Eight o clock and the harbour master is moving boats around to enable us to have a walk ashore pontoon berth for the day. This will allow the nurse easy access to the boat for Louise’s treatment at 9 o clock. Apart from the fact that it was raining all went very well. It was a very nice spot not quite so overlooked as the harbour wall. It would have been nice to be able to stay there, but we were in a private berth which the owners had kindly allowed us to use. Whilst there, a chap came to the pontoon and asked how long I’d had the boat, and who I had purchased it from. It turned out that he was working for Patrick Boyd Multihulls from whom I’d bought it, and was responsible for assembling and commissioning Watanga. We chatted about this and that and one thing led to another and he ended up at the top of the mast replacing my broken screecher halyard. Nice chap.

Next surprise of the day was Andy Barker turning up to say hello, down in Rock for a second week, this time competing in his Osprey. Really nice of him to pop over and have a chat.

Treatment finished, and we had to move the boat again, this time at peak tourist and crabbing time. So a plan was formulated and the execution was luckily almost perfect. Nothing for the tourists to laugh about. We did upset about 6 families that were crabbing off the wall where we berthed, but I suspect that there were one or two parents glad to be given the excuse to take their kids elsewhere.

Having sorted the boat out, we went to have a look at the National Lobster Hatchery which sounds like a huge enterprise but sadly is only a small concern and inexplicably not helped by the government. The potential for this kind of enterprise being sadly overlooked.

We may move on tomorrow, it will depend on tomorrows’ weather forecast.

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