The Lazy, Hazy, Days of Summer

Music didn’t make it back to the Sea of Cortez this spring which means that our boat will be staying here at La Cruz on Banderas Bay thru the summer. The reasons are many but suffice it to say that Music will also not be hauled out of the water only to cook in +120°F heat while sitting on the hard. And, that I am sure is a good thing.

As many of you already know, we still plan on heading back to the States this month (July) and will be sure to see as many of our friends as possible. Aside from that, I plan on picking up as many work assignments as I can, but I’ve also got some ongoing issues with my left foot and now left shoulder. What it means is that I will be seeing some of my docs while home. And, with luck, maybe I’ll even get in a dive or two.

Now to the question I’m sure many of you are wondering: what happened that we didn’t get back up into the Sea of Cortez? Well, it’s a long story with many factors involved, some of which were related to boat projects, some to traveling, some to the flu, some to other delays and some to just how long it takes to accomplish errands. But, the most significant reason we didn’t make it back to the Sea was related to a rather nebulous and enigmatic popping that had developed seemingly in the mast while heading south from La Paz.

Over time the popping grew worse and by the time we returned from the Gold Coast the noise now sounded like a wrench suspended inside the mast banging away as the boat rocked from side to side. Even a thorough search inside the mast for loose strings, wires, and feeder lines revealed nothing!

Back here at La Cruz, with head liners removed around the mast we found signs of a lot of water leakage, and many totally loose fasteners securing the mast collar to the aluminum backing plate below deck. Oh Boy, another project!

Starboard Mast Collar Backing Plate:
Note the salt like corrosion from water leakage.

To deal with all of this, I replaced the existing backing plates with G-10 but before installing them, I faired the cabin ceiling to make the whole surface level. This had never been done and the unevenness may have contributed (along with a lot of sea miles) to the fasteners working against each other creating movement, leaks and my popping/banging?. While we don’t know for sure if we’ve got the problem fixed we haven’t heard any more ominous banging, even while out sailing for an active tune. – And that is definitely a good thing.

Something else I believe the banging could be related to is a rubbing between the mast and spartite (a product used to fill the void between mast and mast collar). Replacing the spartite, I was informed, would most likely require pulling the mast due to the age of the spartite and its adhesive properties if improperly installed. (Some professionals say that mast rubs and leakage around the mast can develop even if spartite is properly installed.) So, in addition to fixing the mast collar, we also fixed the leaks stemming from the mast/spartite interface and will wait to see what develops.

Newly Installed Starboard G-10 Backing Plate:
Check sidebar for a few photos of the individual steps. 

By about mid May Music was back together and we were finally ready to head north. Unfortunately, all the delays meant that we would now be on a schedule, moving constantly, and unable to take our time. Added to that, if we did go north, next fall we would only be retracing our steps to head right back here, on our way to the “Gold Coast” just a little further south. All of this begged the question Why head north? The net result was a decision to stay put and relax here la Cruz. Our decision made, we would now have time to make some improvements, and install a few other things (like a new Gori 3 blade folding propeller) we hadn’t had the time to earlier. Not heading back into the Sea? Disappointing? – Perhaps a bit, but there are certainly a lot worse places for Music to spend the summer.

A Note on Black Holes:

Among the cruising community this year we’ve heard a lot about black holes; like the black hole of La Paz and the Black hole of Mazatlan. Places cruisers find themselves due to circumstances and who appear to not be able to extricate themselves. While some might say that we have fallen into a black hole here in La Cruz, Gail and I don’t see it that way. The reason is that Music was sound enough to leave in mid May yet we have made a conscious decision to stay put. Put another way, we’d rather enjoy some quality time here in La Cruz than rush to get somewhere else on a contracted schedule where we would hall the boat only to return to this region next fall.