Hi Eric, We are leaving Santa Marta on Thursday after a very pleasant 6 week stay. We have had almost no issues with the soot. Most of our stay has been light winds, and rarely from the direction of t

I'm un-hijacking a previous thread, and will talk a little about how and why we painted the decks on our 1992 SM. I agree with Bill Kinney that the SM nonskid (faux teak) is very good, and should not

Hi Bill, Thank you for all the countless hours you have spent helping all of us sort out our boat issues. Best of luck with your new endeavor, and we hope to see you somewhere around the globe again.

Hi Alex, It appears to be caused by corrosion at the base of the mast, and it appears serious. The only solution I know of is to pull the mast, and cut the corroded section out, which will shorten the

Hi Chuck and Kim, This is an easy trip which I have done several times, and all it requires is a little patience. You have excellent weather forecast in your part of the world, and you only need to wa

I second the Lavac choice. We put a Lavac in the forward head almost 3 years ago, and have been full time liveaboards since that time. We have not had a single clog, and have done NO maintenance on th

It would not be difficult to do, but I'd be worried about discharging the 12v starting battery since the blowers are 12v, and are high draw items. We typically open the engine room hatch for a few min

We have been using our Iridium Go for over 2 years, and would not leave home without it. We have the external antenna, have it hard mounted at the Nav station, and rarely have connection issues when o

Bill, It really is a shame, as it is such a nice product, and the lighter weight makes it so much easier to handle. Unfortunately, with our travel plans, it just doesn't make sense. We did check on Pl

See you there! Steve Davis S/V Aloha

We have an old 6 man Winslow raft packed in a Pelican case on Aloha. They are great rafts, and lighter than most of them by a substantial margin. Unfortunately, ours was way overdue for repacking, and

Hi Drew, I don't know if it is the same problem you are having, but we had a similar noise, and it turned out to be the Raymarine Rotary drive. Our noise got worse over a couple of years, and finally

Hello Eric, So far the wind has been light, and not coming from the direction of the coal pile behind the port, and Aloha is clean. Other than short trips inland, we will be on the boat, and can keep

So sorry to hear about the damage to your beautiful Amel. Best of luck getting her repaired, and back on the water. Regards, Steve and Liz Davis Aloha SM 72 Santa Marta, Columbia Steve Davis S/V Aloha

We have used the Iridium Go for about 2 years, and love it. Connections are fairly reliable with the external antenna, but a bit frustrating without it. Spend the extra $300 for the external antenna,

Hi Kent, I installed a DST800 about 3 years ago on Aloha for my Ray Marine instruments. Had to remove the transducer from a dead forward looking sonar unit, enlarge the hole, and install the DST800. O

JP, Not a bad option if you really want to see Santa Marta. A one week stay in the marina if you get the 30% discount offered on there add in Caribbean Compass would be $181 plus tax, water, and elect

Good thing I have to get an agent, as I might not have that much patience. Aloha, Steve

Thanks again Eric. It looks like Columbia might even have topped the level of complicated bureaucracy I've found in places like India while trying to clear my aircraft and crew in. I was hoping on a 2

We are similar to JP, but will transit the canal sometime in January, and head for the Marquesas the 2nd week of March. We are still considering going via Easter Island, Pitcairn, and the Gambiers in