63) Martinique

Marina du Bakoua, Pointe du Bout, Martinique

14° 33.382 N 61° 03.265 W

I just took the electrical motor off the scuba compressor and the prospect of the unit working does not look good.  The motor has been exposed to salt water far too long and the exterior corrosion is extensive.  Alan briefly worked on it yesterday and did not get far.  Today he said that it is probably a short circuit that causes it to spike.  Then he pointed out that the belt is ripped halfway thru and it is of a non-conventional type.  The likelihood of finding a new electrical motor and belt is low.  I am now faced with the reality that there is no scuba compressor onboard.  As a diver going to exotic places I am very bummed.  Snorkeling for me only goes so far in the pleasure department.  Besides, when I am on scuba I have a better chance of getting good pictures.  I am prepared to spend the money in my piggy bank to go on dives with a retail scuba shop.  What the hell I traveled this far and what’s another $500.  In reality that’s a few hundred that I was hoping to keep.

It’s quiet all around us.  The breeze is blowing nicely with lots of cloud cover and making for nice temperatures.  Alan and Danielle are here and ready for tomorrow’s departure.  John is working on the boat.  I managed to rinse my dive gear, remove the motor and reserved the rest of the day for doing nothing. 

When the water is added to the water tanks it has to be put in very slow because it causes a vacuum somehow and then we can’t fill the tanks all the way.  They also make a loud boom when the tanks flex while filling and draining.  The filling procedure is very temperamental and it is very unlikely that we get full water tanks.  While filling the tank the water spills into the bilge somehow and then gets pumped overboard with a few dollops of diesel fuel and engine oil that is spilled in the bilge. 

Most places are closed today.  Of all places the Internet café opens at 5.  I have something to do now at 5.  I still have 40 euros and need to unload them somehow.  Maybe I’ll buy some laundry soap, too.  Aah, the life of a cruiser.  I’m almost finished with paperback #17.