traditional corned beef hash. Oh my it was oh so good. It was quickly devoured by all. Shortly thereafter the SV Mary O'Farrell departed an headed back to port. The Independence crew decided to clean up a bit, sip some more coffee, read a bit, and then pull up anchor at 13:00. We took advantage of the flood current all the way back to Olympia. Just by Olympia Shoal we saw the tall ships Hawaiian Chieftain and Lady Washington. We pulled in to our slip at 15:15. A good simple cruise.

Here's some statistics 36.7 nm, average speed was 7.6 knots, and total time was 4:31.

That's the charm of it...

My weekends lately have been filled with getting the boat ready for the summer cruise (more on that later in another blog post). It's rumored that BOAT stands for "Bring On Another Thousand." Well that thousand can be dollars or hours. Last fall I created a list of 27 to-do items. I am now down to the final 6 items. Some of these items were routine, and others were not. Here's a sample of a few of the maintenance items that were on my list. Change oil (engine & injector), change fuel filters, replace raw water impeller, clean foreward head, clean flying bridge, paint foc'sle deck, paint aft cabin deck, remove stains on bow, grease radar, new bilge pump switch, clean bilge, paint mast, patch & paint spots on cabin, touch up teak trim, clean inside of main cabin, wash windows, vacuum all cabins, replace starter battery, replace transmission oil cooler, clean main heat exchanger, replace all zincs, check all hoses, replace alternator belt, and the list goes on. Some of the above items are cosmetic and others are required for trouble free & safe cruising.

As I check off items on my maintenance & work list, I routinely find more items to work on and the list then grows. To mitigate that I keep the galley refrigerator stocked with beer and the larder stocked with snacks. Another mitigation is to keep my work and attitude in check. Sure, I put in the hours on my projects, but I also make sure I take beer breaks and time to recognize what I have accomplished. For example, the foc'sle deck looks great. I think I'll sit on my freshly painted deck, lean up against the cabin, relax and enjoy a beer. I think about the future anchorages this summer - some new and others I revisit like old friends. Then my chores are not so much drudgery, but part of the enjoyment of boating.

I also learn along the way. For instance... install the transmission oil cooler hoses first before connecting the raw water hoses. That way you can spin the oil cooler to tighten the first hose on. Or, coat the impeller with dish soap and use a hose clamp around it to easily insert it. It seems this year that I have learned so many new tricks that made some of my chores much easier. Maybe, just maybe, I'm just another year older and wiser. Finally in all my thousand hours of work or dollars, I am reminded of Ratty's words in Kenneth Grahame's classic, "The Wind in the Willows"..."There is nothing- absolutely nothing- half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats. In or out of 'em, it doesn't matter. Nothing seems really to matter, that's the charm of it." Whether you celebrate Ratty's notion sailing, motoring, rowing, paddling, boat maintenance, or... whatever... "it doesn't matter... that's the charm of it".

Changing Fuel Filters - Ugh!

I knew the fuel filters needed replacing, but for reaffirmation I checked the log book to see when they were last done. When I was doing lots of cruising I changed the fuel filters about every 200-300 hours which was about once a year. Well my last change was in 2008 and I've put about 200+ hours on them, so it's time.

Changing fuel filters can be a messy, smelly, and complicated job. First you got to remove all the old filters and on the Independence there are 4 of them - a primary fuel/water separator (NAPA 3133), a primary fuel filter (NAPA 3134), and two secondary fuel filters (NAPA 3358). Invariably fuel gets spilled, your hands get soaked with diesel, and then you have to not only replace the filters, but then you have to bleed the system. A diesel will not run if you have even the tiniest of air bubbles in the system. After years and years of doing this job, I got smart and first of all got knee pads. My second smart thing is to take my time. And the third thing I learned is to use a small container to catch the 'old' fuel. Items 1 & 2 are the keys though - knee pads and take your time.

Now on to the job itself... On the Independence you can turn off the fuel using a gate valve (just like your yard water faucets at home). I then one at a time removed the primary filters and surprisingly didn't spill a drop. Then I removed the secondary filters and again didn't spill a drop. Wow, I was doing good. I then took a break and cleaned up the fuel canisters that hold the filters. Hmmm? Not too bad. Then I replaced all the filters in the right order - #1 fuel/water separator, #2 fuel filter, #3 secondary filters. I was about half-way done.

I opened up the fuel valves to each tank. Gravity & weight of the fuel now forced fuel into the primary fuel filters. I removed the bleed screw to the top of each filter and watched carefully. I could hear the fuel filling the canisters with an ever so soft whistling of air through the bleed screw hole. I had my spill container at the ready. Then first filter fuel and air bubbles came up through the bleed screw hole. I gently rapped the canister with a wrench and even more bubbles appeared until no more. I tightened the bleed screw finger tight and went to the next fuel filter and repeated the process. So far so good - no spilled fuel and the process worked. After checking to see if any more bubbles appeared, and they didn't I fully tightened the bleed screws.

For fuel to get to the secondary fuel filters I have to manually pump the fuel through the fuel pump located on the engine block. Of course the space is tight and the pump lever throw is minimal. For what seemed an eternity fuel finally spurted out of the bleed screw holes on the secondary filters. I made sure just like with the primary filters to tap the canisters and bleed any air out. Again, so far so good.

Finally I had to manually pump the fuel pump and open up the bleed screws on the injection pump. First the forward one and then the aft one. Again when only fuel was squirted out with no bubbles I tightened the screw and moved on. Now the real test - will it start?

I extricated myself from the engine room. And I use the word 'extricated' because after kneeling and working for over an hour on various filters I wasn't moving too fast. It was painful trying to kneel backwards, and slide myself out, but I did. The fresh air felt wonderful - not only cooling, but refreshingly without the diesel smell. I then turned the key and hit the start button. She's cranking over..., wait..., there's some firing..., and "verrrooom" the engine kicks to life. Oh my the relief that I felt. I did not want to climb back down and go through the bleed process. I let it run for a few minutes, even revving it up to see if any air bubbles would stop the engine. Better now than when I am just leaving the dock or getting underway.

I looked at the saloon clock and noticed that almost 3 hours had passed, but the dreaded fuel filter chore was OVER! I did crawl back into the engine room and thoroughly checked for leaks - none found. It is now "beer-thirty" and time to enjoy what I have accomplished and relax.