It was a day of serious blunders but none that endangered us or the boat, excepting the mental anguish that accompanies most stupid mistakes and some pain in the wallet. Check out at the marina was at 11 o clock and it was windy. David was concerned about picking up the package, due to arrive a mile’s walk away at 10 and getting out around 11. He was also worried about the wind and getting us out of the slip. It was a slightly amplified version of the usual departure worries.
We were topping off the water tanks, starting with the port side. There is only one deck opening on the port side middle and that is for the port water tank. On the starboard side, there are three openings. The waste pump out port is near the stern, the fuel fill is in the middle and the starboard water tank fill is further forward. The fuel fill port is directly opposite the port water fill port.
So you can guess what happened next. The water hose was moved to the starboard side, the tank opposite opened and water added, but to the fuel tank instead of the water tank. The mistake was recognized almost immediately but about a gallon of water had entered the fuel tank at that point.
It wasn’t a complete disaster unless we ran the water into the motor so we knew we could not start the engine. We notified the marina and they do not allow fuel trucks to come there so we would have to be towed to a place where a fuel truck could come and remove the fuel and water, dry the tank, and refill.
We started calling. There were several boat yards in the area and several fuel service providers. Before we left Virginia, we had our fuel polished and fuel tank cleaned so we knew the process and knew it was possible. This was recommended because when you sail the boat and the fuel tank has not been cleaned recently, the turbulence can stir up debris in the tank that can get sucked into the motor.
We found a yard that would accept our boat, Cracker Boy Boat Works in Riviera Beach. We called for a tow. We realized that we had the unlimited towing insurance, not the unlimited gold plan which allows for dock to dock tows. We would have to pay half. We found a fuel specialist, Robbie at Ask Filtration, who would be able to meet us at Cracker Boy.
I set out to pick up the package at the ups store and David stayed with the boat. I made it to the ups store, picked up the package and printed /copied some documents that the boatyard needed me to email to them before our arrival. I had just enough time to sneak into Doris Italian Market to pick up a lunch salad, and a nice quiche and asparagus for dinner. I made it back to the boat and started working on completing and scanning the documents.
One of the documents was a credit card authorization. I went to get the number. No credit card. I called the ups store and yes, I had left it there. I had about 40 minutes to go 2 miles and pick up the card and return and set out running. One of the marina staff saw me running and offered a ride as far as his golf cart would go. Robert knew the ins and outs of parking lots and was able to get me within a quarter mile of the store. I thanked him. I got my card and started back and Robert and his cart were waiting for me at the edge of the parking lot. He gave me a ride all the way back to the slip, arriving as the tow boat pulled up. He refused a tip and told me to have a great day forward. I told him he was the silver lining to my day.
The TowBoatUS crew were Drew and Chris. Chris picked us up and got us out of the slip. Once in the channel, he gave us a bridle and towed us behind him. Drew met us near Cracker Boy and helped us into a new slip near the haul out bay of the busy boat yard. We had to climb a ladder from the boat to the dock above but were safe. We heard from Robbie that he would be there in the morning and Beth at the marina said we could stay on the boat “for security reasons.” Normally, they do not allow people to stay overnight.
We stayed down below the rest of the day and evening so as not to attract any attention and mostly so we would not make any other mistakes. We read, cleaned and finished hemming the shower curtain.
We agreed to come clean with the day’s blunders in support of truth and transparency over image. We hope to regain some faith in our abilities in the future. As always, we are so grateful to the kind strangers who helped us on our way and tried to make us feel better. One of the workers we spoke with knew of a guy that filled his water tank with diesel and did not realize it until his wife took a shower. He may have made that story up.
In medicine, with any procedure, there is a “time out” where you stop what you are doing, and ask your team several questions: do we have the correct patient,correct body part, correct equipment, agree on the procedure, have the patient’s consent etc. We have decided to implement a time out for any opening of a deck fill hole as well as a bedtime time out for conserving power at night. We already had one for plugging in to shore power and for turning off the propane switch after cooking. A store/restaurant time out may also be helpful: hat, glasses,wallet, credit card, backpack.