Well, that went better than expected...

Changing the head pump went better than expected, which probably means it will fail catastrophically during the OWSA cruise, but I should just revel in the success and completion for the moment.

Before heading to the boat this fine, overcast Saturday morning, I met up with the Yacht Constructors Breakfast Club (I've added the caps...). The Cascade Owners group I found online at multiply.com has a small group of like-minded folk who get together for breakfast every week, alternating between a golf course and a bar on Hayden Island. Since I had to be up that direction anyway, I refrained from my breakfast and met up with them. Now, this bar is one of those little hole-in-the-wall places, with glass doors that have been painted black on the inside, and dark paneling. I boldly walked in and then somewhat anxiously scanned the room looking for people who looked like they owned boats. Don't ask me what that looks like! Actually, the folks who waved me over were the ones who I would have picked out - one had a book open on the table, and I could see there were some drawings / diagrams in them, which made them the most likely candidates anyway.

I met Mike, Mark, Alec, Cheryl, and Bruce. Don, who invited me, was not present, and "Big Tom", one of the Cascade 29 owners is teaching English in Korea. Apparently a group of them go down to his boat in La Paz, Mexico in the winter and help him restore his boat and generally hang out. They were very welcoming, and obviously enjoy talking about boats and trips and offshore sailing. They also kindly volunteered some hints about the boat, like pump lots of fresh water through the head before changing it (already on the plan, but great advice). They also noted that the tubing I had for the waste was the wrong kind - a potable water tube that will eventually start to smell, so that should go on the list of things to upgrade. Alec said he had loads of that tubing. Really, I continue to be impressed with the kindness of the boating community. I will definitely go back!

For the head pump changeover, I brought plenty of paper towels, Clorox wipes, and plastic baggies to tape over the ends of the hoses & to try to catch some of the water that drained out. Overall, water drainage was pretty minimal, but there was some in the pump and at the bottom of the discharge tube, as expected. The flapper valve was in the "Do Not Install this way" position, so the new one went in according to the manual. Probably the hardest part was getting the discharge tube off the nozzle, which took a fair amount of persistent tuggling and wiggling.

I rewarded myself with a shower and a waffle from the waffle house!