Post – 4 Kidneys and a Wonky Leg

Day 60-62 Dunan to Portree and beyond.

Jun 29, 2022luffin22 Comments

Firstly apologies for the lack of daily updates. Lack of internet signal, lack of sleep and some longer passages have kept me from writing.

So to catch up, after another bad noisy night, we went to Portree, Skyes capital, where we found a bouy to hook up to, then promptly went ashore, where we had lunch in one of the many pubs in town. Portree obviously has very little interest in visiting yachts. There is a short pontoon which can be used to take on water, for £5. However if there is a cruise ship in the Loch then you cannot use it. There are no facilities for the visiting yachtsmen or women. Although after negotiation at the Iocal backpackers hostel in town we did manage to get a shower for £4.00 pp.

After the last two nights, everyone was in bed by 8.00pm, but the wind hadn’t finished with us, and yet another noisy bouncy sleepless night was had.

Day 61

Sadly Adrian and Jayne had to cut their stay with us short, to make their way back home, to deal with family issues. I took them ashore, early morning for them to catch the bus back to Mallaig where they picked up their car for the return journey.

Gairloch was our next destination, a five hour journey with a decent wind to carry us along. We stopped at the rather rundown pontoons in the Harbour, and took our Calor gas bottle for a walk to the local garage for an exchange. We put our mooring fee in the honesty box and went off to find an anchorage in Loch Shieldaig. A beautiful spot and… QUIET. There was again no internet nor phone signals, so almost as soon as we’d finished dinner we went to bed. We both slept pretty much 12 hours solid!

Day 62.

There’s a bit of a storm coming! It’s due to hit the very top of Scotland on Saturday/Sunday, but before that there are several days of very light winds. We have decided to accelerate our schedule and are pushing North quickly to try and beat the storm round the top of Britain. It’s not without its risks, if the storm comes in early we could be stuck in port for a long time, unable to carry on, or back.

Wish us luck!

Donate

The Wessex Kidney Patients Association is a charity that helps patients and their families deal with the upheaval caused by Kidney disease. If you enjoy reading our blog please consider giving to this cause . Many thanks Louise & Martin

Day 59 June 26th Plockton to Dunan.

Jun 27, 2022luffin21 Comment

What a night! We had carefully selected Plockton for its position in relation to wind direction. However during the evening there was a change in wind direction and all boats on the anchorage spent the night bobbing up and down in the resulting waves that ran into the bay.

In the morning, after a bright start, it became overcast as we left bleary eyed to find a different safe haven. I chose an anchorage near Dunan on the Isle of Skye which appeared to have enough cover to from the surrounding hills to give us a quiet night. We arrived just before lunch after a comfortable sail and anchored in about 3 metres of water in very good holding.

There were some small wavelets but the wind was due to veer behind the land and reduce in strength. During lunch it rained quite heavily and there was some strong katabatic downdrafts from the surrounding mountains. Far from reducing, the wind just got stronger and the waves grew considerably even though we were only 300 yds from shore. It had turned into a squally evening with huge winds and downpours. We couldn’t see a soul on shore and there didn’t seem to be anywhere interesting to go. Besides getting in a dinghy in those conditions would have been dangerous, so we stayed aboard and played scrabble into the evening as the winds continued to howl.

The hook was holding well, in possibly the strongest winds we have ever anchored in. An anchor alarm was set as an additional precaution. Then just before bed we were treated to a big rainbow and a spectacular stormy sunset.

Donate

Day19 May 17th Wells next the Sea to Grimsby.

May 18, 2022May 18, 2022luffin22 Comments

We woke to a bright sunny day, and as the tide and destination very much dictates the departure time. All five boats on the pontoon were ready to go at the same time and I was volunteered for the job of leadlng us out, and so a flotilla set sail.

Now I had worked out that the passage time was 8 hrs but it was 9.5hrs until we could get through the lock at Grimsby. So there was no point in rushing. I set the speed at 5kts and put it on autopilot.

Not so the other boats who whizzed off at top speed in various directions. Soon there were no boats other than “Jeepster”a local boat who crossed our path a couple of times. In the end only “VENTUS” and ourselves arrived at Grimsby. The other three clearly gave us some misinformation, “See you in Grimsby” they’d said, but the A.I.S. on their boats give them away, they had all gone to Spurn Head, Maybe to ensure a shorter passage to Scarborough? I don’t envy them on anchor at Spurn Head in a F5/8 Southerly wind. I do hope they are alright though.

After a drink in the very friendly Humber Cruising Associations Clubhouse, we had supper and then to bed, A nice quiet night despite the wind.

Donate

Day 13 May 11th A walk, a history lesson and a N.T. Lock in.

May 11, 2022May 11, 2022luffin21 Comment

When I chose Ramsholt as a place to stop, it looked ideal. But as it happens the pub only opens at dinnertime. It’s a mile walk to the nearest road, theres no public transport and the place we want to go to is 7 miles away.

So we opt for a taxi, and after chatting with the driver on the way, he kindly gave us a donation for the WKPA. Good man!

And where were we going? Well if you have seen “The Dig” you may have heard of the Saxon Ship burial site at Sutton Hoo. The site is run by National Trust and if you are ever in the area is well worth a visit. We spent the afternoon there and at around 4 o clock called for a cab. The earliest available was 5:30pm. Sutton Hoo closes at 5.00pm and by now its raining. At this point the staff at Sutton Hoo go above and beyond and let us stay in the restuarant while they clear up and we wait for the taxi, even throwing in free coffees.

Whilst we wait, we chat to a couple in a similar position who have been left behind by their coach tour operators. They seemed quite happy to have missed the next part of the tour which was a river trip (in the rain). We gave them one of our cards, you never know we might get another donation!

Getting back to the boat wasn’t without its drama. The tide had gone out, the mud was about a foot deep and then the flipping outboard wouldn’t start. Argh!!! Two mudlarks in a dinghy desparately rowing against tide and wind, we just started laughing.

On the bright side, after getting to the boat and washing ourselves down, the heavens opened for about an hour (any earlier and we would have been drenched) When the rain stopped we were treated to a lovely rainbow and a beautiful sunset.

Lowestoft tomorrow

Donate

Passage planning.

Apr 26, 2022Apr 26, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

Here I sit in anticipation of, not only our departure but the inevitable “How on earth did we forget that” moment which I’m sure will come. I think everything is ready, bar the fresh food, and with only 3 days to go I’ve started to think about the first passage plan.

For the non sailors among you, a Passage Plan is a requirement of the Skipper to make a written plan for the passage the boat is making. It should contain ‘adequate ‘ detail of navigational and safety aspects to get the boat from one place to another.

So what are the considerations for making a passage plan.

No 1 is probably the weather. Should you go out in the first place, is your experience good enough, is your boat sea worthy enough. How will the wind direction affect the time it takes for your passage. how uncomfortable or dangerous will this make the sea,

No 2 is tide. Tide is a magical thing it turns land into sea and sea into land, twice a day. Tides flow and sometimes and currents can be very fast indeed. Tide can be a game changer especially when sailing around headlands, these are often referred to as tidal gates. Sail boats always prefer to travel with the tide rather than against. It’s like cycling uphill or downhill, you all know which is faster or easier. Compromises often have to be made especially on longer journeys. Depth of tide also becomes important when leaving and entering port. and you must work out It there enough to keep your boat afloat.

No 3 The route, This is broken down into 3 parts.

getting out from the harbour/river/anchorage etc, to the sea proper This includes obtaining permission to move, bouyage, channels, locks.
getting from A to B, missing out sandbanks, rocks, shipping lanes, rough water areas etc.
Locating, identifying and entering the destination port.

All the above are approached with a “What If” mentality to take into account, gear failure, illness, injury, weather changes.

I was taught to use the appropriate charts, tide tables, tidal stream atlases and weather reports from the radio. You can, and in remote places away from the internet, have to do it this way, but modern day advances means apps on your phone or tablet can do it all far quicker. I tend to use an app called Savvy Navvy, which doe’s a lot of the heavy calculations for you. My preliminary route plan for Friday is shown below, this will be updated just before we go to take account of the latest weather report.

For fridays trip – From Wareham river to Newtown creek on the Isle of wight. There are a number of considerations.

A. Weather. The wind is coming directly from our destination, this will lengthen our trip by about 1/3

B The tide, the best time to leave Wareham will leave us with the worst time to cross from Poole to the Newtown Creek on the Isle of Wight. ie Tide against. This could add another hour or so to the journey.

So choices are to leave a little later, (more risk in a shallow river on a falling tide). Go at the original time and anchor somewhere for lunch to await a favourable tide, or as the wind is light and possibly unsailable. We could put on the iron sail. (engine) and motor against both tide and whatever wind there is.

So first option – rejected

Second option possible

Third option most likely.

Let’s see what conditions are like on the day. At the end of the day it’s only a plan and you often have to make dynamic decisions to account for unexpected conditions or events.

Long range weather forecast?

Apr 24, 2022Apr 24, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

Last Friday with 7 days to go before our leaving day, I took a peek at the weather for the 29th, and was disappointed with what I saw. An easterly headwind of F5 and more. Not a comfortable first passage and indeed if it got much stronger we would be delaying the leaving date.

Move on two days and now look at the forecast for the same day. Winds down to F2, not enough to sail, so now it looks like we may be motoring at least some of the time. Not ideal, but better than being battered for a 5 hour passage.

The fingers are still crossed that it will be good weather to sail on our first day..

Easter Bank Holiday, Saturday.

Apr 17, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

I’m not sure what the temperature was first thing, but it certainly was Brass Monkeys! One objective today was to learn more about the sails and how to set them. This required getting out of the harbour into open sea and sailing on one tack for a good time, allowing time to tweek and see what works best to get the most out of the sail.

As a separate issue I wanted to check on my home mooring in Swanage so, with a loose passage plan off we set. We got to Poole Entrance just as another Gemini 105 was leaving. Quite a coincidence.

An hour so’s sailing and we had the sails sorted and we had arrived in Swanage. Both objectives complete and it was only 12.00. We sailed back to Studland where we hooked up to a bouy and had Lunch. Unfortunately the easterly wind kicking was up a short chop it was not a pleasant place to spend the afternoon.

So on we travelled back to Poole Harbour, this time anchoring at South Deep. with pleasant views of Furzey Island and Green island. Slightly out of place is the “Eye” sculpture on the Green Island shoreline. The island has been owned by Edward lliffe since 2005 and was the scene of a dramatic fire in 2012 which burnt down his newly constructed home.

Furzey Island is owned by the oil company Perenco. It’s almost unbelievable that beneath this tiny island lies 22 oil wells which feed the Wytch Farm oil field. Oil is extracted from under Hampshire and Dorset, stabilised at the site by separating out the oil, gas and water, and then transported via a 91km pipeline to a terminal at Hamble, in Southampton Water.

Donate

Easter Bank Holiday.

Apr 15, 2022Apr 15, 2022luffin21 Comment

A short shake down trip.

It’s Easter Weekend and the weather looks good.

We get to the boat around 10.00am and set about stowing the food supplies, getting the main sail set up and sorting the mooring lines. At 12-00 o clock it’s high tide and high time we set off. Coaxing her away from the mooring, we motored off down river.

Contrary to the weather forecast there was some wind and we were keen to get the sails up. Mistake trying to do this in a narrow channel, and soon felt the centreboard digging in. A hasty U turn and we got out of that one, fortunately the centre boards are designed to kick-up in this situation, but a bit embarrassing all the same. I should know better.

The genoa, being so stiff and new takes a bit of encouragement to get across on the tack, which lead to mistake No 2, getting a riding turn on the winch. This for the non sailors is getting the rope tangled on the winch in a way that it cannot the readily undone. This coupled with the fact that we were in a busy fairway between rows of moored boats, got the heart rate up a bit.

Things settled down after that and we continued on to Brownsea Island, where at 1500 ,we called it a day and anchored up.

After an afternoon of cleaning and small jobs we’ve now had supper and are watching the sun go down.

Donate

Almost Ready.

Apr 13, 2022Apr 13, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

First post for a while, mainly due to lack of new’s. After months of work, Watanga was very nearly ready when she launched. I had planned to get her in the water a month ahead of the leaving date to allow for sea trials and lots of snagging work. Fortunately, so far there has only been a small water leak on the calorifyer connections. and a wiring problem to sort out.

Unfortunately the problem with the new mainsail delayed the sea trials but I’m picking it up today. Fingers crossed it’s right this time.

Hopefully we can take her for a short trip this weekend, perhaps as far as the Solent I’m guessing it will be busy as it’s Easter. Mondays weather looks awful so hopefully back by Sunday afternoon.

Talking of the weather, it is far from settled, and it’s still quite cold at night, must check we have stowed hot water bottles.

Donate

A Windy , rainy week

Mar 2, 2022Mar 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

After storm Eunice the continuing bad weather has hampered work on the boat. So we have made use of the time with some more detailed planning. We have two strategic “must arrive” destinations on the trip. These are to facilitate medical treatments which Lou has arranged to be done on the boat. The first will be at Mallaig in Scotland late June, and the second in Padstow, mid August. The Harbour Masters have been contacted and both have agreed to arrange space for our arrival.

We have a freezer compartment on the boat and have over the years developed a number of recipes that get vacuum packed and frozen. Lou has been busy batch cooking to build up a stock. We will have to rely on our visiting crews to bring some with them as we can only carry about 12 meals at a time.

The drive leg has been gathering dust in the garage since it was refurbished back in October. So when a warmish Sunny day came along last week, it was time to reattach. A couple of hours work and the job was pretty much done. Just a couple of minor of snags to finish it off.

Lastly the WKPA boat stickers have arrived but the boat needs a polish before we stick them on. However I couldn’t resist seeing what they would look like.

Donate

Solar Controller.

Feb 23, 2022Feb 23, 2022luffin22 Comments

Since the major rewire of battery leads. The batteries had died and I assumed that this was because of the effects from the short circuit accident last summer. So a few weeks ago I had renewed the batteries. Since then I have noticed a steady decline in capacity. It’s not unusual to struggle for charge from Solar in the winter because of the lack of sunlight hours but the rate of drain is too fast and I suspect the Solar Charge Controller.

I changed the solar charger once before when the same symptoms occurred. Having done some research on solar setups, this time I’m upgrading to a MPPT controller. I settled on a Renogy Rover Unit and fitted this the other day. Apart from making a new mounting bracket this was essentially a straight swap in terms of wiring but saw an immediate improvement in charge rate.

Happy Days!

Donate

Storm Eunice

Feb 18, 2022Feb 18, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

BATTEN DOWN THE HATCHES

Danger to life ! Red Weather Warning! Property damage! Flood!

OK, so storm Eunice comes crashing into Britain, and everyone’s in a panic. As a kid, severe weather was a bit of an adventure, we would hold our coats out like wings and try to take off. However in the predicted wind strengths today you could probably fly a small child like a kite.

These are seriously strong winds, so we’ve prepared best we can, putting our garden furniture somewhere safe. Taking the bins in or tie them down. Staying inside if we can. At the boatyard, being unmasted at the moment I think Watanga is fairly stable and safe, as long as other boats don’t topple.

So what do we do on the boat when these conditions come along. The English language is littered with phrases of nautical origin and a few come to mind.

“Batten down the hatches“ relates to making sure the hatches or deck ventilation openings were securely covered, to stop the ingress of water, but more generally to make sure that everything loose on the boat was secured, stowed away, tied down or prepared for rough conditions.

If you know these conditions are coming best to “Run for cover” ie find a port or river or piece of high land you can hide behind to protect you from the wind and waves. If the conditions come on suddenly then “any port in a storm” means find the nearest and quickest means of protecting the boat even if it is not ideal.

I experienced these conditions whilst being taught on my yacht master course and had an invaluable lesson on how to deploy a double anchor, and the best places to find for protection. Trees, are great at absorbing the power of the wind and form a nice calm shadow. High cliffs of course give great protection.

Lastly, and most unpleasant, if you are caught out by the weather, and cannot make port, then you may have to “Ride out the storm”. That means you stay away from the land and just sit in an unpleasantly rocking boat for hours on end until conditions improve.

As I write there was a crash outside and the roof of a Dormer window has been lifted off the building a few doors down and has landed in the road. Oooer!

Donate

“There are no ropes on a boat”.

Feb 12, 2022Feb 13, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

New Standing Rigging.

What is Rigging, I hear you ask. Broadly speaking, on a boat, the collective term for the ropes, wires, chains and other bits and bobs that hold the mast up or adjust the sails is known as the rigging. There are two types. Standing and Running.

Standing Rigging is all the ropes that do not move and are primarily the ones that hold the mast up. Running rigging is all the ropes,(called sheets and guys, and lines) that are moved to adjust sails etc.

On most modern boats the standing rigging is made from stainless steel wire rope. Like all things they wear out and become brittle with age. Some insurance companies will insist on replacement of these items every 10 years especially those that race. Although mine has not stipulated this condition, at 17 years old I am renewing them.

Although there are DIY systems for producing new rigging these will generally be inferior to professionally produced items. This work is rather specialist in nature so I am having it done by a local company Quay Rigging.

Today, at the boatyard I found Dave and Tess from Quay Rigging working on my mast, re-threading the various new shroud wires and stays. It won’t be set up until we put the mast up in a couple of months but it’s ready to go and another job off the list.

Donate

Showering on Board.

Feb 8, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

I am expecting to become paranoid about water conservation especially once we reach the western Isles. It is surprisingly easy to run out of water on a boat. Watanga has two 11O Litre water tanks, giving 220 litres in all, about 60 gallons. Once you take away air space at the top of the tank and the bit at the bottom below the outlet pipe we probably only have 50 usable gallons.

The tanks are underneath the aft bunks and although transparent the water level was never easy to ascertain. To make things easier, last season we fitted some water gauges, At least now everyone can see the levels easily and monitor their usage.

Then we come to showering. We have to insist on the navy’s regime of

Step in and turn the water on just long enough to wet the body.
Turn the water off.
Apply soap and shampoo.
Rinse off.

or Wet, Lather, Rinse to conserve supplies. On extended periods away from marinas or pontoons, supply becomes even more critical.

Then we come to hot water, If we have run the engine then there will be maybe 15 litres available. If not then its a COLD shower. We can also heat the water via shore power, but in our experience, if you have access to shore power you have access to showers. In 16 years of sailing I cannot remember ever using the immersion option.

This year, after reading an excellent article on TheBoatGalley a blog site whose boat is also a gemini105MC, we going to try out solar showers. They are available online and in camping shops. Quite simply a flexible black water container that draws it’s heat from the sun, that has a shower attachment. It is filled separately so adds to the total water supply on the boat, and the heat, (well if it’s sunny), that’s free.

Lets hope its sunny.

Gemini105MC Window Replacement.

Feb 2, 2022Feb 4, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

This post is more for the D.I.Y.ers , and Gemini Owners. There is a link to an excellent “How to” video at the end of the post.

All our windows are starting to suffer from UV degradation, particularly the cockpit and forward window which are badly crazed and yellowed. Back in December I decided to have ago at replacing the cockpit window. My thoughts were, if I can make a good job of the biggest window, then the others should be a doddle.

First job was to remove the window. Remove all the screws. Then with a modified bread knife, from the inside, I gently cut through the sealant to the outside in a series of stabbing motions. That Sikaflex is tenacious stuff, but slices quite easily. The perpex windscreen was then lifted clear. Cleaning off all the residue sealant was acheived with a sharp wood chisel and a good deal of care. Using rubbing alcohol to clean down.

A temporary cover was put over the hole to make the boat watertight while the new panel is made.

So far so good,

£200 saw a very large piece of ‘Makrolon” , polycarbonate sheet arrive. I started by clamping the old window on top of the new sheet and to a piece of plywood. The holes were drilled using the old window as a template , then with both pieces screwed together onto the plywood. Again using the old window as a template, the window shape was formed first with a jigsaw leaving 2-3 mm all round, then with a router with an edge trimming bit.

{Note. the tool must be dead sharp. run the router at a low speed or the makrolon will start melting. : Lubricate with water if necessary}

Final job was countersinking the holes.. I had bought a micro adjustable countersink for that job to give a consistent depth and finish.

A 25mm wide foam tape 3mm thick forms the inside edge detail to the window and this was the next thing to apply. Sika recommend a primer be applyied to polycarbonate to make it stick reliably, so that also needs applying. This stuff is more expensive than printer ink. It happens to be a very dense black colour which will be helpful to make the the job look good. ( any missed spots when you’re sealing will shine through and spoil the look of the finished job.)

The Sikaflex 295UV is not meant to be applied at low temperatures So the job was put on hold until early Feb when the temperature finally rose shove single figures.

Next temporarily screw the window in place and tape round the edges for the sealant edge.

Now the big moment. Apply the sealant, generously, and carefully offer the window up into place and get some screws in but do not tighten up until ALL the screws are started. Then starting in the centre tighten gently to produce an even curve on the window (NO DIMPLES) Remember the screws do not form a structural part of the window, they simply hold it in place until the sealant cures. Once you are happy with the shape and all screws are of an even tension. I used a silicon edging tool to form the edge bead.

Makralon is unbelievably clear, actually clearer than glass. so the finish job looks almost as if there’s no windscreen in place. Really pleased with that.

Whoops, I’ve opened up a can of worms here

Feb 1, 2022Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

The radio was loose in the electrical panel but I couldn’t get to it so I took a few panels off to find a right Birds nest of wires. Not the best piece of wiring work I’ve seen, there’s some corroded terminals and the whole thing needs tidying before tackling the original problem of the loose radio. I’m not sure that I can improve on the routing much, but most of the wires have been left way too long. A couple of days work here methinks!. Almost wished I’d not looked.

New Water heater (Calorifier)

Feb 1, 2022Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

For some time now the only way to get hot water for a shower was to run the engine for an hour or so. this stopped working last year and the immersion heater function hasn’t worked for some time. but if you are connected to shore power you are usually in a marina and have use of showers anyway. Theold unit, a ‘Dometic’ is still made, but in expensive and primarily only available in USA. So it was time for a change. A “QUICK NAUTIC BOILER – CALORIFIER, was purchased, and installed with shiny new hot and cold piping.

That’s another job off the list.

Donate

Cupboard reorganisation finished

Jan 25, 2022Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

All done in the cupboard now, with handles, labels, and some internal compartments added

Right what’s next.

Cleaning the boat

Jan 19, 2022Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

I have to say I do have a lot of very expensive bottles of marine products “especially made” to be used on boats. We all know that if you see the word marine on a product you can be sure of paying way over the odds for it. But we still buy them.

This article popped up recently in my google feed and makes interesting reading :- Homemade boat cleaners. There is a link in that article for cleaning the boat below the waterline ( please bear in mind they are in warmer climes);-

Cleaning Below the waterline

Maintenance cupboard reorganisation.

Jan 9, 2022Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

Thought it was time for a rethink in the maintenance cupboard First, a new shelf to level things up. Then new boxes, which are a good fit ,especially on height, but need modifying with finger holes or handles so I’m able to pull them out easily.

Winter Refit update.

Dec 16, 2021Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

Plenty of work has been going on since my last post. I have purchased a new “mifi” unit. A Netgear Nighthawk. I have run cables for a mast aerial to connect to this. As the mast is derigged at the moment. I was only able to test the unit with the aerial on the deck but even this modest height gain gave me 2 bars extra on signal strength.

Neat package in its own holder , also new is the USB charger running off the house battery.

As we have been bemoaning the inefficiency of our oven for maybe the last 5 years, I have upgraded to the latest model. It features a spark ignition, different size gas rings,and hopefully an oven that works!

more later.

Wiring works resume..

Oct 30, 2021Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

I visited the boat on Thursday to find Sam hard at work on my electrics, he was just about to cut a hole in the floor for access. I’m glad I didn’t do this myself, not that I’m not capable, but I think I would have done myself a mischief in the process.

I’ll post some photos later.

Update Saturday 30th All back together now and looking good.

All looking good. Back together. I’ll wait until monday and check with the electrician before I try it out. Meanwhile Louise and I worked on the mast running in two new coaxial cables for the VHF and Wifi aerials, just need to put terminal ends on.

Winter Refit.

Oct 14, 2021Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

I am a little disappointed that the yard hasn’t started electrical work yet on the boat. There is other electrical stuff to be checked over, which would be a whole lot easier if I could connect the batteries. However I’m plugging away in the garage and refurbishment of the drive leg is nearing completion.

Awaiting some parts before putting it back together.

Also doing some restoration work on the outboard.

Just hope I can remember how it goes back together.

Drive Leg Refurbish.

Oct 6, 2021Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

I drained the oil out of the drive leg the other day and it came out a sort of coffee colour. Definitely not the runny honey colour it went in. This is usually a sign that water is getting unto the oil. I remember during the season we caught some fishing lines in our propeller. There was quite a lot of it, and took a while to untangle and thought that I had got it all. Having taken the prop off I discovered that the line had made it’s way down the shaft as far as the seals. As the leg was suffering from quite a few patches of corrosion I decided it was time for a refurbishment, so it has been removed from the boat

I have removed the seal housing and the seals. Despite looking ok, they are 17 years old so we’ll replace them anyway.

After a lot of scraping and sanding the leg is ready for the primer.

A funny thing happened on the way to …

Oct 1, 2021Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

The Easterlies were worsening, and there were several yachts in Swanage bay that had to move. The extent of the damage to watanga was unknown, It was time to put her to bed for the season. So with no electrics, and no engine I had to plan a journey from Swanage to Ridge Wharf. The first part was easy, we could still sail, but even if the wind direction was favourable enough to get up the river, there would be no room for error, and picking up a for and aft mooring, pretty well impossible. We enrolled a couple of friends to follow us with a rib that would become our engine in an alongside tow for the final part of our journey.

That’s when the fun began!!!

Although it was only blowing a F5 the sea had built and the waves were about a metre. We met Russell and Nicola at the beach, I was going to get them out to their boat before coming back for Louise. We had a plan, in hindsight not a good one, and before we had made 10 feet off the shore we were swamped twice. Amazingly I was still dry, Nicola had taken the brunt of the waves and was decidedly wet.

Plan B. I launched myself, got beyond the breakers and then motored over to the fishermans jetty where we successfully got Russell and Nicola aboard and subsequently on board “Penguin”.

Greg and Mark turned up and we agreed that they could probably leave about an hour later allowing time for us to sail to poole.

Lou and I are more practiced at getting off the beach and we’re soon on watanga and both pretty dry. And off we set, checking comms with Mark and Greg.on the handheld radios.

It was a fiesty sail with only a couple of tacks necessary to take us past Old Harry rocks, but strongly no sign of the others. We radioed in our position and Mark confirmed they were just about to leave the beach. All going to plan I thought.

Meanwhile back at the beach things were not so good.

There was a minor problem of the tender sinking under the weight of two, not small, gentleman, with kit, anchor, fuel, extra fuel. Second attempt was successful and achieved ith much the same manner as our own second attempt.

We were at the Sandbanks Ferry, by the time they turned up, with salt encrusted hair sticking up like Jedwood..

After that, everything went to plan. The rib tied on the rear quarter drove us very well and I was able to steer almost as normal whilst calling the engine commands to Mark. in the rib..

We were soon tied up on the mooring and the Rib left. for home. Lou and I took the sails down, and removed the boom before heading home ourselves in the car.

Many thanks to Mark and Greg.

You’ve got to laugh though.

Catch up.

Sep 25, 2021Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

It’s been an eventful month. Immediately after the last post the weather turned foul and the boat had to be moved from the bay a couple of times. On the last trip we took Watanga into Poole Harbour for a couple of days, dropping in at the marina to fill up with water in preparation for our September trip.

We were nearly back on the mooring when everything went wild. Alarms going off, instruments went haywire. We immediately shut down the engine and switched off the batteries, finding 2 small fires in the process. Fortunately they were very small and could literally be blown out.

Dead in the water and being pushed by wind and a metre swell toward the beach we had to act quickly. Drop the anchor was the first thought. but with no power I would need the spanner to loosen the windlass clutch, but I didn’t know where it was. Sails of course were an option, but time to raise them and with the conditions it was iffy whether there was enough room.

Getting some help seemed the way to go at this point. With that done we could then try to resolve this ourselves and if someone turns up, all well and good.

Friends Andrew and Hilary had just gone by in their motor boat so I gave them a call. They arrived so quickly that all thoughts of anchoring or sailing went out of the window, and within a couple minute we were being towed to our mooring.

Lesson learnt

Not being able to drop the anchor immediately, was a minor panic moment, and the answer to that is that the spanner for the windlass will now be kept m a prominent position, ready for any future emergency.

With unknown amounts of damage to the electrical system the season was declared over and the boat is now out of the water.

Getting her to the boatyard is another story.

Grandkids and Sailing

Aug 18, 2021Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

Its been a while since the Grandkids have been to visit, 18 months in fact. There’s alway a wish list, Go to the beach, Swim in the sea, Go on Grandpa’s boat.

Saturday was looking good for Sun and light winds. So with sandwiches made we were ready to go by 10.30 . Now last time we all went on the boat 10 mins in and Ethan and Eleanor were bored within 10 mins. How they have changed in such a short time.

Helping with ropes, deploying the anchor, steering the boat. Made for a fun day with a picnic at Studland, then back to Swanage for beach and a swim.

They’re not just posing, they were really helping the boat.

Cleanup and Go.

Jul 24, 2021Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

After our first night at home we were back on the boat for a final clean up and pick up forgotten personal items. There were a few clothes, Russells paddle, and one or two food items. but that was it. Russell arrived on his paddleboard (with spare paddle).

With three of us on the job, the cleaning was soon done.

The only thing left to do was move the boat out of Swanage bay to protect her from the forecast Easterly winds.

Coming Home

Jul 22, 2021Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

Looking at the forecast for the coming days showed easterly wind rising in strength to a maximum of F 6-8 on Friday night. We decided that if we made good time to Portland Bill, we would push on to Swanage. This would give us time on Thursday to clean the boat up and take her to a sheltered mooring in Poole while the easterly blows through.

At 0545 we slipped lines at Dartmouth and headed out into the sunrise.

It was a long and uneventful passage, the most difficult part of which was trying to stay cool. There again I guess most of the country would have felt the same.

We could hear the ” Crump ” sound of the tanks firing even before we reached Portland. I telephoned Lulworth Range Control as we rounded the Bill for advice on our course. We were told to stay South of 50.31.5 N which we did until we heard on the radio just after 1600 hours that firing had stopped for the day, and then resumed a more direct course for home

We tied up on Swanage Mooring exactly 12 hours after leaving Dartmouth.

Newton Ferrers to Dartmouth,

Jul 20, 2021Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

A late start today on a day promising little or no wind. Having left at 0930 and made good progress to Salcombe. We decided to sail even though it meant a longer journey. Well we had an hour or so until just past Start Point where the wind dwindled to nothing.

By this time it was getting hot even with the light wind from the boat moving along. 90 min’s later We were berthed safely in the middle of the river at Dartmouth.

Tomorrow we set off early 0600, which should see us reach Portland at 1500. We’ll decide at that point whether to push on to Swanage or overnight in Portland..

Helford to Falmouth

Jul 20, 2021Feb 3, 2022luffin2Leave a comment

Just a short trip of 8 miles today, leaving the quiet and tranquil Helford river to go to the hustle and bustle of Falmouth. We arrived around 1pm and just chilled for the rest of the day. A leisurely cream tea in the afternoon and a takeaway in the evening before watching the sun go down.

Sadly we had to say goodbye to Nicola this evening who is jumping ship at some unearthly hour in the morning to do something called “work”

Newton Ferrars Is our destination tomorrow.