Re-joining the crew on board in Bristol after a week at home, we ‘locked out’ at high tide early on Sunday morning to carry a favourable spring ebb tide down the Avon to the Bristol Channel. The turgid, brown water of the upper Severn Estuary gave way to clearer seas as we headed west. Having... Continue Reading →

A long time friend as a result of him being a fellow Parker 31 owner  when our children were young, John Morris arrived by train from Birmingham. The 'Mulberry' pub in Conwy marina provided us with an excellent meal and an opportunity to 'catch up' before returning to Hejira to watch the spirited England football... Continue Reading →

Sunday was a leisurely day of laundry, cleaning and planning in Inverkip Marina while waiting for the late arrival of Dave and Mike by taxi from Glasgow Airport. Perversely, although I was able to pick up a good TV signal in Holy Loch, Kip marina seems to be a black hole and I had to... Continue Reading →

Checking out of the hotel near Glasgow Airport and collecting  Dr. Stephen Williams, my only crew for this week, we embarked on the drive back to Oban. The scenery was pleasant and unspoilt with a coffee stop in the pretty town of Inveraray where the author of the Para Handy short stories was born and... Continue Reading →

Negotiating the Caledonian Canal could not be easier with all of the Locks attended by helpful staff and with regular pre-emptive exchanges on Ch 74, the locks are often made ready for your arrival. Overnight moorings on pontoons are available and included within the transit fee. Although the weather was variable, the scenery was STUNNING.... Continue Reading →

Our early start from Port Edgar promised sufficient wind on the quarter to ‘play’ with the new Parasailor but after a couple of fruitful hours, the wind died away and we had to resort to the engine to maintain our speed for the lock gate deadline at Arbroath. This being the home of the ‘smokey’’... Continue Reading →

Torrential rain provoked a preference for contact lenses over glasses for our passage back down the Tyne and out to sea. The Tyne is probably much cleaner than in the past but it was a dark brown colour and we have seen this feature in other non-industrial rivers along this coast so it must be... Continue Reading →

Following the family wedding and a couple of rugby games, it was time to return to Hejira on the Spring Bank Holiday Monday. Andrew Gosling very kindly drove all 4 of us to Lowestoft and we are all extremely grateful for his kindness. The crew for this leg was Peter Hoade, Bob Haywood and Tom... Continue Reading →

The two weeks spent in St. Katharine Dock were great fun and Paula and I walked to near exhaustion as we tried to make the best of the wonderful central London location. Among many highlights was a visit from Helen and David Harbour who are the editors of the Southerly Owners association magazine. The Association... Continue Reading →