Boating in Norfolk - Part 3

The following Saturday I collected the new filter, some fuel line and fittings, and the flaring tool (which he showed me how to use) from the boat builder's yard and we headed to the marina in our transit van. We arrived pretty late so didn't get much done other than heating up a prepared meal (made by my Mum) and settled down for some sleep - my Dad in the deck area, and my nephew and I in the cabin. It was a little chilly on the water, and my Dad snores loudly, so I didn't get much sleep!
Bacon and eggs for breakfast and then I got to work on the fuel line. My Dad was an accountant, and I started out as an auditor, so we didn't have much of a mechanical background - Dad was keen on DIY, as I was, though, so we had some level of manual dexterity and between us a good deal of intelligence! This was also years before the internet and "How to" videos, or online instruction manuals, but we had purchased a "How to maintain your boast" guide, which proved invaluable.We cut out the offending bottleneck in the fuel line - there was a lot of debris that had collected again where the pipe narrowed - and replaced it with pipe and filter all the same diameter. The flaring tool did its job, and pretty soon we had replaced a section of the fuel pipe, and headed out for a test run.
The boat had come with an inflatable tender with a small outboard, so we took that with us - just in case! 

Dad and Paulo in the tender - minus the outboard on this occasion

With one of us watching the fuel line for any signs of leaks, and the other steering we soon reached Breydon Water and cranked up the power. All was fine - the pick-up was better, and she accelerated smoothly. We did a thorough test, speeding up, then slowing down, turning sharply, crossing our wake to get the fuel tank shaken up so any debris would enter the fuel line, and she passed with flying colours.

Moored on the Bure with a windmill in the distance

On the way back to the marina we did notice some steam coming from the engine compartment, and found a small water leak next to the water pump, dripping onto the exhaust. Back moored up at the marina I removed the water pump and found that the gasket was shot - I had once replaced a water pump on my car, and had seen a friend, who was a good amateur car mechanic, make a new cylinder head gasket, so during the week I went to a local marine chandlers and bought the necessary parts.
Making a new gasket was actually a lot easier than I had thought it would be, and this repair was also fully tested the following weekend. Although I am still very much a duffer when it comes to engines of any sort I do have the confidence to give it a go, and to know when to call in the experts! A lot of things on these older engines is common sense rather than technical know-how!
There followed a period of very misty weather, so much so that we couldn't get out to sea - one day we were just messing around on Breydon Water and a very thick mist blew in, so we had to very gingerly crawl back to the marina and moor up! Another occasion we were heading back into the marina when it suddenly got very windy, making steering extremely difficult. To get to our stern-on mooring we had to head forwards past the pontoons, then reverse and turn to line up to our particular spot. We had to abort our first attempt due to the wind, and as we were about to start the second attempt, lining up to head forwards, the wind started blowing a gale, and despite throwing the engine into reverse we were blown into the bank, lined with metal pilings! Fortunately we hit above the waterline, but the end of one piling gouged a six-inch long scrape, about an inch deep, in the fibreglass! We had to wait for the wind to subside before we could finally moor and inspect the damage.
During the week it was back to the chandlers for a fibreglass repair kit - resin for the gouge, and matting for the surface - and some paint, and a visit to the library to read up on fibreglass repairs! Next weekend we had to ask if we could use a different mooring, an on-line one, so we could get at the damaged hull. Our stern mooring was no good - with the bow out there was no way we could get at the damaged part, and even if we moored nose-in we were still unable to reach the bit that needed repairing. On-line was still tricky - we had to lean out to reach the repair, and, even with the stern out a bit to bring the bow in closer, it was still uncomfortable working on it. The gouge was so deep we had to build it up in layers, allowing each one to dry before the next application, so it took several hours until we were satisfied with the finish, and it was barely noticeable that there had been any damage! 
We decided that the following Sunday, weather permitting, we would head out to sea again to fish!