The featured picture today is what’s left of our Bahamas courtesy flag flying from our flag halyard. We bought it new before we left for $15 (Amazon) . The reviews for this flag on Amazon were so terrible we wondered if they were legitimate, because what could possibly go wrong with a small nylon flag?

Our first Glenny-less day (sigh) was filled with boat chores and projects. Paula made more bread for sandwiches, this time using some of the boat-made Thermos yogurt. It came out nicely moist with a slight, almost sourdough tang and a good crumb. Then she made stock (out of some of the remaining fresh vegetable bits and fresh shrimp shells) to use in the meals she will make over the next two days. These will be frozen for our trip back to St. Augustine.

Meanwhile, Tommy went to work on the watermaker. The plan was to run it all day after having performed the deep cleaning of the membrane yesterday. The results were mixed. It appeared the membrane cleaning was successful as the water quality quickly got into the drinkable range after starting the system. We were very happy about this. However, another problem now reared its ugly head. Ever since we got the system, the pump pressure would “spike” every time water cycled through the membrane (about every 3 seconds). The system includes a small pre-charged air tank whose function is to dampen out these spikes into gentle “pulses” so as not to shorten the life of the pump.  This air tank has a bicycle style filler valve on it for checking the static air pressure (factory pre-charged to ~65psi) and for adding more air if necessary. Tommy checked it today and found the air pressure to be zero. He got out his air pump and charged it up to the recommended 65psi and voilà, the problem went away! It performed perfectly for about 15 minutes before the pressure spiking returned.  Checking the air tank pressure showed that it was once again at zero. It obviously had a leak and couldn’t hold a charge. Tommy contacted the manufacturer who agreed with this assessment and promised to replace the air tank under warranty. In the meantime, he said we could still use the watermaker without worry until we get back to Florida. It would just be louder than normal.

It was cozy in the boat today with the cooking smells, the hum of the water maker, and the occasional colorful oath from Tommy. These acted as a counterpoint to the persistent wind and periodic bands of rain that pelted the marina all day.

Later the sky cleared a bit. On our trip to Rose Island, Paula had noted a mild, new motor vibration while piloting. The engine itself checked out fine. Tommy decided to dive down to inspect the propeller, to make sure there wasn’t any hard growth or wear that could be responsible. The prop had some fine greenery growing that wiped off easily with a sponge and was in fine shape on visual and tactile inspection. We think that changes in the stowage of the aft cockpit lockers may have allowed some shifting and movement leading to vibration, and we will address that tomorrow.

Late afternoon the marina’s sole functioning guest washing machine became free, and Paula did two washers full of laundry in series. This will put us in fine shape as regards clothes and towels for a planned Saturday departure. Weather cooperating, of course.

Marina life continues interesting. The Gray Kingbirds are building a nest in the fishing boat at the end of the pier. A man playing a ukulele is currently cruising the docks, despite raindrops. A half-full bottle of coconut rum has sat unclaimed at the end of Pier 4 for three days now, leading to wild conjecture. The psychotic marina cat is skulking around wet and vexed and looking for something small to kill. The marina staff is knocking off work,  sharing Kaliks , heading for home and making plans for the evening.