March, 2010

Shelter Bay Marina, Colon
Owning is maintaining! This means once a year Nikan has to be hauled-up and all her systems have to be checked and revised. Just to give you an idea:
• Propulsion: engine, sails, winches, running and standing rigging, mast, propeller
• Ground tackle: chain, anchor lines, windlass
• Energy: solar panels, wind generator, alternator
• Hull: anti-fouling, hull and deck top coat, deck anti-slip paint
• Interior: complete spring clean-up
• Mobility: dingy and outboard engine
• Safety: life raft, flares, all instruments inspection
• Future: spare parts inventory and renewal
Living on the hard adds some complications in this hot and humid environment - the inboard bathroom and sinks are out of order, boat access is by a ladder only (lots of! up and down), dust everywhere – and so we try to limit this time to minimum, which is not always easy, as the speed of having anything done is not on a par with North America (endless phone calls, suppliers' follow-ups, internet research and lots of diplomacy is required to get parts on time and services performed. But after a bit more than two weeks we are glad to report Nikan is back in the water. Of course there are still things that remain to be done, but we can now start to organize the transit through the Panama Canal and to get prepared for our next destination – Ecuador.