Ciao Bella

Brrrr... First winter sail.

2018-11-19T20:38:00.001+00:00

Cold... less enjoyable than summer sailing :D

This weekend I took advantage of my year round mooring situation and took Ciao Bella for our first winter sail. I took Friday off work and planned to leave Poole around 10:30. I had a little outboard adjustment to do before setting off so I got down there nice and early. On my previous potter, the outboard was struggling to go into reverse so I guessed the clamp had slipped on the gear rod. An easy adjustment, which I had done in 10 minutes.

Looking back at Hengistbury head

After faffing about a bit, I set off at 10:40. The breeze was enough for a reasonable sail but sadly was coming from the east with just a bit of south in it. 3 hours in and I was still short of Hengisbury Head. Although maintaining a speed of 3 to 4 knots, I was having to tack so I fired up the outboard to assist. At a little over tick over the speed was up to 5 knots and the ability to point into wind improved significantly.

The Isle of Wight from Christchurch bay

It dawned on me that the short winter days put pressure on me to press on to Yarmouth. As 3pm approached and still 7NM from Yarmouth it was time to turn the wick up on the engine. Visibility wasn't great, it was going to get dark quickly and I was cold.

Hurst Castle

I arrived at Yarmouth at Dusk, stood outside and dropped the sails before entering the harbour. I had a quick check of the engine controls and 'Bugger'.. I would not go into reverse. In fact worse than that.. I wouldn't even go into neutral and the lever felt like it was not connected. So with permanent drive and having to cut the engine to slow the boat, I tentatively entered the harbour. One good thing about this time of year is the amount of space in the harbour. I was able to do a U turn to point back into wind, pick a nice big empty piece of pontoon, aim, kill the engine and drift along side.
After settling up at the office I went in search of supper and was duly obliged at the Bugle Coaching Inn. A gurt big slab of steak pie and a couple of pints of Timothy Taylor was just what the doctor ordered.

A welcome pint by the fire.

I did have another reason for coming to the island, although just a flimsy excuse to go sailing, I had bought a second hand VHF and had agreed to collect it here. It's a cracking bit of kit. Lowrance Link-2. It's a water proof DSC hand held with built in GPS and powered by a Lithium Ion battery.

New VHF

I turned in quite early for a decent nights sleep wrapped up in two sleeping bags, which seemed to keep the worst of the cold out.

I was up and ready to leave by 0730. One of the neighbouring had already sailed but I was happy to leave it until daylight. I hadn't been able to fix the gear selector on the outboard, the clamp which holds the sector shaft together had broken. I'd have to plan my arrival back at Poole well, but in the meantime I only needed to go forward.

Once out of the harbour I unfurl about two thirds of the genoa and that was enough to whip out of the Solent at over 7 knots. Even in Christchurch bay Ciao Bella maintained 5 to 6 knots with just the genoa out. Eventually the speed dropped to 4 knots so I decided to raise the main with a reef in it. The speed was once again well over 5 knots. I was making great time and had made it past Hengistbury head by the two hour mark. The VHF had been fairly quite bar a pan pan for a Yellow Micro plus which had broken down in Langstone harbour. Then came the Securite from the Coastguard announcing the imminent arrival of a Gale. Bugger, I was still 2 hours from the harbour entrance and the wind was definitely building as were the waves. I was having to concentrate hard to stop the rig gybing as the hull skewed on the passing waves. Have to say, I was glad to turn the corner into the harbour. It was like I'd blinked and woken up in a different day.

The last hurdle to overcome was to make an elegant arrival on my new birth. I'd been shunted up the marina to free up the deeper birth that I'd been on. Sadly the new birth was right by the hotel bar and the wind was blowing straight into it. My plan was to approach as slowly as possible while maintaining steerage and slip a bowline over a pontoon cleat from the winch. It was a good plan but I didn't get close enough to hook the cleat. Ciao came to a halt with a jolt but not enough to cause any damage. She drifted slightly towards the neighbouring boat but a good shove and I got her back against the pontoon. It wasn't really a bad landing considering being blown in and having no reverse.

So how do I like winter sailing? On the whole the trip felt more of a chore than enjoyment. The days are too short and too cold for longer trips. The lack of other vessels made for a pleasant change, both in Poole harbour and the Solent. I think I'll probably stick to short day sails as the opportunity arises.

A decent pair of gloves and some warm sailing boots are now high on the wishlist.

Remembrance day

2018-11-11T15:57:00.003+00:00

I was going to write a little maintenance post today, but as It is remembrance Sunday, I thought I'd share a little about a man who helped ensure that we are free to enjoy our hobby which gives us such a sense of freedom.

Roy as a young man

Hubert Roy Blowers joined the Royal Marines when he was sixteen and served aboard HMS Ajax. On new years day 1943 at Bone in Algeria, he was manning an Oerlikon gun (20mm cannon) when a Stuka attacked. It dropped an armour piercing bomb which went through the deck and and exploded two decks down, killing 20 crew members. Had it been a conventional bomb, it would have been Roy's time.

Oerlikon Gun

In 1943 he volunteered to join 'Combined operations' and spent a significant time training for operation Overlord. Roy landed on Gold beach, near Aramanche, on the 6th June 1944 at 06:30, in his landing craft support. A powerful twin engined plywood boat with a crew of 7 and bristling with weapons. This was rammed as far up the beach as possible, it's intention to serve as a strong point on the beach and provide cover fire for the troops on the beach.... maybe Plywood was stronger in those days :O

Landing Craft support

Shortly after D-Day, Roy was selected to train on a new vehicle called a Lloyds carrier. A small armour vehicle designed to follow the retreating Nazi tanks and mop up behind them. He spent 10 months of intense fighting through France, Belgium, Holland, then across the Rhine into Germany. He was in Wilhelmshaven when the war in Europe ended.

A loyd carrier

From here he was shipped out to Burma to clear the enemy from the many small islands. When the Japanese eventually surrendered he made his way back to the uk and was demobbed.

Roy was my Wifes Uncle and a more genuine, kind man it would be hard to find. So on this day I shall remember Roy and the deeds that he and his generation did for our freedom.

Roy Blowers 16th July 1925 - 17th Nov 2017

Seven year itch

2018-10-27T09:58:00.000+01:00

First things first... where have I been for the last two years. The answer is right here but I haven't done much sailing. Last year Ciao Bella remained on my front garden while I tried to get my priorities sorted out. I did get away for a week with my friend on his corribee, which was a bit of a chuckle.

Ciao Bella launched mid season

This year I was fortunate enough to get a heavily subsidised mooring through my work, so Ciao Bella now resides on a swinging mooring during the summer and gets a pontoon berth throughout the winter. Hopefully I will get some great Autumn / winter sails in this year. Despite this, she was dropped in late in the season, at the end of June and pressed into action the very next day.
Our annual summer cruise had been planned for a while, so I found myself heading East in the company of Lapwing. We planned to go to Chichester again but fate dealt Lapwing a cruel hand. Our first stop was In Cowes, We tied up to a visitor pontoon near East Cowes sailing club. Not the greatest spot as we couldn't find a way out. We had to paddle across the river and and find somewhere to stash the coracles before throwing ourselves on the mercy of the Cowesite publicans.
The next day we set off East again, the wind was fairly none existent as we left the Medina. We drifted for a while then motored. Eventually a breeze started to fill in and we managed to sail properly. After making good time it looked like we were going to be able to press on to Emsworth. At Portsmouth harbour the wind, unforecast, came in fast and furious. I was hanging on to Ciao Bella and cleared Portsmouth harbour entrance. now in a less busy bit of water, I was able to heavy to and reef. When I looked back Lapwing was dropping his sails right in the harbour entrance. The wind had been to much and Lapwings Deck / Hull joint had failed, pulling the deck clean off along a good section of the starboard side.

Mast down at Haslar

We motored into Haslar marina a dropped the mast. The cruise was effectively over but it didn't mean the fun was over. We took the ferry to Gunwharf Quay in the evening and grabbed some food, in search of something a little more interesting we stumbled into a pub right opposite the Warrior.. a quality night ensued.. Pheonix nights meet Benidorm springs to mind. Karioki night along with the full cast... There was even the obligatory hangbags at dawn scuffle.
The next day we motored back to Lymington, where another club member joined us, then back to Poole the day after.

Lapwing motoring back in company

The momentum slowed again after that and that was just about it for this year. I only manged to get out for two or three short harbour sails but they were very enjoyable.

Rarely see Poole harbour so empty

Evening sails are much easier with a pontoon

There should be no excuses but having aquired another classic car which needed work and being short staffed at work during our busiest time, it just didn't come together this year.

The offending car which has sucked away my sailing time

'Comme Ci Comme Ca' as she was seven years ago

Facebook reminded me this morning that I have now owned Ciao Bella for seven years.... Woohoo.
So it would have been rude not go down and say happy Anniversary.

Celebratory anniversary beer

It was F5 gusting F7 so just had a tidy up.. brewed up a cuppa and had some soup.... Who am I kidding.. it calmed down enough to get out for a quick blast around the harbour.
Although reefed, the wind did pick up again and discretion once again became the better part of valour and the motor went on and the sails came down.

So onto the future.. There is no seven year itch, apart from messing with fibreglass. I have no intention of chopping Ciao Bella in for a more glamorous model. I have couple of projects in mind and also plan to continue sailing through the winter, so hopefully the blog should pick up again.

Oh ello :)

2017-07-19T22:18:00.009+01:00

Well Ciao Bella may still be kicking back with her feet up on the front lawn but I have managed to sneak out for a few days.

A couple of weeks ago Lapwing Paul and myself struck out East in Lapwing. Lapwing is a bilge keel Corribee and is no stranger to to the posts on this blog. On Saturday 8th July Paul brought Lapwing to the end of the pier and we loaded up with beer, cider, rum and some other stuff. We caught the Easterly going tide late afternoon. We had a very loose plan which involved trying to go to places we hadn't been before.
We put this plan into action straight away by going to Keyhaven. I had anchored at Hurst before but never been down the river to Keyhaven.

The sailing club at Keyhaven is very friendly and there is a great pub across the road. Unfortunately we'd missed the time for food at both. The moorings are for and aft and although it was a calm night anyway, it did seem well sheltered.
The next morning we slinked off to Cowes to kill some time before moving on to Bembridge. Because of the tide times it was working really well. We were abl to stagger our journey East giving us time to enjoy stops on the way while we waited for the tide to turn again.

I like Cowes, it is good value compared to the likes of Lymington and Yarmouth. There is always space and the town is a funny mix of boat people, locals and tourists. We had a proper lunch to make up for the lack of food the night before and took it easy. Ice cream as always was high on the agenda. This launched a week long pondering over who the famous late film producer from the Isle of Wight ice cream family was.
While there 'Islay Mist' came in. Islay Mist had recently been sold by one of our club members and the new owners were sailing her back to the East coast. Funnily enough, she had come from the East coast when Pat bought her.
The time to leave Cowes came around and we pointed Lapwing out of the Medina, passing the new break water and back into the Solent where an enormous motor yacht was at anchor. Not sure how an honest wage pays for something like this ;)

The journey to Bembridge was very pleasant, passing the splendour of Barton Manor, Osborne House and the faded glory of Ryde with the hovercraft belting backwards and forwards. One of the enjoyable things about going to a new destination is planning the approach. Bembridge has a definate channel to follow and we didn't want to mess it up.

Bembridge harbour itself is lovely. Most of it dries at low tide giving a twice daily change of scenery. We took the footpath up to St Helens and tried a couple of local 'Goddards' beers. Good beer which helped to wash down the good food. Back on board we had a reasonably early night as the tide to Chichester would be quite early.
The crossing to Chichester harbour was pretty straight forward, although with few landmarks a good compass course needed to be followed and a good look out for shipping was required.

We entered Chichester harbour almost before we knew it. The conditions had been pretty good. Not really knowing the harbour or how quick the water disappears, we made our way toward Bosham. The harbour is a sprawling network of channels which invite you to explore. Not far into the harbour we spotted this wonderful Corribee which had been converted to junk rig by Spence, it's owner.

At Bosham we picked up a mooring not far from the sailing club. After consulting the almanac I phone the club to see what the score was with visitor buoys. I started to say 'Hello, we've just arrived at Bosham' when a voice came back and just said 'bos'm. I guess I've been told. Anyway, the mooring were someone else's responsibility. A chap was swimming out to his boat and said, so long as we were gone by midday on Monday, we could use his mooring... sweet :)

BoSHam is a beautiful place although there is not a lot there. We had a cracking steak and chips at the 'Anchor blue' To save ourselves from sending the whole day in the pub, we walked around the village twice then walked to Fishbourne.. Fishbourne is a place which I will try to avoid in the future. Back in the bussom of Bos'm we popped into the sailing club where we were made to feel very welcome. They weren't doing food so we pottered back to the Anchor Blue for another hearty meal.

Tuesday was a somewhat wet and dull day. as the water slowly filled the creek we made plans to go to Dell Quay for lunch and then find shelter in Emsworth Yacht haven for the deluge which was expected over night. It was a shame the weather was so poor as pootling about the harbour was what we really wanted to do. The trip to Dell Quay was great but getting back to Emsworth was a wet and tedious venture. After a day like that, the cost of a walk ashore mooring and a hot shower is irrelevant.

Even better we had arranged to meet fellow Hurley 20 owner, Sparrow Steve, for a beer or two. Emsworth is a nice looking town with plenty of pubs, but you'd better like Fullers :) Sadly the last high street bank had just shut it's doors leaving the town with just one ash point in the Co-op. However, none of these things worried me as I do like Fullers and I had no need for a bank. Another high calorie high protein meal was taken. Steak and Ale Pie and chips :)

Wednesday morning came and everything looked brighter, apart from the fact I'd been sleeping in a puddle and had been dripped on all night. We had time to kill so took a dry stroll around the town until the tide was in enough to release from the yacht haven over the sill. Unsure of how far we'd get, we thought we'd be be happy to get as far as Ryde but hopefully Cowes. As it goes, we had a great days sailing an made it as far as Newtown creek, with a little help from the motor for the last hour.

Newtown creek is one of my favourite places but even on a weekday evening it is quite busy. Picking a place to anchor is nerve wracking, as is the moment, some hours later, when you realise the anchor is slipping through the mud. We didn't have the will to paddle ashore so Pasta Aribiatta was the dish of the day preceded and followed by Beer, cider and rum.

We woke early on the Thursday as we would need to be underway by 6am if with didn't want to spend another 6 hours in Newtown creek. The lure of a warm shower, coffee and icecream was enough to lure us across the solent again to Lymington.

It had been a perfectly windless morning so we didn't even attempt to raise a sail. We motor into Lymington, following the ferry, at around 7am. By 8am the town quay was buzzng with activity. What a contrast to Newtown.

We stayed at Lymington until around 2pm. Which gave me time to have a much needed haircut and a Chicken Jalfrezi at Wetherspoon. The trip back to Poole was excellent. We had a decent breeze all the way back and make it back to the mooring before all the water disappeared. It was great to be back on a pocket cruiser. Lapwing is a great little boat but she aint my Ciao Bella ;P

Marlins mission

2016-09-15T20:46:00.003+01:00

Well a big adventure has sprung upon Ciao Bella. I was contacted a while ago to see if I would be willing to assist Dave Selby from PBO with his 'Marlin's Mission' quest. For those who don't know, Dave has sailed his Sailfish 18 from Maldon in Essex to Southampton to promote the pleasure of sailing small, cheap boats on a shoe string. A task made more difficult by the Viral disorder that Dave suffers from called Guillain-Barre syndrome.

I left Poole at about 11:40 on Monday on route to Warsash. Quite excited as I've never sailed into Southampton water before. The forcast was for very light winds but it was just about perfect. Force 2 from the south gave me a good run across Poole bay and Christchurch bay in 4 hours.

I had to tack a couple of times before dropping through the Hurst channel. There was a bit of a chop coming through but nothing to exciting. :)

Another two hours saw me approaching the entrance to Southampton water. Unfortunately the wind was dropping and time was running out so it was time to start the motor.

The sunset was absolutely fantastic over Fawley. Time to head for Warsash sailing club.

Dave was at Warsash to meet me, as was another Hurley owner, Dave Edwards and Justine with there absolutely stunning Hurley 18 called Womble. I never seen such a beautifully restored GRP boat. We spent the evening in the Rising Sun at Warsash.

The next morning we all set off together to sail to the town quay. The wind was very poor and we spend most of the time drifting sideways so eventually had to start the motors again.

Marlin

On the way up Dave did a radio interview with Radio Solent and a photographer from Practical boat owner came to the quay to meet up and get some press photos.

Womble, above, is just stunning and pictures do not do it justice.

Ciao Bella getting dragged out at the town quay slipway.

The boat show stand starting to come together. On tuesday we were pretty much the only people here.

Dave working hard

By Thursday the site was much busier.. we are neearly ready to go. Come along and say hello. We are on stand A134.

Marlin's mission - http://www.classicboat.co.uk/news/marlins-mission-small-boat-voyage/

http://www.pbo.co.uk/dave-selby/marlins-mission-en-route-southampton-boat-show-43573

Seagull cam

2016-09-05T15:39:00.002+01:00

Sorry Dom, I stole your facebook comment for the post title.
Not the most exciting bit of sailing footage but a huge thanks to Richard from Skitch pics for bringing your drone along. Would be nice if we could control the weather :)

Fluky (motor) sail to Studland

2016-09-02T17:41:00.003+01:00

Blimey, a week and a half late...I must try to keep this blog up to date :)
Anyway, after returning from Summer holiday I was desperate to get out on Ciao Bella. We'd been camping in Brittany which was lovely but also absolute torture as it is sailing heaven.

The view from my tent.

I persuaded James to come along for a saunter out to Studland, I new Lapwing Paul would be out there, so it would be good to catch up. We spent a bit of tie in the harbour as a Friend of mine had brought his drone over to do some filming. Unfortunately the wind around Brownsea castle was not very good so most of his footage was either just bobbing around or motoring :(

We motored out of the harbour and left the engine on until the end of the training wall. From then on the wind picked up abit and we could sail properly over to the moorings. With the weather being quite nice there weren't many moorings. I did get on to one not too far from Lapwing and started to pump up the dinghy.. only to see Paul jump in the water and start swimming towards us. He's clearly mad but made it in quick time.

We considered going ashore but that would have made us miss the tide and be very late back. Instead you just had a bit of a chat then Paul swam back to Lapwing and we set off back to the club.

The sail back was also pretty slow and eventually had to stat the engine.. It became a bit of a push to get through the entrance and I hugged the shallower water to get back to my mooring.
All in all a bit of a rushed trip but better out than not. :) James clearly enjoyed it, he took all the pics.

I've not been able to get out again since but hav been over to check on her... looks like the antifoul has given up and the Terns are starting to redecorate the whole boat Grrrrr.

West country cruise

2016-08-24T01:02:00.001+01:00

Saturday 16th July

Poole to Weymouth:
We had a civilised start time from the club this time... no need to russh about bleary eyed. Actually heading west is alway easier as there is always plenty of water in the harbour. I had loaded most of my stuff onto Ciao Bella the evening before so it was just Johns kit to get out there. We dropped the mooring around 0930 and circled a bit while Lapwing got his sails up. This gave John a chance to re acquaint himself with Ciao Bella.

There was just enough breeze in the harbour to get us under way but the strength and direction beyond the chain ferry meant it was better to motor sail. Out towards Old Harry the breeze picked up but still in the wrong direction :) The trip to Weymouth was quite lengthy and we eventually had to start the engine. Getting into Weymouth around 8pm we rafted up with two Hurley 22's who were on there way to the BYHH event in Plymouth. Shortly after we arrived a Seawych turned up with a family of four onboard.. how cool is that :)

Sunday 17th July

We had a civilised start to the day with all the small boats setting off roughly at the same time. We had a bit of a faff before even getting to Portland, Pauls engine was playing up a bit. I jumped across to have a look. I thought we'd got it sorted but it didn't last long. It had some kind of a fuelling problem. Would run ok on the internal tank but not on the large remote tank.

Spindrift and Intrim on route to Plymouth

Underway again and a little behind schedule, we made it around the Bill. Not long after Lapwings internal tank ran out.. could be a looong day :) I jumped across again to see if we could improve things. No joy but I did spot the problem. The remote tank had the wrong connector on it. It seemed to fit but leaked. Not much we could do for now so I gave Paul my spare can of fuel and we got under way again.

The only way we'd get across the bay in reasonable time was to motorsail, it didn't need many revs, just enough to give us an extra nudge.

As you cans see it was very relaxing :) Thank the lord for the auto helm. It was a long old day but we were entertain by a pod of dolphins which came to have a closer look at Lapwing.

We had hoped to get as far as Dartmouth but had to give up on that as the daylight and tide were start to run out. Time for Plan B so we altered course for Brixham. Brixham was a good move, A walk ashore mooring right in the town. Fabulous.

Monday 18th July

First job today was to take a good walk up the hill to the chandlers.. why on earth the handlers is at the top of the hill when the boats are down at the water is beyond me :) However the chap was spot on and we soon found the correct fuel connector for Pauls engine.

After a good breakfast in town and swapping over the fuel connector, we got under way again. As we'd had to sort other things out in the morning, we didn't have time to get to Salcombe. So instead we went out past Dartmouth to Blackpool sands and dropped the anchor.

Nice to get out for a swim ashore.. the sands are not sand at all, more like pea shingle but lets not split hairs. We had our lunch here before pulling up the anchors and sailing back to Dartmouth.

Dartmouth was pretty busy so we ended up on the Kingswear side. Nice to try some where different. Kingswear is a nice place to be, it has a couple of pubs and a steam rail station and great views across to Dartmouth.

Tuesday 19th July

We left kingswear quite early to make our way around to Salcombe. It was much rougher out in Start bay than we had at first anticipated. We made our way along the coast towards Start point. The plan was to drop anchor somewhere to have breakfast but it was just too lumpy.

Approaching Start point is the scene of a man made tragedy, Hallsands was a busy fishing village which, due to dredging further out to sea, got washed away.

I had seen Hallsands from above the cliffs before but it's easier to see from the sea. Click here to read more about Hallsands.

We rounded Start point very close in. It was very rough but only for a very short while so worth staying in close. The overfalls were only about 20 or 30 yards wide here.

The run into Saclombe was lovely. One of the prettiest places I've sailed into.

After a bit of a search we found a mid river buoy that we could both get onto. It worked out really well as town pontoon was a very short paddle away by coracle.. John took the posh option by usng the water taxi.

Wednesday 20th July

After a good night in Salcombe we started to make our way back East again. We wanted to try to get to different ports on the way back to give us some variety.

Our main target was Teignmouth with Torquay as a back up plan. We made really good progress, flying round Start point and across Start bay.

The Skerries bank mark with the Dartmouth day mark in the back ground.

All along this stretch were hundreds of Jelly fish, Dartmouth flew by and we were soon upon Torquay. There was plenty of time left to get to Teignmouth so we carried on.

Big Jelly fish

Wow, getting into Teignmouth was a rocket ride, the entrance seemed really narrow and fast flowing. There are no walk ashore moorings here but there are two pontoons just off the beach.

Although there was room for us both to be along side the harbour master has asked us to raft up in case a mooring holder came in over night. Teignmouth was an interesting town, pretty busy with all kinds of water activity going on.. Swimming, paddle boards, kayaks, jet skis, motor boats, rowing boats dinghys and sailing boats.

There was even a proper ship in the harbour which amazed me as the entrance didn't seem big enough. I cooked onboard while John and Paul went into town. I met them later and went to some decidedly iffy pubs. John got propositioned by a lovely lady who wanted to take him back to her flat to show him the tide tables.. he turned it down in favour of a night on Ciao Bella :)

Thursday 21st July

Getting out of Teignmouth was even more interesting than coming in. A lot of engine was required to push us through the race. Our next target was West Bay (Bridport). Not too far but we'd not been in here before.

West bay was easy enough to get into but room within was limited. After a bit of waiting and manoeuvring we got ourselves tied along side a pontoon. Time to relax and wander into Bridport.

Friday 22nd July

I woke very early and went for a walk to enjoy the view. The mist came rolling in over the iconic cliff and just hung there until the sun finally burnt it off. We couldn't go anywhere until we'd got fresh petrol. The harbour master had offered to drive into town with our tanks to get them filled up for us.

We had plenty of time for a leisurely sail from West bay to Portland Bill. There were no dramas going around the Bill and made it into Weymouth for early evening.. the is the first return port of the trip.

Saturday 23rd July
Well what can I say.. Our departure time from Weymouth was early morning. Visibility within the harbour was not too good but once out of the harbour it was pea soup. Almost immediately I got disorientated, not a nice feeling. Back on track and we followed the compass on a 100 degree course, straining our eyes and ears. We hoped the fog would burn off with the sun but it stuck with us all the way past St Aldhelms head.

As the fog lifted the madness of the first summer holiday weekend was upon us. Streams of motor boats churning up the water and paying absolutely no regard to us small sailing boats. I'm just glad that we didn't meet any of them in the fog.

It's been another fantastic summer cruise. Salcombe was brilliant, I thought it would be a busy pompous place but on the contrary, it was calm, chilled and gorgeous.

Moving home

2016-07-14T22:11:00.000+01:00

Last week I helped a friend move his boat from Torquay to Poole. The trip started with a pre purchase survey on a Southerly 100 at Trouts boat yard in Topsham which Nick had organised. Interesting to see the Southerly dangling over the hard while the keel was operated.

With work out of the way we made our way to Torquay, I loaded the boat with our provisions while Nick stashed the car somewhere out of way. We settled in for the evening with a tinny or two and Nick rustled up a Chilli and rice. The third Amigo 'Roger' arrived by train at 9pm.. stepped out of the station straight onto a bus, perfect timing.

Nicks boat is a rather splendid Poncin Harmony 34.. Slightly roomier and a tad quicker than Ciao Bella... BUT I WON'T BE TURNED :) Torquay Marina is quite nice but it has to be said, the showers and loos leave a bit to be desired. Smelt like I was showering in a urinal.

Up at about 6:30 I was sat in the Cockpit with a cuppa when I noticed a Hurley 22 across the marina.

Trying to squint through the sleep in my eyes to make out the name on the transom I could see it was Strider on route to Plymouth for the Bring your Hurley Home event. As it hadn't been there when we turned in, I guessed he wouldn't appreciate being woken at 7am just for a chat :) We set off towards Portland under sail, the forcast was for a WSW 19 knots.. direction was about right but there was little strength in the wind. We had to run the engine if we were going to make it around the Bill.

We had cut it fine and arrived at the Bill just a little late. The race was starting to set against us so we moved further south and cut across a calmer section. We then took a turn north to head fo Portland harbour. In hindsight we should have motored from here as under sail alone we soon good dragged into the race. It's not a pleasant place to be and took a long time to motor out of it but the boat never felt like it was in danger, kept it's course and didn't slam. The worst part was when a wave broke over the transom and soaked me, filling the cockpit with sea water.

It was good to eventually get moored up in Portland, time to dry out and grab some food. Saturday was a more civilised start to the day, setting off about 9am. Out off the hrbour and heading east the wind started to build so we put a reef in the main. Within ten minute the wind had dropped again and and we shook out the reef. An hour later and the engine was back on again.

Quite an uneventful trip back to Durleston but then the wind picked up again and we were able to see what the Poncin could do. We had an exhilarating ride back to Poole. Before entering the Harbour we rolled away the jib and entered under main alone. The boat still felt well balanced with just the main up.

With Omega swinging on her new mooring we had a sandwich and a cuppa before packing up for the weekend.. An enjoyable couple of days with a couple of great mates. Cheers.

Time for a catch up

2016-07-13T11:40:00.000+01:00

Looks like I've been neglecting the blog. Although the weather has been a bit pants, to say the least, I have actually been out on Ciao Bella a couple of times.

OOh... fast

Back at the end of May Lapwing Paul and myself made our way to Yarmouth, we had intended to go to Cowes but the wind didn't really help and we decided it would be nicer to sail to Yarmouth rather than motor to Cowes.

Lapwing on route to Yarmouth

The wind was unhelpfully from the North East and ranging from F2 to F1 so had to make big tacks (100 -120 degrees on port & 005 - 025 on starboard) with occasional motoring.
Yarmouth was really busy with it being a Bank holiday weekend. We were both rafted out but not together.. Paul was four boat out and I was five boats out. Despite paying for a walk ashore it was easier to inflate the tender and punt between the two boats.

Tender inflated

The tide for the return leg on Sunday was mid afternoon so instead of killing time in Yarmouth we whizzed across to Lymington with a full main and reefed genoa. The breeze had really picked up and it was a great 45 minute blast.

Rafted up at Lymington

After a wander around the pubs shops and ice-cream parlours it was time to head on back to Poole.
The wind really helped today, much more consistent and nicely on the rear quarter.

Getting blown home

The next trip was not until the end of June, I went for a weekend to Weymouth with John as crew. The high tide at Poole was around midday, which gave us time to help Bede drop his mast and re-step it on the mooring so he could sort out his jamming jib furler. The weather was, once again, unhelpful. A F4/5 SW on the Saturday made us take the outer route around St Aldhelm. It was a bit torturous and we eventually got into Weymouth around 9pm.

There was very little space in the harbour as the Cove was reserved for Squibs which must of been having a substantial meeting. We ended up rafted out five deep again, at least the neighbours were nice :) After a trip into Weymouth to find some food and a couple of pints in the wonder that is Wetherspoons, we made it back to Ciao Bella for an early nights sleep.

The return on Sunday was at a civilised 0830. This time the weather was with us and we had a cracking sail back to Poole. As we came flying back into the harbour I even considered going around the islands but thought better of it. Felt good to be back on board again, seem to be having long periods off the boat this year.

A new tender for my Bella

2016-05-24T22:05:00.001+01:00

I picked up a cracking new tender on a trailer for the enormous sum of £30.
It looks gimpy but is fantastic... Stable to stand up on, motors lovely with my 2hp 2 stroke, rows pretty well and tracks really well.

While down at the club I took the opportunity to go for a little potter in the Mirror dinghy... Life is good :) Thanks to Lapwing Paul for the photos.

Being a spur of the moment thing I only had jeans as sailing attire so getting along side and not capsizing were important considerations. :)

Studland

2016-05-24T18:33:00.000+01:00

Sunday turned out to be a cracking day for a sail. Forecast was F2/3 and it was perfect for taking my sailing averse son out for a day sail... I had to sweeten the deal with a promise of a pub visit :)
Aiming for a lunchtime departure, we wandered down to the club. After a mercy mission to get a stranded boaters engine running we needed to get ourselves back on track. Kirk on 'Hannah Snell' was circling us like a hawk, keen to get going.
Away under full rig we tacked out of the harbour, no need for engines today. We had a good sail out past the training wall and tacked our way into the moorings at Studland. Picking up a Banks Arms buoy, we rafted up; Kirks Seal 22 rafts up much easier than Paul's Corribee, I think because we have similar freeboard and the fenders stay in place.
Time to inflated our tenders... Oh boy, I thought my coracle was funny, not a patch on Kirks. He'd have looked insecure in a paddling pool :)

We spent a pleasant couple of hours at the Banks Arms, Mrs Ciao Bella and a friend dropped by for a drink while out on a walk around the headland.

Having paddled back aboard, the kettle went on as we settled down for a chat. Only to see Kirks rubber duck drifting away, a bit more exercise for yours truely and it was recovered.

The sail back to Poole was great, tramping along at a good pace. James took the tiller most of the way back while I trimmed the sails.
We sailed right onto the mooring first time, tidied Ciao Bella and headed home. I think James enjoyed it, what a successful day sail :)

Christchurch cruise

2016-05-19T10:00:00.004+01:00

We had a little cruise to Christchurch last weekend. Christchurch is quite shallow so is restrictive to the fin keelers but for us bilge keelers and lifting keel boats it is an absolute dream of place to visit.
Three boats made the trip, Pete and Cathy on their Shrimper 'Coffee Bean', Kirk on his Seal 22 'Hannah Snell' and John and I on 'Ciao Bella'. We had a civilised start time, leaving the mooring just after lunch. The forecast was for F2 or F3 Northerly on the way there and very light SW on the return.

Coffee Bean Goose winging towards the bar.

The Northerly turn out to be a southerly which made no odds, once out of the harbour we had a nice easy sail around Hengistbury head and goosewings our way to the bar. The beach along the East side of Hengistbury head is lined with some lovely beach huts but beware if you are thinking you'd like to buy one... they are chuffing expensive.

Why spend 1/4 million on a shed when you can have a small sail boat instead.

The run was against us slightly on the way in but not too bad, nothing could prepare me for the attack of the flying crabs being launched by a couple of kids on the sea wall, strangly funny :). Although we kept the sails up until well into the river the engine did the work as we avoided various small craft.

Christchurch Sailing club had reserved some spaces on their visitor pontoon for us and we were greeted by the Commodore. The club has a fantastic location with a balcony overlooking the river and great views to the Isle of Wight. We whiled away the afternoon and evening out here until the chill got to us.

Ciao Bella and Hannah Snell with the club house in the background

The welcome at the club was really nice, the members chatted freely and bar and food were good quality and value at £3 for a decent pint of Doom Bar and less than £7 for Fisherman's pie.
The return was necessarily early. The latest we could leave would be 8am.. Coffee Bean left at 6:30 but Hannah Snell and us made the most of ever second to relax :) To be fair I wasn't feeling tiptop and had picked up some kind of bug which was making me very lethargic... some may connect this with the £3 a pint at the bar but I can guarantee that a hangover wouldn't last five days and I'm still suffering :(

A misty morning start.

We motored back down the river and out through the run before hoisting the sails. Hannah Snell extended his trip East bound into the Solent and we turn back West for Poole. The Wind was SW and our first long tack took us at good speed almost due south. My ailment was taking hold now and I completely handed over control to John while I slept, waking occasionally. I helped tack back towards Poole then woke sometime later as, due to the lack of wind, it was time to fire up the motor.
I recommend a night in Christchurch, it's a lovely location and you'll be well looked after.

First stretch of the legs for the season.

2016-05-01T21:24:00.001+01:00

The bank holiday weekend was the first EDSC cruise of the season. The plan was to go to Lymington.. the racy type boats would race there and the bimblers would bimble. Being in the later group I didn't wait for silly things like starting signals, I knew that I'd have to leave earlier than the others to make the tidal gate at Hurst.

I'll keep out of the way then

I left the mooring about 0920 and made my way to the entrance. The Condor was just leaving it's berth at Port of Poole and there was other shipping around as well as the usual harbour ferries, chain ferry and bank holiday leisure traffic.. all a bit busy.

Maris Otter pops by for a chat

I motor sailed out of the harbour and heard the foghorn voice of Mike on 'Maris Otter' hailing me. They were doing a PYRA race to Bembridge. After a quick chat and turning down the offer of a cuppa, we went our seperate ways.

The sailing across Bournemouth bay was pretty good. The winds felt light but I was maintaining 4.5 to 5.8 Knots most of the way... can't complain at that. :)

Racing fleet sliding by Hengisbury head

By 11am the sky was clouding over, plenty of bigger yachts were also starting to overhaul me. Into Christchurch bay and the wind started to mess around a bit. Dropping off completely at times and changing direction, I had been expecting northerlies all day. Seems bizarre watching the windex spinning! The rate of progress really started to drop off. As I only had a day pass I decided to cut it short and go to Totland bay on the Isle of Wight. It has a good pebbly bottom, I know how it feels :O, which holds the anchor well and a cafe type thing on the beach.

Ciao Bella anchored at Totland

The cafe on the beach didn't really look my thing so I took a walk up to a country pub just outside the village. The High Down had a good selection of real beer and some pretty tasty food, although £14 for bangers and mash and a pint felt a little steep. While sat inside the rain came poring down... not looking good for the return journey. It was still drizzling as I walked back to the beach but soon cleared up. Back onboard, I stowed the inflatable, made a cuppa then set of back to Poole. With full sail I was only making 3.5 knots into the North Westerly... a few minutes later the wind really picked up.. I heavily reefed the Genoa and hurriedly put a reef in the main. Things were very uncomfortable for a while.. although the speed did pick up :)

Out near the needles the wind just turned off again and went fluky. I un-reefed every thing, still no movement, so the engine went on. Five minutes later and there was breeze to push us along at 5 knots again, great, off went the engine. The engine went on and (mostly) off all the way back. When there was breeze it was great but when it stopped it wasn't gradual, it just stopped! About a mile from the entrance the engine went on again and stayed on as it was getting late and I had to be somewhere. I was back on the mooring around 8:30 so 12 hours give or take from climbing aboard to jumping off again.

The table below is the windspeed & Gusts in knots and the direction at the needles during the day. As you can see, lots of changes :)

30.04.2016 21:00:00	5	-	NNE
30.04.2016 20:00:00	10	36	NNE
30.04.2016 19:00:00	7	-	ENE
30.04.2016 18:00:00	3	-	WNW
30.04.2016 17:00:00	19	31	N
30.04.2016 16:00:00	3	37	ENE
30.04.2016 15:00:00	12	25	WSW
30.04.2016 14:00:00	10	-	WSW
30.04.2016 13:00:00	8	-	SW
30.04.2016 12:00:00	9	-	NNW
30.04.2016 11:00:00	8	-	NNW
30.04.2016 10:00:00	9	-	N
30.04.2016 09:00:00	11	-	N

Track of the day

GPS gets a reprieve

2016-04-29T15:03:00.001+01:00

I plunged into the depths of my Garmin handheld GPS this afternoon. I have a spare one which I'd goosed the NMEA by wiring it up incorrectly some years ago...Luckily I have an aversion to throwing things out :) I'd bought a second hand replacement off ebay which has done sterling service for several years.

This year while clearing off the green crud from the earth pin, the pin just fell off.. no worries, I had the spare so I replaced the back with the one off the original.

When I took it out to play yesterday it would fire up but I could not cycle through the screens. Once stripped down it was obvious what the problem was. The pcb keypad, the brown bit under the screen, was corroded. Unfortunately I couldn't swap that out as it is all one pcb and the good keypad was attached to the none working NMEA.

I gave it a good dose of contact cleaner and wiped off with a glasses cleaning cloth. Looked a lot better, so I left it to dry thoroughly before reassembling, with all the best bits from each, and putting the batteries back in. Touch wood it all seems to work ok now. I will assume that because I've opened it up it will be less water proof than before, so more care required. These things seem to have got very expensive.

A proper shake down sail

2016-04-29T11:49:00.000+01:00

I took Ciao Bella out for a proper trip around the harbour yesterday to sort out all those little bits and pieces which get forgotten over the winter.. The forecast was for dry but cold and getting windy later on. I wrapped up warm and winged my way to the club.

ELF... my other passion, keeping an eye on the tide.

It was a bracing topless drive down only to find a distinct lack of water in the harbour, no worries, it gave me time to tip toe out to the tender and tip out all the rain water :) The little outboard for the tender fired up straight away but started to run a little off key as I approached Ciao Bella. Maybe it needs a bit more TLC after its dunking.

Looking back at Brownsea castle.

It was great to be back aboard and in control of Ciao Bella. The wind was so light, we barely moved and eventually had to motor away from the mooring. Eventually the breeze soon started to fill in and with full main and a slightly reefed genoa we headed of towards the haven.

The Haven with the Isle of Wight on the Horizon.

I could have gone out to Studland but going around the islands makes me work a bit harder. There will be plenty of time during the season to to get out of the harbour. Having had a great sail across the harbour entrance the gusts really started to pick up, possibly upto F6, laying Ciao Bella right over at times.. I rolled in a big chunk of genoa and made my way from Bramble bush bay up to Goathorn point.

Peaceful scene at Goathorn point deviously hides the true strength of the wind.

The tide was still coming in so I cut the corner, keeping a careful eye on the depth. It was nice to see it increasing as I approached Furzey island. The wind, although not as gusty was increasing. I set about reefing but got caught out by the channel edge, the keels found some soft mud and spun Ciao Bella around. No drama, I just dropped the sails and waited for the tide to rise enough to float me off. After about 45mins I realised that 1; I had no teabags and 2; she wasn't going to free herself on her own. So with 10mins of engine forward and reverse, vectoring it side to side, pushing from the bow with the boat hook, she slowly, slowly released herself from the mud.

Hmm 3.8knots with this rig :)

Hessitant to put the main back up I sailed around green island with just a handkerchief of genoa, even like this we made 3.8 knots. In the clearer water of Ramshorn lake I pushed her nose into wind to raise the reefed Main again. The wind was on my tail now and we made 5 to 6 knots back around Brownsea island. The cloud cover was really coming over now, I took the opportunity to drop the anchor in the lee of Brownsea to tidy up the reefed sail before cracking on back to the mooring.

Looking cloudy over Poole.

Picking up the mooring under sail was a little difficult, partly because I'm ring rusty but mainly because of the strength of the wind. I grabbed it at the third attempt right at the bow, I still had trouble pulling the pick up buoy onto the boat over the bow roller. I thought my shoulder was going to pop out!

A great shake down sail, glad I didn't have a passenger, they'd probably never sail again :) Next steps... provision the boat with tea, coffee, chocolate, crisps and bisciuts and more importantly, fix my GPS which, although is still sending NMEA data to the VHF and recording the track (above), it's not playing ball when you want to use the buttons.

A quick round up

2016-04-27T11:38:00.000+01:00

Not much to report, I ventured back to Ciao Bella a week last Sunday. It was a fairly windless day so ideal for sorting out a few jobs. I wasn't the only one.. Tim and Dave where busy setting up Jelly Bean, Tim's Prelude, after their launch at Salterns.

A proud Dad (sorry 'Skipper') rows home.

First was the wonky mast.. I spent a bit of time tinkering with the standing rigging so that the mast was at least straight with no funny bends one way or the other. The shrouds all feel like they have similar tension, thats good enough for me. The Sails then went on, I have decided not to run the jib halyard back to the cockpit this year. With it being roller furling there is no need. I have coiled the tail and hung it on a mast cleat. No doubt it'll cause me some grief in the future which I haven't considered :). Just by way of celebration this beasty gave me a fly past :), not sure what it is but sounded great.

Shivers down your spine.

The breeze picked up in the afternoon so I took her for a little shake down sail around the harbour. The breeze soon became a wind, probably top end of a F4, which shone the spotlight on two things... first, I hadn't set up the reefing lines and second, the jib sheets where not fastened correctly at the clew, allowing the Genoa to keep slipping away.

A bit more breeze than I expected for the first sail.

I anchored in the lee of Brownsea, had a brew and put these right before heading back to the mooring. There was another quick visit to Ciao Bella midweek to fit some longer and lighter jib sheets. All seems dry in the bilges and the solar panels are maintaining the battery at 100%.

Ciao Bella happy on her mooring with rigging adjusted and sails and covers on.

My next trip out was less successful, one of the club members had run over his mooring line and got the tender painter and pick up bouy caught on his keels. I legged it down there and motored out in my wee tender, it was a little lumpy and uncomfortable. By the time I'd got there the pianter had chaffed through on the keel and allowed the crew to secure the mooring. I didn't loiter, just turned and headed back to the pier. While transferring the outboard from tender to pier a wave knocked me of balance and the engine went for a swim!
I didn't look back just secured the tender and took my bad mood to the club house. Low tide was at 7pm so I went back then and collected it. It's a tough little engine, a Tohatsu 2hp 2 stroke. I hung it on the water bin and gave it a swill down with fresh water, took the float chamber off and cleaned that out. I took the plug out and gave it a good few pulls on the starter... Plenty of water splurged out.
I was going to ditch the fuel from the tank but it looked to be uncontaminated, I had closed the tap and vent before taking it off the tender. After liberally spraying everything with WD40 and refitting the plug and float chamber the engine sprung back to life. It ran a little poor for a few minutes but soon cleared it's throat and was on song. Catastrophe averted, I shall make sure it has a lanyard fitted from now on.

She's in

2016-04-15T08:13:00.000+01:00

Yesterday afternoon saw some frantic activity around Ciao Bella. I was home by 3pm and high tide was going to be just after 6pm. No time to lose, I fitted the new antenna and got the other paraphernalia ready and hot footed it down to Baiter park. With some help from John the mast went up without a hitch, Julian also showed up to help shunt cars and trailer around. So, cold, wet and tired I left Ciao Bella nestled on her new mooring, while I paddled back to the club in the Coracle.

It's all a bit of a mess on board and the mast is not straight but she's in.

I need to get out again to adjust the rigging, fit the boom, bend on the sails and have a general tidy up before I can go for the first sail... but I can't wait.

A fly in the ointment

2016-04-14T09:44:00.001+01:00

Things were looking pretty good for a launch yesterday. I had, in record time and with some help, knocked off the essential jobs stopping Ciao Bella hitting the water.

Antifoul done, rubbing strakes coating with Sadolin, I'd even worked up the enthusiasm to take the hand rails back to bare wood and epoxy them prior to varnish.

Seats,tiller and washboard given three or four coats of varnish. All clevis pins for the standing rigging checked, you would believe the number of times I've got to the slipway to find I've lost a clevis pin!

I'd even remembered to refit the chain hawser which had come lose as it had been previously held on with screws. It now has through deck bolts and big penny washers.. much more solid.

So it looked like I was ready to go,, I'd checked the tides and weather, lined Paul up to help me get the mast up, I just had one more small job to do... and here comes the fly in the ointment.

I needed to fit connectors on the antenna cable. Last year I had removed the deck connector, as it was just a little crusty, and replaced it with an index marine through deck gland. I'd temporarily spliced the cable and just snipped through it at the end of the season.

Although the camera has focused on the pavement (D'Oh!) what it is supposed to show is the state of the shroud sleeve on the Coax. It is black and powdery, Absolutely unusable. As the cable runs up the mast and is integral to the current antenna, my only option was to postpone the launch until a new antenna was sourced and fitted. :(

Time to get a shufty on.

2016-04-10T21:46:00.004+01:00

With the season already started and Ciao Bella still on the front garden, I thought it best to get on and do some jobs. Fortunately my father in law was here and at a loose end so was happy to rub down and varnish a few bits and pieces.

The head linings had gone mouldy so needed rubbing down and varnishing and painting on the inside. Maurice also rubbed down the grab rails, seats and rubbing strakes.

I concentrated on stopping leaks, primarily from the solar vent, and and antifouling Ciao Bella and the tender. Looks like the boat tailed spitfire is about to lose it's bodywork 😁

Another item which needed attention was the solar panel. The rather expensive Marlec panel which I had fitted three years ago had given up the ghost, very disappointing.

The old panel when new. 10W with Single cable through a standard cable gland.

So I have replaced it with these two 10W panels from RS components. Twice the power and cheaper than the Marlec, also the inherent weak point on the on the Marlec is the connector block which is just bonded to the panel.. on these the block is glued and screwed, hopefully it will be more robust.

2 x 10W in same footprint, 2 cables through index marine deck gland.

I also did away with cable gland and fitted an index marine twin side entry deck gland, much nicer. It would have been neater to have the cable entry towards the hatch but I had to use the hole already there so this was the only way it would fit. They seem to work well, in 24 hours they took the battery from 60% to 82% which considering I'd had one panel temporarily hooked up for weeks and that really just maintained and only gradually crept the charge up.

I managed to get some varnish on the seats and the grab rails and refitted the headlinings, then in true 'sods law' fashion the heavens opened before the varnish was dry.

I'd also got 2.5 litres of Flag cruiser antifoul on. it was the cheapest I could find, lets hope it keeps the barnacles at bay. What's left to do?.. well, the VHF connector needs replacing, the outboard needs a service, the rubbing strakes need a coat of sadolin and the seats and grab rails need a couple more coats of varnish. I think that's about it.

not sure how good the Flag anti foul will be but I do like the dark blue compared to last years light blue

Rip Van Winkle awakes

2016-03-02T14:58:00.002+00:00

Oh hello...

remember me :) This not being employed lark is seriously impeding on my free time for things like blogs and working on Ciao Bella. There shouldn't really be any excuses when she is this close to home.

So what have I been doing?

I have been busy on my Diploma and work on other boats though. It's been interesting getting stuck into other more fulfilling work than Sales account management. I've fitted a mast compression post to a quarter tonner, glassed in floor strengtheners, serviced inboards and outboards and sweated on a stern gland removal.... I've even reglazed a VW camper van!

Most importantly I've been getting to grips with boat surveys. I've invested in a Tramex Skipper moisture meter for GRP & wood hulls and a Cygnus 4 wall thickness gauge for steel hulls.steel hulls.

There is a link to my website at the top right, You can also hunt me down on Facebook :) www.channelyachtservices.co.uk

Plans for Ciao Bella

As the balance between study and work has been tight, no work at all has gone into Ciao Bella. With 1st April approaching at a vast rate of knots I shall have to put some time aside to get her ready. The good news is that there are no real big jobs to do, the interior is quite bad at the moment; damp has taken hold so a simple rethink is required before launch. The Marlec solar panel was goosed so I bought some RS branded items. They are good value but have to buy them in packs of five.. I have three spare if anyone is interested.:)

Click image to go to webpage.

These panels are half the size of the old Marlec but still 10W.. good news as it means I can get twice the power from my front hatch :)

I gave her a good blast with the power washer when I got her home so antifouling should be quite straightforward. If I get time I will rub down and epoxy the grab rails etc before varnishing.

In terms of plans for sailing this year, the big trip will be to Plymouth for the Hurley 18 & 22 50th Anniversary bash. If the weather is kind, I know it won't be, I intend to cross the channel to Alderney for a few days, then back across to Dartmouth before trotting around to Plymouth for the celebrations. Sounds simple.

Click here for link to HOA site.

Outline programme

Friday 22nd July 2016	Hurley boats gather at King Point Marina
Saturday 23rd July 2016	afternoon - Hurley boats sail-past evening - meal and social/presentation evening at the Royal Plymouth Corinthian Yacht Club
Sunday 24th July 2016	Visit to Richmond Walk; plaque unveiling (to be confirmed). Boats disperse.

Out she comes

2015-11-03T22:23:00.000+00:00

Following our trip to Lymington I checked the forecast for a suitable day to take Ciao Bella out. As I now have to be a bit more canny with the pennies, the luxury of having a crane out would have to be forfeited this year.
Tuesday 21st Oct was looking pretty good, light Northerly wind and sunshine.. followed by a week of high winds and rain!! The plan was to drag the trailer to the club, sail across to Baiter, get James to drive me back to the club to pick up the car and trailer go for a swim, drag her out and go home... Simples.
The club was quite busy, it may have been mid-week but the good forecast has spurred the a few people into a late sail. I managed to blag a lift out to Ciao Bella, which mean't I wouldn't have to go back and retrieve the tender from the mooring.
The weather was perfect so there was no way I was going to motor over to Baiter, the sails were up in a trice and it was surging across the harbour.

My good friends Roger and Nick were out on 'Big Easy' doing some trials on their Ocean Steer product. It's an emergency steering device for blue water sailors. Oceansteer is a simple and effective device which is easy to store on a boat. I said that I'd swing by and take some photos for them.

After our play in the harbour it was time to head for the slipway, timing was everything today as I had to get the boat on the trailer bang on high water. I saw James driving into the car park as I was pumping up the coracle.. all good so far. Trailer retrieved and it was time for a swim, I pushed the trailer right to the end of the slipway then paddled back out to Ciao Bella. Engine on and aimed her slowly at the trailer. At this point I'd like to say that she floated majestically onto the trailer.

Unfortunately, because I hadn't done this for a couple of years, I'd forgotten to widen the docking arms.. D'Oh! With the tide starting to fall I jump off and was able to pull her through the posts and onto the trailer, panic over.

After wrestling the trailer back up the ramp, James jumped in the car a pulled her the rest of the way out. Paul arrived in time to help lower the mast and before we knew it she was on her way home.
Well that's it for this year.. already missing it and looking forward to next year.

Just a foot note, I spent some time last month digging out six tonne of soil from the front garden, hand barrowing it around the back garden and replacing it with six tonne of Crush limestone and Limestone chippings. It has made manoeuvring much easier as the wheels don't sink into the soft turf and I no longer have to try and cut the grass around it :) I think it looks so much better than it did at the beginning of the year.

Last gasp to Lymington

2015-10-21T20:27:00.000+01:00

With the end of the season racing towards us we organised a last minute cruise to Lymington. The Tides for the weekend were pretty good, just a 5am alarm clock this time. I was at the club for 0540 and made my way out to Ciao Bella. I got the engine running, and released the mooring and motored about 10 meters before the keels touched down.. this is getting far too common, I will have to pledge to get up really early when there is a morning low or be content to leave as the tide returns. I had to refit the battery before setting off as it had been taken home to charge. A replacement solar panel is very high on my wish list. So at least I had time to fit that, clean the Nasa paddle wheel and have a general tidy.

The forecast was for NNE but only f1 or 2 so very calm, I lifted off and was underway by 8am. I had a good sail to the entrance before having to start the donk to push me past the chain ferry and left it on through the East Looe channel.

Thermos twins make a welcome return.

When I did turn the motor off the speed remained at around 4 knots, clearly the breeze was a little stronger than forecast, I had a great sail across the bay and in through the needles channel. It was all a little chilly so I pressed the Thermos twins into service for the first time this year... The blue one full of Tea and the black one full of Leek & Potato soup.

I caught Paul up just outside Lymington, where we dropped the sails and motored in. It was just Paul and myself for this cruise so once alongside the town quay we tidied up and pushed off to grab some lunch. Pauls family had driven over so we we settled into the Kings Arms for Bangers & Mash. On the way out I bumped into Kirk who had decided to set off late, great to have someone new on the cruises. Fully fed it was time to find a suitable venue to watch the Rugby.

The next morning arrived far to early as workmen were bashing the railway bridge around from around 6am. It was a very slow morning as I gradually came back to life after the previous evening, helped by a runny egg and bacon sandwich.

Lapwing (Corribee) and Hannah Snell (Seal 22) rafted up

Ciao Bella wedge in between the bigger boats.

Departure time was planned for around 12 noon with a bit of tide against us for the first hour. We took the shallowish water towards Keyhaven before popping out into the main channel as the tide changed.

Hannah Snell posing in front of the Needles

The wind in the solent had been good but when we got out into Christchurch bay it was the opposite of yesterday.. F3or 4 with F5 Gust were forecast but really it was only F2 at best. With the tide we were able to maintain 3.5 to 4 knots.. we would most likely need to start the engines at some point.

Nice to be sailing in Company

That point came as the wind just about disappeared as we transited from Bournemouth to Poole. We pushed into the harbour entrance about 20 mins after high tide and the ebb through the entrance was starting to really go for it. I kept in close to Sandbanks to avoid the worst of the flow. The sunset as I arrived at my mooring was just stunning. It's been a great season, I feel like I have really made the most of Ciao Bella this year.

Wow

Newton Creek

2015-10-19T10:29:00.000+01:00

Time for a little Catch up.. I'm a bit out of sync with this one :) A few weeks ago John and myself went for an overnighter to the Isle of Wight. The Tides were at awful times for us to go, I like to get out of the harbour on the last of the ebb tide when going East. This Meant leaving around 2am. We had our stuff ready and got to the club at 2am... bugger, As this was the weekend of the Super moon I'd missed the tide by minutes. The tender was still afloat but I knew it was pointless trying to rush to get out. Plan B.. Have a cup of tea then have a nap for an hour or so.

With a fresh departure time of around 5am we headed out to Ciao Bella. The wind was a gentle North Easterly which, after a motor out of the harbour and along the East Looe channel, allowed us to head straight for the needles.

As the sky started to lighten and the Sun made an appearance we felt blessed to be out here. Our original plan had been to go to Cowes and find some where to watch the England v Wale rugby world cup match, but with the later start that needed rethinking. I thought Newtown Creek would make a great stop over while we waited for the next tide to take us to Cowes.

We got to the needles channel as the tide started to slacking so pressed the outboard into service and motored in through Hurst and on to Newtown against an ever increasing tide.

Once in the Creek we motored towards the Anchoring zone and picked a spot to drop the anchor. I was at the pointy end while John steered. About 100 yards from where I wanted to be the engine spluttered and cut out. John used the forward motion to steer us to a safe area, away from other boats, and I chucked the hook over the bow.

I had a quick look in the tank and although there was some fuel in there I assumed it was just too low for the pick up pipe to reach.

I thought there had been plenty of fuel, clearly we'd run the engine hard getting up the Solent and used it all? I made us a pasta lunch then we settled down for a kip while we waited for the tide to change and allow us to make our way under sail to Cowes.

I woke a while later suspecting something was wrong, because we had anchored without choice we were out of the channel and had taken to the mud as the tide dropped. We needed a plan B ver2.

Cowes was now out of the question. We would now wait until she was afloat and either try to slosh the fuel enough to fill the carb or sail or paddle to get us into the channel so we could leave when we wanted. I would also call on the good will of Liam, who lives on the Island to bring a can of fuel over for me. Liam was a star and said he'd meet us at the pub after the Rugby.

Newtown Creek is Beautiful and the amount of wildlife is fantastic.. I know very little about wildlife so I wont try to describe what we saw beyond some birds and fish :) The unmistakable's were the pair of Kingfishers, giving us a fleeting glimpse of iridescent blue as they flashed past. Eventually Ciao Bella floated and I primed the engine.. only to get a face full of fuel! The pipe had split and was clearly drawing in air. If we hadn't been so tired when we arrived I would probably of checked it, a lesson there. Anyway, pipe shortened and working, we repositioned the boat and pumped up the coracle for a paddle up to the quay and a walk up the the pub.

After a belly full of good food Liam came over to give us the fuel and the bad news about the Rugby. Always good to have a catch up with Liam.

The next morning we prepared to head back to Poole. We left before the the high tide to catch a back eddy which would give us a head start going to Hurst. This made it interested getting out of Newtown Creek as the tide rush in through the entrance was pretty quick.

The run back to Poole was great, we had the wind and tide with us and flew back. The excitement started as we approached the Swash channel. The sea state had been really good all day but with the tidal conditions this weekend there was a huge amount of water coming out of Poole and the wind was trying to blow it back in :) It was like being off St Aldhems. We eventually made it in to the harbour, there was no point heading for the mooring as it would be high and dry for a while yet. I turned left towards south deep, just wondering how far I'd get before running aground... the answer was not far :)

Stuck in the sand again I put the kettle on while we watched the mud islands appear around us. A great sight, the coastal birds were gorging themselves on the freshly uncovered feeding grounds.

We weren't the only people getting stuck.. Motor boats, a Dinghy? and even the harbour Master :) We were in good company.

and this is what caused all the grief :) Great to see, taken from my bedroom window :)

Studland

2015-10-03T08:34:00.001+01:00

With the weather being so nice during the last week, I though it a bit rude not to go for a sail. Paul was also free today so we arranged to meet around midday and decide from there what we would do. Studland and the Banks Arms beckoned so off we shot. There was a good breeze as we left, I had considerer putting a reef in but it was manageable and there were no gusts.

The harbour entrance was dotted with small fishing boats strategically placed to get in the way :) I dropped the engine leg in and ran it on idle just in case I had to take avoiding action. One thing I noticed was the anti foul is definitely getting to the end of its life. My rudder was streaming weed, probably picked up from Newtown Creek, and Lapwing was extremely slow.

The Easterly wind was great for getting us to Studland but did make the bay a bit bouncy. It took me three attempts to grab a buoy, and these buoys are easy to grab. The obligatory Coracle race ensued, fortunately not resulting in us being dumped, unceremoniously on the beach.

We spent an hour or so in the Garden of the Banks Arms before returning to the boats. My coracle seemed to have deflated slightly, must give it a good check over when it gets home.

The breeze had pretty well died by the late afternoon, we had a little wallow around for a while before starting the engines and motoring the whole way back to the moorings.

Another pleasent afternoon on the boat, the end of season is rushing towards us so I will try to make the most of what is left :). Maintenance wise, The battery has been gradually losing charge, as the solar panel is fubared, so that is now in my garage on charge, the coracle will need looking at and it's foot pump is just about ready for the bin. I may even have to give her bum a quick scrub if I'm going to venture far before she comes out.