After a few days rest at Port Tudy we had to press on to get to Port Crouesty and meet up with the rest of the Fareham-Vannes Twinning Event.
We had a couple of days with George and Jill Pickburn and their boat "Stormbird". George, the "Vannes Driver," I think his official title was Fleet Captain, had other arrangements, so they left before we did.
The deadline was 30th June at Port Crouesty, so we gave ourselves an extra day and left today. The film shows us arriving at Crouesty, meeting up with the other 18 boats and 50 crew. It also shows the flotilla procession up to Vannes on the 1st July, our negotiating the road bridge and the welcome we had from the french pipe band.
Monday 29 June 2015
Tuesday 23 June 2015
Beating the Tides
In L'Aberwrach we berthed next to Archimede, a Fisher37, and it French Owner Jean-Luc and his American partner, Karen. They had advised on going through the Isle de Batz Channel instead of a long haul around the island and it had worked out well.
We had a few drinks on their boat and then had a snack in the local restaurant before going off to bed.
Next day we went for a walk to the town only to find that it was all shut up. Our first realisation that the French don't believe in 24/7 opening. They shut between 1200 and 1500hrs and so we came away empty handed and had to go again later in the day to get some supplies - Vodka and Bread!
In the meantime we went and had a meal.
Next day it was time to leave L'Aberwrach and tackle the strong tides of the Chenal de Four (Top Red line).
If all went well it was our plan to carry on and tackle the Raz de Sein (Bottom Red Line) as well and save an overnight stay in Camaret.
This would take us to Audierne and put us a day ahead of schedule.
Did we make it?
Did Maz & Taff survive the ordeal?
Find out in this short 6 minute video.
We had a few drinks on their boat and then had a snack in the local restaurant before going off to bed.
Next day we went for a walk to the town only to find that it was all shut up. Our first realisation that the French don't believe in 24/7 opening. They shut between 1200 and 1500hrs and so we came away empty handed and had to go again later in the day to get some supplies - Vodka and Bread!
In the meantime we went and had a meal.
Next day it was time to leave L'Aberwrach and tackle the strong tides of the Chenal de Four (Top Red line).
If all went well it was our plan to carry on and tackle the Raz de Sein (Bottom Red Line) as well and save an overnight stay in Camaret.
This would take us to Audierne and put us a day ahead of schedule.
Did we make it?
Did Maz & Taff survive the ordeal?
Find out in this short 6 minute video.
Monday 22 June 2015
The Dodgy Bits
Brittany is a beautiful coast but there are some dodgy bits that need special care.
The main two are the Chenal de Four and the Raz de Sein. Both are channels of sea that run between the French mainland and islands off of them. This creates a narrow corridor that the sea rushes through. Get your timing right and it's a doddle. Get it wrong and you can be pushed by strong tides or winds into pure granite rocks.
Of course we decided to do both in the same day!
Here's the plan
Originally we were going to do just the Chenal de Four and head for Camaret (Line 9), but as their was no wind and we were motoring, I worked out that we could just get to the Raz in time (Lines 11-14). We had to be at the Raz de Sein by 1530hrs. You only have 30 minutes leeway and we got their just right.
Here's the chart plotter view of our approach to the Raz. "X" marks the places we need to be to avoid the rough water and rocks. Believe it or not, the blue coloured section of red spots (dangerous rocks) in the top right, have people living on them.
This change of course meant we were now heading for Audierne and the problem their was the shallow entrance. Another tide calculation showed we would just make it in time for a rising tide.
We came into port and were tied up by 6.15pm with about 0.9m below us at the entrance.
You can see the video of this part in the blog post above or click here
The main two are the Chenal de Four and the Raz de Sein. Both are channels of sea that run between the French mainland and islands off of them. This creates a narrow corridor that the sea rushes through. Get your timing right and it's a doddle. Get it wrong and you can be pushed by strong tides or winds into pure granite rocks.
Of course we decided to do both in the same day!
Originally we were going to do just the Chenal de Four and head for Camaret (Line 9), but as their was no wind and we were motoring, I worked out that we could just get to the Raz in time (Lines 11-14). We had to be at the Raz de Sein by 1530hrs. You only have 30 minutes leeway and we got their just right.
This change of course meant we were now heading for Audierne and the problem their was the shallow entrance. Another tide calculation showed we would just make it in time for a rising tide.
You can see the video of this part in the blog post above or click here
Posted with BlogsyFriday 19 June 2015
Midnight in the Oasis
Well it's almost midnight and being in the middle of the English Channel is a wet form of oasis. The sun is setting and the night is drawing in.
Pauline is having her turn at sleeping, well it an hour or so past her normal bedtime (smile).
It is quite eerie and natural at the same time, the sea still flows, the wind still blows but the sun has moved on and you are sat in a room of darkness. In fact it's more like a room with a candle as you can still see things.
We are 43 nautical miles from Roscoff and making good progress towards our 0700 planned arrival time. The wind has been good to us so far. We managed to average 5.6 knots going from 4-7 knots from just an hour out of Dartmouth.
These long hauls are not our favourite sails but Pauline has her audio books and I have my music. In between we take it in turns to plot our position. A necessity at the moment as the instruments circuit breaker has cut out three times in 10 hours. The plotter is brand new so not sure what is causing the overload.
Guess overall it's not a bad way to start your retirement!
Pauline is having her turn at sleeping, well it an hour or so past her normal bedtime (smile).
It is quite eerie and natural at the same time, the sea still flows, the wind still blows but the sun has moved on and you are sat in a room of darkness. In fact it's more like a room with a candle as you can still see things.
We are 43 nautical miles from Roscoff and making good progress towards our 0700 planned arrival time. The wind has been good to us so far. We managed to average 5.6 knots going from 4-7 knots from just an hour out of Dartmouth.
These long hauls are not our favourite sails but Pauline has her audio books and I have my music. In between we take it in turns to plot our position. A necessity at the moment as the instruments circuit breaker has cut out three times in 10 hours. The plotter is brand new so not sure what is causing the overload.
Guess overall it's not a bad way to start your retirement!
More later my friends.
Our Route
Sun setting on us and a passing ship
Tally ho
Finally it was time to leave Dartmouth and make our way south. We had some 300 miles to do by 30th June (11 days).
At 5 miles an hour we could do it in 60 hours or two and a half days non stop, but with just two of us, it was not either a safe nor a desirable option. Besides, we wanted to see some of France and enjoy the trip.
A rough plan was to to do it in short day hops but first we had the 100 mile English Channel crossing with no options.
Time and tide wait for no man ( or woman), so our plan was to fill up the diesel tank and depart at midday. This would give us plenty of daylight to start and arrive in; always reluctant to enter a strange port in the dark.
Pauline made sure our mascots Maz and Taff were secure below before we set sail, as they had not crossed the Channel before and it was a long journey.
The 6 minute video shows you what happened on our English Channel Crossing and trip round to L'Aberwrach.
At 5 miles an hour we could do it in 60 hours or two and a half days non stop, but with just two of us, it was not either a safe nor a desirable option. Besides, we wanted to see some of France and enjoy the trip.
A rough plan was to to do it in short day hops but first we had the 100 mile English Channel crossing with no options.
Time and tide wait for no man ( or woman), so our plan was to fill up the diesel tank and depart at midday. This would give us plenty of daylight to start and arrive in; always reluctant to enter a strange port in the dark.
Pauline made sure our mascots Maz and Taff were secure below before we set sail, as they had not crossed the Channel before and it was a long journey. The 6 minute video shows you what happened on our English Channel Crossing and trip round to L'Aberwrach.
Monday 15 June 2015
Dartmouth at Last.
Having tried for many years we finally sailed into Dartmouth Harbour and against all odds found a berth. At first we were told Visitors Berths all taken but having tied up innocently on a reserved landing state they found us an idyllic spot.
We started out this morning at 0800 hrs this morning we had a great sail till after midday when the sun started to shine and the wind started to slow. So, to keep the wife happy, on went the engine. Hence it took 10 hours rather than the planned 13 hours.
We started out this morning at 0800 hrs this morning we had a great sail till after midday when the sun started to shine and the wind started to slow. So, to keep the wife happy, on went the engine. Hence it took 10 hours rather than the planned 13 hours.
Sailing from Portsmouth to Dartmouth
Here is our second video showing the trip from Portsmouth to Dartmouth.
Thursday 11 June 2015
Tuesday 9 June 2015
Final Touches
Some final touches with a Solar Panel that will fit on the Bimini and keep the batteries charged. Especially useful as Pauline loves her coffee!
Then of course she needs somewhere nice to sit so I re-varnished the stern seats.
Note the coffee cup holder.
Now no respectable boat would look right without fender covers so found a brilliant place up north (Fendequip) that could supply the covers and put our boat name on a terrific price (£1.20 for the name plus your cover).
To make sure the fenders did not get dirty we gave the sides a good polish.
And last but most importantly we gave the propeller a thorough clean and service.
Now no respectable boat would look right without fender covers so found a brilliant place up north (Fendequip) that could supply the covers and put our boat name on a terrific price (£1.20 for the name plus your cover).
To make sure the fenders did not get dirty we gave the sides a good polish.
And last but most importantly we gave the propeller a thorough clean and service.
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