While we are making great progress on the preparations we are slowly turning into boatyard zombies. We eat, sleep and breath the boat from morning to midnight everyday. Problems with the steel plate we were having made gave us a feeling that it would never be completed but with hard work we persevered and we are very happy with the results. We now have the steel plate and fiberglass sheilds in place which will allow us to push small bergy bits without damaging the hull. This in no way will protect us from pack ice or larger ice pieces but will allow us some protected maneuverability in low concentration ice.
Our work sight has turned into a sprawling camp around the boat that consists of work tables, barrels, tarps and odds and ends that make our corner of the boatyard look like a small shanti town. What is great about it is that we get all sorts of visitors wondering what we are up to. We have gotten to know a fair few people here now and met some interesting characters including John an Arctic pilot who has provided us with names of people in remote villages that we can connect with, areas we should visit or can find shelter and the location of bays we can tuck in and hide from the weather.
The last few days have been extremely busy. Edvin and I have been attacking our to do list which hangs ominously in the main cabin of the boat. We have taken on the largest jobs and it is a classic situation of everything is moving forward but nothing is getting done.
To date we have dismantled the forward cabin to construct a water tight compartment, but can not find the proper materials required to seal it in these parts. We have begun the bow reinforcements and are half way done but have run out of fiberglass and need to wait until stores reopen Tuesday to get more and unfortunately today we discovered that our fuel is contaminated with bacteria and we need to undertake a major tank cleansing.
That being said we couldn’t ask to be in a greater area and have had some great luck. The Lewisporte Yacht Club feels like family everyone is so helpful and we have been lent all the tools and advice one could hope for. People stop by to chew the fat and with the Newfoundlanders great sense of humour it is always a pleasure. We have been given access to all the clubs amenities and Peter a member here has become our local saviour in helping us move our modifications forward. We also found an amazing welder Loydd whom we contacted to build our stainless steel bow reinforcements and he has taken our cause to heart and is helping us build what we think will also be a really useful battling ram.
The days seem to slide by in our busy quest to get the boat in the water by next week but everyday has been a great adventure.
After two days of driving, four provinces, plenty of bizarre diners and one overnight ferry we finally reached the shores of beautiful Newfoundland, the land of screech and cod, a real mariners home. The drive was great if not for having some time to contemplate the begining of our expedition but for Edvin and I to discuss the long list of things to be done to the boat when we arrived…….if she was still there. We talked in depth of the ice reinforcements, conditions and crewing issues while a beautiful maritime backdrop slide past the cracked wind screen. Finally, we pulled into Lewisporte and memories of last year came back to us a we drove through the small town and we grew even more excited, we finally reached the yacht club and pulled up to the boat where she sat in all her glory the same as the day she was left. There were smiles all around as we began to unseal her after a long winters sleep and began to prepare her for her Arctic odyssey. Some lessons learned: Bread does not last 8 months, empty coffee pot before winterizing boat, living on a boat on land with no running water or water closet produces its own special challenges.
This is what we have been doing for the last four days:
Kidney beans 4,5 kg, Moog beans 2,5 kg Toor dal 4,5 kg, Basmati rice 16kg Black beans 6kg, H-Milk 24 L Tomato paste 32 cans Mashed potato powder 120 servings Oat grain 5 kg Peanut putter 6 Jars Maple syrup 1 jar Olive oil 2 l Coffee 2 Packs Pecan nuts 1 kg Cashew nuts 1 kg Hazelnuts 1kg Dried mango 1 kg Dried peaches 1 kg Split green peas 1,8 kg Mixed fruits and nuts 1 kg
Sesame seedcakes 10pc Green Thai Curry 1 jar Red Thai curry 2 jars Yellow Thai curry 2 jars Garlic paste 3 jar Ginger paste 2 jars Chick peas 5,4 kg Coconut cream blocks 6pc Hoisin Sauce 2 l Soy sauce 1 l Vinegar 1 l Seaweed sheets 100 Wasabi powder 1jar Sushi ginger, 0,5 kg Egg noodles 2 kg Rice noodles 2 kg Walnuts 1,3 kg Hemp seeds 0,5 kg Chocolate dipped blueberries 5 kg Raisins 2 kg Dried Mushrooms 0,5kg
All vegetarian, mostly dry foods which will gain 3-4 times their weight when soaked and boiled. Perfect expedition food! We will continue our provisioning in Newfoundland when we know how much we will be able to fit in the boat. Prices are a lot higher in Newfoundland so we are happy to have cleared most of our dry food shopping list. We also started our ice reinforcement shopping picking up 15kg of polyester and 12m of fiberglass. Thanks to Nick’s old employer Josh at Shipwright Service we managed to get some Lexan for our new companionway and EB spars in Hudson was kind enough to help us out with some needed equipment.
It´s been eight months since we left Belzebub in Newfoundland. After spending a lot of that time behind our computers researching, planning, writting and making new friends we cannot wait to return to the boat and get started.
I left Sweden with more than 60 kg of equipment spare parts and foul weather gear in my luggage. Flying via Iceland the plane followed the same route as we did last summer and seeing the jagged Icelandic coastline though the window brought back good memories. Over the southern tip of Greenland I could see the ice breaking up on the Labrador Sea. By the time we leave in June it will have melted all the way up to Disco bay. Tomorrow I’m meeting Nick in Montreal where we will spend a few days stocking up with supplies before our long drive to Newfoundland.
Our work sight has turned into a sprawling camp around the boat that consists of work tables, barrels, tarps and odds and ends that make our corner of the boatyard look like a small shanti town. What is great about it is that we get all sorts of visitors wondering what we are up to. We have gotten to know a fair few people here now and met some interesting characters including John an Arctic pilot who has provided us with names of people in remote villages that we can connect with, areas we should visit or can find shelter and the location of bays we can tuck in and hide from the weather.
