My woman and I watch the rugby in Champs last night and then went to Godor and proceeded to get fairly hammered with some very good friends. That's two leaving do's down, one more to go. Fingers crossed my liver survives and I make it to the boat (ps: as I'm writing this I'm watching Long Way Down and dribbling at the thought).
Today is my last day in Hungary, I leave for Vienna first thing tomorrow (and then onwards on Wednesday). My bags are packed....cue John Denver. I've totally loved being here in BP for the last six months. It's such a different city from Vienna, far more my type of town, it's rougher, dirtier, smellier, younger, more vibrant, the music's awesome and easily found. I'd definately come back.
Preparation continues apace. I've ordered a new toy :-) a 70w solar panel, an Imray of the Isle of Wight (for the race). With luck the sail numbers will be ready on Tuesday and we can switch out the "old" sail for the "new" (they're both old though). I'm still umming and erring about a storm jib or a trisail and have yet to order a drogue.
My thoughts turned to visas today so I just had a butchas at the map, just for Africa, I need to check requirements for 22 countries* but it's also focussed the route down a tad more. Before it was "head south to SA and turn left" now it's "UK to Gib to Turkey to Gib to SA to Madagascar to Seychelles to Maldives and turn right".
Anyway, back to Long Way Down and checking visa requirements. Next blog from Vienna.
Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin (never even heard of that one), Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Congo, the Dem Rep. of Congo, Angola, Nambia, SA, Mozambique, Madagascar.
Sunday, 19 June 2011
Thursday, 16 June 2011
Captain's Log - preparation
Sooooooooooo.....
Last Thursday I travelled from Budapest to Vienna on my Moto Guzzi Breva 1100. A party was had and much beer was consumed at Charlie P's. Saturday my woman and I drove to Leuven and then on to Brighton for a night of Comedy on the Sunday. Monday rolled around and 3 boxes of "stuff" was dropped off at the boat. Another drive back to Vienna and a train and I'm back in Budapest.
Alas for my bike though - being of limited budget I've decided to sell it so it's currently with the dealer and I'm hoping they're going to offer me a fair price.
Anyhoo, got myself a few more toys today, a Navtex so I can receive weather forecasts in English and a SPOT GPS tracker so my friends and family can have a rough idea where the Catweasel is. It should be noted that SPOT isn't 100% accurate and that it can turn off from time to time so if the signal is lost it's not because I'm at the bottom of the Solant.
Had a bit of a last minute hiccough here. I'd hoped to stash the stuff I'm not taking with friends in BP but sadly they told me a few days ago that it was a no go. Luckily I've found a self storage company in BP that can take my stuff for a year. These last minute expenses are building up. For example I've had to abandon my idea about customised dodgers (spray guards for the cockpit) as they're now cost prohibitive.
Apart from that, things are going fairly smoothly. I'm tracking progress with a google docs "to do" list and meeting more or less daily with my brother using Skype (although now we've moved down to the last few days I'm using my mobile to call him for critical issues). The list currently has 30 items on it ranging from installation of my wind vane to passage planning Portsmouth to Plymouth.
With my flight scheduled for Wednesday, and my woman's name day on Tuesday, I'm, hopefully, travelling to Vienna on Monday. My BP leaving party, where I say goodbye to more friends, is this Friday. So...between now and 6am Monday I have to pack, drink, get a tad maudlin, cheer up, eat, drink some more, panic pack and then drive to Vienna. Easy :).
Someone here (BP) asked me about my emotional state. With luck that'll come over as I write but, just in case....I've moved into my last things stage. Last ride of the bike, last train ride from Vienna to BP, last time seeing certain friends so it's kinda sad. But I'm also moving very close to my first of a kind stage....if that makes sense. First time sailing around the Isle of Wight (RTI), first time living aboard, first time starting a "round the world", first meal, first...etc etc. so it's all sort of balanced right now.
Anyway, back to packing.
Last Thursday I travelled from Budapest to Vienna on my Moto Guzzi Breva 1100. A party was had and much beer was consumed at Charlie P's. Saturday my woman and I drove to Leuven and then on to Brighton for a night of Comedy on the Sunday. Monday rolled around and 3 boxes of "stuff" was dropped off at the boat. Another drive back to Vienna and a train and I'm back in Budapest.
Alas for my bike though - being of limited budget I've decided to sell it so it's currently with the dealer and I'm hoping they're going to offer me a fair price.
Anyhoo, got myself a few more toys today, a Navtex so I can receive weather forecasts in English and a SPOT GPS tracker so my friends and family can have a rough idea where the Catweasel is. It should be noted that SPOT isn't 100% accurate and that it can turn off from time to time so if the signal is lost it's not because I'm at the bottom of the Solant.
Had a bit of a last minute hiccough here. I'd hoped to stash the stuff I'm not taking with friends in BP but sadly they told me a few days ago that it was a no go. Luckily I've found a self storage company in BP that can take my stuff for a year. These last minute expenses are building up. For example I've had to abandon my idea about customised dodgers (spray guards for the cockpit) as they're now cost prohibitive.
Apart from that, things are going fairly smoothly. I'm tracking progress with a google docs "to do" list and meeting more or less daily with my brother using Skype (although now we've moved down to the last few days I'm using my mobile to call him for critical issues). The list currently has 30 items on it ranging from installation of my wind vane to passage planning Portsmouth to Plymouth.
With my flight scheduled for Wednesday, and my woman's name day on Tuesday, I'm, hopefully, travelling to Vienna on Monday. My BP leaving party, where I say goodbye to more friends, is this Friday. So...between now and 6am Monday I have to pack, drink, get a tad maudlin, cheer up, eat, drink some more, panic pack and then drive to Vienna. Easy :).
Someone here (BP) asked me about my emotional state. With luck that'll come over as I write but, just in case....I've moved into my last things stage. Last ride of the bike, last train ride from Vienna to BP, last time seeing certain friends so it's kinda sad. But I'm also moving very close to my first of a kind stage....if that makes sense. First time sailing around the Isle of Wight (RTI), first time living aboard, first time starting a "round the world", first meal, first...etc etc. so it's all sort of balanced right now.
Anyway, back to packing.
Thursday, 9 June 2011
Captain's log - preparation - continued
So far it's been a very disjointed blog (my posts that is). I'm starting to think that because of the very nature of preparation - non linear-ish - that it's going to remain this way. Maybe it's that very fact that's made it easier than usual to not post.
Anyhoo...very quick update on the plan. Am in Budapest (BP) but tomorrow (Friday) I ride the Goose to Vienna for a leaving party in Charlie P's with my friends. On Saturday Alicja and I drive to Brighton and then onto Fareham to drop boaty stuff off (kaks etc) before driving back to Vienna. Then we (my fabulous bird and I) head to BP for another leaving party at the Embassy and then Champs. A day or two of packing before heading back to Vienna for my final flight to the UK - 23rd Jan. A night in Brighton with a good mate before heading to sunny Basingstoke for my last leaving party. On the 24th the crew of the good ship Catweasel head to Cowes and on the 25th we're racing in the RTI. Although we're using the RTI to kick off the circumnavigation I actually have to get Catweasel back to Fareham to do some last minute work (self draining cockpit & windvane fitting). That means that the actual departure is currently set for the 5th July. Oh, and I also have my VHF license course on the 2nd.
So..what has preparation included so far? well, whilst I'm expecting to be primarily single handed that's only because I'm not waiting around to find crew. If they turn up, they turn up, if they don't..ces't la vie. So far I have a Lithuanian to roughly Plymouth and my brother until Spain. A "may join" in August that I met last night (a lawyer even - so when he shouts Starboard you'd best move). Crew makes everything cheaper so I'm open to suggestions and may even post on YBW once I get going.
What else? Electronics. I've ordered a McMurdo PLB (£216) (fingers crossed I never that), a hand held GPS (£65) (a Garmin eTrex) which is primarily for the grab bag (which reminds me to get a large scale chart or 3 for the bag), I've yet to order, but will, a Horizon HX280e hand held VHF. The Catweasel has a fixed VHF so this one will also go in the grab bag. I got it as it'll take a battery pack that uses "normal" batteries (easier to buy and carry AAs etc and thus no need to recharge when in a life raft). In addtion I decided to order a SPOT GPS tracker. That's going to get used to send re-assurances to friends, family and loved ones that the Catweasel and her crew are still on track and OK. It'll also backup the PLB. On top of these toys I'll add my two laptops, my iPhone and my iPod. I'll charge these from the 2 x 85ah batteries. That leaves an open question as to how to charge the batteries. I was pretty close to ordering a wind gen but the techie guy at Marlec reckons I'll be better off with solar. I'm waiting to hear his "whys" before I place my final order.
Navigtion - currently it's based on large scale charts, a pilot book, Open CPN plus the CM93 maps, 2 x GPS units and a compass. I can't afford a plotter or rather decided not to afford one. Long live working out CTS (course to steer).
The Catweasel herself is, I hope, pretty much ready but I'll use the sail to Plymouth as a stress test (for both boat and crew) and then repair on the fly. Am also waiting to get the RYA sail numbers on the sail, the SSR need to get their arse in gear a bit, a few dodgers need making, the chart table needs fixing (I *embarrassed cough* sat on it). I need to make her "batten down-able", fat arse proof and brother proof (if you recall he's already set her on fire, run her aground (twice now) and stress tested the forward hatch beyond its breaking point). I see a lot of duct tape in my near future.
Personal stuff - I'm burning as many of my movies as I can onto HDD, I've packed most of my stuff into storage boxes (am hoping a few of my friends will help out with storage). I'm selling everything I can't carry (tables, sofas, chairs, my *weep* 50 inch plasma, my blu-ray, and white stuff). The other type of personal stuff - the leaving parties, are arranged. My parents are coming down to see us off on the 25th so that's gonna be pretty cool. That leaves Alicja and I. It's going to be pretty hard to be apart I reckon, maybe even the hardest bit of the whole thing but I reckon it's going to strengthen our relationship and that's all I have to say on that subject :)
So...16 days of preparation time left.
Talk later peeps.
Anyhoo...very quick update on the plan. Am in Budapest (BP) but tomorrow (Friday) I ride the Goose to Vienna for a leaving party in Charlie P's with my friends. On Saturday Alicja and I drive to Brighton and then onto Fareham to drop boaty stuff off (kaks etc) before driving back to Vienna. Then we (my fabulous bird and I) head to BP for another leaving party at the Embassy and then Champs. A day or two of packing before heading back to Vienna for my final flight to the UK - 23rd Jan. A night in Brighton with a good mate before heading to sunny Basingstoke for my last leaving party. On the 24th the crew of the good ship Catweasel head to Cowes and on the 25th we're racing in the RTI. Although we're using the RTI to kick off the circumnavigation I actually have to get Catweasel back to Fareham to do some last minute work (self draining cockpit & windvane fitting). That means that the actual departure is currently set for the 5th July. Oh, and I also have my VHF license course on the 2nd.
So..what has preparation included so far? well, whilst I'm expecting to be primarily single handed that's only because I'm not waiting around to find crew. If they turn up, they turn up, if they don't..ces't la vie. So far I have a Lithuanian to roughly Plymouth and my brother until Spain. A "may join" in August that I met last night (a lawyer even - so when he shouts Starboard you'd best move). Crew makes everything cheaper so I'm open to suggestions and may even post on YBW once I get going.
What else? Electronics. I've ordered a McMurdo PLB (£216) (fingers crossed I never that), a hand held GPS (£65) (a Garmin eTrex) which is primarily for the grab bag (which reminds me to get a large scale chart or 3 for the bag), I've yet to order, but will, a Horizon HX280e hand held VHF. The Catweasel has a fixed VHF so this one will also go in the grab bag. I got it as it'll take a battery pack that uses "normal" batteries (easier to buy and carry AAs etc and thus no need to recharge when in a life raft). In addtion I decided to order a SPOT GPS tracker. That's going to get used to send re-assurances to friends, family and loved ones that the Catweasel and her crew are still on track and OK. It'll also backup the PLB. On top of these toys I'll add my two laptops, my iPhone and my iPod. I'll charge these from the 2 x 85ah batteries. That leaves an open question as to how to charge the batteries. I was pretty close to ordering a wind gen but the techie guy at Marlec reckons I'll be better off with solar. I'm waiting to hear his "whys" before I place my final order.
Navigtion - currently it's based on large scale charts, a pilot book, Open CPN plus the CM93 maps, 2 x GPS units and a compass. I can't afford a plotter or rather decided not to afford one. Long live working out CTS (course to steer).
The Catweasel herself is, I hope, pretty much ready but I'll use the sail to Plymouth as a stress test (for both boat and crew) and then repair on the fly. Am also waiting to get the RYA sail numbers on the sail, the SSR need to get their arse in gear a bit, a few dodgers need making, the chart table needs fixing (I *embarrassed cough* sat on it). I need to make her "batten down-able", fat arse proof and brother proof (if you recall he's already set her on fire, run her aground (twice now) and stress tested the forward hatch beyond its breaking point). I see a lot of duct tape in my near future.
Personal stuff - I'm burning as many of my movies as I can onto HDD, I've packed most of my stuff into storage boxes (am hoping a few of my friends will help out with storage). I'm selling everything I can't carry (tables, sofas, chairs, my *weep* 50 inch plasma, my blu-ray, and white stuff). The other type of personal stuff - the leaving parties, are arranged. My parents are coming down to see us off on the 25th so that's gonna be pretty cool. That leaves Alicja and I. It's going to be pretty hard to be apart I reckon, maybe even the hardest bit of the whole thing but I reckon it's going to strengthen our relationship and that's all I have to say on that subject :)
So...16 days of preparation time left.
Talk later peeps.
Wednesday, 8 June 2011
Windvane Frolics
It seems that the last 2 days have been exhausted entirely on trying to get the fitting of Catwesel's new windvane sorted in time for the first leg of the journey on July the 4th or 5th.
What had seemed a simple task of getting the windvane's designer/builder and the shipwright in the same place at the same time turned into an epic struggle but one that is hopefully now done. Everyone was fully co-operative but, as is probably going to be the case quite a lot in these early days, Donald Rumsfeld's "...things we did didn't know we didn't know..." reared up to bite proverbial behinds.
Having lined up Trenchard, from Neptune Windvane's, and Ian Foster, the shipwright, for an installation on June 28th, all that was needed was to arrange for Catweasel to be lifted out of the water the previous day. I say "All". Wicor Marine, Catweasel's current home, is nestled in the relatively shallow waters of Portsmouth Harbour's north west corner. As it turns out, this means that getting the boat close enough to the slipway to be lifted out of the water can only be done around high water. Couple this with the fact that the Wicor's staff, quite understandably, don't work 24 hours a day and we're left needing a high tide that falls between 8 and 5. This is also complicated by the fact that the lower level of water around weaker, neap tides aren't up to it. Consequently the 28th fell by the wayside.
One chat with the very friendly chaps a Wicor later and a provisional date of June 30th was pencilled in, with the work to be done on July 1st. This suited both Ian and Trenchard but just as I thought we were in the clear, Trenchard asked whether Ian was a welder. Another phone call confirmed that not only was he not a welder but that the resident welder at Wicor was unwell and wouldn't be able to assist.
Thankfully, Wicor maintain a list of approved service providers on their website and a company called Fabtech came into view. Another phone call and we were there! The tide, Wicor's crane, Trenchard and the windvane, Ian and Fabtech are now all lined up to leap into action and, subject to a lack of further complication, Catweasel should be back in the water and sporting a beautiful new windvane in time for the scheduled departure date. Here's hoping!
Sunday, 5 June 2011
Crew's Log: Stewart, 01-04/06/11
What do you know - all was well and good after all. Well, mostly.Thomas and I met Philip at Hornet as planned and after a quick run through of vital systems we'd waved farewell to him and were chugging into the heart of Portsmouth harbour with Wicor on our mind. No massive problems on the way other than another yacht being on the mooring we were supposed to pick up, and we spent the rest of the day getting familiarised with those finer points that hadn't seemed significant enough earlier in the day to bother Philip with. Oh, and the wind caught the forward hatch while I was getting the dinghy out, slammed it into the the deck and did for the hinges. Nothing major and a repair ought to be a simple enough thing. Honest Tim!
The following morning we visited the local BP station to stock up on fuel and then headed out into the Solent. With a light but steady wind we decided to get the sails up and in no time were approaching Cowes. We anchored in Osborne Bay, just to the east of Cowes, for lunch and Thomas promptly decided he was going to suffer from a bout of seasickness. Luckily it passed as soon as we were under way again and he was untroubled for the rest of our time aboard.
Having returned to the mooring that night we decided to putt down the river in the dinghy and see what we could see. The answer? Not much - we'd got about a mile downstream and ran out of petrol. I had it in my head that I'd filled the tank but all I'd done was drain the fuel can. We, or rather I, had to row upstream so I did not row gently, neither did I row 'merrily merrily merilly merilly' and life was certainly not a dream - particularly after I let the painter slip when we got back to Catweasel and watched the sodding dinghy slowly drift away. I leapt back to the cockpit for the boat hook but by the time I was back on the bow and trying to catch the dinghy she was gone. Shorts off, shirt off, Stewart in!
A strong northerly blew all night and was still at it come Friday morning so I decided it would most likely not be a sailing day. We motored out and I had my first experience of why Portsmouth harbour can be such a sod. Well, actually my first experience (aboard a yacht at least) of why a sod can be such a sod - As we came through the relatively narrow harbour mouth we had a gin palace bearing down on us at a rate of knots as he came in from the Solent. I looked about to make sure we were in the right place and all was well but this chap just kept coming. Time ticked slowly by and it became obvious he had no intention of moving to pass on out port side so I heaved the tiller to my left, lurched to starboard and then had to straighten up again before we had an altercation with the harbour wall. The helmsman on the gin palace seemed amazed by this as he looked down from his flying bridge and slammed his vessel into reverse. A member of their crew was despatched to the foredeck to demand an explanation and as I yelled (with perhaps a little too much help from Thomas) "We should be passing port to port, what are you doing!?!?" she yelled "Your supposed to pass on this side of us!", pointing to their starboard beam, "It's the rules of the road!". I was too stunned to reply. I kind of hope they learned from it after a "You'll never guess what happened to us today!?" conversation with a wiser skipper but know that there will be a hundred more out there with the "If it's got a steering wheel I'll drive it like a car" approach.
So that was Friday. Saturday morning was a time of tidying up, locking down and heading home and so we did.
Tuesday, 31 May 2011
Crew's Log: Stewart, 31/05/11
After a frenzy of emails and shopping and arguments with train companies, my son and I are ready to head for Portsmouth to collect my brother's new yacht, Catweasel. She's being moved from her previous owner's mooring at Hornet Sailing Club to the slightly less glamorous but, Hornet being a Forces only club, infinitely more available Wicor Marina at Fareham. All being well and good, all should be well and good, however my record aboard Catweasel does not shine like a beacon in the night...
Erroneous action the 1st, day 1 - Catweasel runs aground:
Yes, I was at the helm but no, it was not my fault. No seriously! With Lewis Hamiltonesque misfortune I was a victim of circumstance and blamed by those who should know better. All I did was turn to starboard - the mud shouldn't have been there! It turned into me!! Stupid mud. It didn't make no never mind though, as we managed to "kedge off" - something that I learned by observation and participation to mean "send the idiot who got us into this mess down stream to drop the anchor directly over a submerged power cable so we can winch ourselves off the bottom". If I'm honest, I'm not 100% sure the involvement of the power cable was intentional but then I'm only crew, and working hard on maintaining my blissful ignorance.
Yes, I was at the helm but no, it was not my fault. No seriously! With Lewis Hamiltonesque misfortune I was a victim of circumstance and blamed by those who should know better. All I did was turn to starboard - the mud shouldn't have been there! It turned into me!! Stupid mud. It didn't make no never mind though, as we managed to "kedge off" - something that I learned by observation and participation to mean "send the idiot who got us into this mess down stream to drop the anchor directly over a submerged power cable so we can winch ourselves off the bottom". If I'm honest, I'm not 100% sure the involvement of the power cable was intentional but then I'm only crew, and working hard on maintaining my blissful ignorance.
Erroneous action the 2nd, day 2: Catweasel catches fire:
Yeah, so this one was my fault. I lit the meths stove while we were motoring and forgot that I needed to unlock the gimbals. What was iffy while motoring became damn near disastrous when we raised the sails and headed into the Solent. Thankfully Philip, the previous owner, was aboard to save the day. He's probably wondering what his baby is going to suffer at the hands of her new crew.
So that's a howler per day aboard and tomorrow will be day 3, unsupervised, apart from by Tom the cabin boy, in one of the UK's busiest harbours. Tim, it has to be said, is a tad nervous.
captain's log preparation
6th February 2011
The first working day back from my NA2010 trip i was made redundant. officially my last working day was the last day of 2010 but i was on garden leave for the last 3 months.
Picture time - here's me roughly 9 months ago when I started to "plan" this
What to do, what to do - never being much of a realist I figured it was time to fulfil another lifetime ambition and sail around the world :) I have sailed in the last, many many years ago, so the concept doesn't daunt me but where to start.
So up with a plan I came.
As of the time of writing I am booked on "competant crew" and will be heading to Brighton in a few weeks for a week of live-aboard training.
At the same time I am researching boats and building a very loose network of contacts and forums. I hope to meet a friend of a friend in Southampton in a few weeks and, with luck, this week, I'll have lunch with a Serbian who runs a sailing center in Croatia.
My current thinking for boats is a Westerly Centaur and a budget of £5,000 to £10,000. The more I read the more options I open up but it does seem as if I am "limited" to something between 21 foot and 30 foot.
As for route - I am building in check points - so around the UK (did I like it? yes/no), then around Europe (to the med and back rather than north), and then around the world.
Right now I am probably doing this solo, not through choice but through a lack of a partner - if I am lucky I'll find someone who shares the same goals but I am not delaying
Anyway, for now, back to surfing the web looking for gems of knowledge.
Current questions -
So..what else is new, ahh yes, I've bought a boat, a Contessa 26. I'd narrowed my chouice of boats down to the Centaur, an Albin vega, a Cobra 750 and the Contessa and then searched around for a boat in my budget. I bought Wiskiwoo, a 1969 boat, based out of Gosport, and spent the last two days of this week (16th and 17th May) sailing her. She's a wet boat, certainly compared to the Benatau 36 I'd spent the previous week on, but sleek and she's mine, mine I say, all mine!!!!
Here's me & Catweasel (I'm the one in the red jacket, Catweasel is the boat shaped one wearing blue) and the previous owner doing the formal handover...about to inbibe a few at the Master Builders.
breaking this to scoff food, tbc
and here is me now...June 1st..working on my sailory goatee
Starting this diary, maybe I should say ships log? now..now being the 6th February 2011. Am sitting in Champs Bar in Budapest having moved here...wait....time to back up some,
The first working day back from my NA2010 trip i was made redundant. officially my last working day was the last day of 2010 but i was on garden leave for the last 3 months.
Picture time - here's me roughly 9 months ago when I started to "plan" this
What to do, what to do - never being much of a realist I figured it was time to fulfil another lifetime ambition and sail around the world :) I have sailed in the last, many many years ago, so the concept doesn't daunt me but where to start.
So up with a plan I came.
- First I'd move to Budapest, more for the new outlook than any cost of living argument but €2 vs nearly €4 a pint of beer didn't hurt.
- Next I'd take a number of sailing courses to get some formal qualifications - those courses being "competant crew", "day skipper - coastal" and "VHF radio license".
- Finally - sail around the world.
As of the time of writing I am booked on "competant crew" and will be heading to Brighton in a few weeks for a week of live-aboard training.
At the same time I am researching boats and building a very loose network of contacts and forums. I hope to meet a friend of a friend in Southampton in a few weeks and, with luck, this week, I'll have lunch with a Serbian who runs a sailing center in Croatia.
My current thinking for boats is a Westerly Centaur and a budget of £5,000 to £10,000. The more I read the more options I open up but it does seem as if I am "limited" to something between 21 foot and 30 foot.
As for route - I am building in check points - so around the UK (did I like it? yes/no), then around Europe (to the med and back rather than north), and then around the world.
Right now I am probably doing this solo, not through choice but through a lack of a partner - if I am lucky I'll find someone who shares the same goals but I am not delaying
Anyway, for now, back to surfing the web looking for gems of knowledge.
Current questions -
- what is the difference between a sloop and a ketch? (twin vs single mast)
- What is the rhumb line? (In navigation, a rhumb line (or loxodrome) is a line crossing all meridians of longitude at the same angle, i.e. a path derived from a defined initial bearing. That is, upon taking an initial bearing, one proceeds along the same bearing, without changing the direction as measured relative to true north.)
- how much water (per person) do i need to take with me on a trans-atlantic? 2l per day per person
- how long will it take to sail around the UK? N/A - plans have changed
- How much is a water maker? far too much and I have no holding tanks anyway
- What type of radio should I get? 2....a VHF for the boat and a handheld VHF powered by AA batteries for the grabbag
Well, a hell of a lot of water has flowed under the proverbial. I'm currently sitting in Charlie P's in Vienna having just flown back from the UK where I completed the RYA Day Skipper course. This was the second RYA course I've taken (the first being compentant crew) and, subjectively, I reckon anyone with sailing experience could skip the crewing course as it covered the essentil basics such as mooring, handling under engine and sail, safety and so on. The Day Skipper focussed more on navigation (passage making, creation and so on) which was/is definately my weak spot. I'm glad I did both though, they provided me with (over)confidence :).
So..what else is new, ahh yes, I've bought a boat, a Contessa 26. I'd narrowed my chouice of boats down to the Centaur, an Albin vega, a Cobra 750 and the Contessa and then searched around for a boat in my budget. I bought Wiskiwoo, a 1969 boat, based out of Gosport, and spent the last two days of this week (16th and 17th May) sailing her. She's a wet boat, certainly compared to the Benatau 36 I'd spent the previous week on, but sleek and she's mine, mine I say, all mine!!!!
Here's me & Catweasel (I'm the one in the red jacket, Catweasel is the boat shaped one wearing blue) and the previous owner doing the formal handover...about to inbibe a few at the Master Builders.
breaking this to scoff food, tbc
and here is me now...June 1st..working on my sailory goatee
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