How can it be that a replacement gas cylinder cost 11 Euros in the Azores and £32.99 in Port Solent ?
Security Bars
Yachting Monthly July 2016 Security Bars
The End – really
Slipping the mooring buoy off Yarmouth, we motored sedately eastwards with the tide under our keel making good time in the early sunshine. We took the time to rig the courtesy flags of the countries visited over our yearlong cruise and they spanned from the starboard cross trees to the deck. The ARC flags and... Continue Reading →
The End – nearly
This post should have been published on Saturday morning having been meticulously drafted during the course of Friday spent tracking up the Channel. The excellent sailing wind dropped away and we flew the Parasailor while there was sufficient wind to still maintain sufficient pace with the Yarmouth deadline very much in mind. Resorting to the... Continue Reading →
One of the best
We closed land at dawn and the day started bright but not breezy as we motored through the channel inside Ushant. Our timing was perfect as we picked up the first of the ‘flush’ and we recorded 11.6 knots of SOG (speed over the ground) with the tide assistance. The loss of our rope cutter... Continue Reading →
Piccadilly Circus
Of the perverse activities since the last blog was our attempt at aerial photography using a kite and tiny waterproof camera, both presents from my daughter Rebecca. The kite flew a treat and with sufficient tension to support the weight of the camera. The problem came when the camera support frame was being hoisted up... Continue Reading →
Certainment Monsieur
One of the joys of the deck saloon layout is the ability to maintain a watch from inside in inclement weather. Maybe we are going soft but I call cold, grey and raining pretty inclement. Being able to sit at the chart table monitoring the radar and plotter for traffic in 5000m depth with therefore... Continue Reading →
Adrenaline
With Peter on watch, at 0130 he decided to start the engine to maintain our pace as the wind dropped away. He had forgotten that we sail with the engine in gear astern to feather the propeller and when he started the engine in gear there was a loud banging noise which propelled me out... Continue Reading →
Bedfellow
With the prospect of the wind increasing and already under sail with a thankfully silent engine, it seemed prudent to decant the diesel stowed in containers on the aft deck into the tanks while we still can. This is a mercifully simple job and requires no pouring as they are syphoned from their recumbent position... Continue Reading →
Fog
We plod on under the engine with the drizzle replaced by thick fog. Thank goodness for AIS and radar. We have little wind and that from behind so our progress matches the wind speed. At least the sea state has moderated so, apart from the engine noise, things could be worse. The almost continual running... Continue Reading →