Today we went back to the Thunderball Cave to snorkel.  It was a beautiful day in the 80’s but amazingly we were the only ones there again.  As we left a few more people came.  There are huge numbers of fish in the grotto and they come up to you expecting to be fed.  Most people, like us, probably bring some stale crackers to give them.

After we got back, Mark took Daisy to a beach for her walk.  On their way back, he has started having her swim behind the boat with a rope tied to her, both for the exercise and also to get all the sand off her from the beach.  Today I saw them returning and Daisy was still tied behind the boat swimming.  The beach is a good distance away, but she was just paddling along, not even panting.  When she was a puppy in Minnesota she was afraid of the waves on Lake Superior when we walked by the shore and wouldn’t go in the water.  She has never loved to swim, but has gotten braver and braver and now is a very good swimmer. 

We had a bit of a problem, well really a BIG problem on the boat yesterday with the power.  We have several different power systems on Seas the Day, including 12 V and 110.  We recharge the batteries every day and have had very good use of all appliances and instruments.  We’re able to use the clothes washer and make water without running the genset.  Occasionally when we use the toaster, microwave oven, or hair dryer, we get an alarm on the 12 V, but we just turn off the alarm and all is well.  Yesterday, all power went off.  Mark tried every fix he could think of and nothing worked.  This meant that we were in danger of losing all of our food in the full freezer and two small refrigerators.  We couldn’t even flush the toilets as they are electric.  Our gas to the stove depends on an electric charge as well.  In effect, we were dead in the water.  Mark called the hybrid guru in Ft. Lauderdale who knows this system backwards and forwards, but Scott couldn’t help us either.  Finally, Mark noticed that there was a switch which wasn’t working.  He was able to jump it and everything came back on.  We have ordered a new switch but aren’t sure when it will arrive. 

This was just another example of how important it is to be able to repair things yourself when you are on a boat.  The only boat owners who don’t have to be proficient mechanics are the mega yacht owners who have crew to do that for them.  We met a cruiser in Bimini who had a handful of tools onboard and didn’t know how to fix anything.  When they got to Nassau, the next stop, they had engine problems and had to pull into a marina.  We lost track of them, but their plan was to go to the Dominican Republic.  They were fortunate that their problem occurred in Nassau, as they were probably able to find a mechanic, but even in the States, and more so once you leave, mechanics and parts are few and far between.  Mark can fix just about anything on this boat, and if he couldn’t we would be stuck in a marina somewhere.

For more photos of snorkeling in Thunderball Cave, click here.