At 0800 Monday we crept, with just 30cm of water left under the keel, alongside Polaris which was already docked at the shipyard's barge pontoon. Once docked our cruise had ended for the year.
The dock itself was a rusting barge sheltered by a wrecked fishing boat. The shipyard had a rugged and utilitarian look and was littered with both scrapped boats, boat parts and boat 'projects'. This was to be Shimshal's new home for the next 9 months.
We had heard good reports of the yard and despite it's disheveled appearance it was encouraging to watch the care they took over slipping a steel 70' trawler.
It looks like we won't get hauled until November so we are going to have all of the winter preparations in the water which was a challenge we hadn't expected. However we have come well prepared and the no frills chandlery here were only too pleased to sell us the pink antifreeze that's good down to -40C. I'm told it's always preferable not to mix colours with antifreeze and pink is what we had for the last 2 winters in Reykjavik so extra concentrated pink is what we will stick with for Aasiaat.
Aasiaat is renowned for it's dry climate. Imagine then our consternation when rain arrived a couple of hours after us and has stuck around ever since. The scene is truly Scottish with the relentless patter of rain which is forecast for the week. The only difference between here and being tied up at a rough and ready Scottish shipyard is the procession of icebergs that drift past the harbour entrance. Fortunately none thus far have found their way into the harbour.
We are hoping that sometime between now and when we fly home on Saturday the rain will relent long enough to let us get the sails off and dried. If it doesn't then they will move into the hotel with us!
We spent Tuesday winterising the engine and generator and, as always, Tim was a mine of information. His overalls finished the day with new psychedelic antifreeze coloured stains but we were both confident we had done all we could to protect Shimshal's mechanical systems against the savage cold that they will encounter.
First the generator was drained of antifreeze and then topped up with a stronger fix that should be good to -40C. Then the oil was drained and topped up. Then the seawater intake seacock was closed and the hose disconnected so that we could run 5 litres of antifreeze through the sea water cooling system and exhaust.
Then we did the same for the engine but took the lid off the strainer to pour the pink stuff in until it came spurting out of the exhaust when we ran the engine.
All machinery having been thoroughly cosseted we replaced the floor boards and the companionway steps and let Sally and Heather back in who had been banished for the duration to the Fisherman's Mission.
The truth is they hadn't spent all their time at the Mission. As usual they had made good use of the rainy day. The had walked to the HQ of Aasiaat Radio which is the home or Greenland's Marine Safety operation. They really enjoyed meeting the voices that had been our constant VHF radio companions since Prins Christian Sund with messages such as, "Shimshal, Shimshal what is your name?" I gather that Aasiaat Radio too were delighted to put faces to names.
Sally also befriended a rather splendid Maltese yacht tied up on the main wharf. They are one of a handful of boats that have successfully transited the North West Passage this year. The owe their success to flying a drone to discover the leads in what seems to have been a very bad ice year there too. It sounds like plenty of dramas are still being played out in the NWP with boats hemmed in by adverse winds and, of course, the advancing season. Thank goodness we have no aspirations to head west that way. Instead, next year we will head south and west in search of softer scenery and more temperate weather. Canada beckons!
