Vale Edith Worrall

Seen here on the aft deck of Crystal Blues, Ley's mother "Edie" was always an enthusiastic visitor and loved her fishing - she spent countless hours on board trailing a line in the water.

Married to husband Raymond for  an impressive 65 years, she was cheerful, optimistic and delightfully opinionated.

Edie and Ray traveled widely around Australia, often meeting up with Ley and I in Sydney or on the Gold Coast when we were sailing the Australian coast.

Advancing years did limit her mobility, yet one of my fondest memories is of Edie boarding Crystal Blues in her own unique way. Standing on the dock, she rolled her body under the life lines and ended up flat on her back on the side deck - mission accomplished, she said it was easier than climbing over the wires. The tricky bit was getting her vertical again !

Following Ray's death some three years ago Edie continued to live at home alone.  A little frustrated with life and the world, if anything she became more opinionated, but continued to enjoy her grand children and growing numbers of great grand children.

She passed away on March 10th at 92 years of age, after a short illness, with both Ley and her sister, Sandra, by her side. She's finally dancing with Ray again.

Cape Town Clean Up - We're Traveling Home

We're leaving Crystal Blues in the marina at RCYC here in Cape Town and traveling to Australia to be with family for a few weeks.

In fact Ley is already home in Melbourne, and I fly on Qantas tomorrow.

I have been shutting down systems, pickling the water maker etc, and have removed most of the lines from the deck.  These have all been laundered as you can see in the photo here.

Cape Town has very clean air, except when the South Easterly blows, bringing with it the dust and dirt off Table Mountain.

Stack Packs R Us - The New Main Sail Bag Is Finished

It took almost 5 days of solid work, but the new stack pack is complete and fitted to the boom.

Ley is seen here, proudly inspecting the bag, which was completed just 10 minutes before she departed for Cape Town airport - she's off to Melbourne for a while and I will follow in a few days time.

The bag was made from gray Sunbrella with black mesh inserts made of Serge Ferari Stamoid mesh (and isn't that material expensive...).

The bag is stitched with Tenara thread made by Gore (of Goretex fame) in the USA. The thread will certainly outlast the fabric, as we proved with the last main sail bag, where the fabric eventually disintegrated but every seam held.

Our sails are also stitched with Tenara, which we believe has a potential life of 25 years - if only the fabrics could last that long.

Thanks to Royal Cape Yacht Club for providing a great working space for us - most of the job was cut and sewn in the Regatta Function Room at RCYC.

No Images ? Normal Service May Resume Shortly ...

It seems that our latest blog posts, published from here in South Africa, are not replicating very well across the internet, with variations from region to region.  While people in some regions are unable to see the images, they are viewed perfectly well in other countries.

We understand this is a problem related to Google Images, and the way that images are replicated on multiple servers in different regions.  All our images are hosted on the Google Photos site, so right now there is little we can personally do to rectify the issue.  However we do apologise, and ask that you return in a day or so when Google may actually allow you to see the photos we have so carefully prepared ... image replication (globally) can apparently take some time.

Botswana Safari #3 - Travel Details

Some readers have asked for details on our recent Botswana trip, so here is the information on where we went and how we traveled.  The map is interactive - click on the icons for images from that site. On the map below, we started at the top and traveled anti-clockwise.

We specially wanted to see Botswana because of the fantastic book series we had read - The Number One Ladies Detective Agency, by Alexander McCall Smith.  Those books spoke vividly of the spirit, courtesy  and graciousness that is everywhere in Botswana.

The best game viewing was in the Chobe National Park (right at the top) and in the Moremi Game Reserve, in the south west.  However, you will see game wherever you travel in these regions - baboons and warthogs run around the towns, and elephants have right-of-way corridors between the towns and the farms.  Giraffe run along side the highways even 200km from any national parks - the wildlife is everywhere.



We flew in and out of Kasane in northern Botswana, which is only a few hours drive from Victoria Falls. It would have been more efficient to start in Kasane (or Victoria Falls) and finish in Maun, had we known the state of the tracks when we booked.

4WD Truck Rental - Bushlore

There are many companies offering 4WD rental vehicles at varying prices, the cheaper units being not so well equipped. Our truck was a Toyota Land Cruiser long wheel base utility, with a six cylinder diesel and a custom camper rig fitted into the utility tray. It came from Bushlore in South Africa, one of the more substantial hire operations, who provide excellent equipment. They have bases in Kasane, Victoria Falls, Johannesburg and Windhoek (Namibia). We saw many broken rental vehicles on our travels, but none from Bushlore.

The vehicle was well prepared and completely reliable. Fitted with a spacious fold out tent on the roof, it also had a 12volt refrigerator, second battery system and 100 liter water tank. Folding chairs and a folding stainless steel table stowed in the rig. We carried additional water and fuel on the roof rack. A comprehensive kit of bush travel equipment was included - two spare wheels, tyre repair kit, tow rope, compressor, tyre gauge, high-lift jack, rubber sand tracks, first aid kit etc etc.

On the back of the truck was a cunningly effective Braii plate (BBQ) that strapped to one of the spare wheels. The camper rig included compartments for everything, including massive slide out drawers for food and supplies storage.  Dual gas bottles with stove tops handled the cooking when we didn't have a fire burning. Setting up camp usually took about 20 minutes after arrival.

Detailed specifications for the truck and equipment can be downloaded here.

The Bushlore vehicles are priced from the base in Johannesburg - we paid additional fee's to take delivery in Kasane, but it saved us one or two days of highway travel to make the drive north into Botswana.

The truck was supplied with basic maps and comprehensive wildlife guides. GPS navigation and satellite telephones are options - we carried our own satellite phone, and used our iPads for GPS navigation running the Tracks 4 Africa application. With this free application we were able to purchase just the maps we wanted (Botswana) for US$29.00.  Included with the maps was a complete interactive database of the parks, reserves and camps, plus special features, viewing spots, shopping and fueling locations etc. The camp database included photography, service and contact details, so we were able to contact the parks and camps in advance for bookings and confirmations.

Detailed GPS navigation was an essential tool on our travels in Botswana - we found many other visitors lost or unsure of their travel options, as they did not have good mapping or position information.

What To Wear - And Not To Wear

It may seem bleeding obvious, but you do need to wear the right clothing.

For example, if you want to wear thongs in the showers, don't even think about wearing them to and from the shower block. The African undergrowth is full of spikes and prickles that will make you regret your decision.

This photo shows the spikes I collected on just one visit to the shower - the real problem is that some of the spikes are long enough to go right through the rubber sole. Both Ley and I suffered "spiked foot" from this silliness!

Do wear light cotton or synthetic clothing for the daytime, but be prepared to rug-up in the evenings. You certainly don't need to visit a safari outfitter - just be smart about it. The organised tour groups in brand new co-ordinated safari clothing stood out so clearly at the airport - it really did feel like Disneyland - they were all so clean and shiny. Of course they stayed in electric fenced hotels and ate in restaurants every evening... no spikes in their shoes. Those groups fly with guides into the Okavango Delta in light aircraft, no dirt tracks for them.

You can have a fine time touring in Botswana that way, but you won't have your own personal travel experiences - it wouldn't be half the fun! And you will never sit by the river in the moonlight, watching the elephants graze just meters away ...

Part 1 of our Botswana Land Cruise is here.

Part 2 of our Botswana Land Cruise is here.

Ley Preparing Dinner, While In The Background The Elephants Head For The River

After Watering The Herd Moves Toward Our Camp to Graze In Front Of Us

Botswana Safari #2 - The Wild Life Cruising Continues

This is Part 2 of our Botswana safari adventure ... if you missed Part 1 you can read it here.

Valentine's Day - These Lovers Were Celebrating

At this point I have to say that WE DID ask the park ranger at the north gate of Moremi Reserve about predators, and he said, quote, "No Lions, but maybe some hyena chasing antelope through the camp in the evenings". OK... so just an hour later I read on the national park incident log board that two lions were in the camp ground four days ago. Later we learned that the hippopotamus also come through the camp each night, and we heard them clearly close by. So, ignore what the local people say, and be prepared. 

At around 8:30pm that evening we both froze in our camp chairs as a very large predator stalked silently past our camp fire, just a meter from our camp table and maybe five meters from us.  Hyena.  Big hyena. Like a Shetland pony on steroids, but with a large wolf's head.  Beautifully spotted shaggy fur, her (the females are larger) shoulder was a foot higher than our camp table. The head was of course much higher again.  Silently gob-smacked is a good way to describe our reaction. A magnificent predator right at our dinner table. Thank god she didn't stay.

So we quickly moved our chairs closer to the truck (hyenas can work in packs), put more wood on the fire, poured a last glass of wine, gulp, and went to bed. This place is amazing. Sorry no photos of that incident ...

Next morning we talked to the resident ranger about the hyena and he said they have never been a real problem. "though sometimes they do come too close".  "How close?" we asked. "Oh well, sometimes they might walk up and sniff you ... best you don't move, just sit still" he said.  OK, we get the picture.

We found the hyena foot prints all around the camp fire the next morning, plus a deep set of rear prints where she probably sat and watched us for a while.  Smart critter, she sat on the other side of the fire, shielded by some bushes.  Read on for our progress into the Okavango Delta ...

The Work Continues - At Royal Cape Yacht Club

Ley Cutting Vinyl Stiffening Panels For The New Sail Bag

The biggest job for us this month - manufacturing a new sail bag or "stack pack" for the main sail.

Royal Cape Yacht Club have been generous with a great working space - a regatta function room that has good light, power and even a raised work platform.  Perfect.

The bag is over 5 meters long and slides into bolt rope tracks that are fitted to the sides of the boom.  Ley has been collecting the necessary materials for some time, and we found a great local canvas shop (B Canvas) who provided the missing parts for us.

It took a full day (yesterday) to mark up the fabric sections and do all the cutting out. Today we'll start the sewing, which we expect will take a couple more days. 

Botswana Safari - Land Cruising & Wild Life

On February 5 we flew from Cape Town to Kasane, a small town in northern Botswana. There we collected our rental vehicle and set out on a sublime adventure - 10 days of camping and cross country travel in northern Botswana. Our earlier game park visits in Kwa Zulu Natal had given us a real taste for this type of touring - we wanted to be independent travelers and to maximise our opportunities for wildlife viewing.

We chose Botswana because of its reputation for great wildlife experiences, plus the understanding that in Botswana the local people are generous, respectful and law abiding. This was a country we'd wanted to visit for some time. We chose our vehicle supplier because they had the best truck for us - a Toyota Land Cruiser long wheel base utility, with a double cab and a custom camper rig fitted into the utility tray at the back. The truck had a 6 cylinder diesel engine that pulled us through thick and thin without fuss, great ground clearance and significant capabilities when it came to deep sand and even deeper water. Our tent unfolded from the roof of the camper rig.

Ihaha Camp, On The Chobe River, Heaven On Earth

Kasane was bigger than we expected, it's people infected with the graciousness and courtesy that we had heard is normal here in Botswana. After some quick provisioning we drove out of town to a private camp ground on the river, where each site had its own shower, toilet en-suite, plus a Braii (BBQ) pit and benches. A five star camp ground for our first night...

Next day we provisioned in Kasane for 10 days of "back woods" travel, frankly without realising just how far off the beaten track we would be. We had a good GPS navigation system plus an efficient 12volt refrigerator and a suitable supply of beer and wine - what could possibly go wrong? Fact is, we had under estimated the truly four wheel drive and remote nature of our chosen route - mainly deep sand and muddy tracks - and we drove for six days without seeing a fuel station or a town. With much of the driving in second gear, almost always in four wheel drive, the fuel situation was actually our biggest concern. Fortunately the truck had a 160 liter main tank, but the 20 liter fuel cans on the roof were a very welcome insurance policy. Oh, and then there was the wild life...

About two hours into our trip Ley spotted our first lion - a large and healthy looking female who stalked out of the bush ahead of us and completely ignored us as she pranced by about 30 feet away. Talk about regal - clearly the attitude of the apex predator in these parts. It was a breath taking moment - we looked around for the rest of the pride, could not find them. The lioness was beautifully spotted (look at her belly) and on the prowl. She ignored us completely, emerging from the scrub and marching past us with considerable purpose before we lost sight of her.  This is when you realise that all those Tarzan movies and the Jungle Jim TV shows are just so much crap - no, I will not get out of the truck to wrestle with her.

Back Working In Cape Town, After A 10 Day Safari In Botswana

Winch Servicing - Haven't Lost Any Parts (Yet)

On Monday night we arrived back in Cape Town after a 10 day adventure in Botswana. Walking down the dock, it was a nice little buzz seeing Crystal Blues shining in the evening light - all that work polishing the stainless steel certainly paid off.

Almost immediately we dived into the list of service and maintenance jobs we have in front of us. Number One is winch servicing - we tackled just one of the primary winches before we went away, so now we have only six more winches to strip, clean and re-assemble.

The weather in Cape Town has moderated a little, though yesterday it blew at 30 knots all day.  We're also finishing off the installation of our new Mastervolt / Masterbus electrical management system, which we started back in Malaysia 12 months ago. Somehow, no matter how many jobs you actually complete, more keep appearing.  At lunch today it occurred to me that one of our next stops may be in Suriname or Guyana in South America - just what is the AC power supply there? Ley quickly checked online, and sure enough they are 120volt / 60 cycle. Which means I have to complete the AC transformer installation that I started more than 10 years ago. The work list grows longer...

Yoda, A Little Younger & Smaller Here

On a happier note, we are still in communication with some of the wonderful folk we met in Botswana. Our safari was a fantastic adventure, not for the faint-hearted, but if you like the bush and the wildlife then Botswana is the place to go.

This image shows Yoda, the smallest creature we met, a Bush Baby (Lesser Galago) that has been raised by Sarah & Wayne at Drifters Camp outside Maun in northern Botswana.

Yoda was all over us one evening, jumping between Ley and I, hanging on with those impossibly human (but miniature) hands and wrapping his tail around everything. Wonderful large eyes and ears, certainly affectionate, the only animal I've met that gives really cute tongue kisses. Just think about it ...

We'll have the full story on our Botswana safari online soon. Meanwhile it's back to the winches.

Seizing Wire Or Cable Ties - That Is The Question

Image Courtesy Rocna Anchors

So, how do you lock the screw pin on a shackle? Using monel or annealed stainless steel seizing wire is the traditional (and best) method, but it's slow, and often leads to pierced fingers and blood on the deck.  Very messy.

For really important connections (like the running back stays) we do use seizing wire, and then wrap the connection with self amalging tape to smooth it off and protect nearby body parts.

The same goes for anchor shackles, or anywhere that mechanical and/or abrasive forces are likely.

But there are many applications on-board where an alternative method can be acceptable, even though traditional wisdom advises against it...yes, nylon cable ties can be safely used in many situations.

UV Degraded Cable Tie Failure

Problem is, most nylon cable ties fail very quickly in sunlight due to UV degradation.

However you can use cable ties and expect reasonably long life if you use the correct type.

For some time we've been using UV stabilised cable ties in a range of sizes from the manufacturer KSS. Typically we get five years of reliable use from these.

Note the "W" as the final letter in the model number - that signifies "weather proof", implying UV stabilised. You can buy a similar product without that "W" notation, but it will not last as long...

Rounding The Cape Of Good Hope; The Cape Of Storms

On Monday, we finally rounded the Cape Of Good Hope. Named the "Cape Of Storms" by the Portuguese explorer Bartolomeu Dias, who rounded it in the year 1488, it remains an important milestone in a sailor's travels.

Ley, Having A Bad Hair Day At The Cape

Our rounding was simple enough, with little wind and lumpy seas. We'd seized on a rare "no wind" weather window, following almost three weeks of plus 30 and 40 knot winds.

So we motor sailed from Simon's Town to Cape Town, covering about 80 nautical miles and entering the Atlantic Ocean with sunshine and a cup of coffee in our hand. Excellent!

Just one day earlier we had visited the Cape by road, riding the funicular railway to the lighthouse station in the late afternoon.

Venturing out onto the parapet of the cliff face, we literally had to hold on to the rocks to stand up to the wind blast.  Damn this place is windy!

On our sailing passage the following day, whales, seals and penguins were our companions.  However the biggest surprise was the water temperature; 13 degrees centigrade at the Cape and barely half a degree warmer here in the marina at Royal Cape Yacht Club.  Damn this water is cold!

Cape Town & Table Mountain Approach

It was a beautiful day to round the cape.  We are now safely berthed in the marina in Cape Town and continuing with our maintenance and repairs.  We'll certainly be hiring a professional diver to clean the hull; I don't have a wetsuit thick enough to work in water this cold.  For the first time since we departed Melbourne over 10 years ago we have condensation forming on the inside of the hull, from the waterline down. I take beer from the storage locker and find that it's already cold enough to drink... well, almost cold enough.

Really; How Strong Are Your Dock Lines ?

Twelve years ago we purchased a set of plaited nylon dock lines for Crystal Blues, made by Marlow in England.

These were an expensive purchase back then, but we wanted the nylon for it's natural stretch - what a great shock absorber nylon is.

We purchased plaited nylon lines because they are quieter than double braid - they do not creak and squeak when cyclic pressure is applied at fair-leads and cleats. This silent behaviour is important to live-aboard cruisers, or at least to those who wish to sleep at night.

However we know that nylon is degraded by UV light, and in recent years we've been careful to add additional dock lines whenever the wind strength increased.

Here in South Africa the winds have been incredibly strong, and we were keen to replace the old lines as soon as possible. We looked at a range of locally made plaited lines made from nylon or polyester, and also at double braid lines that use a nylon core protected by a braided polyester cover.

Markus Loading The Test Machine

However, before spending our hard earned cash, we decided to see just how strong our existing dock lines were - could they still be trusted? We visited the Southern Ropes factory in Cape Town, where we were able to destructively test one of our existing dock lines. The results were, quite frankly, very disturbing.

With great assistance from Markus Progli at Southern Ropes our very tired dock line sample was tied to the test cell.

Markus set the test in motion and then stood back a little from the machine, with fingers planted in each ear. What was going on we asked? Markus walked even further from the machine and then explained that when the line broke the noise would be incredibly loud - loud enough for people even in adjacent factory buildings to hear it!

At his suggestion we moved further from the machine, hands over ears, waiting for the big bang. At this point the line was stretching incredibly, having increased in length over 50%.  Small creaking noises could be heard, high pitched squeaks and squeals from the tortured line.

Lines That Go Bang When They Break

Starting The Test

So what happened next? At 100% stretch (the sample had doubled in length) the nylon line finally broke, not with a bang, but with a pitiful UV degraded whimper!

The test rig showed the failure at 749kg, which is rather poor when we consider the original 16mm line had a rated breaking strain of 6,640kg. The nylon line had lost more than 85% of it's original strength.

It was completely rotten, due to UV degradation.

Use The 16mm Dockline Or The 2mm Dynema String ?

At this stage of the test I was surprised to see Markus with a cheeky twinkle in his eye. He looked around among the various rope samples in the test area and appeared triumphantly with a very thin piece of Southern Ropes Dynema line.

Handing Ley a piece of 2mm diameter Dynema "string", he said "hey, you should tie your boat up with this, it's actually stronger than your dock lines"! OK, so he made his point, though Dynema doesn't stretch enough to be useful as a dock line.

Goodbye Old Friends

Now we know that our old nylon dock lines are well past their use by date.

So we're evaluating replacements, and leaning towards double braid lines that use a nylon core with a woven polyester cover to eliminate the UV damage. The cover is very loose on the core, and should not squeak (we hope).

We've purchased two for testing, and they have remained silent even in Cape Town's high winds and mobile marinas. These should last for many years without such a dramatic loss of strength.

Can anyone comment on the mixed nylon / polyester lines ? Do they squeak and squeal ?

Simon's Town & Beyond - Touring Western Cape In South Africa

Beautiful Simon's Town Harbour, home to the South African Navy and numerous wind blown cruising sailors. After an 800 nautical mile passage from Durban we were very pleased to be here, among cruising friends and the a very friendly local sailing community. The past twelve months in the Indian Ocean had certainly taken a toll on the both us and the boat, so we were keen to start preparing Crystal Blues for the next phase of our voyage - the Atlantic Ocean.

However after a couple of weeks in port, with the urgent maintenance issues on Crystal Blues ticked off, we took some time to explore further afield, driving to the Stellenbosch vinyard area, just an hour from Simon's Town.

Stellenbosch is South Africa's third oldest settlement, founded in 1679. The wine culture here was originally started by Huguenot refugees in 1690. Home to a large university culture, the town has many classified and significant precincts - truly a beautiful village feel.

Last century the area was a center of fruit growing, however the world wide boycotts on South Africa during the notorious apartheid regime saw that industry fail. The land was again on-sold and much has been returned to viticulture. 

Of course we were keen to sample the local wines and on that day trip we enjoyed two beautiful vineyards - the locals here call them "wine farms" by the way.

Solms Delta Wine Estate was a real eye opener. Quirky varietal wines and a deeply engaged and proud local staff opened our eyes to what is possible in the new South Africa. Here the traditional occupants of the land and farm workers have been empowered through a training and a profit sharing arrangement that says much about the management - more power to them I say. A fine restaurant and a museum dedicated to traditional African music make this estate a real pleasure to visit.

Boschendal Estate (see the image below) is centered on a 300 year old homestead in a magnificent park-like setting.  A lawn big enough for a football game is bounded by huge shade trees, just perfect for lazy warm weather wine tasting.  Here the "entry level" tasting was enough for us, and we returned to Simon's Town that night with yet more "produce" to be stored in the bilges.

After almost three months in South Africa we are convinced that this country is an undiscovered tourism and travel opportunity for the rest of the world.  A vibrant food and wine culture (specially here in Western Cape) plus the powerful game park wild life experiences are all available at bargain rates, given the decline in value of the local currency. This is a huge and diverse nation, with a fascinating history and a population that is anxious to please.

Dynema Shackles; Then & Now

As cruising sailors we can find ourselves a little behind the bleeding edge when it comes to changes in sailing technology. In a way I'm comfortable with that, happy to let the racing guys figure out what works and then adopt it some time later, when it costs much less.

So, we're now very happy to be using "hi-tech" Dynema (or UHMwPE) soft shackles, as in the image at right, in several applications on board Crystal Blues.  However yesterday we were taught a very clear lesson in just how far these new line technologies have moved ahead.

We visited the Southern Ropes manufacturing facility here in Cape Town, on a mission to analyze the remaining strength in some of our older lines (more on that later).  While there we noticed two HUGE soft shackles made of UHMwPE being checked.

Rated at over 76 tonnes, these shackles are made from 28mm UHMwPE line that has been heat treated and coated to improve the strength and life of the shackle.  This one is destined for the mining industry.  Interesting to note that the sailing market is only around 5% of Southern Ropes total business base.

Southern Ropes showed us the heat treatment facility where these lines are effectively baked under controlled tension to minimise the "creep" or elongation characteristic that is the one down side of UHMpWE or Dynema in longer term use.

The production line includes baths to die the fiber to desired colors and other stages that apply coatings to enhance the line strength by retaining the fiber alignment as it comes off the hot tension rig.

Yes, We've Had A Wardrobe Malfunction ...

It seems that the change over from Picassa Web Albums to Google Images, within the Blogger environment, is a slightly rocky road.

All the images we've posted in the past year have disappeared into the ether(net).  Right now we are working to recover them, starting with the most recent posts and working backwards. This will take some time...

Please have patience, and normal service will eventually be restored.

January 21st Update - Over half the images have now been restored.  We expect the rebuild to be complete within a few days.