Good Day Friends, |
| April is coming down to the home stretch.
All is well aboard “Chickadee”. Our humble little sailboat
is still at anchor in a jungle estuary in El Salvador. It’s hot,
humid and green here, I can promise you that. There is also about 50 other
yachts at anchor in the estuary so I can’t say I am alone. More
boats are coming down from Mexico. The majority are from Canada and the
USA, but there are also a few from France, Norway and Great Britain. |
 |
All things considered, Chickadee is
in good form. |
| 
|
She has a new coat of anti-fouling bottom
paint. I hauled her out at Murray and Colette’s Island Marine about
2 weeks ago. They have a 30 ton travel lift on the island. Chickadee came
out of the water at 15:00 hrs, April 11th exactly at the same moment of
a solar eclipse. A good omen. I then spent 4 solid days on dry dock scraping,
sanding, grinding and painting the hull. We were back in the water in
no time.
I am now only waiting for a magnetic compass to clear customs in San Salvador.
The compass was shipped via DHL from Downwind Marine in San Diego last
Friday. Kindred spirit and Swedish friend Ingemar from the sailing vessel
S/V Agape turned the tide on this one. (Thanks Ingemar, for the memories
and for going the distance. Look forward to catching up to you in San
Juan Del Sur).
If all goes accordingly, I should have the compass installed this week.
However, because Chickadee is steel hulled, the compass will have to be
swung to eliminate deviation. There are two types of compass errors: Variation
and Deviation. Understanding how these errors affect navigation and knowing
how to compensate for them is essential to piloting.
|
Variation and Deviation |
|
Variation is the difference between true north and magnetic north.
The error is different at various points on the earth’s surface,
land and sea. Variation is shown on coastal charts. The navigator is able
to calculate variation by adding or subtracting depending on one’s
easterly or westerly course in order to obtain a True heading.
Deviation on the other hand is an error caused by the magnetism of the
vessel itself. It is easy to understand that vessels with engines, radios,
steel water and fuel tanks and electronics can and does affect a compass.
Chickadee, being steel hulled, especially has a strong magnetic field.
A special compass with built in magnetic correctors must be used. There
is a process involved to compensate and correct deviation. The best way
is to call in a professional compass adjuster. However, this won’t
be possible for me this time, given the fact that Chickadee is off the
beaten path in the heart of Central America. So I will tackle the task
myself. I know what needs to be done. If all goes well, and I get the
compass installed and swung, then Chickadee will be ready to cross the
notorious sandbar at the entrance of Estero Jaltepecque. |
Anxious to get home... |
|
I am anxious to hoist sail and get back home to Rosio and the children
in San Juan Del Sur. I will send in another report shortly before I put
to sea.
Take care all. More news to follow…
Capt. Eric “Chickadee” B.
Estero Jalteqecque, El Salvador
13 degrees 18”.03 N
88 degrees 53”.54 W
ES Phone: 011-503-935-9541
NICA Phone: 011-505-899-7201
eblackb@worldkidsvoyage.org
|
Captain Eric helping to guide the travel lift into place.
|
|
