Small Boat Plans And Kits | Ipswich to Southampton 22nd August 25th August

Small Boat Plans And Kits

As reported by Selma we left Ipswich on the 22nd August bound towards Falmouth. Gordon was back for the leg and it was great to have Rob P back with us for the Bank Holiday weekend. The plan was to sail as far as we could with Rob, drop him off somewhere en route and then crack on to Falmouth or Plymouth; the weather, amongst other things, was not entirely aligned to our plan!

We set off on Friday night and had a cracking sail across the Thames Estuary but by 0500 am on Saturday morning the wind had backed to the West and increased to well over 20 kts - 3 reefs in the main once more. The strong head winds and perky (thanks Rob) seas made progress slow and pretty wet. The contrast to 2 months before when we were heading east and had averaged 7 knots over the ground was astounding, we were now barely making 3 knots. By Saturday lunchtime it was clear that we wouldnt get beyond Southampton for Robs drop off so we decided we would head for Lymington. The weather forecast was pretty dire anyway so whilst further delay was not great it couldnt be helped.

We pushed on and by Sunday evening were battling our way through the Looe channel just south of Chichester. Dinner beckoned, Chilli Con Carne was on the menu and so I set to and soon had the Chilli bubbling away on one hob and the boil in the bag rice on the other. At this point a particularly large wave whacked the GSB, nothing of any concern if Id been concentrating but of course I wasnt; the result was me being thrown across the galley onto the pan of boiling water. The move from boiling the rice to boiling my arm had a spectacular effect on me as I tried to get my clothes off. Gordon and Rob hadnt seen me fall and understandably assumed that Id finally lost the plot and gone bonkers as I manicaly started stripping off. They understood the problem when I finally got my shirt off and took a chunk of skin of my left arm off with it. We cooled the burn as best we could and agreed that a trip to A&E was the order of the day - Portsmouth was nearest and became our new destination; flexibility as ever our watch-word. Various family and friends were called for medical advice and as ever Dr Alex came up with the goods recommending that we cling film the burn; in the absence of cling film we resorted to two Tescos freezer bags and half a roll of insulation tape.


By now the burn was blistered with yellow stuff oozing out from under the freezer bag, we werent entirely sure whether this was good or bad but we were comforted by the thought that at least it would be kept fresh. Not much more could be done so we dished up what was left of the dinner and a few hours later were moored up in Hasler Marina.

A quick trip to Portsmouth A&E (personal note - dont attend Portsmouth A&E on a Sunday Bank Holiday) I was bandaged up and told to come back the next day - the main risk was infection and that would remain for at least a week; not great considering we planned to leave the UK in a few days. Another rethink was required!

By the next morning we had a new plan which was to move the boat round to Southampton, let my arm and the weather settle down for a few days and then set off for Spain straight from Shamrock Quay. The hospital had put me on a course of antibiotics so hopefully that would deal with any infection. We duly moved the boat round that day and Rob and Gordon said their goodbyes after an eventful few days of sailing. Great crew and our thanks for looking after Capt and ship. We werent in Falmouth but we were further west than a few days before and moving slowly towards Spain.

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Wood Boat Plans And Kits | Southampton to La Coruna Spain 29th August 3rd September

Wood Boat Plans And Kits

We left Southampton at o815 on 29th August bound for Porto Sin about 600 miles away. The GSB was fully crewed up with our long standing sailing friend Paul Elliot, his girlfriend Keiko and another family friend Big Jack Green. Expected passage time about 6 days, weather forecast fine for at least a couple of days, burn - not smelling, GSB, skipper and crew ready, able and willing - we were all set.

We had made good use of the 3 days unplanned stop at Southampton. As the weather slowly improved I was able to sort a few odds and sods out on the boat , including installation of a bar across the cooker to prevent idiots falling and burning themselves. I also made daily visits to the hospital for inspection of the burn and dressing changes. I asked at the hospital what I should do if it became infected on the passage to Spain ... not much you can do was the response ... so that all seemed fine.

The passage plan was to sail west until Start Point, hang a left to pass outside the Traffic Seperation Scheme (TSS) off Ushant and then steer straight for Cape Finisterre to pass the TSS to the east; Porto Sin is about 30 miles south of Cape Finisterre. I didnt expect to follow the plan to the letter and I was right.

Over the first 36 hours we made good progress with the engine and a bit of sailing. The wind was light and the sea relatively calm which was good news because Keiko and Jack had limited sailing experience ... in fact none. The watch pattern was 3 hours on and 3 hours off with Jack and I on one watch and Paul and Keiko on the other. Jack was bearing up well after a number of shocks the night before; firstly he had assumed that the trip to Spain was a series of hops round the coast stopping frequently in delightful anchorages in Brittany and Northern Spain ... as opposed to the actual plan of a 6 day non-stop passage with a maximum 3 hours sleep at anyone time.

This initial shock was followed by the revelation that whilst underway the GSB was a dry ship and no alcohol could be taken until arrival - this blow was softened by my promise that when we did arrive we would drink at a rate that would make up for any previous lost opportunity - I can

say with absolute confidence that I kept my word.

On Sunday morning we were off Ushant and turned south west for Cape Finisterre but as ever the wind had by now also come round to the south west so we were starting to be pushed east of our planned course. Stronger winds of 25 + kts were forecast with even stronger winds to the west so we carried on southwards accepting the risk of losing westing. In fact as we sailed along we enjoyed the novel experience of missing gales as opposed to being smacked squarely between the eyes. By Monday night the wind was up to 20 + kts and increasing and in keeping with the previous 6 weeks was right on the nose, so yet again the GSB found herself bashing into some fairly fruity biscay waves with triple reefed main. The bad weather was softened by the company of several schools of dolphins who had regularly appeared from about the second day - its great to see them although I sometimes get the feeling that theyre having a right old laugh at the idiots in the little boat.

As the weather deteriorated my urge to cook curry increased until I could control myself no longer and dished up a Tescos classic ... Beef Curry with Bombay Potatoes and BITB rice. Following the failure of my Chicken Tikka to hit the mark with Gordon and Jerry I was hoping that the beef option would prove more popular, however, once again my cooking failed to pass muster and once again a brief bout of sea sickness followed dinner.

Mid passage we tested the new Iridium Sat Phone out which was brilliant. It was really strange sailing hundreds of miles from anywhere having a conversation with Selma and then Alasdair about the weather. Al gave some great advice as we ducked and dived our way through the worst of the bad weather. Nonetheless by Tuesday morning the wind had reached near gale so we hoved to to give the GSB and crew a break; as ever the change was dramatic as conditions immediately improved both above and below deck. We stayed hove to until mid afternoon on Tuesday when the wind rapidly moderated and came round to the NW to give us some great sailing and for the first time in a few days in the right direction!

During Tuesday we received updated weather info by text from Al and also on the navtex which was forecast to be severe gale 9 from Thursday afternoon as this is pretty much when we were due to arrive in Porto Sin we decided that a stop in La Coruna about 60 miles closer would be sensible. It transpired to be a good call because the weather did get worse and La Coruna was great.

The last 24 hours were really damp with constant rain and light winds, crew and the GSB were simply soaking. Paul shared the useful information that Galicia was the wettest part of Spain which went down well with Big Jack who had assumed that by now the weather would be verging on tropical. Pauls useful meteorological information was no doubt in part a counter to comments made about the speed of his getting out on watch. It was noted by Big Jack that Paul dissappeared, undressed, into the heads, stayed there for an extended period, but then emerged equally undressed. What was going on in the heads remained a mystery until our arrival at La Coruna when we discovered the horrific truth ... Paul was changing his pants. My standing advice to crew is that you need one pair of pants for any trip of any duration and one pair for arrival - Big Jack had taken this advice to heart by bringing just one pair of pants in total (well done Jack) but Paul had suddenly become fastidious in respect to personal hygiene. In hindsight this was probably for the best because Paul had volunteered to change my dressings on the passage so a bit of hygiene was perhaps a good thing, but we questioned the extreme to which it was taken. Either way Jack and I discussed the problem at length but could only conclude that it was the influence of a woman on board; this has never been confirmed.

We arrived in La coruna, Spain, at 1730 LMT on Wednesday 3rd September. It was just brilliant. The decision to go to Norway before heading south was always a risky one and had been a bit of a worry for several weeks but all of that was lifted with our safe arrival in La Coruna.

All that remained for me as Skipper was to fulfill my promise to Big Jack. We tidied the GSB up and then tucked into a few Norwegian beers before heading ashore in search of Cerveza and Tapas. The food was absolutely superb, the beers slipped down a treat and La Coruna immediately fell into our personal favourites category. As we slowly slipped into an alcoholic blur; any hardship experienced over the previous week was rapidly forgotton.

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Pontoon Boat Plans Aluminum | Southampton to Shotley marina June 2013 July 2013

Pontoon Boat Plans Aluminum

Southampton to Shotley Marina (June 2013 - July 2013)

Chichester to Brighton (John and Selma); We left in a rough F5-6 on the nose and took the short cut through the Looe channel .. you live and learn. I was airborn for about half an hour !

Jack remained asleep for most of the passge through the channel, then woke up, puked vertically and then went back to sleep. Such is the resilience of a teenager.

We arrived at Brighton but couldnt get in due to lack of water

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 Brighton Marina to Eastbourne (Jerry and John)

Jerry White and I sailed the boat on the next leg round from Brighton to Eastbourne?

Eastbourne to Shotley Marina (Colm, Trotts and John)

Great sailing in 30+ knots of wind behind us on the first day. Phil and Colm did great job.

Coastguard was a little surprised we left with a F9 forecast .. I was a little surprised that a F9 had been forecast!

Nice quiet night in Ramsgate before setting off across the Thames Estuary. Big question was where have all those windmills come from? Paper charts plus two sets of electronic charts had all avoided being updated! We weaved through Fishermans Gap. This was no thanks to the Coastguard advising me it was my own silly fault (true) and that he could not give me any advice on which channels were open. I wonder if they would have helped if the good ship had been sliced in half!

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