Engine Problems

Well, don’t you know, Houston? We have a problem! 

Let’s rewind to our plans for my 50th birthday. Yes, I know it seems impossible, but on May 10th I skipped into my 5th decade with high hopes of avoiding a surprise celebration (like the one I threw for Mark in March for his 60th). He agreed that we should, of course, sail away to far off coastal destinations and just relax on our newly acquired vessel. For months I had planned my evil scheme to throw him an amazing surprise Bday party and escape for mine. It was brilliant! Although he was not amused, he conceded that he had no desire to outdo me and agreed to spend a week on the water on our new boat.

We had a lovely week planned. We were going to leave Monday morning, cruise for 2 days and anchor. We planned 2 days at South Seas Resort Marina on Captiva Island, 2 nights at the Pink Shell Resort in Ft. Meyers then 2 days cruising and anchoring back home for a full week of bliss! We were up and ready to go Monday, excitement filled the air. I had gotten dressed and was drinking my coffee when Mark called to me. I found him in the guest cabin with the bed lifted to reveal the large port engine. He stood there with a flashlight looking down into the hold. He shined the light down and said, “Come look at this and tell me what you see.” As he shined the light down, I could see large amounts of dark fluid covering the entire bottom of the hold. I said, “It looks like oil.” Correct, it was oil. He then informed me that our trip was canceled.

We didn’t talk for 2 hours. He crawled back into bed and went to sleep since the mechanic didn’t open until 8, I took Charlie for an extra long walk to wallow in self pity. I was devastated! Some birthday! It was my biggie! 50! All I wanted was to get away on this boat that we had been trying to purchase for the last 4 months! Now we get it and literally 2 weeks later, we are down for the count with a BIG problem. We were also frustrated because we had gotten a survey that revealed engine problems that were repaired and covered by the previous owner. So what gives?

After talking with the mechanic, who didn’t know when he would be able to get us in, we decided to spend the week at the marina and “tinker” with the boat. We did actually have a glorious time. Life at the marina is very relaxing. We spent our days cleaning up the oil, taking her out for test cruises to see if she would leak any more (note: she did not lose oil under low speeds), cleaning the exterior, cleaning and applying the sun shades to the helm, drinking Bloody Mary’s and swimming the hot afternoons away and of course the sunsets! God’s most amazing paintbrush, I like to say.

June 1, dropped off to the mechanic, bye girl

It was actually during one of the Bloody Mary swimming sessions that Mark challenged me to live full time on the boat. I swear he thought I wouldn’t do it! I wholeheartedly said YES as he choked on his Bloody Mary. That will be another blog post, tee hee.

We were finally able to take the boat back to the mechanic (whom we really respect and have confidence in). It’s been 3 weeks now and the only news we have had so far is not good. The leak was not able to be located, even with a dye test so the engine had to be taken apart and the transmission lifted. I know, I threw up in my mouth too. So we wait daily for any news and stare at our bank account which will surely take a beating soon. We have a trip planned to Tarpon Lodge on Pine Island, FL for the 4th of July. We had planned the trip around being able to stay on and use our boat. We are hoping beyond hope that we can have it by then. We will update you all when we have more news.