I’m trying to live more “in the moment.” As I’m learning, that’s an important frame of mind for the cruising life, but for a planner like me it’s a bit of a challenge. So I’m enjoying my time at home and the ability to see friends and family, but not knowing when parts will arrive and therefore when we can return to Indigo Lady is trying at times. We can’t really plan anything more than a week out, so when someone asks if we can get together “soon”, soon has to be within the next seven days. On the flip side, our uncertain schedule means our calendars aren’t booked, so when a friend asks if we want to have dinner “this weekend” we can. I’m not sure how much time I have to complete all the things on my to do list for being on the boat/(eventually) leaving the US for the Bahamas, most of which must be done before we leave home. My solution has been to tick off at least one item each day. So far, so good; the list is getting shorter and we’re still here so there’s time to complete the list.
This unplanned extended time at home has afforded me and Dave the opportunity to take the Junior Navigator course through our boating club. Dave took the course in the 90s, so it’s a refresh for him, first time for me. The focus is on knowing one’s location offshore away from landmarks by using sun sights. A good skill in case one’s electronics fail. We won’t be able to finish the 14-week course before we leave, but I’m sure with Dave’s tutelage I can complete it onboard and then I will work with our instructor (who is a boating club friend) to finish the requisite field work and exam once we’re home again in the fall.
This extended January stay at home also provided the opportunity to head north for some cross-country skiing and a stay at Carter Notch Inn. This year my cousins Bob & Jolene joined us. We enjoyed two gorgeous, sunny days XC skiing at Great Glen Trails and Jackson XC. I don’t think we’ve ever had such a clear view of Mt. Washington from Great Glen. When we got off the trails we spontaneously decided to take the Snow Coach up the mountain (winter trips go to just shy of 4300 feet). It was certainly clear, but the winds had started gusting to 20-25 mph and the windchill clocked in at about -23oF! We spent about 5 minutes outside of the Snow Coach capturing some really quick photos then retreated to the van from which the views were equally as lovely and warm. We’ve been doing this XC weekend for the past nine years, the last five at Carter Notch Inn (once we found them, we stopped trying new inns). In future years we hope to NOT be home in January, so we may move this trip to the fall and do some hiking instead. If you’re ever looking for a great B&B in the White Mountains, we highly recommend Carter Notch Inn in Jackson, NH. Inn keepers Danny and Donna are wonderful people with a beautiful, cozy inn. Tell them we sent you!
Dave has been working with the three companies involved with the failed parts of our solar-electric systems. The battery company just completed new circuit boards for our two battery interface boxes (BIBs). They will be shipping them as soon as they get paid or establish if the warranty still applies. Although the BIBs didn’t cause the system failures- we’re still not sure what caused the voltage spikes that caused the failures- they are the reason we cannot get our systems functioning again. When the BIBs shut down the batteries to protect them from voltage spikes, it fried the BIBs, and without those we lost access to the entire system until they are replaced (they are currently not repairable). The upgraded circuit boards we will be getting include fuses that will blow in the event of future voltage spikes. So rather than waiting for an $800 BIB to arrive from Sweden, we can replace the inexpensive fuses ourselves and be back online in minutes rather than weeks.
The generator company is working on engineering the parts necessary for the generator controller to operate on the 12V battery system rather than on the 48V Lithium-iron-phosphate battery system- the one that shut down on us. In the event of future BIB failures, we would still be able to run the generators to power the electric motors directly. We’re still waiting on an answer to the question about what happens if the batteries are shut down and there’s no load on the generator, for example when we shift to neutral to anchor. That would also be a bad time for our systems to fail. The company is also incorporating two additional modifications to reduce voltage spikes.
The startup and shutdown of the generators are two sources of potential voltage spikes that are being addressed by these upgrades. Potential because they don’t always happen at start up or shut down, depending on what else is going on in the system at that moment. We don’t know if there are additional sources of voltage spikes or if these upgrades would mitigate their impact. At least we shouldn’t become completely disabled again.
At any rate, once we have parts in hand, we will return to the boat to install them and then continue our trek south. Perhaps the next time I post it will be from Indigo Lady. Until then, there are many moments here at home to live in.
Life on Lady 