May 17, 2023 - Wednesday

Today I decided to clean up a bit.  I took my laundry to the marina laundry service.  They do a really nice job.  If you drop your items in the morning, they are ready in the afternoon. 

After laundry, I headed out to buy groceries.  I was low on veggies and a few other items, so walked over to Sam's Club and Walmart to resupply.  I rode the bus back.  I have the bus routes more or less figured out - at least the ones that go to the places I frequent.  

I finally ran out of water in the larger starboard tank, so filled it up again.  It holds about 65 gallons, so takes a little while to fill.  While filling, I dose it with Clorox to sterilize the tank.  I have two water tanks on the boat.  One holds 65 gallons and the other 30.  When one runs out, I switch a valve and start on the other tank.  It is a pretty good system and is easy to use.  There is an electric pump which keeps the system presurized, so no hand pumping is required under normal use.  In addition to the tanks, I have stocked the boat with another 30 gallons for the trip.

For drinking water, I have a separate faucet that runs through two filters and a UV sterilizer light.  This eliminates the chlorine taste and kills any bugs that may be floating around in there.  For general use, I just use the regular treated water.

I decided to reorganize some of the emergency gear in the boat so it would easily accessible if needed.  I used the two pilot berths on either side of the main cabin for this.  They both have lee cloths, so things stay in place well.  



My motoring range is fairly limited with the 30 gallon tank onboard.  I have 4 additional jerry cans I lash to the deck to extend my range.  For this trip, I decided to buy 4 more cans.  This will extend my range to about 800 miles.  That seems like a lot, but since I have about 6,000 miles to go, it does not get me too far.  I prefer to sail anyway, so it should not be a problem.

New fuel cans
I had to take the CO2 cartridge out of my lifevest for travel, so I decided to put it back in today and get the vest zipped up.  I found it a little confusing so looked on YouTube and (of course) found a good video on how to do it.  Not hard once you know the process and the little tricks to use.

The daily temperatures are starting to get into the low 90s now.  It really slows me down in the afternoons.  I wrapped up the afternoon with a little nap, then went to the lounge for some A/C relief.

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