Spring clean

Parked on the beach today to scrub two years of slime & barnacles off the bottom. I stood the sea for an hour then came in for a cold shower to warm up (Guy - you still have my wetsuit!). All worth it cause it's really fast now.

Another hard day at the office

Or just another boring book ?

No car !

No car, broken alternator, long walk, severe NW gale & horizontal hail :-(

More visitors

Daniel, Caroline, Graham & Stacey came down on Friday afternoon. After tea and a tour of the boat Graham & Stacey took the water taxi across the river into Plymouth where they sensibly had a hotel booked and Daniel & Caroline went to meet them later, returning on the last one.

As usual the forcast was wrong and the wind was gusting 20kts on Saturday morning. After spinning the boat around by hand we got out into the river, dodging the dingies and set two reefs in the main. As we got into the sound, the wind calmed a little and we had a nice sail around the sound. It dropped off even more as we approached the bridge, so we motored through to the beach for dinner. Mayuri did pizza's and Daniel thought it would be a good idea to test the new barbi (see pics for temperature). It did turn out ok apart from a 12mm socket and a sausage going overboard. After dinner, the girls stayed inside and the boys sailed back to the marina.

The wind was too strong for Daniel & Graham to go diving on Sunday morning so they left at dinner, taking our car with them. We have to learn to sail now.

First visitors

Mum & Rob came down on Sunday afternoon. We stayed in the marina for the night and on Monday afternoon, turned the boat around by hand (to drive out forwards this time!) and stayed the night on a mooring buoy in the Hamoaze. It was very calm and after breakfast we motored up the Tamar, saw the warships and submarines and moored up under the Tamar bridge, then motorsailed back to the beach at Mount Edgecombe for dinner. We arrived back at tea time for them to set off for Falmouth.

Near miss

Went out for about four hours today (two at anchor having dinner at mount edgecombe). It's the second time we've left this new spot in the marina. As it's quite narrow we can't spin around, and as it's a dead end we have to reverse out. With the wind & tide pushing us onto the pontoon, my springing technique didn't spring us out far enough and when we started backwards we started to drift onto the boat that had been behind us. Mayuri gave us a little push and the boats didn't make contact. Then we skimmed past inches away from the next boat (all 21m of brand new princess luxury motor boat) and just began making steerage way as we got into open water. Overtook our first boat in the sound and went through the bridge with sails up & 20kts!

Away from civilisation

Set off for the dandy hole on the river Lynher at about 1400 yesterday. We beat into a headwind all the way but gave up at the start of the Lynher (and the narrow navigable channel) when it increased to 25kts, and motored the rest of the way.
After anchoring about three times (the depth gauge started playing up just as we needed it), we finally shut the doors and had dinner. I went to bed at about 2100, but woke a few hours later to the sound of rushing water. I didn't realise the tide would be so fast and wished we'd set the anchor more carefully. I didn't sleep much again. Things floating past hit the side, and I wondered how we'd end up at 0200 when the tide was out - on our side if we weren't properly in the hole.
Everything ended up ok, and we had an easy downwind sail (just the genoa up) all the way back to yachthaven this morning. - Until ten minutes before we berthed and the wind went back up to 25kts just as a final test.

Great day for sailing

Washed all the bed covers this morning in our new washing machine (two 25l B.T. buckets), to save us a fiver at the launderette. Shorts, sunglasses & flipflops all day, but we didn't go sailing as the boats being used as a washing line :-(

Risked life & limb on the rocks off Mount Batten pier to recover a nice piece of teak that I don't need (getting too much like dad) to add to the Princess fender that we found on the beach yesterday that I did need - our new neighbour's engines failed as they parked up and he collided with everyone down the row. I'll probably get my own back on him as he's in front of me now and I haven't practised getting out of this new space yet:-)

our new berth

Trying to flog a few things on ebay, but typing in a F9 is not easy! Our washings hung out under the cockpit tent, which is struggling to hold on. If it lets go during the night, I'll be wearing the clothes I've got on for the rest of the year.

Into the English chanel (for 10 mins!)

Set off at 1200 to fill up with diesel. Full tank & a 5 gallon drum for £30. Told to move to another spot when we return from our sail.

Spent three hours in the sound learning reefing & unreefing? in 14-23kts of wind. Finally made it out of the breakwater - on the third attempt. The tide had started to flood and the first two attempts saw us pushed too near the breaking waves next to the lighthouse on the western edge of the breakwater. 10 minutes later we gybed and came back through the eastern entrance, past an Aussie navy ship and home to our new berth in front of Lady Holland.