I finally managed to get out for a mid December sail. Tania was in Vancouver and Brooke was looking after the kids. I hauled my outboard down to the beach and was soon planing out to Trouper 2 in Skully.

There wasn't a whole lot of  wind and, in fact I wasn't going to sail. I was more interested in trying to get to the bottom of what's going on with her Yanmar Diesel. I've experienced reduced performance the last two trips so I engaged the transmission and then, from the engine tried to muscle the shifter to see if it wasn't engaging the transmission fully. It was.

Next I tried to open the governor to see if I could wring more speed out of her that way. The result was startling. Thick black smoke from the exhaust pipe and not a lick of difference in speed. Alarmed, I quickly shut down the engine and rigged main and jib to get me back to my mooring buoy. Putting events in context, I enjoyed a couple of hours sailing in the light breeze knowing I had Skully with me so as a last resort I could tow T2 back to the pin.

As I passed my new neighbours (Freedom Flotilla) I was addressed by one of the 'residents' who remarked it looked like I had done this before. (Sail I guess). Not wanting to get on the wrong side of these squatters I engaged in polite conversation before grabbing my buoy and retiring below deck to start a fire and have some lunch.

Initial research shows the problem with the engine is likely either a faulty fuel injector or a possible blockage in fuel or air. Since I just replaced the fuel filter no very long ago, I'm wondering about the injectors. Trouble is, the engine seems to be running fine. There's no missing or anything out of the ordinary. I'll continue to search on-line for a possible solution. I'll also likely contact Gartside Marine to see what they suggest.

Mid December Sail

Click for chart view