A busy weekend

I spent all day Saturday and Sunday on Robinetta, while Julian came along on Sunday. Barry the engineer also turned up on both days, to remove and replace the leaking fuel line and make sure that the engine cut off pull leaver would work. He also showed us how to isolate the diesel tanks, so we can finally stop the fuel running from one tank into another and overflowing when we're heeled!

I did a lot of little bits of essential cleaning and tidying up. We now have a storage locker each, for clothes and other personal items (essential for keeping our small cabin tidy), and the tools and spare shackles/blocks that we don't need to hand are in plastic toolboxes under the benches. All the food is in the galley area; taking out the oven gave us a lot more space! There is somewhere to hang the toilet toll and a dirty laundry bag, and I installed a "privacy curtain" between the cabin and the heads.
 
Everything not absolutely essential in our small boat needs two purposes to justify being there. Julian was talking about a second hanging wardrobe space for keeping shirts un-crumpled, but there's no place to put one. I've ended up taking a suit protection hanger on board, the sort where you put the clothes on a hanger inside a cloth cover that can be folded up. When privacy is wanted this can be hung on a hook between cabin and heads, where it fills the space almost completely. At other times it can be folded up and hung out of the way on the rail that supports the cabin roof. Only time will tell if this gets annoying!
 
The bilges are still oily, so I've bought a Maxi-Boom bilge oil absorber and left it under the floorboard in the hope that it will stop us polluting when we pump. I will wash the bilges properly before we leave!

On Sunday Julian finished re-running the electrics near the heads, and got the running lights working. He also sent me up the mast twice to re-run the peak and throat halyards. We have the roller reefing line in place too, so we'll be a sailing boat as soon as I get the main bent on. We want a longer piece of rope for the peak hardener, but that's a minor job.

Next weekend is our intended departure date. Julian needs Saturday for wiring the autopilot to the chart plotter, so we've decided to leave Tollesbury on the first tide on Sunday, and head to Brightlingsea for a shake down sail. We need to buy a new lamp glass and know we can get it at French Marine, plus its well within our comfort zone for a nice gentle start to the adventure. Being within the shelter of the Blackwater we'll go unless its blowing a force 8 on the nose!