Captain’s Log: Hauled out in Wrangell….WORKING DOGS!!!

Hi All,

Yes….we did it….another successful haul and splash for Mystic!!!

We indeed hauled last Tuesday, 4/19 at 1pm. The boatyard here is well run and very clean, and is used mainly by fishing boats of all sizes. The instructions for lining up Mystic for the lift were mainly hand signals so it was good this was not our first rodeo. But, we successfully got her in the stall and under the straps!!

Surprises/Task completed:
1. The bottom paint was in excellent shape….no bottom paint needed this year….wow, after 2.5years….put on by Platypus Marine in Port Angeles in 11/19. Normally we get 2-3 years on a bottom job but we are going to get at lease 3.5 years and maybe more. We used SeaHawk Biokop paint and obviously it is excellent, but of course, the colder water temps also keep things from growing as well. Even the Prop Speed applied to the propellers is in excellent shape!!! Good news indeed and save some $$$$’s. But, since we had already ordered the 10-gals of black paint, we had Josh put on a coat around the waterline and a few other touch up spots. He used about 1/2 gal!!!
2. The Yanmar cutlass bearing indeed was in bad shape. The rubber portion had separated from the brass bearing…..very unusual. What we concluded was the shaft tube was made in China and metric and the old and new bearing Dave bought was 1 3/4″ SAE. It took Dave and Cody several hours to hone out the SS shaft tube to get the bearing to slide in. They surmised the guys in Fort Lauderdale in 2012 used heat to pound the bearing in and that probably vulcanized the rubber somewhat that it eventually separated. Very unusual for this to happen, but it did last 10 years!!
3. The PSS seal on the shaft sealing the seawater from coming inside the boat had lots of cracks in the rubber bellows used to tighten the SS seal…..hmmmmm, had not seen that. It was leaking a little and if those cracks got bigger then rule #1 is violated….that is keeping the boat between you and the water:)))
4. Dave did not have either the bearing….the Yanmar 1 1/4″ shaft was too small for what he normally works on….as well as he did not have the PSS seal. Both these items he ordered from Seattle and got them the next day on the daily Alaska Airline noon flight.
5. The SSB antenna fell. This is a 24′, 3 section antenna used for the SSB, which is not used in SE Alaska. Tuesday night there was a storm with lots of wind and swirlies in the boatyard. Evidently, the bracket holding the antenna broke and the antenna fell hitting the ground and breaking the top section. We removed and tied the antenna to the FB stanchion for now!!
6. The 25hp Tohatsu dinghy outboard was serviced. David at Bay Co, maybe 200 yards from our haulout slip came over with a trailer and we lowered the dinghy onto it. He serviced the motor and had it back later that day….wow….so easy!!!
6. Exalto windshield wipers: The technical service at Imtra is excellent. Mark gave us some trouble shooting guides and we were able to determine the motors are good but our control system needs replacing….and of course, after 18 years our unit is discontinued necessitating buying a whole new control unit….touch pad and relay box plus all new wiring….ah geez, this just turned into a several day project and some $$$’s. We will live with it for now, 2 wipers working fine and one working nonstop…..and work on the project over the winter….ugh!!! We also determined where the leak is coming from on the washer system and made temporary repairs and will ship a PEX 1/4″ connector to Skagway!!
7. Cummins start battery: Dave had a battery load tester and we determined the start battery is half dead…probably ok for a house battery but can not handle the 1100 CCA required by the Cummins to start. We will need to order a new NorthStar battery and have shipped to Sitka. In the meantime we are jumping from the GEN battery.
8. BBQ propane: Another project not gotten to when we canceled our trip in January. The two, 2.5 gal cans we have are outdated. Unfortunately, Wrangell only carries 5-gal cans so I bought one and modified the holder under the BBQ. We can only get one of these sized cans to fit….a simple job that took hours….ugh!!!

Kathy and I stayed at the Stikine River Inn….a cute place with an excellent restaurant and views. All 3 nights we were dog-tired so a few drinks, excellent dinners, and early to bed. My knee did not do well. Climbing the ladder to get off/on Mystic plus a lot of cold yoga working on projects has it very sore….arghhhhhh!!! TG for meloxicam, Advil and a few wee drams!!!!

We splashed at 7:30am on Friday, 4/18!!!!

A lot was accomplished in the 3N/2.5Days and we leave in pretty good shape….still have a few more annual maintenance projects to complete and will get to those as we travel north!! But for now, let the crabbing and prawning games begin in earnest:))))

The Plan:  We are going to take the next 10-12 days to head north to Skagway to visit Sherry and then take a 2 day road trip to visit Ed and Michelle at their ranch/kennel in the Yukon!!!

Hope all is well!!

John
Mystic Moon

PS: I’ll hopefully post pictures in Skagway!!

Position: 57 04’36.53 N,  132 48’06.11 W
Course: Stopped.
Position: 22-04-23 17:49:20 -0800
http://maps.google.com/maps?&ll=57.07681,-132.8017&q=57.07681,-132.8017&z=16