We headed home Friday and Saturday and then back to Gemini J on Sunday where we hoisted the England flag (not nautically recognised) in place of our ensign and settled down to watch “that match” it was past midnight here when it finished and we were exhausted!
Monday morning came and with it 3 engineers who spent another few hours on board finally fitting the engine and doing all the preparations. The last issue was that we needed the electrician to come and connect the cooling fan and check all the electrics. So, once again, so near yet so far, and we were waiting !
I met my friend at 6am on Tuesday for a walk – knowing that the engineer would be back first thing to finish the installation. It is great being up early and walking before sunrise (it’s also by far the coolest part of the day)
Good to their word this time, Pedro and the electrician arrived at 8:20 and started work – by ten past nine they had the engine running – we were so very excited to finally see the cooling water coming out of the boat and hear our new motor running. They took another couple of hours finishing everything and checking/double checking then they finally told us – it’s finished !!!! Almost 2 months since our first problem and we are the proud owners of a new Yanmar 29hp engine!! It has been a long haul and extremely stressful at times but we are very excited to be able to set off on more adventures.
We went home for the night then the following morning we had another early start and headed straight back to Cartagena with the aim of setting “sail” for Mazarrón. We loaded the boat with everything we needed for a trip, I wandered into town with a friend for a quick cake and coffee to give me energy for the voyage of course 😉 whilst skipper Nigel checked and re-checked the engine.
And then, we set off (it was a little tricky to get out of our 10m berth alongside in the 10m space but Skipper Nigel did a brilliant job) – the engine sounds amazing and goes well too – it was certainly put through it’s paces in forward and reverse a few times to get into the channel and away. Before we knew it we were out of the marina alongside the second cruise ship of the year to visit. If you look closely we found ourselves looking up at people in the swimming pool !!!!
It was amazing to be back out on the sea – on a beautiful day for sailing ….. only all our energy (and nervous energy at that) was focused on that engine. The first boat we saw was “Chem Eagle” – a great sign with my family name being Eagle. It really made me smile. It all ran very smoothly, if sail-less due to engine testing, and by five o’clock we were in Mazarrón
The engineers are from Mazarrón and he said they would come and double check the engine the next day (Thursday) – I woke up early and went for a wander – the sunrise was pretty lovely that day.
We spent the day relaxing – and found a sweet treats cafe where I got a latte and scone while Nigel had a bacon buttie !!! Brilliant. We texted the engineer in the afternoon to find out when he would be over …..no reply…..hmmmm once again we were waiting !!! He finally messaged me at 11:15pm saying he couldn’t come on Friday as he had to go and fix a boat in Formentera (Balearics!) – but he would send someone else. By the next morning we were a little fed up again but we wandered over to the workshop and met Fernando – he came back to Gemini J and did an engine check. He also came out with us to listen to the exhaust which we thought sounded a bit like a sports car at high revs. He explained that they had changed the configuration of the exhaust pipe which was why it would sound different. We were out for a few minutes putting the engine through different revs – ears to the deck, mechanic down below then back on deck. He was very happy with everything and once again we’re good to go. Skipper Nigel had to keep warning Fernando to keep safe, sit down etc (they tend to hop about the boat like mountain goats) and he found out why as we made the 180 degree turn to come back to port. The boat heeled like crazy – Skipper Nigel was still in high revs going somewhat faster than he ever normally would to make a turn (a combo of new engine and nervous energy I think). Luckily Fernando and I were both sitting down at the time otherwise we might have been in a man overboard drill ;-). The engine was quickly slowed and we got back on berth with no problems other than a very apologetic skipper.
The final job (except for paying the bill) was to take the final remains of our old engine round to the workshop. We will wait to hear if it holds any value…..
We headed to our sweet treats cafe in the afternoon for a celebration milkshake. In the evening we were treated to a firework display in honour of Virgen del Carmen who is the patron / protector of the sea (and the armed forces) a great end to our stay in Mazarrón – tomorrow our next journey begins.
The Adventures of Gemini J 