Sat/Sun 9/10 Feb
So much for leaving early Sunday - the sailcover came back on Saturday unrepaired so had to be returned to loft and when it came on Sunday (yes - they're working overtime here!)the reefing lines were jammed inside the boom - having to get riggers in early Monday to remove boom to sort that problem out - can't leave before it's sorted....
On the positive side, I was able to hoist & furl the genoa, now that the strong winds have disappeared, the new aerial connection to the backstay is finished & works fine, I managed to get my wi-fi Internet connection back again (here only, of course!), the boat has been cleaned of several days' layer of salt & dirt deposited by winds of last few days, water tank has been filled, cockpit locker has finally been re-packed (although found the pipe to the hot water tank was perforated and spraying water everywhere - so had to repair that first - used amalgamating tape to 'bandage' it as a temporary 'fix' until next repair stop, when I'll replace that section of polybutylene piping)
I'm slowly getting boat more organized ready for passagemaking - that always feels good..!
Fedex finally arrived at the Yacht Club to deliver the Nobeltec CDs I need to run the software on Vista..
I'm now hoping to leave for Saldanha early Tuesday - assuming riggers manage to sort out the boom/reefing lines problem tomorrow.
Spent quite a time clearing & cleaning the hanging locker in the forepeak - several stored cans of tonic had corroded & so everything (LOTS!!) below them was wet & sticky - an unwanted extra job!
Tomorrow, I'll make use of the extra day by getting empty propane gas tanks refilled & do a touch more provisioning (with kind offer of transport from Club member Peter who lives nearby)& Baden will finish off new steel pole support on mast as well as pole fixtures on deck - he's worked overtime on my steel projects & was generously quite prepared to come Sunday to finish off.