Last of Deltaville

In my previous blog I promised some pictures of Deltaville. Well, things didn't go according to plan and although I was running I didn't take my phone with me. Once we had hauled out it was all hands on the proverbial deck to get Calypso sorted as quickly as possible.

We were supposed to haul out on Friday, 12 July, but the weather was not co-operating. It rained non-stop for three days. They said that they would haul us out on Monday morning first thing. This was leaving things a bit tight with no room for more bad weather, as we were flying out on Wednesday.

We spent the weekend getting as much prepared as we could. We had removed the sails earlier in the week. On Monday morning we hauled up the dinghy, horrified at what the bottom of it looked like, and put it on the deck.

We pulled up a very muddy anchor and drove over to the haul out lift. Andrew struggled to get the boat turned around as we were being pushed off by the wind. We needed to go into the docking area stern first. We eventually managed to get close enough to the guys on the dock who pulled us around using boat hooks. We assured them that we actually did know how to drive a boat! 

They needed to get us out on the small lift. If they couldn't, the yard manager, Heidi, would have needed to play Tetris to find a space for us. After some nerve wracking maneuvering, Calypso was hauled out.

Andrew then had to take off a few things from the stern of the boat so that the lift could be reversed out, leaving us on the chocks. A chap from the yard came with a cherry picker to help. After an hour or so, they had removed the radar, the aerials, and the wind generator and the lift was moved. Thank goodness. Not only did Heidi not have to play Tetris, but it also saved us some money!

It was so much hotter on the hard with hardly any wind relieving us from the 35 degree heat. The midges and mosquitoes were relentless and we had to burn a coil day and night to prevent us from being eaten alive!

We lowered the dinghy and scrubbed the bottom clean! We also lowered the anchor chain. If you remember we had been having problems with our chain twisting in the water. We had cut off a whole lot that was worn and it had definitely helped. However, when we got toward the end of the chain we found it was completed twisted in the anchor locker. Laura started out untwisting it but it became too much for her so I went down to untwist as we let it out. I eventually couldn't do any more and Andrew had to take his turn. He had to remove the lid for the lower locker to untwist the chain. Once we had all the chain on the ground we could give it a good clean. We were not allowed to leave the chain or the anchor on the ground in case they need to move us, so the following morning we upped the anchor again, trying very hard not to get it twisted!

I had done most of the cleaning using vinegar to try and prevent mold growing while we are away, but I still did another sweep through the boat. I had sorted and washed clothes the week before, trying to sort what we would take home. Thank goodness I started that job early as we discovered that we needed another suitcase. Andrew and I searched high and low in the very few shops in Deltaville and ended up buying one online from Amazon. 

We were hoping to find a suitcase at the second hand shop picture below, but it was closed. The owner's wife had apparently fallen and was not well. This intel was from a very friendly lady who was walking past when I peered in the window! By the way, this stuff stays out all night. There was a chain that was locking a few things together, but that was it. 

The planning of it all was quite nerve-wracking. We had things to do that could only be done on the last night or the last few hours before we left the boat. 

It was far too hot to take down the canvas early, so we left that for Tuesday night after sunset. I washed the last of the clothes that afternoon. Dirty clothes that we were wearing on Tuesday, were put in our suitcases! Maybe the airport officials would avoid searching them!

I thought that we had done the food planning very well. We only had a few things left in the fridge which I gave to Bev. Laura had done a countdown. I am not sure who was more excited about us arriving in SA, Matt or Laura. 

On Wednesday morning, after covering the last hatches, putting out bug poison and moisture wicking tubs, we put the tarp over the hatch and said farewell to the old girl. 

Our friends, Bev and Andre, who had bought a car, kindly offered to drive us to Richmond Airport which was about 120km, 1h30 minutes away. They arrived at our boat at 7am, loaded up our luggage and off we went. We were so grateful for the lift and it was lovely to spend the time chatting to both of them. 

Our flight to Newark was delayed by an hour, but in the greater scheme of things it was a short wait. The plane was long and skinny, with only four seats abreast. It was a short, 90 minute flight to Newark Airport. The plane was freezing, and we had to put on warm tops for the first time in months!

Our flight to Cape Town was only leaving at 8pm so we spent the afternoon people watching, reading, trying to catch up on social media and people watching some more.

New York in the distance

Finally it was time to board. We were seated right at the back of the plane. Some may think this is terrible, but I thought it was okay. There was nobody behind us, kicking or pushing the seat. The chap next to me moved to another row which meant Laura and I had more space between us. Even having the ablutions next to us wasn't an issue.

The only disaster was the meal. I had thought that I would order a special meal for Laura and myself, thinking the gluten free option would be best. Well, it was terrible. There might not have been any gluten in the muffins, oats, chickpea curry, and rolls we got, but there was plenty of sugar! We ended up hardly eating anything. 

We landed in Cape Town at 4:30pm after an almost 15-hour flight. If you are astute you would think that I have made a mistake there. Well, no, and this is where it was really strange for us. We landed at around 11am our time, but with the time difference it was closer to 5pm. We woke up, had breakfast, landed, got fetched by Matt and Kay, and went to their place for supper!

About a day after we arrived back home, Kay was chopping an onion for supper and I suddenly thought about the onions I had left in our vegetable baskets on the boat. I Whatsapped Bev to ask her if onions were among the things I had given her. Nope, not there. This was potentially a disaster. The onions would rot and go through four baskets as they were in the top, not to mention the smell that would greet us on our return. 

Knowing I was appealing for a huge favour, I asked Bev if they would be able to get into the boat to remove the onions. The next message I got was "Onions and garlic retrieved!" Wow, thank you so much, Bev and Andre! Superstars!

Table Mountain