As most blog followers would know, we had planned to leave Ilha Grande a couple of weeks back, and numerous factors conspired to delay our departure ; the arrival of new cruisers, friends, weather ( good and bad!), and Mary's tendancy to throw out a second anchor whenever we spoke of setting off! We had planned to leave on Wednesday last week, but the gribs started showing nasty easterlies, which is NOT what one wants. So we looked for the next break in the weather pattern, and saw a possible gap this last Tuesday. Having resigned ourselves to suffering yet another week in paradise, we decided to sail back round to Siteo Forte for one last visit. (This was the beach Mary first set foot on Brazilian soil, and after 15 days sailing from Ascension, she needed to learn how to walk again. ) The weather was great, and we enjoyed our three days there, swimming, cleaning the hull. Plus the odd cerveja in the little restuarant where a young "Britzy" fell in love , (and equally quickly out of love) with Caiperinha's, when Chris Sutton first introduced us to it, en route to Cape Town, in" African Renaisance", after the 2006 Cape to Bahia race.
We headed back to Abraao on Monday, and set sail for Rio at 21.00hrs on Tuesday. The gribs indicated a gentle passage up the coast , with the front moving out into the South Atlantic. We spent the first couple of hours dodging fishing boats in the ink black moonless night, with their unique ( or totally non existant) Nav lights. Thereafter we had a leisurely motor sail up the coast to Ipanema, catching a metre long Cutlass fish, and a decent sized Bonito at dawn. Then the "front" realised we were trying to slip into Rio behind it, so it changed plans and came to welcome us to Rio! The wind veered to NE, and quickly built up to a 40 knot gale ! I had put in 2 reefs when it reached 25kn, so with our baby staysail we were hard pressed as we worked our wa right across Guanabara bay, to broaden our approach tack . There was a mad scramble of fishing boats and tugs all trying find shelter. We were fairly flying in, in a mass of spray, and for the first time ever, we saw a fishing boat actually trying to get out of OUR way! Some of the bigger fishing boats were towing daisy chains of little fishermen behind them. We worked our way past the fort, and found some shelter behind Jurajuba point, before heading into the bay, past Nitaroi, and down to Club Naval Charitas to drop anchor. The trip was 65miles and took 14 hours, a leisurly 4.6knot average! Sadly, our Radar died between Ipanema and Copacobana, so its one of the first things we will need to get fixed here. It's one of the only defences one has against the fishing boats at night !
We met up with Paco , the Belgium single hander, who had left Abraao the previous Wednesday, when we had called it off. He did 15miles in his first 24hours , and ended up taking 48hours for the trip. He was quite philosophical about it, and said that we had made the right call! He had broached a few times, and been thrown off some big breaking waves, with a "crash", but no damage! When he opened his anchor locker to anchor here, he found his chain and anchor had turned upside down in the locker, and had to take out all his chain and warp to find his anchor! He has now decided NOT to sail directly from Rio back to Begium, and intends to work his way up the coast and leave from the Caribean in May 2010, so we will no doubt meet up with him again! He checked out yesterday, en route to Buzios, and asked if I would like to go in to Rio with him, so that he could take me to "check in" with the Port Captain. What a pleasure, after all the hassles of Angra! We caught the10.30 Charitas ferry into Rio (R$ 8), which takes 14minutes to do the 7miles, walked for 8 minutes to the Port Captains offices, with a few minutes to spare, as they close the doors at 11.00am. They then deal with everyone inside, so that they can go on lunch at 12.00! I was checked IN, and OUT , in twenty minutes, and, they took all the photo copies themselves!! I was back on the boat at anchor in Charitas before they went on lunch!!
The Club Naval Charitas is a super club, with fantastic facilities.They charge R$10 pd for 3 days,at anchor, R$20pd for the next 3days, and R$30pd thereafter. Its about twice that if one takes a marina berth. We are looking forward to meeting the legendry "Suzie", who make a point of meeting and greeting every new cruiser, and showing them the ropes, but with the weather so foul at the moment, we only expect to see her on the week end.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Frogs, Anchoring and a final blast from Abrooa!
Last week, for the second time in as many days, our Sheer Tenacity was under threat from a dragging French ketch. He is STILL determined to go round the Horn, despite inadequate ground tackle and a manual windlass.On the first occassion, I was helping Chris Hull deploy a safety anchor from his bow in a Southerly buster. He was on a mooring bouy in a congested anchorage, and was understandably worried about the condition of the ground tackle. Tinker and I reversed in 25 knots to drop a 20kg CQR 30mts ahead of the mooring bouy , while Chris paid out the rode and made fast. I then headed back towards Sheer Tenacity , who was holding firm on our 30kg Bruce, and 50mts of 10mm chain. Mary was standing on the bow yelling at this French Fellow, who was dragging down on us, sideways , while trying to pull UP his anchor on the manual windlass. Mary's yells finally produced results, and his wife started the engine, and just managed to avoid us. He then proceeded to power around, looking for another place to anchor, wisely out of our earshot! But not far enough, and still upwind! Two days later , we went through exactly the same drama, and once again he dragged 100mts down towards us, and only just avoided taking out our bowsprit , when I exhorted him to START YOUR FROGGING ENGINE!!!
Jeremy and I had shared a few laughs about Brazilian anchoring techniques, which usually involve trying to get as close as possible to the beach, and tossing out an undersized anchor attached to a few metres of chain, and a piece of string ! Thankfully, they are mainly day/fair weather sailors, and have not been around when things get nasty. But we have been advised to excercise caution when in close proximity to some French yachts! Suggestions about keeping a safe swing circle are normally acknowledged by their National single digit salute! Our Fellow was too busy winding chain, to waste time saluting, so our kindness went unacknowledged. Thankfully, he then chose to re anchor about a mile away from us.......leaving just enough room for another Fellow, to squeeze in on his 48ft blue steel ketch, and drop his anchor and 20 mts, on the run, wrong way to the prevailing wind, almost on top of our Bruce. I was en route to refill water jugs, so detoured past him to point out this fact, and that we had LOTS of chain out because of the sudden strong southerly winds. He smiled, and as is their norm, ignored me.
Yesterdays last fish and chips lunch in Abrooa was cut short, by a sudden, and violent wind, which preceded the front. As we Tinkered our way back to the boat, we watched with relief, as the big Blue ketch, dragged his way between Sheer Tenacity, and Jervon, and only just managed to avoid the rocks half a mile downwind. He took off across the bay blowing blue smoke, as he powered his way against the 30-40knots of wind, to seek shelter . We took turns on anchor watch, from 15.00hrs until 02.30 the this morning, when the gale abated. During the night, nine large trawlers and fishing boats came in to seek shelter from the elements, and we were once again very pleased that we have chosen the ground tackle we have, and take the time and trouble to set the hook properly! Don't they teach them this in France and Brazil, or are they just slow learners?? Mind you, poor technique is not the sole prerogative of the Latins . We have witnessed a fellow South African, proud of his amount of chain, drop his hook, and all 80 mtrs of chain on top of it, in a heap, like a doggy doo-doo, when he's only 40 mts from the beach! One can never afford to be too casual (or arrogant), and even when you think you have done everything by the book, the sea can, and will often, still teach you a lesson!
Next stop Nitaroi.
Jeremy and I had shared a few laughs about Brazilian anchoring techniques, which usually involve trying to get as close as possible to the beach, and tossing out an undersized anchor attached to a few metres of chain, and a piece of string ! Thankfully, they are mainly day/fair weather sailors, and have not been around when things get nasty. But we have been advised to excercise caution when in close proximity to some French yachts! Suggestions about keeping a safe swing circle are normally acknowledged by their National single digit salute! Our Fellow was too busy winding chain, to waste time saluting, so our kindness went unacknowledged. Thankfully, he then chose to re anchor about a mile away from us.......leaving just enough room for another Fellow, to squeeze in on his 48ft blue steel ketch, and drop his anchor and 20 mts, on the run, wrong way to the prevailing wind, almost on top of our Bruce. I was en route to refill water jugs, so detoured past him to point out this fact, and that we had LOTS of chain out because of the sudden strong southerly winds. He smiled, and as is their norm, ignored me.
Yesterdays last fish and chips lunch in Abrooa was cut short, by a sudden, and violent wind, which preceded the front. As we Tinkered our way back to the boat, we watched with relief, as the big Blue ketch, dragged his way between Sheer Tenacity, and Jervon, and only just managed to avoid the rocks half a mile downwind. He took off across the bay blowing blue smoke, as he powered his way against the 30-40knots of wind, to seek shelter . We took turns on anchor watch, from 15.00hrs until 02.30 the this morning, when the gale abated. During the night, nine large trawlers and fishing boats came in to seek shelter from the elements, and we were once again very pleased that we have chosen the ground tackle we have, and take the time and trouble to set the hook properly! Don't they teach them this in France and Brazil, or are they just slow learners?? Mind you, poor technique is not the sole prerogative of the Latins . We have witnessed a fellow South African, proud of his amount of chain, drop his hook, and all 80 mtrs of chain on top of it, in a heap, like a doggy doo-doo, when he's only 40 mts from the beach! One can never afford to be too casual (or arrogant), and even when you think you have done everything by the book, the sea can, and will often, still teach you a lesson!
Next stop Nitaroi.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Of Cormorants and Maestros!
Perhaps it is the return of Summer, but there are definitely more Comorant Club applications around. Yesterday we witnessed a very unusual new age blonde application, from, it must be said, a real "Maestro"... Well that's the name of their 45 ft Bavaria anyway She certainly put on a spectacular performance, synchronised with screaming engines, vertical take offs, and very real danger to life and limb! Maestro arrived elegantly enough in the anchorage, towing their tender, and after doing a lap of honour they chose their spot, and dropped the hook . When all was secure, Madam Maestro was delegated the task of collecting their waiting guests from the shore. So eager was she to meet them, and so confident was she in her duck driving, that she started the powerful little outboard, and took off with a tail walk. The only small problem was that she had forgotten to untie the tender from the mothership !
We heard the roar of the engine, followed by a bang and a scream, and looked up in time, to see the tender heading skywards, while Madame Maestro was being thrown backwards out the boat butt first. The tender landed upside down a few metres in front of her, with engine still racing, and prop spinning! Thankfully the plugs were soon immersed and it soon cut out. Jeremy, from Jervon, had also witnessed the drama, and being the closest to them, he had his boat up on the plane in short time, as he rowed to the rescue. He arrived to find Madame Maestro lying half on the sugar scoop gasping, while Master Maestro was describing in his very best Spanish, what a clever lady she was! After this, his main concern was to get the tender the right way up, trying to start the drowned engine, and, fetching his guests. Jeremy boarded the boat, and helped Madam Maestro up onto the sugerscoop, while ascertaining that she was not hurt. My immediate urge , when I realised that apart from her bruised ego, she was unhurt, was, of course, to rush across with New Membership forms. Why should Mary be the Cormorant Clubs only new member this week?
Another cruiser helped him sort out the engine , and had it running again in quick time. Jeremy received a very nice bottle of Argentinian red wine which will be enjoying with todays braai, and I received a follow up blog story- PLUS, proof that some people are just slow learners! Mr Maestro drove up to Jervon, with the "Kill" lanyard STILL unattached to his wrist, as had been the case with his wife yesterday! They are there precisely to STOP spinning propellers cutting up and killing people, when accidents happen!
Still on Cormorant Club membership matters, I was in Salvador, and on the jetty , when "Thunderchild" arrived after the 2006 Cape to Bahia race. There I witnessed what was for me, the biggest single, simultaneous Cormorant club application by a crew !!! The moment the yacht was secure, the entire crew of 8 ,hurled themselves into the smelly Club Nautica water, with only a beer can in each hand to keep them afloat! The circumstances were as follows. Thunderchild had left Cape Town like a bat out of hell, and had opened up a significant overall lead in the race, having done something like 1200 miles in the first three days.... Then they noticed a structural crack in the frame supporting their modified new keel. Faced with the choice of abandoning the race, and beating back to Cape against the South Easter and swell, or flattening the boat out and heading dead downwind for Salvador, they chose the latter. They cross braced the frame as best they could, prepared the boat for immediate "Abandon ship", alerted one other competitor , with whom they reported their situation daily. Their relief when they finally arrived in Salvador, with life jackets lashed to all the railings, was palpable. I nominate them all as all Honorary Members!
Next in line , Frogs and Anchors!
We heard the roar of the engine, followed by a bang and a scream, and looked up in time, to see the tender heading skywards, while Madame Maestro was being thrown backwards out the boat butt first. The tender landed upside down a few metres in front of her, with engine still racing, and prop spinning! Thankfully the plugs were soon immersed and it soon cut out. Jeremy, from Jervon, had also witnessed the drama, and being the closest to them, he had his boat up on the plane in short time, as he rowed to the rescue. He arrived to find Madame Maestro lying half on the sugar scoop gasping, while Master Maestro was describing in his very best Spanish, what a clever lady she was! After this, his main concern was to get the tender the right way up, trying to start the drowned engine, and, fetching his guests. Jeremy boarded the boat, and helped Madam Maestro up onto the sugerscoop, while ascertaining that she was not hurt. My immediate urge , when I realised that apart from her bruised ego, she was unhurt, was, of course, to rush across with New Membership forms. Why should Mary be the Cormorant Clubs only new member this week?
Another cruiser helped him sort out the engine , and had it running again in quick time. Jeremy received a very nice bottle of Argentinian red wine which will be enjoying with todays braai, and I received a follow up blog story- PLUS, proof that some people are just slow learners! Mr Maestro drove up to Jervon, with the "Kill" lanyard STILL unattached to his wrist, as had been the case with his wife yesterday! They are there precisely to STOP spinning propellers cutting up and killing people, when accidents happen!
Still on Cormorant Club membership matters, I was in Salvador, and on the jetty , when "Thunderchild" arrived after the 2006 Cape to Bahia race. There I witnessed what was for me, the biggest single, simultaneous Cormorant club application by a crew !!! The moment the yacht was secure, the entire crew of 8 ,hurled themselves into the smelly Club Nautica water, with only a beer can in each hand to keep them afloat! The circumstances were as follows. Thunderchild had left Cape Town like a bat out of hell, and had opened up a significant overall lead in the race, having done something like 1200 miles in the first three days.... Then they noticed a structural crack in the frame supporting their modified new keel. Faced with the choice of abandoning the race, and beating back to Cape against the South Easter and swell, or flattening the boat out and heading dead downwind for Salvador, they chose the latter. They cross braced the frame as best they could, prepared the boat for immediate "Abandon ship", alerted one other competitor , with whom they reported their situation daily. Their relief when they finally arrived in Salvador, with life jackets lashed to all the railings, was palpable. I nominate them all as all Honorary Members!
Next in line , Frogs and Anchors!
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Mary joins the Cormorant Club!!
Membership of this elite cruising club is usually a well guarded secret, although when discussed among the "yachtie" community, it is a surprisingly well patronised club! Membership to this club is usually granted very suddenly, unrequested, and accompanied by an extremely wide range of emotions. These emotions cover the full orbit from Hilarity, through Mirth and Chuckles, via Care and Concern, too Full on Rage.... Depending upon the circumstances and perspective. Whether one is a bystander/spectator, a participant, or a brand new member.
How exactly does one qualify for membership to such an exclusive club? Is it expensive? The answers two these questions are...Very easily.... and Sometimes!!! Membership is automatically confered on all those who cannot resist the urge to take a quick swim, fully clothed, in that small, but usually widening gap, between the yacht tender and the Yacht or Jetty. Membership is often accompanied by much shouting and screaming, culminating in laughter when the new member is found to be safe and unharmed!
Most new members choose Individual Membership, but this is not always the case, and it is not unheard of for entire crews to become members simultaneously. Chris and Helen Hull chose this strategy when boarding their tender at the restuarant jetty in Ubitubinha. After a very festive meal, Chris manouvered the tender alongside, and leaned over to hold onto the jetty at precisely the same moment that Helen chose to board. With their combined weight on one pontoon, the tender squirted out like a bar of soap in a shower, and landed perfectly safely, the right way up, on top of my Tinker. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about the two new members of the Cormorant Club, who were very busy playing the Blame Game while splashing around next to the jetty in their going out clothes! Apart from expensive dents to their pride and wet wallets, cellphones, and digital cameras also joined the club with more expensive consequences. Women can usually recover their dignity much more quickly than men. A common ploy is for them to claim, with nipples erect from either shock or cold, that they have always wanted to enter a wet T-Shirt competition, but have never had the courage! Men dont often have such a convenient excuse on hand.
Mary's membership, however, is somewhat debateable. Normally one is either a full member, or a non Member.These are the circumstances, and her membership qualification will have to be put to the vote. We had been invited to dinner on "Jervon". We had also been asked by Fransisco to look after his tender while he had taken a ferry into Angra to sort out his visa problems. His tender was tied on to Sheer Tenacity just behind the boarding ladder, which meant that our position relative to the ladder was a little different when we returned after dinner. Having climbed in and out of Tinker a thousand times, Mary was perhaps a little "casual" when standing up and grabbing the ladder, and unaware that we were a teeny bit further away than normal. ( Caiperinha's are a well know cause of casualness in Brazil!)
Tinker widened the gap, and Mary was left hanging on to the ladder, with a midrif waterline. She was therefore denied even the wet t-shirt excuse ! Now you can't be a Half Member of the Club ! Mary says she only applied for Temporary Membership, but others might say she qualifies as a Country Member! It will have to be put to the vote!
How exactly does one qualify for membership to such an exclusive club? Is it expensive? The answers two these questions are...Very easily.... and Sometimes!!! Membership is automatically confered on all those who cannot resist the urge to take a quick swim, fully clothed, in that small, but usually widening gap, between the yacht tender and the Yacht or Jetty. Membership is often accompanied by much shouting and screaming, culminating in laughter when the new member is found to be safe and unharmed!
Most new members choose Individual Membership, but this is not always the case, and it is not unheard of for entire crews to become members simultaneously. Chris and Helen Hull chose this strategy when boarding their tender at the restuarant jetty in Ubitubinha. After a very festive meal, Chris manouvered the tender alongside, and leaned over to hold onto the jetty at precisely the same moment that Helen chose to board. With their combined weight on one pontoon, the tender squirted out like a bar of soap in a shower, and landed perfectly safely, the right way up, on top of my Tinker. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about the two new members of the Cormorant Club, who were very busy playing the Blame Game while splashing around next to the jetty in their going out clothes! Apart from expensive dents to their pride and wet wallets, cellphones, and digital cameras also joined the club with more expensive consequences. Women can usually recover their dignity much more quickly than men. A common ploy is for them to claim, with nipples erect from either shock or cold, that they have always wanted to enter a wet T-Shirt competition, but have never had the courage! Men dont often have such a convenient excuse on hand.
Mary's membership, however, is somewhat debateable. Normally one is either a full member, or a non Member.These are the circumstances, and her membership qualification will have to be put to the vote. We had been invited to dinner on "Jervon". We had also been asked by Fransisco to look after his tender while he had taken a ferry into Angra to sort out his visa problems. His tender was tied on to Sheer Tenacity just behind the boarding ladder, which meant that our position relative to the ladder was a little different when we returned after dinner. Having climbed in and out of Tinker a thousand times, Mary was perhaps a little "casual" when standing up and grabbing the ladder, and unaware that we were a teeny bit further away than normal. ( Caiperinha's are a well know cause of casualness in Brazil!)
Tinker widened the gap, and Mary was left hanging on to the ladder, with a midrif waterline. She was therefore denied even the wet t-shirt excuse ! Now you can't be a Half Member of the Club ! Mary says she only applied for Temporary Membership, but others might say she qualifies as a Country Member! It will have to be put to the vote!
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Leaving Home---Again!
We really can't believe that we have spent over three months in Ilha Grande, and that we are now preparing to head Northwards ! The weather has been a lot cooler, with low fronts and rain every 4/5 days, but it is still a whole lot more pleasant than winter in the Cape!
We left Jervon in Abrooa, and came around to ICAR again on a wet and miserable Monday,to give us the rest of the week tocheck out with the authorities, as we had a feeling that it would again take a ridiculous amount of time! We were right, but at least this time we were prepared for it! We now KNOW why the Amazon rain forests are under seige ! Its not hard wood that they need, its the paper they need to fill in and photocopy all the Policia Federal and Receita Federal forms !!
On Tuesday we caught the bus in to Angra, armed with copies af the required forms which we had downloaded from the website. We then went to the stationery shop to buy the required DARF form( yes, thats what its called!), and headed of to the Policia Federal, only to be told we were in the wrong place, as in the last two months they had opened a "new" facility, down at the Warf. This new facility was actually a run down building staffed by the same obnoxious people we had to deal with when we first arrived! After a while Mary was presented with a voucher indicating that she should now go to the Bank of Brazil, pay R$67, and come back with a rainforest of copies. I was told I must go to an internet cafe to get my form, then pay by direct transfer, and come back with the same plethura of paper. We did not need the DARF form, but had to use the new payment form given to Mary. When I queried why we were being told to do things separately, I was given short shift by an arrogant official who said it was "Impossible" and I must go to an internet cafe!It It transpired later that their system had crashed half way through our process !
So we headed back to the boat determined to get every thing sorted, and copied, and paid for the next morning, so that we could get on with our provisioning.
The bus ride in was interesting! It was so full, we had to get in the back door, which at least meant we could not pay, as this is done up front! A gallant Brazilian gave up his seat for Mary, but it might have been because the small family sitting on the seat in front of her were sobbing their eyes out , and suffering some very traumatic and private family grief, and the poor fellow could'nt take it! While I hung on for my life to the overhead handrails above the aisle,the liitle girl wedged into the seat at my knees, spent most off the trip puking into a leaky shopping packet, and in serious danger of spilling the contents all over my only Porto Capitano smart clothes ! All the while, Barricello Bus Driver was trying to break Aryton Sennas ICAR to Angra record ! We tumbled out into the hottest day we have had for a while, and learned that the Bank only opens at 10.00am.!!
Determined to stay cool, we then found a Xerox shop, got all the copies, waited for the bank to open, paid the R$134( R532), and headed back to Policia Federal. This time we were met by sweetness herself, who must have been embarrassed by her boss the previous day, and she ushered us down the passage to a fellow who had us stamped , approved and extended until November in less than an hour ! Time to get to Porto Capitano before 12.00!! We made it with two minutes to spare!! Relief turned to despair when we read their new opening times ! Mondays 13.30-15.30, Tues-Fri 08.3--10.30! From 24hrs per day to 2 hrs for only5 days, shows an interesting approach to productivity and customer service! Once again, our simple checking out will take three days, even when we know the ropes!
Spent a frustrating Thursday trying to get to the bottom of my genset ptoblems. The general consensus from all the local experts, including that my Nuclear Power station friend, Celso, is that the reiring done by B M Power in Cape Town , is not exactly in accordance with the Mase Specs, and that either the number of turns on each section of the rotor, or the guage of wire used, is incorrect I will probably have to take it out in Trinidad, and leavehere for a few weeks to be rewired.
Left the boat at sparrows this morning, in the pouring rain, to pay my last respects to the Porto Capitano. Now one has to dress up smartly for this very important man, who is only availailable between 8.30 and 10.30. Its quite a tricky challenge to board ones tender in pouring rain, land on a beach at spring low, drag the tender 40 mts up the beach, secure it, walk 300mts to a bus stop, catch one in rush hour, get off in Angra, and walk another 500mtsin pouring rain to the BIG mans Headquarters, and........still look dignified and respectable..... and more importantly, remember to be respectful!! Surprise , surprise! I was stamped, cleared for Salvador, and back in the rain within 5 minutes !
I was so chuffed that I ducked into the fish market to by a Kilo of Queen prawns for supper, which we will be sharing with Michael Martin, a new American friend, who has just launched his steel DeVilliers 45 ft yacht, and who will be sailing up the coast to the Carribean, with his lovely Brazilian wife Larissa, during the same time period as ourselves.( de Villiers trained under Dudley Dix I believe, and when Mike sent him photos of Sheer Tenacity, he replied saying "they are damn fine boats!"!
We plan to do a shore power battery charge here, top up with diesel, and head back round to Abrooa, for a re union /farewell party with Jervon, before waiting for a good weather slot to leave for Rio, where we will spend a couple of days at the Club Naval Charitas, in Nitaroi. After that we plan to head for Buzios, Abrolhos, Victoria, Camamu and then only Salvador.!
When we finally say farewell to Ilha Grande, I guess it will be like leaving home again! Officialdom aside, it has been a wonderful introduction to the cruising lifestyle, and an experience we will never forget!
Cheers from ICAR!
We left Jervon in Abrooa, and came around to ICAR again on a wet and miserable Monday,to give us the rest of the week tocheck out with the authorities, as we had a feeling that it would again take a ridiculous amount of time! We were right, but at least this time we were prepared for it! We now KNOW why the Amazon rain forests are under seige ! Its not hard wood that they need, its the paper they need to fill in and photocopy all the Policia Federal and Receita Federal forms !!
On Tuesday we caught the bus in to Angra, armed with copies af the required forms which we had downloaded from the website. We then went to the stationery shop to buy the required DARF form( yes, thats what its called!), and headed of to the Policia Federal, only to be told we were in the wrong place, as in the last two months they had opened a "new" facility, down at the Warf. This new facility was actually a run down building staffed by the same obnoxious people we had to deal with when we first arrived! After a while Mary was presented with a voucher indicating that she should now go to the Bank of Brazil, pay R$67, and come back with a rainforest of copies. I was told I must go to an internet cafe to get my form, then pay by direct transfer, and come back with the same plethura of paper. We did not need the DARF form, but had to use the new payment form given to Mary. When I queried why we were being told to do things separately, I was given short shift by an arrogant official who said it was "Impossible" and I must go to an internet cafe!It It transpired later that their system had crashed half way through our process !
So we headed back to the boat determined to get every thing sorted, and copied, and paid for the next morning, so that we could get on with our provisioning.
The bus ride in was interesting! It was so full, we had to get in the back door, which at least meant we could not pay, as this is done up front! A gallant Brazilian gave up his seat for Mary, but it might have been because the small family sitting on the seat in front of her were sobbing their eyes out , and suffering some very traumatic and private family grief, and the poor fellow could'nt take it! While I hung on for my life to the overhead handrails above the aisle,the liitle girl wedged into the seat at my knees, spent most off the trip puking into a leaky shopping packet, and in serious danger of spilling the contents all over my only Porto Capitano smart clothes ! All the while, Barricello Bus Driver was trying to break Aryton Sennas ICAR to Angra record ! We tumbled out into the hottest day we have had for a while, and learned that the Bank only opens at 10.00am.!!
Determined to stay cool, we then found a Xerox shop, got all the copies, waited for the bank to open, paid the R$134( R532), and headed back to Policia Federal. This time we were met by sweetness herself, who must have been embarrassed by her boss the previous day, and she ushered us down the passage to a fellow who had us stamped , approved and extended until November in less than an hour ! Time to get to Porto Capitano before 12.00!! We made it with two minutes to spare!! Relief turned to despair when we read their new opening times ! Mondays 13.30-15.30, Tues-Fri 08.3--10.30! From 24hrs per day to 2 hrs for only5 days, shows an interesting approach to productivity and customer service! Once again, our simple checking out will take three days, even when we know the ropes!
Spent a frustrating Thursday trying to get to the bottom of my genset ptoblems. The general consensus from all the local experts, including that my Nuclear Power station friend, Celso, is that the reiring done by B M Power in Cape Town , is not exactly in accordance with the Mase Specs, and that either the number of turns on each section of the rotor, or the guage of wire used, is incorrect I will probably have to take it out in Trinidad, and leavehere for a few weeks to be rewired.
Left the boat at sparrows this morning, in the pouring rain, to pay my last respects to the Porto Capitano. Now one has to dress up smartly for this very important man, who is only availailable between 8.30 and 10.30. Its quite a tricky challenge to board ones tender in pouring rain, land on a beach at spring low, drag the tender 40 mts up the beach, secure it, walk 300mts to a bus stop, catch one in rush hour, get off in Angra, and walk another 500mtsin pouring rain to the BIG mans Headquarters, and........still look dignified and respectable..... and more importantly, remember to be respectful!! Surprise , surprise! I was stamped, cleared for Salvador, and back in the rain within 5 minutes !
I was so chuffed that I ducked into the fish market to by a Kilo of Queen prawns for supper, which we will be sharing with Michael Martin, a new American friend, who has just launched his steel DeVilliers 45 ft yacht, and who will be sailing up the coast to the Carribean, with his lovely Brazilian wife Larissa, during the same time period as ourselves.( de Villiers trained under Dudley Dix I believe, and when Mike sent him photos of Sheer Tenacity, he replied saying "they are damn fine boats!"!
We plan to do a shore power battery charge here, top up with diesel, and head back round to Abrooa, for a re union /farewell party with Jervon, before waiting for a good weather slot to leave for Rio, where we will spend a couple of days at the Club Naval Charitas, in Nitaroi. After that we plan to head for Buzios, Abrolhos, Victoria, Camamu and then only Salvador.!
When we finally say farewell to Ilha Grande, I guess it will be like leaving home again! Officialdom aside, it has been a wonderful introduction to the cruising lifestyle, and an experience we will never forget!
Cheers from ICAR!
Inaugural Meeting of Ilha Grande Chapter of HBYC !
August 1st has seen the return of the sun, which went missing a week ago! Time to shake out the feathers, and stretch the legs ... at least to do a little shopping for fresh veggies and fruit, before congregating on the beach front bar/restuarant to attend the inaugural meetiing of the Ilha Grande chapter of the HBYC ! Present are likely to be JC and Jackie, (Taniwa), recently arrived,( but more of their arrival later!) from St Helena via Rio, Jeremy & Yvonne ( Jervon), Chris and Helen Hull ( Sea Lion), and ourselves, Rod & Mary, ( Sheer Tenacity). I cant help but to realise that this unusual gathering of HBYC cruisers, some 5000miles from home has a greater probability of representing a quorum, than the usual turn out at a HBYC AGM!
Out of the mist and rain yesterday morning, we were hailed by JC and Jackie, who had taken a gap in the weather, and motored down from Rio. They had spent the previous evening in Enseada Palmas, before popping round to Abrooa. Taniwa circled the anchored yachts, before presenting us with an unusal challenge after showing us his uniques Irish /American Anchoring style ! He chose his spot carefully, and dropped the hook..... all 120ft plus 45lb CQR, with a minor splash, and a fair amount of Blue Cursing, as JC watched in disbelief as the chain parted at the 120ft mark, and took its leave of Taniwa! They had been anchored for days off St Helena on the same chain, and it chose this moment, in gentle rainy conditions to fail! The headed out into the bay to calm down, lick their wounds, and prepare a second anchor and rode
Our challenge, was of course to recover the 120ft of chain and anchor from the black mud on the 9mt deep seabed ! I headed off in Tinker with a handheld GPS, and when lined up with our reference points from SheerTenacity, Mary called 'Mark!". Jeremy rigged up a grappling hook from his dinghy, and began to troll the area. After persevering for about 40 minutes , he hit paydirt, and hooked something heavy. His efforts nearly ended with him in the water, as his little rigid dinghy did some serious duck dives under the load! A flotilla of tenders arrived to "help", and after a noisy committee meeting, the Plan of Action was agreed upon...... then Re Done..... and Revised again! After a while, the stern of Taniwa was dragged to the drop point by Tugboat Tinker, and the load was tranferred by warps and rolling hitches round to the bow rollers, until the 120ft of chain plus CQR were safely back on board Taniwa. Beers an Rum are the promised rewards! Todays meeting could be fun!
Catch you later!
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