Rod Sumner of Niagara Falls, Ontario asks:

I have been reading the commentaries with great interest and wish I were there with you. My question is: How often do you perform a below waterline inspection? Do you take the opportunity at each anchorage to don the mask and snorkel to check the rudder, cutlas bearing etc? (the water should have ben warm enough!!)

Jim Leishman responds:

Yes we do make a point of going into the water where it's practical. For Instance, in the Maldives where the water was crystal clear, I went in and cleaned the water line. While there I swam under to look at the running gear etc..

Here today - we're in the commercial port in Salalah and I'm not too crazy about going in due to possible pollution. The water temp is still in the high 70s here and has been in the mid 80s while farther south.

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