R + R

After Brio limped in to Ocean City, Maryland Monday evening, we were exhausted. But Brio needed attention. Her starboard engine would not start. With only one engine, she was much less maneuverable. Her fuel was contaminated. She was low on fresh water and after such a rough crossing, the engine room bilge was oily and slippery. R+R might be rest and relaxation. But for Brio it was repair and restore.

Pier at Ocean City

Here is the Pier at Ocean City with relatively calm waters and perhaps 5-foot waves. By waiting to make our next leg on Friday, we will allow the Atlantic to calm down to 3- to 4-foot seas and more gentle winds. Here's a picture of the vast expanse of sandy beaches.

We didn't have time to sit on the sand, though.

On Tuesday, we started lining up the teams of mechanics who would get Brio back on her feet. The manager of our White Marlin Marina was extremely helpful, as were the people on neighboring boats. After many contacts, we had about five options for mechanics who could come replace the primary fuel filters we had on board. The old filters were now dirty, having caught debris that had been stirred up in the fuel tanks and sucked up into the filters along with the fuel for the engines.

As luck would have it, on Wednesday there was a team of mechanics working on a boat just down the dock from Brio. They came well recommended from a couple of sources. They came over around 2 pm and by 4:30 they had cleaned out the supply line from the starboard tank to the starboard filters and replaced both pairs of filters on the starboard and port side.

The manager had told us that as the northeast winds continued to build, we would have to move off of our prized spot on the very open facing pier. He said we could tear apart or at least strain the dock and its pilings by staying there. We knew we had to move but couldn't until this first group of mechanics were finished with re-establishing a reliable fuel supply to both engines.

Just before 5 pm, Brio's engines came to life! At 5:30, we cast off the facing dock and backed into a wide berth, tying Brio up fore and aft with a web of lines to counter the effects of tide and wind.

Standing Wave off Dock

That takes us to the end of Tuesday. We were part way to getting Brio operational. All of this activity was absorbing, but we could still enjoy the beauty around us. The channel just across the harbor has a sandbar beyond it. As winds and tides conspire, a series of dramatic standing waves appear, just like this one.

Cheers,

Brio