Bringing in 2019 with a BANG!!!

My heroes - Will and Lena!

A new year, a new Chuffed and a whole new set of Adventures! Although it is only the third month of the year I feel like SOOOOO much has happened already for 2019!

Poor old Chuffed had a very rough start to the year. With a broken shaft seal, a seized engine and in need of some TLC I was extremely lucky to find Will and Lena, a German couple travelling through Costa Rica. Will just happened to be a boat builder, and the pair offered their time and expertise to help me get Chuffed ship-shape for sea.

Chuffed was Beached As Bro!

Our first task was changing the shaft seal… which we decided to do by beaching Chuffed and performing the task in between the tides. Nothing like working under pressure to get the job done! It took the better part of a day, but with Will helping with the technical (and physical!) engine stuff and Lena giving Chuffed a very good clean we achieved great things.

With that job done it was time to run the engine, which of course did not go well. With a rebuilt raw water pump, brand new coolant pump and myriad of other fixes I can now happily say that I am no longer yelling “Dammit Janet!”.

In other news we have been very busy on the animal front too! From turtle rescues to neuter campaigns I have been keeping myself busy. A very special encounter was visiting an Indigenous village high in the mountains, a community that doesn’t even have a human doctor let alone a veterinarian. We performed surgery on over 50 animals and were also able to provide medication for parasite control as well as food for the next few months for each and every animal we saw. The community was so grateful, and as always things didn’t go quite as planned. The campaign was meant to be hosted by a local school but nobody ever came to unlock it! So instead a family in the village opened their patio, shared their water and power, and allowed us to perform surgery right outside their children’s bedroom window! Such a special memory for me… these things show that although it may seem that the animals in these parts are not cared for in the way we know the people really truly want the best for their pets.

Guaymi people awaiting surgery for their pets

Finally off the dock!!!

And finally, perhaps the most special part of all, Chuffed is out at sea once again!!! I am taking it easy with small trips around the Osa Peninsula for now…

Until next time… Stay Chuffed Everybody!!!