How do I book my bunk?

Lautoka, Fiji August, 1999

Under Way Again
Now anchored in the city of Lautoka on the west side of Viti Levu in
Fiji, Alvei has sailed over 2000 miles in the past 9 weeks. Behind us
is a year-long refit, and a return to tropical sailing. Picking up the
story from the April ‘98 newsletter, here’s what’s been happening.

The Refit In Nelson
For 13 months, we were tied up to an old wooden jetty, working on the
ship. Yes, I know what you’re thinking. "He’s going to give us a long,
boring work list full of incomprehensible terms like parbuckle,
poopdeck, and mizzen clinkerplank clewgarnets. Just what is he talking
about?"Okay, let’s face it. The following paragraph is perhaps more
for the benefit of you serious sailor types. The
"Pina-Colada-On-The-Beach"crowd might prefer to skip down the page.
Any experienced sailor knows that a long refit is simply the other side
of sailing into the sunset. A refit gives the long-distance sailor a
chance to settle in for awhile and enjoy the distractions of life
ashore, and to experience in-depth whatever part of the world he or she
is visiting.

Those who know sailing boats in general, or old square-riggers in
particular, will be familiar with "work lists", as jobs are finished
and crossed off, more are added, so that while the list gets shorter,
it rarely ever ends. Without belaboring the details, here’s what we
accomplished: We sent down the yards and topmasts for paint and slush,
overhauled 86 blocks and a bucket of shackles, unbent and repaired 8
sails, finished sewing all sail and mattress covers, caulked the main
deck, tarred the rig, built a new ships’ wheel, cemented the water
tanks, and overhauled the Sabb and Hobart generators. We also installed
one new anchor with 6 shots of new chain, 9 new batteries, a new SSB
radio, a new main saloon stereo, new bilge plumbing with non-return
valves, new Lexan for the portholes, and acquired 4 kilometers of new
running rigging, weighing nearly half a ton. We painted, stained, and
varnished the galley, and added a new kerosene oven (you’ve got to try
Dave’s cornbread). We painted the main engine, engine room, chain
locker, bulwarks, and anything else in need. Our new shore boat Morning
Star was fitted out and put on the aft davits. And finally, we took on
several tonnes of diesel and lube oil, and stowed 4 months of hard tack
and bully beef in the hold (because a well-fed crew is a happy crew).
Speaking of whichÖ…

The Crew
A warm "thank you"to everyone who came to help, and to those who
stayed on to crew. From Denmark, Sweden, Germany, England, Canada, the
U.S.A., Australia, New Zealand, and yes, even Antarctica, came Mistie,
Jolyon, Pierette, Greg, Glen, John & Adam, Art, Sven, Josephine,
Darlene, Shawn, Suzan, Rob, Kiwi Rob, Kiwi John, Big Kiwi Dave, Daniel,
Rebel, Francis, Ulla, Cory, Laurie, and Silly Willy Fairie. Of
particular note are our two AB’s, Dave and Mike, who worked the long
refit and, remarkably enough, are still with us; and our two deck
officers, Jory and Jo. Jory is a Canadian Merchant Marine Captain with
tallship experience, and Jo is a British Yacht Master and Diesel
Trawler Engineer. Debi, one of our shareholders, has bravely accepted
the role of Ships’ Steward. Finally, a special thanks to Kiwi Marge,
Ross, and to German Ulla, who came half-way around the world to spend
her Spring Break with us.
Sail Training
Of course, training is a big part of life aboard Alvei, so while in
port, most mornings involved an hour covering topics like sail and line
handling, knots, splices, working aloft, and rowing. We also used this
time to develop as a team, knowing that many of us would soon be doing
these things together, for real, on the open seas.

Paying The Bills
In an effort to keep up with operating costs, we have been forced to
restructure fees. We now have a "User Pays"fee that applies to all who
sail with us. For new crew, the cost is US$700 a month. The time these
people spend aboard may be accumulated, either in one block, or in a
series of visits. Once they have accumulated one year of time, they may
be invited to join the co-operative as regular crew. For volunteers who
helped during the refit in Portugal, and for non-shareholders using
shareholder time, the fee is now US$350 a month. For shareholders the
fee is now US$250 a month. Of course, since Alvei has never been
structured as a money-making venture, cash is, as usual, a bit tight,
and desired items such as new sails, new galley sinks, and an on-board
computer will have to wait.

Underway & Bound For Tonga
With an enthusiastic crew of 14, we bid farewell to a large crowd of
friends on the dock in Nelson, and motored out onto a calm, sunny
Tasman Bay. We anchored that night at Croiselles Harbour to await a
slack tide through French Pass. Next afternoon we anchored in Guards
Bay to wait for a fair tide at Cape Jackson and Cook Straight. Once
through the Straight, we took our departure from the lighthouse at Cape
Palliser on the North Island, and sailed out into the Pacific.

Those of the crew new to offshore passagemaking would remark at the end
of the journey about what a great spectrum of conditions they
experienced on this trip. And in the 34 days it took to get to Tonga,
we really did have it all. There were 4 gales and one full-on storm.
There were days and days of glassy calms. There were fresh winds that
pushed us towards the Tropics, and northerlies determined to force us
back to the Southern Ocean. There were dark tropical squalls that would
come and go in a matter of minutes. And with every change in the
weather came a change of sails, so it wasn’t long before the crew was
familiar with every possible combination of sails.

When we left New Zealand, we were often clad in our warmest clothes and
full foul-weather gear, but as the weeks passed, the layers came off,
and we soon found ourselves standing night watches in shorts and
t-shirts.

We stood watch, we read, we played chess, we got tan, we goofed around
and had a ball. Amazing creations were baked in the oven until the oven
broke, and then the crew learned to make breads and cakes in a pressure
cooker on the stove. Spontaneous water fights were initiated by Ulla,
whose love of a good brawl (along with her Scandinavian background)
earned her the nickname "The Viking Warrior."We all learned fast:
never mess with a Dane in the heat of battle, particularly when she’s
got a bucket of seawater close at hand. We were visited by flocks of
albatross, and pods of dolphins and pilot whales, and on one calm day,
a minkie whale and her young calf swam alongside Alvei for over an