Long Beach to Cost Rica

Sailing with Dummies (California to Texas, Day 16)

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

by Mike

Good conditions continued overnight. Early this morning the oil plug came out of the right engine while it was running, draining it into the bilge. Luckily, Bob heard the beeping of it and shut it down quickly. Unluckily, this made a really messy mess.

After he went to bed, I attacked the clean-up and refill. Figuring to get full credit for an oil change (and deservedly so, it was a mess) I opted to change the filter, too. It’s stuck down at the bottom of the most forward (hardest to get to) part of the motor. It’s way worse than I can describe.

We got about 13 miles from shore hunting for the most favorable current. It got hotter, the closer we got to land. Good thing the air conditioner works. Looks like we might make Costa Rica on Friday. Reports are in: Fullerton is already there waiting on us.

Fishing report:

Right in the middle of changing the oil filter I heard a reel start zinging. I actually had to think about it for a moment. I was oily, greasy, sweaty, and crammed horizontally in a cranny a little smaller than I comfortably fit. But a fish is a fish. So I backed my way out of the corner, climbed out of the engine compartment, walked across to the other side of the boat, and dutifully cranked the drag down, quieting the reel. Then I returned to the engine for awhile.

Twenty minutes later I came up for air and checked. The pole was still bent. I reeled it in. And I caught a fish! It was an eight-pounder. A skipjack tuna. I let it go and got back to finishing the oil business.

Late in afternoon I started reeling in a fish. It seemed big. I put the motor in idle, reeled a bit, the fish ran a bit. The fight was over in only five minutes, when I reeled in a fishless lure. Blah. Looking at the lure I noticed the hook was bent. Not just any hook, this is a very large stainless steel hook. The same kind of hook that brought in a 9’10” sailfish in these very waters two years ago. “Hookbender” won this round. I don’t know what kind of fish “hookbender” is, but he is now part of Minnow lore.

We caught our first dolphin today also. It was kind of small, maybe 2-3 pounds. It’s in the refrig now. The fishing drought has ended!

Fine Dining:

Started the morning cooking, and eating, sticky buns. And fried eggs. Continued with pasta for lunch. Feeling frisky, I mixed Kroger’s noodles with Albertson’s marinara sauce. Worked great!