Heaps of rain last night and this morning and then the sun came out. Wonderful to feel the suns warmth and the solar cells are charging the batteries again.
The diver turned up this morning, a very helpful guy called Carson. He had a good look at the rudder and made a video. All the pintles are in place – that’s good news, nothing broken. However, there is a lot of play in the bottom shoe. This is what I can feel when I move the rudder.
I will call the local shipyard in the morning. To see what is going on I need the boat out of the water. If the problem is general wear and tear then it should be a quick fix but until I can eyeball it I just don’t know. There is a boatyard a few miles up river from Newport at a place called Toledo.
As it was Sunday today there were a few people wandering the docks, the sunshine probably brought them out as well. Quite a few of them wanted to stop for a chat. So, I spent some time today relaxing and chin wagging with the locals. In between gossiping I finally finished all the small jobs on my list that needed doing before sailing. Now I can start another list of jobs, this time more on the lines of preventative maintenance.
The weather looks good for a departure south on Wednesday. The locals agree that the weather will turn on Wednesday – local knowledge is good. I just hope my rudder is in good shape by then and I can make the hop down to San Francisco.
The Adventures of Captain Ray Penson 
Are you sure it is the rudder with play or linkage through wheel or tiller. Not sure which you have
Padfy
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Hi Paddy,
Bottom bushing in shoe had worn. Now replaced with a new bushing which is still a bit too tight.
Rudder is transom hung with a tiller – simple and robust, also easy to unship and maintain. Its the KISS principle.
Ray
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