A year in review

As has become my habit with this blog, i'll use the 29th Dec to review our sailing yearThe year started well, with a few boaty jobs getting done, including fitting a new set of davits, and reploacing a badly corroded Exhaust elbow.We also managed to get the sails and cockpit tent properly sorted out by a sailmaker, which needed doingAlthough February proved quiet, with the boat out of the water, I still managed to finish two other tasks... the fitting of new cockpit speakers, and the fitting of the dual station DSC VHF unit, so that at long last, I could now manage radio comms from the helm!March was a write off.... Easter was very early in 2008, so the weather was appalling, and we didn't really get out at all, even though Morgana had been dropped back inApril didn't start off any better, with snow in the early part, and then hail later on!But undeterred, I crept up to Scotland with my mate Jim, and we had a cracking couple of days sailing in the beautiful Clyde, with a wide range of weather fropm freezing and windy, to flat calm and hot.So, as you might imagine, we entered May with a little bit of trepidation.... the now annual pilgramage to Oostende coming up. It proved to be a good crossing, in lightish winds, so some motoring, and then fabulous weather when we got there.... the departure and return being a little more eventfull, with gales and big seas meaning a lively and fast return trip!By the end of May, the weather had again, gone sour, so I resigned myself to my latest per project, and bought a part completed wooden tender on eBay, which I then finshed over the coming weeksJune too started badly, and by the 24th, I had finished the tender, and so we planned our trips with a bit more enthusiasm.... and then summer arrived... the end of June was lovely... hot, sunny and perfect winds...This continued into early July, but then fell apart again, just in time for our annual pirate weekend, which despite the best efforts of the weather, was again a huge success.... and then summer returned again at the end of July.. just the third hot weekend in the whole summerAnd so we moved on into August, and our summer cruise... we had a good long break of 27 days, and I was very much looking forward to getting a bit further afield than previously. Alas, it was not to be.... the weather confounded us again, and we spent time wiating on suitabel weather windows at Ramsgate, Bolougne, Dieppe and Fecamp.... and then after making it back to Eastbourne, the gearbox failed, leaving us to be towed into Dover, where poor Morgana was abandoned, and later repaired at huge expense.... Welcome to boat ownership!The resultanr delivery trip back from Dover was yet another windy, wet, cold affair, which wasn't much fun, but most importantly, was also without drama!The only positive was that the crossing from Fecamp to Eastbourne was breezy, yet SWMBO enjoyed it enormously... a real sign of her growing confidenceSeptember saw me depart on a friends Moody across to Cherbourg for a drink or two (or perhaps a little bit more) with friends... a great trip, with good company and excellent sailing.... but it was wrapped up with a month of further poor weather, apart from one weekend, which was OK.The rest of the year was just much of the same... Oct and Nov with rotten weather, where we just managed short day sails..... with the only highlight being the laying down supper, at our own home marina, which was a splendid evening of merriment!Dec was equally poor, with gales, snow and just down right cold!So.... that all sounds a bit gloomy really.... but we still enjoyed it in truth, and love having Morgana to escape too from the daily pressures of work....Yep... the weather was a shocker in 2008, and we really hope for better in 2009... in fact, it would be hard to be any worse if the truth be known!So here's to a great 2009 to everyone.... may all your sailing trips be perfect ones!

Christmas approaches

With the festive season all but upon us, and best of all, the Winter solstice past, the days will now start getting longer again, and so our thoughts are turning to spring and summer cruisingWell, yes, maybe it is a bit premature, but as any sailor will know, the short cold grey winter days are specially created to allow you to dream of long hot days, late sunsets, and drinks in the evening cockpit.We've got a decent sail planned for the new year, with our friends Jim and Lynn coming over. We'll party away New Years Eve, and then on new years day, we'll go find a quiet anchorage somewhere and chew the fat, reminisce over a year with far from ideal weather, yet still some lovely memories, and wish away for a long hot 2009 summer.Times are hard enough as it is at present. The outlook for 2009 is gloomy to say the least. So many people are having a hard time, and there is really little sign of any great improvement on the horizonIn chatting last night, SWMBO and I decided that should the worst come to the worst, and my job goes south, which fortunately at present, isn't looking too likely (but if things get worse, then who knows), then we'll cut our losses, sell the house (if we can) and take a couple or so of years out to sail with the kids... home educate them.... and copme back when things have recovered somewhat. It'd mean starting again financially, but hey... you roll with the punches.Happy Christmas everyone.

Wet, cold and windy!

After a break of far too long, we decided that we had to get down to the boat this weekend.... even if just to check that she was OKAnd fine she was.... But, it was cold beyond belief when we arrived Friday evening...So we treated ourselves to a bite to eat in the Shipwreck, after setting the heating off to runWhen we returned to the boat, it wasn't as warm as i'd expected... abit of investigation found that the pipe directing warm air had come detached in the lcoker...so that was reattached.... and then the Eberspacher wouldn't fire!!!!It turned out that the voltage was too low. Turn everything else off, and away it went.... and was fine once running, at which point we could switch things back onFor some time, i'd suspected the batteries of being tired.... and this confirmed it. They'll need replacing in the new yearAny way... we decided not to stop come Saturday, as it was raining, blowing 30+kts, and barely above freezing... so we set off home.I'd already noted that the local chandlery was having a clearance sale before their new year move to new premises, so we dropped in for a peek.What a result that was....I got:

2 x 28m of 16mm braid
2 x 25m of 14mm braid
1 x 20m of 12mm braid
And a Tilley hat...

all for 85 quid.... an absolute bargain!Anyway... enough, as i'm still trying to warm up....

weather

Not planning on sailing this weekend. We did half have it in mind, but have now seen the weather forecast...3 degrees, 35kts and snow isn't quite in my 'ideal' range!Never mind..... i'm sure there will be plenty to get on with at home...

Marina fees

We've just got the bill for the annual marina fees....as I say every year, its seems a cruel time of the year to send out the bill!They've only gone up two percent this year, perhaps an indicator of the harder economic climate?I've just added a countdown on the home page until we plan to depart.... its sitting at 111 months.. It seems almost unkind on myself to put that there, but only last night Debs and I were discussing that this year has simply vanished byIf the next 9 or so go as quickly, then we'll be off before we know what's happened!We are also aware that unless you plan far enough in advance, and actually do something about it, then you'll never be in a position to go.It also depends upon what the kids end up doing...... I hope they'll go to Uni, but who knows.... Both Debs and I were quite independent of our parents at an early age, so hope ours are too!

Winterising afloat

As we are staying in this year, partially to take advantage of some of those lovely winter days, and partially to keep costs down, I was thinking about what we should be doing to winteriseWhen we were last down a week ago, I drained down the water system, hot and cold, so that there is nothing in the pipes. The dehumidifier was plugged in, a small greenhouse frost preventing heater was switched on, and that was about it!The engine is left as is, figuring that with the boat in the water, then the sea temperature will help, and the frost heater, which kicks in at 4 degrees will assist.If we have a particularly cold spell forecast, then I may drain down the engine too, but thats easier said than down in the water... not impossible, but just hard work.... I may just turn up the heater a few degrees instead!The other thing that is playing on my mind is anodes... if we aren't being lifted then I need to think this through.Last year, after a season afloat, the prop anode was well consumed, and so I might need to hang an anode off the back of the boat... only where to connect it to?I might try running a cable down through the locker lid an in to the propshaft, but then i'll need to fit it to the shaft, which probably means a jubilee clip, which is one more hassle when we arrive/depart.... any better ideas?

laying down supper

Being rather contrarian, we get a group together each year for the annual 'laying down supper'......As I am sure you can ascertain from the title, its a boozy affir, full of laughter and fun...This year, it was (thankfully!) at our home marina, and a group of 32 people gathered on Saturday night for an evening of food and drink....various prizes were awarded for achievements throughout the season, some less of an achievement than others...... suffice to say the prizes included a chicken hat, a toilet roll, and a ball of string amongst other things.....Anyway, it was yet another weekend of no sailing.... which with a F10 forecast wasn't our greatest of concerns....Morgana stays in this winter, an we are hoping for a few lovely winter days to get out on the water....Some of you have commented that the blogging has been slow over recent weeks, and I thank you for your concerns..... its simply been the impact of a very very busy period at work, where i've been getting home too exhausted to even contemplate logging on.... normal (overly verbose) service will resume shortly!

a fine weekend

Well, a part of a weekend. We could only sail Saturday due to family commitments... and so we went down Friday night, had a pleasant evening, needed the Eberspacher for the first time in earnest, and arose Saturday to a grand day. Blue skies, light winds and pleasantly warm.A bit of setting up, and out we slipped...It wasn't anything spectacular as sails go, but with about 15kts over the deck, was great fun... just up the coast towards the Deben and back again.... very relaxing, and back in our berth and tied up by 15h00...More please!

Miles logged 15nm
Miles this season 950nm
Miles since this blog started 3,897nm

found the summer!

We found the missing summer this weekend!The forecast had been looking promising for a few days, so I was mildly optimistic about the weekend, and it didn't dissapoint.We got down to the boat rather late Friday, as C wanted to attend Sea Cadets, so a quick stuffing of various items into lockers and we were in bed.... Saturday dawned with a typical 'summer' high pressure morning... not a breath of wind, slightly misty, and not a cloud in the sky... with the barometer reading 1035, it bode well..... We'd already decided that Saturday would be a cleaning day. Poor Morgana, after a summer cruise, a 2 week enforced stay in Dover, and perhaps a weekend or two prior to that, was starting to look grubby.... so, after a quick motor back into our own berth from our temporary home it was all hands to the decks.... or rather, all kids to the decks... they donned shorts, filled a bucket, and scrubbed to their hearts content.... meanwhile SWMBO and I sett too down below... every surface was wiped carefully down to remove salt deposits, all woodwork was polished within an inch of its life, and both heads compartments were comprehensively scrubbed. With a sweet smelling and shiny interior, I set too in the cockpit... scrubbing, and even resorting to using a toothbrush to get into small gaps, she really began to gleam.... I even opened all the cockpit lockers and scrubbed round their recesses where they close..... hard work, but made easier by the glorious sunshine....By 15h00, we'd done enough to be satisfied, so downed tools, and set off for a long walk along the river bank... some 7 miles later, we were all exhausted, so instead of eating on board, treated ourselves to grub in The Shipwreck...A good days work, added to the walk, saw us in bed by 22h00, and for the first time this season, we stuck the heating on.... a blessed relief to a cool evening.Sunday started much the same way, and after a leisurely start, an enormous fried breakfast and copious coffee, we cast off the lines.... what a decision!Soon out to sea, and with between 7 and 10kts of wind and strong unbroken sunshine, it could only be described as perfect!.... I hardly touched the helm.... SWMBO and the kids argued over who got to drive next, and I sat and enjoyed the fact that slowly, everyone is building in confidence and competence...Sadly, we had to go home at some point, and locked back in and onto our berth without drama.... A great weekend, and a reminder of what the summer should have been like.

Miles logged 13nm
Miles this season 935nm
Miles since this blog started 3,882nm

Cherbourg and hungover!

Ah but what a trip!...The usual unhealthy, but extremely appealing, combination of boys trip sailing, copious quantities of alcohol and plenty of good food results in me now sitting here with a hangover and a sore throat from all the laughing!It all started with a mad dash down to Lymington Thursday evening after work, unfortunately via Harwich, as i'd left my passport on the boat, but eventually I arrived at Nicks boat, Fiddler's Dream, and we cast off soon after into the dark towards St Vaast.The passage out was uneventful really, barring the usual fun of being popped through Hurst Narrows like a cork with the strong tide, and then being bounced a bit through the Needles passage where the might of the English channel tides tries to force its way over the shallow rock ledge called the Bridge, and inevitably cuts up a bit rough.... but nothing too serious, and Nick's boat as a Moody 44 pushed it aside in her stride.We settled into the normal cross channel routine, and with around 18 to 20kts of wind, soon had her flying along.... Nick served up a great chicken dish, produced by his wife Karen, and we were on our way.Sadly just 1/2hr later, the combination of being very tired from a long week at work with too many early starts, a rough-ish sea, and a very rich meal saw me present the meal to the fishes, which caught me by surprise a little, as its the first time i've been sick on a boat in many years. It wasn't however full blown sea sickness, as I had little warning, and then felt right as rain again afterways for the rest of the journey.We had a little maneouvering to cope with in the middle of the channel as the ships passed out of the Western TSS and set themselves up for the Eastern one, but nothing too troubling....It was, apart from the above, pretty uneventful, and as we got within about 10nm of Barfleur lighthouse on the French coast, the wind had dropped enough that Nick was starting to express concern about us making the entrance window for the tidally constrained St Vaast, so the engine went on, and we approached the coast, and rounded the corner into St Vaast itself as the early morning dawned.A great crossing in just under 12hrs.St Vaast started as planned with a large fried breakfast, and then we got our heads down for a few hours to compensate for the missed night's sleep.By mid afternoon, we were somewhat refreshed, so wandered over to few other boats to say hello, and of course share a beer with them, and by evening, decided that the three of us onboard Fiddler's Dream (Nick, myself and other invited crew member Rick) would have a quiet meal in St Vaast, and get our heads down early.... pah!The meal itself was very good, and in a restaurant that was delightfully named 'The Nelson'.... rather an interesting choice for a French restaurant!.... In particular the starter was a seafood platter that excelled itself, with a whole Crab, Oysters, Whelks, Mussels, Langoustine, Prawns, and all manner of other unidentified delicacies..... very nice indeed. By 21h00, we were ready to go back to the boat for a night cap and a sleep.... no chance....!.... we were soon joined by other revellers, and eventually retired for the night, a little worse for the wear (sorry about emptying the brand new bottle of Port Nick!) at about 00h30.Saturday started off with real promise, with warmth in the air as early as 08h00, and when we slipped by about 09h00, it was sunny and pleasant.... the wind was lighter than the previous day, and so we motored out of St Vaast into about 14kts and flat seas and soon had the sails up and the engine off.... we'd decided the previous evening that we'd try the rather more challenging inshore passage, which zig zags through the rocks and wrecks... this proved to be a great decision, as it was challenging navigation, great fun to sail, and enabled us to get as close as 100m to the shore on one occasion rather than the normal 3nm off. It had a couple of slightly disconcerting moments, as we watched the depth rapidly shallow, and could see significantly disturbed water ahead, but careful nav saw us through. We did miss some of the final route as the wind would have been on the nose to get us through a rather narrow (10m wide) passage between two submerged rocks, and we didn't want to start the engine and spoil the moment, but apart from this, we managed perfectly.We slotted neatly into the Eastern entrance to Cherbourg to find quite a few boats from the gang having already arrived.Again, and afternoon of loitering, drinking beer, and chatting to old friends, and making a few new ones culminating in Roger's boat, a Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 42DS having at least 25 people stood on board, and still remaining afloat!We set off to the restaurant previously booked to arrive just in time, and settled in for an evening of tale sea tales, food and excellent company. (thanks Fergus and Roger - great organisation - a fabulous evening!)Following a trend we eventually found ourselves back on the boat enjoying a night cap with about 15 other people, and god knows what time we got to bed.A relaxed start to the day Sunday, and we set off into 15kts of wind just at an angle sufficient that we could saul hard on the wind, and started the return back to Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight.The journey started well, for as we left the inner harbour and entered the outer harbour, the Grande Raide, A dolphin was entertaining the ribs with a spectacular jump and high speed maneouvres.The trip back across to the Solent was equally uneventful, with only two maneouvres needed to avoid ships, and by early evening we slotted past the Bridge Cardinal again, and shot through into the Solent, hitting a remarkable 12.5kts over the ground with the assistance of the impressive tide flooding through Hurst Narrows.Tied up in Yarmouth, we grabbed the water taxi ashore for much needed showers, and then a very pleasant meal in the Kings Head, with a few pints of decent beer, and a timely pub quiz evening, in which we sadly failed to cover ourselves in glory by not knowing the answer to apparently obvious questions like who wrote Chitty Chitty Bang Bang!... still we had a great evening, with lots of laughter again, and early the next morning, set off for the very short hop across to Lymington, where we sorted ourselves out, helped clear the boat up, settled up financial imbalances and set off home tired, a little sunbunt and happy.Thanks Nick and Rick, a truly brilliant weekend, with some fabulous sailing and thoroughly enjoyable company. I can quite understand why Nick is so proud of his boat.... she is lovely.

Miles logged 180nm
Miles this season 922nm
Miles since this blog started 3,869nm

finally!

After a rather boring train journey down to Dover (but at a bargain basement price), we arrived at the marina (well, via RCPYC for a pint with Barry!) to find Morgana safe and well in the sheltered Wellington dock.This is very very sheltered, but pays the price in terms of a gate which only opens HW +/- 1.5hrs...And I was somewhat unsurprised, yet still oddly dissapointed, to find the wind howling through the rigging, and gusts swirling viciously across the water.It was 22h00 by the time we'd stepped on board, and yet I had to start the engine, just because I could..... ah the joy of a running engine, with no strange metallic graunching noises.The forecast for Saturday was little better, so again, it was unsurprising to hear squalls working their way through all night. I'd left the wind instruments on, as they can graph the wind speed. By morning its screen made depressing reading.We already decided that there was no way we'd be leaving at the morning HW, in the wee small hours, so the next chance was 15h00ish.... so we spent the day fettling and fiddling, and finally walked out along the sea front to have a look out to sea.I am in half minds as to whether I regret, or thank my lucky stars for this walk...We watched a ferry coming in, listing 15 degrees either way, and eventually, calling for tugs to get it through the entrance safely.... it was out past the eastern entrance to Dover, and even at over 2nm range, we could see the waves exploding on the bow and soaking right the way up to the bridge deck..... this was the resuly of nearly 48hrs of F7/F8 with a fetch the length of the English channel...Of course, this made me realise that the late afternoon opening was a non starter.... even if the wind moderated (and it wasn't forecast to until gone 22h00), the sea state would be dreadful.. so we made the decision to leave it until Sunday morning, and see what happened... this did however, mean a very early start, so we decided to lock out, and enter the tidal marina beyond the gates, and also take the opportunity to grab some fuel, which otherwise wouldn't be available very early or very late....We then spent the next few hours in a combination of three activities.... searching the net desperately for updated forecasts, reading books to chew up some time, and fretting about whether leaving was sensible...Eventually, at about 22h00, when the wind had moderated to 20kts, we decided to turn in for the night, and leave it until 05h00 the following morning to make a decision. With alarms set we went to bed. Funnily enough, despite my concerns, I slept soundly, and was awoken from deep sleep at 04h45...I was immediately up on deck to assess the conditions...... there was around 14kts in the marina, the barometer had risen (suggesting the low was moving away), and the wind had shifted a bit more westerly... another good sign....So we took a deep breath, and decided to poke our noses out and see what it was like, with a decision planned to either bale out and return, or to stick at it once outside of the safe confines of the harbour....Leaving the shelter of Prince William dock, the wind rose to 18kts, and the radio comms with the Port authorities was straightforward enough.... so we edged out of the harbour..... we had both clipped on, and I was pleased we had, as the confused sea outside the eastern entrance had us rolling from rail to rail..... we quickly set a scrap of genoa to stabilise her a bit, and headed towards South Foreland...Funnily enough, once clear of the harbour walls, the sea state was much better, with the seas rolling instead of breaking, so we agreed that we'd carry on, and review our situation off Ramsgate, some 15nm up the coast....The wind had moderated dramatically, and it was only 15kts, but with a big sea right behind us, and the tide shooting through the Dover Straits, we scudded along at some 8kts over the ground....In fact, as dyalight appeared properly, and it warmed up a bit, we actually appeared to be enjoying ourselves!It, inevitably, wasn't to last.Off Ramsgate, the decision was obvious... we carry on. We'd made fantastic time up the coast, the wind was perfect, the sea was even starting to flatten. However, we left North Foreland in our wake, and suddenly the weather changed..... the horizon turned black, and just 20mins later, we were under heavily reefed genoa, with the engine on to test the gearbox properly, torrential rain, and 30kts of wind.... the sea was building and sloppy due to the change of direction.... and thus it continued.....We bounced our way down to Foulgers Gat, and squirmed our way through this shallow and narrow passage, and popped out into Black Deep, which at least afforded us the luxury of being enclosed on two sides by snadbanks, and therefore much flatter water.... but the wind remained, both strong, and squally, and the rain.... oh the rain.... it was monsoon like.It seemed to take an age to get to Sunk Head, and then on to Gunfleet, and for a while the clouds parted, and we saw Harwich.... a sense of relief swept over us, not because we were worried, but because we were soaked and fed up!Naturally, the wind had shifted, so the last few miles were too fine to sail comfortably, so we swapped the genoa for the main, and motor sailed the remaining few miles into Harwich.... with squally gust still hitting the high 20's and cloud bursts soaking us to the skin....However, it was still only lunch time when we entered Harwich, and then Shotley, locked in and tied up with 65nm over the ground in just a tad over 8hrs..... excellent...we'd averaged over 8kts for the journey, including a good few miles upwind.... the spells under just reefed genny at 10+Kts had helped!Our home berth was occupied (a long story - with a much more expensive problem for one boat owner than ours), so we were offered a nearby berth, which we gladly took.... and were delighted that with just two of us on board, our team work was spot on, with inch perfect placement in both the lock and the pontoon...The trip hadn't been much fun in most respects.... the wind was very very squally, and a bit more than I would have liked even in the lulls, and the rain was just downright miserable.... but even with this, we were out on the water, rather than stuck at home watching TV like so many of my colleagues at work seem to do.So.... Morgana is back home.... we can stop paying for a berth away from home.... we can weekend sail again... and best of all, we'd left the engine running the whole way, and most of the way in gear (albeit at low revs), and the engine and the gearbox had not missed a beat.... and when I opened the engine compartment in Shotley, the leak from the overflow had clearly stopped, and the compartment temperature seemed a lot lower than previously... the new impellor must have helped... The good few hours of usage had restored my confidence in the engine/gearbox, which is important, as its very easy for these kinds of events to damage that confidence, which can spoil the whole experience of using your boat....Next weekend, its off to Cherbourg, with friends, so really looking forward to that.... and thankfully, the decision to go, has made that trip possible again.... if we'd got on the train home, it would have been abandoned in favour of trying to get Morgana home next weekend, and avoiding another weeks mooring fees..... and I don't like letting people down, so would have felt very guilty.Anyway.... normal service resumed!

Miles logged 53nm
Miles this season 742nm
Miles since this blog started 3,689nm

exchangers and weather

While running the engine up after replacing the gearbox, the engineer commented that he thought my heat exchanger had pretty much failed....His reason.... "a small amount of water coming out of the overflow pipe on the fresh water circuit when the engine is run".... he seemed to think that sea water was getting in there....Now... working on the theory that he hasn't taste tested the water to see if it really is sea water (I hope not, as the fresh water system had antifreeze in it!), and given that I also topped the fresh water up to the top just before he started work and hadn't run the engine since, it got me to thinking..Here's my logic...... the only way that water could come out of the overflow is if it is being displaced by something..... and that could either be a] excessive pressure in the fresh water system, b] excess water from the calorifier system, or c] sea water leaking in....For a] the only 2 real causes of this would be either a blocked/restricted exchange core, or a blown head gasket passing compression pressures into the fresh water circuit... in which case, the levels in the header tank would drop as water was displaced from the fresh water system out of the overflow... (or obviously, overheating, which it isn't....)for b] checked by looking to see if coolant is entering the hot water system... but plausible...for c] I can't see this happening.... the fresh water circuit is under considerably higher pressure than the sea water circuit, and so surely displacement would be in the opposite direction?... maybe the process would reverse when the engine was shut down, but that wouldn't fit with the symptoms of an overflow when the engine was running surely?So..... my conclusion.....I think that when I topped up the header tank just before he worked on the engine, I put the levels above its natural level, and it is just overflowing a small amount of excess water, which will stop quickly (I added about 1/4 litre of water).... it is possible that the calorifier/hot water circuit is leaking into the system, but less likely than the prior reason... on top of this, the overflow wasn't leaking at all previously so it would be quite a coincidence that it failed at the same time as my gearbox....Anyway....if sea water is entering the exchanger, while it'll need fixing pronto, it won't stop us motoring for a few hours, so the collection trip is on.... or at least I hope it is!... the weather looks shocking...... forecast to be very windy (25kts average wind speed) this evening, and through tomorrow (Saturday) and then moderating Sunday morning....We can't get the boat out of the tidally constrained marina until either 0200 tomorrow or after that not until mid afternoon Sat.... not wanting to get up in the middle of the night we'll go for the afternoon option.... i'm hoping that the wind will have started to moderate by then, so that we can set off.... the sea state probably won't be very pleasant, but I guess we'll cope.... we can always wimp out and head into Ramsgate Saturday evening, and then continue the journey on Sunday if neccessary....

Fixed!

Finally, the boat is fixed, and in fine fettle again..... (well almost)A couple of last minute hitches that nearly put the whole plan out in the long grass.....Firstly, I lay in bed last night, with my mind doing 1,000mph, when suddenly I realised in a moment of panic that i'd forgotten to tell the engineer that we had a rope cutter fitted..... and that this needed fine tolerance in terms of fitting the shaft in the same fore and aft position as it was previously.... this shouldn't have been a problem with an identical replacement gearbox.... only the gearbox wasn't quite identical in that the model had been superceded by a newer version, which was 'dimensionally identical'.... only my mind started saying things like "what if its 1mm shorter"... then the fixed and rotating parts of the cutter would clash, with unthinkable consequences... of at best a destroyed cutter, and possibly a damaged shaft or a ripped off P bracket...... no wonder I couldn't sleep!Secondly, the cutter is an Ambassador stripper, and this has a kind of 'V' into which the fixed part locates when the shaft is pulled inboard..... if the V is fixxed at the 6 o'clock position on the P bracket then it will naturally locate itself.... and I couldn't remember where it was on Morgana.... I had a picture, but it was at home.....So I spoke to the engineer, and the only solution he could offer was a lift out to locate it properly.... another £115..... however, he did then suggest that he sees many boats with the cutter not properly located, and it sits happily to the side of the V... not performing quite as designed, but perfectly safe.....This was a relief for three reasons.... one, the lift would have further added to the costs, two, the lift couldn't be done until Saturday afternoon... and thirdly we have a lift planned for the end of September anyway at our home marina, and to have to pay for two lifts in 3 weeks just seemed unfair!So finally, the engineer tells me that she is running as sweet as anything now.... only other thing he can find is that the heat exchanger is on its last legs, so will need replacing over the winter..... that I can do myself.... phew!OK.... so we're on for the delivery trip over the weekend.... only its now forecasting 30kts+ for the Friday and 25kts+ for the Saturday... Sunday a bit better..... will be watching the forecast develop carefully..... it seems stacked against us at the moment!

no news is good news?

Not heard from the engineer today.... I was planning on calling him around 17h00, but got engrossed in a work phone call, and suddenly it was 18h30....So a call early tomorrow I think...I'm nervous that I haven't heard anything!This weekend is important.... I am away the following weekend (off to Cherbourg with friends), so if we miss this one, then we face another fortnight of mooring fees... so the engineer needs to get his finger out.... and the weather needs to remain friendly.... not too much to ask surely?

delayed again

The boat won't be done for this weekend.....So that'll be another weeks mooring fees.....I have a comittment to the following Friday....tickets rearranged....What's the betting that the weather is shocking?

clutches

It has been suggested to me, that while the gearbox is off, it would make sense to renew the clutch plate. The old one looks perfectly OK, but it is a good opportunity to replace it at the time.Well, you'd think so wouldn't you?Only, for what is pretty much a standard clutch plate, actually even quite a small one, the price is a breathtaking £210.The old clutch is staying in.Still not sure if we'll be bringing her back this weekend or not yet.The new gearbox is due to arrive tomorrow morning at the marina.The old gearbox is removed. (and the engineer can't turn it by hand, so kind of supports his diagnosis that the gearbox is completely knackered)He is planning to work on it tomorrow, but it is a reasonably large job to install and re-align.My train tickets are still there for 17:30, but I need to cancel them by mid afternoon if I want either a refund or to rearrange them....Careful decision making over timing and plenty of hassling will be the order of the day tomorrow!

new gearbox

About to order a new gearbox....Still around the £500 mark delivered...Not looking good for getting it installed by the weekend though.... engineer declares that he is 'busy'.... ain't we all!So thats another £100 for the following weeks mooring...... sigh

now here's a dilemma

A new gearbox is £500Might be installed for the weekend, so could be offest against an extra £150 mooring fees.....Humhhhhh......

gearbox

So I was wrong...... its the gearbox... which is being removed tomorrow....it'll need sending to a specialist for repair, so won't be ready for this weekend....So i'll need to rearrange my bargain basement train tickets, and stump up for another weeks mooring at Dover....At least it sounds repairable!The engineer reckons on the best part of a day to remove and another day to refit...so that'll probably be £600 in just hourly charges, plus the cost of the gearbox repair, plus two weeks in harbour at £130 a week, plus tow charges... so probably looking at the best part of a grand....

engine tension

I'm sitting here biting my nails, waiting for the engineer to call and give me the good/bad news......I'm terrible at waiting!

Stuck and broke

Saturday was a chance to try and get the engine fixed....No chance...I tried all the things I could think of, and it was beyond the limited facilities and tools I had available...So, I resorted to trying to track down an engineer..... no chance on a bank holiday weekend....Eventually, I got a commitment to an engineer coming on Tuesday..... and later in the day, I got another engineer to come and have a look at the engine...His diagnosis being that (without taking the head off to confirm), it had either blown the head gasket between cylinders, or dropped a valve.... neither of which are terminal, but both require the head off, and work doing....So reluctantly, I arrange a weeks berthing with Dover marina, confirm the engineer for Tuesday, and make arrangements to get home by road...So two thanks due here.....firstly, my father, for coming and fetching us, and helping us avoid £250 of train fees, and secondly, to Tim of Highway Marine, who came out, all the way from Sandwhich to assess our likely problem, and all at no charge.... brilliant and unexpected.Home now writing this... hopefully it will prove to be no more serious than Tim has suggested and we'll be fixed in time for next weekend, when we can complete the trip back to Shotley.

Drama at sea

The tide times offered us a pleasant 10h00 start to head of on our next leg towards Dover, and so we slipped into a busy lock at the agree time, and set off out to sea.
The wind had continued to moderate, and so we weren't surprised to see just 5 or 6kts of wind once we cleared the entrance channel.
So, with the main up, we motorsailed for a couple of hours.
As we got within 3nm of Dungeness, one of the major south coast headlands, I was enjoying the ride when there was a loud clunk clunk, and the engine stopped dead!
Oh crap.
We quickly unfurled the genny, and with the wind still quite light, was greatful for the tide with us..... still making 2kts over the ground.
I ran below and immediately started the normal set of engine checks.... first I pulled the impellor out.... ah yes..... first problem.... several missing vanes..... so we'd over heated...... but why hadn't the overheat alarm gone off? with that changed, I tried the starter.... clunk... no movement at all.... damn....
The engine had stopped very suddenly, as if it had seized.... I then checked the oil... a bit low, but not seriously so.... I checked the fuel filters, draining a little diesel off, and bleeding the system.... all clear.... oh dear....
So with little else I could do at this stage, I decided that the answer was to sail, and leave the engine to cool for a couple of hours to see if it would free off again...
I knew that any problem was likely to be the engine rather than the gearbox, and that we didn't have a fouled prop, as when I lifted the engine cover the shaft was merrily turning as we sailed, and when SWMBO put her into gear, the shaft stopped turning....
So back on deck..... sorry kids... we're going to have a slow passage to Dover....
And then the wind changed direction 180 degrees...... I silently cursed the gods, and we set the sails for a beat, in 5kts of wind....... in which Morgana isn't the fastest of vessels...
It seemed to take forever to just get passed Dungeness, and as we cleared it, and reached my next waypoint on the plotter, I was taunted by the darned thing, as it popped up with 22nm to go to next waypoint.... a very quick mental calculation showed that at 2kts, we were 10hrs away, with just 4hrs of supporting tide remaining..... whoops.
And then the wind vanished.... or not quite.... we had occasionally 1kt.
And so we drifted...
After an hour, we saw a black cloud over the land.... followed by obvious signs of rain in the distance. Heavy Rain.
I began to think..... "just what have I done to deserve this?"
And so, the rain started to appear.... the sea went glassy... and then.... out of nowhere, we had 20kts of wind again...... fabulous... a reef in, and we are making 10kts over the ground...... At last, things were looking up.....
But just 20mins later, the cloud passed on, and the wind again vanished.....
During the brief cloud burst, I had been wondering if we had enough wind and time to get round North Foreland, a further 18nm past Dover, and then we could sail through the night to make our home port,. where we could look at our options more easily.... and you never know... the engine might restart anyway
After 2 hrs, I decided to have a go at the engine again.... clunk... clunk... nothing.... damn it sounds like its seized.... both difficult, and expensive...
I pulled the cover again, and got SWMBO to kick over the starter.... and noticed that slowly, degree by degree, the front pulley was turning..... so I jumped up in to the cockpit, and fired the starter and kept it fired..... cluuuuunk whir..... clunk whiiiiiir, cherchunk. cherchunk.... bump bump bump, and off she ran..... phew..... but it was short lived.... the engine sounded terrible.... I was on the verge of stopping it before I did any further damage when she stopped herself anyway.....
So, we were engineless.
I called Dover CoastGuard and informed them of our situation.... just advising them that we were OK., but at the mercy of the tides.... They were marvellous. It was rarther salutory though to go through the list of questions that you hear on a mayday.... yes we have lifejackets, yes we have a liferaft, yes we know our position, yes we have nav lights.... etc etc
I kept in contact with Dover CG, and they gave some peace of mind in that they had us on radar, and also offered confirmation of our tidal calcs from their SAR systems.
By 20h00, we had closed to within 12nm of Dover, with just 1hr of tide left, so in rather a sticky situation when Dover CG called us, and asked whether we were OK, with young children on board, and whether we would like to request the lifeboat. I was delighted that they had showed concern, but also was thinking of the poor sods who had just settled into their Friday evening meal, and wouldn't appreciate the callout.. so declined... I am off the school of thought that suggests you should try your hardest to get out of your own mess...
And just 30mins later, the wind filled in a bit.... the nav lights were now on, and we were finally making 4 to 5kts over the ground again.....
I contacted Dover Port Control, and advised them of the situation.... theye were happy to send out their launch to assist, but only once we were within 1nm of the harbour entrance...
So we plugged on....
as the tide turned, our speed plummeted, and the last 2 or 3nm were painfully slow....
so, it was with some relief that, at 1.5nm off the western entrance, Dover Port Control called us, and asked us "if that was us 1.5nm off the Western entrance?" and "would we like a tow now?"
Just a few minutes later, we had a boat alongside, the sails down, and were under tow into the harbour.... our progress just slightly delayed by having to make a circle to wait for the fast cat to enter Dover port.....
As we entered the sheltered harbour water on a long tow, the boat dropped the tow and came longside for an easier tow, and then executed a bit of brilliant seamanship by taking us all the way into the marina alongside and finding a double empty berth up a narrow aisle and parking us perfectely on the pontoon.
So what had started as a straightforward 45nm from Eastbourne to Dover had turned into a 14hr marathon.
I was however,rather proud of us all for two reasons.... firstly there was no panic, and secondly, and most importantly, we solved our on problem. We could have easily have said "yes" to the offer of lifeboat help, but we stuck it out, and in my opinion, did the right thing by getting ourselves out of our own trouble.
It was, with hindsight, quite an experience... its seemed rather fraught at the time, but actually, at no time were we in any real trouble.
Another lesson taught us by the sea.

Miles logged 55nm
Miles this season 689nm
Miles this trip 296nm
Miles since this blog started 3,636nm

Fast crossing

Fecamp proved to be an excellent destination with some real pros and a couple of cons.Fecamp itself is an unremarkable destination, in that it is largely modern, after being substantially flattened during the 2nd world war. It does however, have the rather spectacular Benedictine Palace, where the famous Benedictine drink is made. This is an amazing building, filled with artifacts that are really quite beautiful, from ivory carvings from the 12th century through to 19th century paintings. Quite worth a visit. It is however, at its best when you tour the Benedictine production facility, and sample the output!Other than that, it is a pleasant enough town, with plenty to keepu occupied for a couple of days. Which brings us onto the cons.....Rather like Ramsgate, the marina suffers a bit from swell entering. Although not as bad as Ramsgate, we did have a couple of rolly nights. The reason we had a couple was that the weather again turned for the worse. We did initially think, sod it, we'll go anayway, and then we went and had a look at the entrance channel and changed our minds.
There were large near breaking waves between the two pier heads, and it looked extremely unpleasant. The second day we got closer to deciding to leave, and then we watched a boat exit. It changed our minds.



We could see their keel as they left!So, Friday, things had calmed down considerably, and we decided to leave. The forecast was for a grey, but dry day, with a SW F3.... perfect.So 5:00am we rose, with a 6:00 departure planned..... actual conditions seemed in line with forecast... so we slipped and left.... a nice easy exit (phew!) and we were out to sea.....We were perhaps a little light on diesel to motor the whole way, so we were glad to see some wind.... as we exited the pier heads, we pulled the sails out, and turned off the engine....Within 20mins, the skies turned blacker than hades, and we were in torrential rain, and 28kts of wind.... sigh.....But it wasn't to last.... the rain departed past us, and the wind moderated to 20kts, across the rear quarter... the swell followed us, and we had the most magnificent sail back across the channel... a little avoiding action in both lanes, neither serious, the clouds parting to bring the sun out, and with the log reaching on one occasion 9.41kts through the water, I was having a ball!Things are definitely coming together, as SWMBO even took the helm for a while, something she would have never done in those conditions even as recently as last year...Just 10hrs later, we rounded the safe water mark for the entrance to Eastbourne, dropped the sails, and restarted the engine.... wonderful.A quick and easy entrance into Eastbourne, tied up for the night, a great Italian meal ashore and the world was good.

Miles logged 66nm
Miles this season 634nm
Miles this trip 241nm
Miles since this blog started 3,581nm

Fecamp

After a great 24hrs in St Valery en Caux, that we really enjoyed it was time to move on.... St Valery is very pretty and quiet... and besides, it was worth a stop just to see M's face when he walked into the toilets to see a traditional French hole in the ground... he had simply no idea at all what to do, and had me in stitches asking which bit he should sit upon......One of the advantages (or potential disadvantages) of St Valery en Caux, is that it is behind a closed gate, so you don't have an early start when the tide is right!.... fortunaterly this worked well for us today, as with an early afternoon lock out, we were able to leave at midday, and face just 45mins of foul tide before it tuned to sweep us down the coast towards the next destination, Fecamp.The downside is that the summer South Westerlies remain in charge (although the don't seem to be matched with the hot sunny weather!), so it was, yet again, pretty much dead upwind the whole way, so motoring was the order of the day.This should be the last time we have to deal with this though, as the next leg will be across back to the UK, across the wind, and then back east, so hopefully with the wind behind us.... whats the betting that the wind changes direction!!!!Anyway... we set off into what looked like a bit of a rainstorm ahead of us, but it didn't materialise, and so we had a dry, if rather grey trip... The sea state was fine, with our further westing producing a sea with more rollers rather than short wind blown chop.... as the tide turned (to assist us) with wind over tide it was slightly more choppy, but still not as bad as the shallow east coast waters to which we are used.With a fair tide, we made excellent progress, and in just two and three quarter hrs had made it to the entrance to Fecamp, which was extremely easy, and very obvious. Berthing proved trouble free, excepting the French preference for finger pontoons half the necessary length and with loops rather than cleats, but even with this, we got on safely and relatively gracefully.Now to explore Fecamp!

Miles logged 15nm
Miles this season 568nm
Miles this trip 175nm
Miles since this blog started 3,515nm

St Valery en Caux

We reached a decision last night to head off towards St Valery en Caux in the morning, which we did, leaving at 08h00.... to be faced by broad reaching conditions of 13kts.... fabulous.... for the first time this holiday, the engine was off and we sailed... making a perfect 6kts.True to form it couldn't last, as we'd had to set off into the tide in order to make the tidal constrained St Valery en Caux entrance at the appropriate time, and we rounded the first headland, headed up onto the wind a bit more, lost the speed advantage of a broad reach, with 2kts of tide against us, and had to restart the engine... our ground speed was down to under 2kts, so we'd have missed the entrance otherwise.... nevertheless, we still kept the main up, and plugged on...We watched a French customs vessel in the distance slowly gaining on us, and prayed that we weren't his 'victim' for the day.... and sighed with relief when just 5nm off St Valery, he decided to pick on another vessel, and launched his rib towards them.For an hour it chucked down with rain, and we endured rather than enjoyed, but as we entered St Valery, we were delighted to see, yet again, a pretty French town awaiting exploration.... lovely.The entrance was straightforward enough with a holding buoy while we wiated for the bridge to lift, which it duly did on the half hour, and we were through... very good shelter and right outside the ancient house of Henry IV, which makes a lovely backdrop for pictures!

Miles logged 22nm
Miles this season 553nm
Miles this trip 160nm
Miles since this blog started 3,490nm

summer returns

What a great day!We'd decided to head for Dieppe after a few days of enforced waiting in Bolougne, where we'd made the most of our stay, including trip to aquarium that I can only speak of in the highest regard....a truly world class facility.We'd also waited an extra day after the wind had vanished to let the sea settle slightly.... vindicated by a quick bike trip down to the sea front on Thursday which despite the light winds, still showed waves breaking over the sea wall.So when we arose Friday to very few knots of wind, bright clear skies and warm sun, I was really quite looking forward to the sail.... and it didn't dissapoint.We exited the harbour to a mere 5kts, across the beam, so the main was hoisted and we motor sailed, wearing shorts and tee shirts.... the wind then steadily built throughout the day, reaching 15kts as we completed the final few miles into Dieppe, but sadly coming round onto the nose, so we remained motor sailing the whole way. It wasn't as bad as it sounds though, as for much of the journey I was able to keep the engine barely ticking over, just enough to stop the main stalling, and thus we made the 56nm in 9.5hrs.Entering Dieppe was hard work, simply because the entrance wasn't at all clear until we were within 0.5nm, and the IPTS system was invisible in daylight, even when right underneath it!But enter we did, to find a classically pretty little French town, which I am enormously looking forward to exploring tomorrow!

Miles logged 56nm
Miles this season 531nm
Miles this trip 138nm
Miles since this blog started 3,468nm

Bolougne bound

After a bumpy night Sunday, monday was the clear chance for a getaway. While it wasn't exactly perfect as forecasts go, with 27kts SouthWesterly, ie bang on the nose for most of the way, and rain, it was a weather window in an otherwise increasingly gloomy forecast. So we went for it.The other factor distinctly in monday's favour was the departure time, with 09h30 looking good. We'd been in touch with Full Circle the previous evening, and so were unsurprised to arise in the morning and see them tied up across in the western marina. We had hoped to go over and say hello, but with the bridge to the inner marina lifted, it was a 1.5mile walk round, so we decided to cast of at 08h45 and go to the fuel pontoon and then tie up quickly alongside to say our hello's before setting off.... timing was dreadful. They had much the same idea, and as we slipped and motored towards the fuel pontoon, we passed them doing the exact reverse..... ah well.... so hello's were restricted to a few shouted messages and then we set off out to sea.We were pleased to see pretty calm waters, albeit slightly busy with a number of race boats heading off towards their start line, so we cut the corner slightly, and motored directly into the wind, keen to get a bit of distance between us and the racers so that we didn't get in the way of their first beat.... we didn't have much choice but to head off up their race track as the course was set right up the Gull channel inside Goodwin sands, which we also needed to follow. A period of motoring saw the wind remain stubbornly on the nose, and also build slightly, but only to 20kts, so nothing too serious, but as we passed SW Goodwin buoy (which was once a magnificent light vessel), we exited the shelter of Goodwin sands, and the sea started to build..... we held course to get some west into our position before we crossed the TSS (in order to clear Cap Gris Nez easily - as I suspected that with wind over tide it might be lumpy), so the engine stayed on.....True to form for our summer cruises, the engine dominates, so it didn't surprise me to find the TSS extraordinarily busy.... so busy that we carried on motoring.... with a short steep sea now affecting us, it wasn't fun, and the thought of tacking, or trying to avoid gybes in a sloppy rolly sea when ducking traffic didn't seem to encourage me to set sails.... so as we exited the TSS, just suitably west of Cap Gris Nez, it was back directly into the wind, with fortunately just 15nm or so to go.... the wind eased slightly, and the sea calmed slightly, so not so bad.... and even better, the rain eased, and the sun even poked out once or twice....Along the way, we'd heard a Mayday.... a motor vessel sinking with water ingress from the engine at a rate faster than the bilge pumps could handle....no liferaft, very poor radio procedure, and generally confused.... two vessels stood by, and Dover lifeboat was launched, which we saw motoring to the scene.... the motorboater was less than easy for the CG to deal with, even arguing about where to head/be towed..... but I guess its easy to be critical from the cockpit of a boat that is doing what is asked of her....It was with some relief that we finally entered Bolougne outer harbour at about 16h00, and we were soon tied up in the marina in perfect shelter.... in fact, in a great location, right behind a huge quay wall, so thoroughly protected from the winds forecast for the next few days.... looks like we'll be here until Thursday at the earliest, more likely Friday.... least there is plenty to do in Bolougne!

Miles logged 39nm
Miles this season 475nm
Miles this trip 82nm
Miles since this blog started 3,412nm

Rock and Roll!

It was an early start, leaving the marina at 02h00, but this was the only chance we had of getting the tides right, and still arriving at a sensible time in Boulogne.So we set out into a windless night motoring out of Harwich. As we exited Harwich, the wind increased (or more correctly - started) up to about 7 or 8 kts, but bang on the nose. Not only insufficient to sail realistically, but the wrong direction.... it was a southerly/south westerly, so not auspicious for the rest of the trip.By the time we'd rounded Sunk Head cardinal, and entered Black Deep, the long channel across the Thames Estuary that marks the real start of the Thames, and hence can occasionally see some heavier traffic, it had started to get light, so things were getting easier. It was still motoring given the direction, although the wind had picked up to 12kts, enough to sail comfortably at an appropriate speed, but would have been a beat, which wouldn't have allowed us to make enough progress towards France.Foulgers Gat, which is a very narrow channel across one of the larger sandbanks was the next challenge, made more difficult by two things. Firstly, the channel is marked by a safe water mark either end. These are 2.8nm part, and the half light didn't allow the far end to be seen, so it was a bit of a careful plod to start with... the plotter makes this a lot easier, but unlike many sailing areas, these sands are very mobile, and it isn't safe to trust the charts, so watching the sounder is the order of the day... secondly, the swell was rather on the quarter, so it was a bit rolly.. or rather bouncy, as there wasn't a ground swell, rather a wind blown chop.As we exited Foulgers Gat and pointed the bows towards North Foreland, I was looking forward to getting the sails up.... but alas, the wind had a laugh at us by swinging Southerly (probably assisted by North Foreland), soi we continued motoring.... the wind had started to build, now reaching 20kts, and it looked like the forecasted gales were well on there way.... so we decided to shorten, and drop into Ramsgate... with a further 40nm to go, it was a bit risky to continue on especially given that we were going to be crossing one of the busiest shipping channels in the world, the Dover Straits.So we radioed into Ramsgate and pottered in. A quick check with port control saw us cleared to enter, but the marina proved more troublesome. It is Ramsgate week, one of the East Coast's big race events of the year, and the marina was heaving... so we were allocated a berth in the eastern marina, the home of the fishing fleet.This wasn't ideal. It has no shore power (which we could live with) and no water (less appealing), and is also somewhat morfe exposed to any swell coming in.The wind had increased by now to 30kts, and as a south westerly, the swell was most definitely coming in. We managed to find a long lateral pontoon and a downwind side of it, so at least we were being held off, but the boat was bouncing around like a wild thing!Within an hour, the pontoon was full, and the raft was 2 deep. Masts started clashing, boats on the windward side started popping fenders, and the final straw for some was when a boat had its fairlead ripped off with a bang, and it shot across the pontoon and pinged off another boat. The cill to the inner marina opened up, and boats fought to be off and get into its shelter. With less boats about, and the addition of mooring compensators onto our lines we were sitting ok, so decided to stay put. Not one of my better decisions.A less than satisfactory nights sleep followed, with the boat banging around all night... no risk or worries about damage, but quite an unpleasant motion. Ah well.So here we are Sunday morning.... the wind has eased only very slightly, but the wind has swung a bit towards the west, and the swell isn't coming in half as much, so a lot more settled. The forecast suggest it'll stay windy throughout the day today, and then moderate overnight with much lighter conditions tomorrow, so we'll head towards Bolougne, or perhaps even Dieppe then. We need to choose which carefully, as it looks like wherever we choose, we'll be there for a few days... the forecast for Wed/Thurs is dire.... 35kts plus!August in the UK... what a delight.

Miles logged 43nm
Miles this season 436nm
Miles this trip 43nm
Miles since this blog started 3,373nm

forecasts....

OK... so've decided to head down channel.... forecast has been looking great all week... Nw'lies, so a reach the whole way..... perfect..... until today's revised forecast.... now SW'ly, on the nose the whole way, and increasing to 22kts......Where the heck has August gone?Ah well.... i'm sure we'll enjoy it anyway.....

decisions decisions

We are starting to plan out our annual 2 week summer cruise coming up shortly.....The main factor influencing destination will be wind direction, but failing that being a deciding factor, we are in mixed minds....Option 1 is as previosuly planned... to head off down channel, and see where we end up.... with Fecmap, St Valery en Caux, and possibly St Vaast and Cherbourg on the list with a return via the Solent. Option 2 is to head towards north Holland, in via Ijmuiden and into the Ijsselmeer via Amsterdam...Both sound good, and I can't make my mind up!

oh, and as I forgot....

We sat in the cockpit Saturday evening, watching the stars twinkling, and saw a good few shooting stars.... really clear and obvious ones thanks to the clear skies.......and after watching for half an hour or so, I was even inspired into getting my sextant out and taking a few star shots.... i've no idea what I was doing, and don't have any tables to make the calcs, but I did enjoy a few mins of setting the sextant up properly, and taking a few stars down to the horizon..... and learn't a little about setting it up properly, making sure the reading is accurate (swinging it from side to side for those that know what they are doing!) and generally enjoyed playing with what is a great little toy.... one day i'll use it in anger to get a noon sun shot.....

Finally, summer arrives

Well, you can't complain about this weekend's weather!All week the forecast has flipped between OK and poor, and so it we held off the decision on our plans until Thursday pm, when we decided to go for it....We'd invited along a school friend for both kids (or rather they had!), and we wanted to make sure it was OK weather wise, as 2 kids are hard enough when they get 'bored' as the weather isn't compliant, so 4 would be a bit much....However, we arrived Friday night to a breathless and hot evening, and by the time we'd got the kids settled in for the night, snatched a quick ice cold beer, it was time for us to crash out too....Saturday was an early start.... the first HW was at 07h00, and while we were OK to enter Stone Point (the main kid friendly destination within an easy distance) until about 10h00 or perhaps a bit later given that it was neaps, we knew that with the forecast, the anchorage would get busy.... so 08h00 and we were out....Still completely calm, so we motored the short distance to the Backwaters, and were proved completely correct.... there were already at least 10 boats there in an anchorage that holds 20 boats at best.....and by 09h30 we were on the beach!And boy was it hot...... the temperature continued to build, until it hit the 30's around lunch time.... the kids swam nearly all morning....By lunchtime a bit of a sea breeze had kicked in, so I took the tender (now named by C as Seaweed - complete with painted name on stern) back to Morgana and stuck the sail on.... finally a chance to sail her..... and it couldn't have been better..... very hot, 12 to 15 kts of wind..... and she sailed beautifully!By the time i'd finished tacking back and forth, taking the kids for a ride, as a group, individually, and as a group again.... it was mid afternoon.... and the heat was winning out.... so we retired back to the boat and relaxed for a bit..... Morgana's greater creature comforts in evidence as we were all able to take a shower to wash the sand and salt off, and then by 17h00, C and her friend offered to cook, and put together a great curry, which we all enjoyed in the cockpit.....During the late afternoon, the anchorage had got considerably busier, and was now well past it nominal capacity, and still they came.... one boat tried to slip inbetween us and our neighbour, and sat there happily for an hour or so.... I was most unhappy about the proximity, and as the tide slackened, our difference in displacement inevitably kicked in, and we got very close.... after a bit of fending off, I convinced them that there really wasn't space, and they begrudgingly upped anchor and cleared off up the river....As the evening progressed and the heat faded a little, we all returned ashore and went for a long walk along the shore line, a couple of miles towards Walton and back.... its a lovely beach, made all the better by its lack of access to the general public making it quiet, unspoilt and quite beautiful. The only spoiler being the ridiculous amount of plastic washed up along the HW mark..... Humans really are a disgusting species.It was a classic Stone Point evening.... complete flat calm, a wonderful sunset, a warm evening, and absolute peace and quiet.... apart from a rock band in the far distance (obviously an open air gig of some sort), but that was far enough away, and sufficiently infrequent to spoil the evening.... the Avocets and Curlews were in full song..... not matter how many times I experience that feeling, I still live for it.Sunday dawned very similar, so again, driven by tidal times, we cast off early and this time set off out to sea... there wasn't a great deal of wind... just 4 or 5kts.... but with no destination planned, and such great temperatures, we drifted idly.... with the log reading never more than 1.9kts, and regularly drifting down to zero, I was at peace with the world... the kids sat on the foredeck and dangled their toes over the bow in a vain attempt to reach the water, and we put gentle music on the cockpit speakers and floated along...After a while, we about faced, and sailed up wind back towards Harwich, and with the apparent wind increased, made a better 2.5kts through the water.... the breeze over the deck most welcomed..... the spray hood dropped for the first time in a long while....After one or two tacks, we waved at the first of several friends spotted... this time Barbican Bill on Santana, and then slowly worked our way into Harwich and on up the Orwell to SYH, where we grabbed Guapa's bouy for a lunch stop..... it was to be a relatively short stop.... going up the river had lost much of the sea breeze, and the lack of apparent wind saw the temperature in the cockpit shoot upwards..... us soft Brits aren't used to temperatures regaularly reaching double figures, let alone hitting the thirties, and so we all baked for a while, and fading rapidly, set off back to the marina..... where ice creams solved all our woes.... tied up, packed up and departing by 15h00....Magic.... what a weekend!

Miles logged 19nm
Miles this season 393nm
Miles since this blog started 3,330nm

Perfect!

This weekend we had SWMBO's sister along and her husband Charlie and kids..... now, this works perfectly for me..... not only do we get along with them like a house on fire, and the kids are all good friends, but also SWMBO's husband is a very keen and experienced dinghy sailor, and also sails some fairly extreme dinghies.... like an 18' skiff..... so he's always up for a 'proper' sail....They couldn't get down until midday Saturday, so we had a fairly lazy start on Saturday and had a lay in until gone 09h00... I always sleep well on the boat!As soon as they arrived, we stowed their gear, and cast off the lines.... it was obviously a bit breezy, but with Cahrlie on board it wasn't such a big deal, as there was no lack of helping hands to hoik up sails, and winch... plus someone who was happy on the helm in that kind of wind....We decided to have a bit of a sail out to sea, so we headed out past Harwich, with most of the sails set, then dropped in an extra reef when it hit 30kts.... but great fun!..... a broad reach out to Medusa with between 6 and 9kts on the log..... only downside was that the main had jammed.... it hadn't gone away well last time (v windy, and big seas), so it proved troublesome to get out....We eventually had to turn back though, and head back in.... and with the tide pushing us, it was almost a beat back..... but nonetheless great fun again....Saturday night was interesting.... with us all having had a bit of a rufty tufty sail, then a decent meal and a couple or three pints at the Bristol Arms (not to mention having kids!), we were all shattered, and the collective yawning sent us all scurrying for our berths by 22:30.....Sunday dawned promising.... not quite as windy as the previous day, and much less of the grey skies...... so after a hearty breakfast, we set off out again, and this time decided to go up the river..... and what a ball of a sail that was!The wind was on the nose up the river, but with a strong crew onboard we sailed instead of motoring..... I kept a bit too much sail up simply becuase it was great fun to sail her right over on her ear for a change....with the wind at about 20kts, and slightly stronger gusts coming through we flew upwind.... and with the narrow channel in places were tackign every minute or so on occasions..... but it felt like 'proper' sailing..... and was grin inducing!We beat all the way up the river to the Orwell bridge..... some 8nm upwind in a narrow channel, so we tacked plenty!!!!After passing under the bridge, we tacked round, and the apparent wind dropped, it got even warmer, and our guests youngest daughter took the helm for the first time in her life on something other than a dinghy, and definitely the first time with a wheel and sailed her beautifully back up the river as Charlie and I concentrated on getting the sails in the right spot, avoiding gybes and generally doing the trimming..... she held her goosewinged for ages too.... a fine effort!Sadly, all good things come to an end, and this marvellous sail had to....... but we set of home with glowing faces, exhausted kids, and me with a smile like a cheshire cat!

Miles logged 29nm
Miles this season 374nm
Miles since this blog started 3,311nm

Rescue mission

Well what a different weekend!With Sirenia sinking mid week, we put together a working party to help Clive get the recovery task moving....So we farmed the kids off on parents, and headed down Friday evening.... what a strange experience going down to the boat with the kids arguing in the back!We had a leisurely Friday evening, including a rather interesting trip to the Shipwreck bar, where SWMBO and I sat and enjoyed a quiet drink, and rediscovered the fine art of conversation that isn't interspersed with a "stop that!" or a "will you sit down and behave!"....And then an early night.Saturday morning saw us away early (in the car) and a short trip to Felixstowe Ferry, where we sampled the famous Felistowe Ferry Cafe breakfast, and then set too on Sirenia.What a state she was in. Poor Clive.Initial challenge was to untangle the rigging, and remove the seriously bent mast from her. The mast head (she's a fractional) was bent at 90 degrees, and there was a further 30 degree bend at the kicker.... and as for down below... I can only say that anyone who owns and loves their own boat would have been heartbroken at the sight.... everything was where it shouldn't be, there was between 1" and 4" of thick brown mud coating the entire boat, the headlinings hung drooping throughout the boat, and every bit of her was wet and stinking.... there were crabs in the bilges, and oil had floated from out and under the engine and coated the entire boat.Seacocks were opened, the log pulled, and a gang emptied the contents out into a soggy pile in the boatyard.We then split into two gangs... one started the painful process of sorting through this pile and cleaning what could be saved, and putting the rest into a heap for disposal, the other gang ventured below with a pressure washer and sump pump and started cleaning...We washed inside from bow to stern removing hundreds of kilos of mud which slowly drained out of the boat, and then repeated the process...Along the way Karen produced world class bacon and sausage sarnies, and liberal quantities of tea and coffee....By the end of the day, a boat had reappeared from the carnage.... yes, she still stank.... yes, there was still a bit of mud below, and yes, she was saturated... but at least she looked less sad.My blog has been a bit diary format, and lacks the expression of 'feeling' and 'state of mind' that some others have delivered, but i'll just slip for a moment into that mode, by observing that Clive needed the help, and we rallied around him.... it wasn't the physical help, it was the psychological help that counted.... I was proud to be part of that group... a group of good friends, that today proved their worth. Saturday evening, we celebrated in a strange kind of way. We all went to Levington, sat, swapped sea stories and sampled the beer.It was a grand evening... a celebration of a sense of achievement, and a sense of friendship and comraderie. It's a long seafaring tradition that when someone needs help then other seafarers come to their aid. Today we upheld that tradition and it made me feel good about myself.....

gutting

Just spoken to my mate Clive and his boat Sirenia sank on her mooring last night.He's understandably devastated. He's poured massive amounts of time and care into that boat, and its obviously his pride and joy.Only silver lining is that all his friends have rallied around, and he has no shortage of willing hands to help him start getting her sorted out.Clive.... really sorry mate. I hope that she's back, looking as good as she did, and sailing again before too long.

Pirate invasion

What a brilliant weekend!The weather realy looked like it was going to let us down, and I had messages from all sorts of different sources with people calling off their attendance at the Pirate weekend.... we'd had 22 boats planning on coming.But not deterred, we carried on.We did manage to get to the boat by 20h00 Friday despite having to detour for C to take a music grading exam, and had every intention of setting out for the Backwaters that evening..... but Dave and Louise, our guests for the weekend were delayed by an accident, and didn't arrive until 22:00, so it was too late, and we decided to leave the next morning........which dawned wet and cold. However, by about 09:30 it had stopped raining, so we set off out into about 20kts of wind... the skies grey and not overly warmLeaving itself was dramatic... the wind was sufficiently strong that the stern was seeking the wind, and despite several attempts to get her to push her bow round the corner, she was having none of it, and so I had to reverse along the marina until there was a large enough space to turn her around.... i'd watched several other boats have the same problem...... on the way, calls from more pirate casualties calling off.... I felt quite low about it all, and I know SWMBO did.... but we decided to press on....We made our way down the channel into the Backwaters to see a boat making its way out dressed with a pirate flag... it was Hilsa, Mr Slow_boat!So he did a U-turn and came back..... well at the least there would be the two boats!!!!!Anchoring proved troublesome.... as per last year, the wind direction made it hard to judge where to drop the hook as slight misplcement meant either being right out in the channel, or in water too shallow for safety.... not aided by it being a lareg spring tide with just 0.1 above LAT at LW!So.... 4 attempts finally saw us in.I dropped the tender in, and popped over to introduce myself to Duncan, and thankfully saw another boat arrive.....By the time we'd got ourselves sorted out, there were a few boats in the anchorage complete with Pirate flags.... maybe it wasn't going to be a disaster..... and then the sun came out!And wonderfully, it shone for the rest of the afternoon and evening...We had a very leisurely afternoon preparing, and by about 16:00 went ashore....By now we had 8 boats at anchor.... so we introduced ourselves to a few new friends, and said hello to a few old ones...Clive had arrived in Sirenia and had briefly tied up alongside us, to which we grabbed the opportunity to transfer our heavy bag of firewood to his boat, as he was putting her ashore later... he then set off to motor the 1/2nm to Titchmarsh to fetch a few arrivals by land.... yes some folks had even driven there!By 18:00, we were settling into a decent pirate camp, and BBQ's were being lit.... it had become pleasantly warm, the wind had moderated, and life was looking good... the fire was built, and ready to light....


And then two more boats arrived.. PyroJames in his beautiful wooden craft (see elsewhere on Yotblog!) and BastonJock as well.... he, like Clive, put his boat ashore.... only he managed to find an even muddier spot than Clive!And so the evening progressed..... the fire was lit, much grog was consumed, the kids did sack races, and egg and spoon races... the adults did the same, only with a far more competitive streak!, and the beer and chocolate relay went down a storm....Duncan entertained the kids.... or rather they wouldn't leave him alone!

And then finally, as it got dark, Duncan finished of his starring role by fetching his Sax and treating us to a Jazz rendition!

With songs around the fire, much socialising, and general merriment, it was a very tired Morgana family that finally crept off to bed at midnight.... or at least tried to...SWMBO and the kids rebelled, and decided that the better option was to jump on Sirenia and as she floated off, to be ferried in much better style than a small wet tender.... so Dave and I took the tender route and waited..... and then Clive called.... "i've got a rope around my prop"So he had to beach again and wait until LW to clear it.... which meant a ferrying trip for the kids.... soon done, and then we all retired exhausted to bed.We awoke Sunday to a grey day again, and considerably more wind...We'd left bags on Sirenia the previous evening, and had to wait for her to refloat, which wouldn't be until midday, so it wasn't a rushed morning!We had the odd visitor or two, and then by 13:00 pulled up the anchor, and motored out of the Twizzle.It was blowing pretty hard, gusting well over 30kts, so we elected to motor the short distance back.... which was fine....The lock however was a different matter!I new it was going to be interesting with 30+kts of wind blowing straight into the lock, and had this confirmed when the lock keeper announce on the radio, "only one boat at a time" despite there being room for 3 or 4...I motored down the channel into the lock which was quite lumpy, and could see, to my horror, enormous chop at the entrance.... this neccessitated much more throttle than i'd normally use to get in safely, and even then I was grabbing big handfuls of helm to keep her from hitting the entance gates.... gulp!We went into the lock, which is quite short, still doing 5kts... and less would have seen us swept against the gates, and then threw her into full reverse to try and stop her.... which we just managed... plans to go port side too were abandoned as she was swept against the starboard side... the anchor scraped painfull along the lock wall, and two warps were desperately thrown over cleats and the crew hung on for dear life.... Lousie jumped onto the helm once we had warps over cleats and gave her a handful of reverse to stop her from ripping the warps out of people's hands before they were made fast.... wow, what a drama!Gettin out of the lock was just as traumatic... we were pinned against the side, and it took lots of throttle and full lock on the helm to get out without scraping our way down one side.....So I was nervous about our berth!It was however, slightly less challenging as it was thankfully upwind.... and with a group of other skippers assembled to grab lines (they'd all had the same lock dramas!), we were manhandled into our slot, and finally tied up.... phew....So... summary.... what a great weekend.... the weather relented perfectly to give us a great evening... the company was superb.... thanks all.. we had a wonderful weekend.

Miles logged 12nm

Miles this season 345nm

Miles since this blog started 3,282nm

Pirates ahoy!

This coming weekend is the repeat of last years Pirate weekend.... it was absolutely brilliant last year, made by the weather, and so I decided to repeat it this year...What I didn't count on was that a load of people saw the pictures from last year and have suggested that they too will be coming along....At the last count we have 22 boats, with 25 kids attending, and god knows how many adults.... probably in excess of 50....!!!!Weather is looking suspect at the moment with occasional rain, and perhaps a little breezy, so that may thin things down a little.... but even so...We've changed the format this year.... no kids treasure hunt, but this year will be the 'Pirate Olympics'!We have acquired sacks, eggs, spoons, a giant football, we plan a beer and chocolate relay race, and much more besides....The boats will all be sporting Jolly Rogers, and many of us will also be dressed overall....Can't wait.... hope the weather is kind!

hot!

Well, we didn't do many miles this weekend, but they were nice ones!After a late arrival Friday night we awoke Sat morning to a beautiful day. The sun was shining and it was pleasantly warm...I fairly immediately set to in getting the new tender set up and onto the davits.... the plan was a couple of hours work, and then we'd get out sailing... As ever, blind optimism was in play, and the 'couple of hours' of work, turned into a bit of a marathon. By the time i'd worked out how to rig the downhaul, boom retention, routed the halyard half a dozen different times, and finally fitted the davit fixings, it was 14:00, and when SWMBO handed me a cold beer, the afternoon had turned into a bit of relaxation exercise....So we sat and chilled out for the remainder of the day..... the evening finished off with a fine curry and two or three more cold beers!Sunday started a little greyer, but still warm, and the sun kept poking through making it really quite nice. By 09:30 we locked out, after a short delay while a dozen Ajax's locked out... Ajaxs are a small engineless keelboat, and we watched without any envy as they paddled furiously to try and get into the lock!Once out at sea, we found 18kts of wind, bang on the nose out of Harwich, so motored into the choppy swell and made our way into Hamford water, where we dropped the hook.We'd motored past all the anchored boats and cautiously nudged our way into the shallowing water until we daredn't go any further on a falling tide, and dropped the hook.... with the anchor down, I engaged reverse, and we gently slid backwards and carried on sliding..... it clearly wasn't going to hold.... so I lifted the anchor back up to find it liberally covered in pipe weed. This weed is the scourge of east coast anchorages.... its tough, slippery and prolific.... and it makes anchoring very hit or miss..... so we motored back through the anchored boats and selected a spot a bit further back down the creek... down went the hook and it set almost immediately.... proves that picking your spot is important. This care was to prove sensible.Now that we were in, we had a few hours to wait for the tide to continue dropping and start rising again. We'd been there an hour when we heard a shout....The small Westerly that had ironically been glaring at us, saying (with their eyes) don't anchor too close when we'd tried the first spot, had dragged.... they were pinned across the bows of another boat, and in a bit of a pickle.... their chains had got mixed up, and one chain was round the keel of the other..... it took them the best part of an hour to sort themselves out.... but fortunately looked to be no damage....Back out the other way to sea, we could see a boat over at 45 degrees.... hard aground.... thankfully it was a neap.... but if was definitely a weekend for calamities!By 15:00 we ruefully pulled up the anchor, and left this peaceful and relaxing anchorage and headed out to sea.... with the wind now behind us, the apparent wind was much lower, so we set the genny and had a very pleasant sail at 5 to 6 kts back into Harwich, where we finally rolled the sail away and locked back in...Not many miles, but with the warm weather, a grand weekend.

Miles logged 12nm
Miles this season 333nm
Miles since this blog started 3,270nm

400 not out!

Can't believe i've put 400 entries on here!I must waffle even more than I thought... (and thats saying something!)Anyway.... the remaining chandlery bits arrived.... hoorah...... I ran out of stainless screws.... boo!And i've decided that the rowlocks won't fit.... they are top loading ones, and the fitting is just marginally too wide for the gunwhales.... so I need to get some side mount fittings, and then we are in business.The boat is loaded on the car roof... the bag of bits to fit in the boot.... a quick visit to the chandlery and an hour in the morning, and she'll be done!I still need to work out how to fit her on the davits... so a bit of lateral thinking in the morning, and that'll be it...Only remaining task then is to make and fit a cover to stop her filling with rain water.... in the mean time, i'll hang her sideway on the davits so she can't fill up... I ummed and arred about fitting a bung or a self bailer, but decided to go the traditional route.... a plastic bottle with the bottom cut off and manual labour!Just waiting for C to finish at Sea Cadets, and we'll be off. Forecast looks surprisingly good.So thats 400..... I wonder what adventures and experiences we'll have had by the time 800 come along?

chandlery

Half the bits arrived.......I still await two pulley blocks (for the horse and mainsheet) and a number of stainless bridges (to fit to the gaff for the uphaul, for the mast retainer, to fix the horse in place, for the downhaul and for the centreboard retaining strap.....)I could do with getting the tender down to the boat this weekend as its pirate weekend the following one, and we'll end up with loads to take.... so I may have to bite the bullet and buy the bits from the chandlery..... never mind....At least I can fit the sheave in the mast head, and the rowlocks....I also finished fitting the rudder last night..... locating the pintles in the correct place is harder that it looks!... but it's now all done, and looking great..... i'll try to fit the sheave tonight, and then more piccies!

getting closer

Just waiting the final few bits to finish it....But I couldn't resist seeing what she'll look like!

The rudder and centreboard are now painted..... so no more than 2 or 3 hrs work in total, and she'll be done.

dinghy bits

...sigh... my bits ordered online still haven't arrived.... sitting and waiting...I'll be running out of time unless they turn up soon....

rubbish forecasts!

So the forecast got more optimistic, and the weather got worse!It was grey, raining slightly, and the wind was steadily buildingWe did get out on Saturday for a short sail, just up the river to Pin Mill, which was pleasent enough sailing downwind, but as we turned to head back, into the wind, it was darned cold!So we motored back to the marina, and got on with a few jobs instead...I finally traced the wiring from the batteries to the isolator switches, and mapped it out so that I understand exactly what the switches do, which is about time really!I also installed and fitted a few bits and pieces....I eventually decided that i'd go up the mast and install the windex, but got the secondary halyard (my extra safety line) the wrong side of the spreaders... and every time I reached a spreader, had to untie it, and thread it the other side of the spreader.... as I reached the second set, the wind was rocking the boat, and untying the safety was making me nervous.... and I ended up with (for me an unusal) bout of vertigo and gave up and came back down.... it'll be easier of a warm and windless day (I hope!)So Sat evening, we wandered over to the Shipwreck and had a quiet pint, and then when we got back to the boat, SWMBO produced a rabbit out of her hat!... she'd brought all the ingredients for a Mexican....Before you knew it, she'd knocked up Chicken Fahitas and Tacos.... so I sat there, with an ice cold beer, feet up, eating Mexican, watching the footy after a day of sailing.... life can't really be that bad can it!!!!!!!Sunday saw the wind even stronger, reaching F7, so we idled for a while, and then packed up and came home....With just two weeks to the Pirate weekend, I do believe she'll be ready..... she's busted the budget (which i'd optimistically set at £100), as she'll end up costing £140, excluding the oars.... but still pretty good I reckon for that money!Anyone want to buy a Plastimo 2.7m inflatable?

Miles logged 9nm
Miles this season 321nm
Miles since this blog started 3,258nm

forecast..

.... isn't looking so rubbish now.... will be going down to the boat after all!Ordered the remaining bits for the tender... well almost all of them... still have to get the pintles for the rudder, the oars, and the eyelet kit to finish the sail.... other than that well on the way.....

weekend forecast...

.... is looking pretty rubbish...Not sure what we'll do yet.... forecast to be cold, windy and wet....Good June weather. :(Maybe i'll be getting the tender finished.

sail complete

Hoorah... I've finished the sail.... (well bar the eyelets, but that doesn't count!)Apologies for picture quality... taken on a mobile...

I'm now slightly more confident that we'll be ready for the annual pirate weekend at the beginning of July....I'm chuffed to bits with the sail....The light is shining at the end of the tunnel!Its also been a good week in other ways too.... my mate Alan has finished the Jester Azores challenge.. its a single handed race to the Azores for boats under 30'... he's completed it in his Westerly Centaur, Pipedream.... The Jester is brilliant event, inspired by the exploits of the original Jester boat and its owner/skipper Blondie Haslar, and all about the taking part... there is no prize other than self satisfaction, and its an event populated by very low budget, self maintained boats of all sorts of variety.... no racey craft here!... as said, its a brilliant event.... and Alan is a brilliant bloke.... well done mate... you're a star!

sailmaking

Yes... I finally got on with the sail..... it wasn't as big a job as i'd expected..... one good evening on the task, and its nearly finished....Its quite a rewarding challenge, and i'm quite pleased with the results even if I do say so myself!pictures coming this way shortly....All I need now are a few bits of chandlery, to paint the rudder and centreboard and the eyelet kit for the sail, and we are away!

Outboard

No sailing this weekend.... SWMBO has to work again (her busy spell at work will soon be finished thankfully), and we also needed to get her car through an MOT (successfully!)So, I have taken the opportunity to get to grips with the troublesome outboard, a Honda 2.3.... it hasn't been running well, and last trip simply refused to start at all... so I brought it home to check it out...It's not the easiest engine to take apart, with a tight fitting plastic guard cover over the working bits, that requires the fuel tank, throttle and choke cables, and various electrical bits to be removed, and then the starter recoil mechanism as well.... and then it is a very tight fit, so needs a little 'assistance' to remove.... once it was off, then I could get at the exhasut and carb.... the drain bolt is locked solid, so no chance there, so I had to remove the two bolts that hold the carb/exhaust on, and very carefully remove the assembly to avoid damaging the gaskets (as i didn't have replacements)... once the carn was off, then I removed the top and cleaned it out... quite a bit of gunk in there, and then the float chamber/bowl came off.... ahh.... thus looked like it might be the problem.... there was a significant amount of solid matter in there, and the needle area was well gunked up, with two small air holes completely blocked.... a good few mins of cleaning, and it looked better...Reassembling and reinstalling the carb was straightforward... but the remaining plastic less so!.... it took me a good while to get the cover back on.... But eventually it was in place.... I pulled the starter and there was a funny graunching noise..... I immediatly looked and the plastci cover that had taken 30 mins to remove and 30 mins to refit was on wrong!!!!!... inside is a small metal heatshield and i'd got it in the wrong place and it was catching on the air fins on the cylinder head that provide the colling air flow.... ******!So it was removed again, and reinstalled... this time a bit quicker with the benefit of practice, and then the outer cover was put back.... two quick pulls with the kill switch off to fill the carb.... pop the kill cord on, pull... and off she went!... running beautifully..... hoorah!I've also painted another coat on the gunwhales of the dinghy... she's looking fabulous.... i'll start painting the centreboard and rudder later, and then this evening... i'll start the sail.... promise!

Painting nears an end

Still no piccies... must sort that....But... the painting is drawing to a close..... two more coats on the exterior... and another coat on the interior.... plus extra coats on the bits under the benches that had been hard to reach when the boat was the right way up.....So.... bar a bit of touching up on the gunwhales, she not far off done...I need to buy and fit some rowlocks.... and we are away... Now I must face the task of the sail that i've been putting off for too long..

changeable weather

Rather mixed bag weather wise this weekend.... arrived down Friday night in pouring rain..... forecast was for it to continue through to early Sat afternoon, but becoming scattered showers.....Like heck..... it chucked it down all day..... so I was dragged shopping....Only consolation was that we found a 12v portable satellite dish, which I promptly set up upon getting back to the boat.... and it worked brilliantly.... that kept the kids happy.... 200 channels to choose from!We sat back, and chilled with a bottle of beer for a while, until our friends David and Helen called..... did we want a fish and chip supper along with quiz night at the Haven Ports Yacht Club.... seemed as good a plan as any, so we drove over.... proved to be a very entertaining night, with a solid second place in the quiz earning us a decent bottle of red!Sunday dawned as still rather grey, but at least no longer raining.....By 10h00, the skies had cleared a bit, and the sun was starting to peek through, but we decided that as low water was just after lunch, it wasn't really worth getting too carried away going anywhere, so we all agreed that a day of boat cleaning was in order....By midday, it was hot.... with me just in shorts scrubbing the decks.... I will pay the proe now as my back is rather red.... but at least the boat is shiny again!The kids dawdled around the marina in the tender.... a fine day all in all...By 13h00, we'd finished cleaning, so decided to set off home.... and when we arrived,I set too again on the new tender.....A second coat on the interior... one more will do it.... and then a coat of the final nay blue on the stern and around the gunwhales.... looks fantastic... no pics though.... may try later....All thats left to do on the hull is...

1] another coat on the interior
2] invert her, and do the bits under the seats... another 3 coats I suspect
3] coat on the exterior
4] re-do the gunwhales (probably twice)
5] final coat on the exterior
6] flatten off the exterior
7] fit the rowlocks

So plenty to keep me occupied!

2nd coat on the hull

Another coat on the hull.... a few minor runs becuase i've piled it on quite thick to create a decent base..... will flat it off when the paint is hard (probably after the weekend)

I also set the sewing machine up last night, a tried it out.... wow!... its a little more powerful than SWMBO's domestic machine.... and runs at about 5 times the speed..... will be entertaining!