Sun/Mon 13/14 Sept 09 - No complaints... fabulous Tradewind sailing!!

13th Sept sunset:

Broken vang shackle found lying on deck beside the block - clearly a metal defect - a time when a good spares kit comes in useful!

Well, the wind might not be from the NE - but this is definitely very enjoyable, brisk 'Tradewind sailing' to the east of the Azores High. For several days now, we've been mainly under full canvas, but tonight we're reefed down (one reef) because the winds started building just before sunset - as did the seas... We're rolling about quite a lot fairly frequently - and cooking my evening meal got pretty 'interesting' several times with the galley 'bumstrap' proving how useful it could be!

The Hydrovane is coping well, although when the wind got up, it definitely preferred a reef in the mains'l to avoid us rounding up so much in the gusts. The genoa is poled out and we're on a very broad reach, but occasionally a big wave comes along together with a gust, knocking us about, making us round up badly & the wind has got ahead of the genoa. Then I've had to intervene to get us back on course.

Weather has been superb - lots of sunny blue skies and warmth, although just as an enormous tanker (making for Lagos, Nigeria) had finished crossing our stern before midday, it actually rained quite heavily ... but, half an hour later, we were back to blue skies and sunshine again!

Last night and tonight, the stars have been out in their millions - along with hundreds of twinkling diamonds in our wake - lot of lovely phosphorescence in the waters here. I was delighted to see, almost straight up, my favourite little constellation of 'Delphinus' - the dolphin in the sky, which keeps the Swan company. Lovely to see all the familiar figures - with Orion striding majestically the right way up - not on his head, as he is in the Southern hemisphere!!

A real worry tonight was catching sight of red and white strobe lights not that far from our port side - perhaps only a mile away. I'd come up fairly regularly to check whilst preparing my meal and writing up my log and emails because I'd earlier seen a bright light over the horizon which didn't come up on AIS - so presumably a smaller fishing boat or a yacht. I had vivid recollections of stories of bad encounters with over 1 mile-long unmarked tunny-fishing nets off the coast of Morocco - which is exactly where I am now.... What was I supposed to make of the strobe lights?? They were presumably marking nets of some kind or
other.... A happy thought was that they were not dead ahead and seemed to be out of my way... what luck! I think the fishing boat was nearby just over the horizon ... but I have no idea really what system of nets they use - or what exactly the lights (seemingly in just the one spot) were warning of... what a nightmare! Somehow, that scares me! The other happy thought was that I'm sailing and not running my engine & prop - but who knows what might happen if I were to run over a cable holding large nets in my path....

Noon position report today: 33d 53' N, 013d 21' W; COG 180T; SOG 6.5kn; Wind NNW4-5 (14kn); Swell NNW 2m 6s ; Clouds 12% ; Baro 1022; Air temp 25 C ; Sea temp 26 C

309mls to go (ETA: Wed). Plenty of ships around. Wrong (previous day's) latitude given yesterday!!

Sat 12Sept09: Day 8 of passage to Canaries - Just like Tradewinds sailing - but wind is NW, not NE! Fluffy little white clouds in lines along the wind direction.... Gentle sailing, poled out ....

Noon (BST) position report: 39 00'N, 013 21'W; course(COG): 180T; speed (SOG): 5.6kn; wind: NW4 (10kn); barometer: 1022; air/sea temp: 24C!!; swell: N 3m 8s; cloud: 10%;

606 ml to go (DTG) to destination (equidistant between Azores and Canaries!), 200 ml due W of Lisbon. Warm, bright sunshine, ambling along....

Last night I had no problem whatsoever using Bluetooth to connect into the Pactor modem for my emailing and weather info via Airmail using my SSB radio ..... Now, when I just tried to connect - I found my computer (which ran out of battery power on standby overnight) seems to have no Bluetooth enabled and isn't 'seeing' the modem... Why not??
(One hour later!!)... Finally got it going again - after a lot of cursing and effort.... !

Yesterday's hiatus was finding the Iridium (satellite) phone had switched itself off - for no apparent reason. Later, I noticed it switching itself on again completely of its own accord as I was seated nearby writing up the log.... and then soon afterwards, I noticed it was off again... Overnight, it came on yet again and has, so far today, stayed on... "Not guilty!" I plead - I was touching nothing when all that happened!! Presume it's a faulty handset, base unit or connection - although, having checked them, all connections look absolutely fine, as is the 12V power supply so I strongly suspect a faulty unit.

The wind swung to NNW from NE soon after midnight Thursday and then died, only picking up near midday - but that gave me an ideal chance to get to know the Hydrovane windsteering gear. Really easy and straightforward, so that's now in use - at least some of the time. My wind power input to the batteries, plus some solar power, is working really well, so using the electronic/hydraulic autopilot doesn't seem to be pulling down the batteries hardly, if at all. I'm sure the use everywhere (cabin & nav lights) of LED lighting must also be helping. Overnight, the wind picked up to around 15 knots, rather than the fairly consistent 10 knots we've been having during the day both yesterday and today.

Other problems: The shackle holding down the block at the mastfoot which leads the boom downhaul aft broke into two halves - clearly a major metal defect... Fortunately I was able to replace the shackle from my spares kit, so all is now well - I'd wondered, before I found the block and broken shackle lying on the deck, how the main had suddenly become 'scandalized'!! A possibly associated problem is that the boom regularly jerks up with a bang - the vang/mast connection is a tad loose and needs an additional washer to fill the slight space allowing movement - that pin will wear quite quickly later if not dealt with when I arrive.

A lovely sight was a bright silver Venus hanging high in the East before dawn this morning - and last night, I enjoyed an excellent meal by starlight in the cockpit of the 'Chez Nereida' restaurant....

Thursday 9th Sept 09

Today and yesterday have been excellent for speedy sailing - in NE winds up to 30 knots!! Should keep NE wind now all the way - effectively the start of the NE Trades.. Downside was the big swell that often made us crash about, making it difficult to move about . and not much sun either... but good progress made finally, after a series of long tacks against the previous SW wind... This afternoon, having finished crossing the Bay of Biscay, I was able to gybe onto a southerly course, headed from well off Finisterre (~100 ml) towards the Canaries - hopefully in one last long leg, arriving 15/16th Sept, depending on whether winds pick up or not...! Again, we're running with a poled-out genoa but now I've let out both reefs in the mains'l so we've full canvas in increasingly light winds. I let out the reefs not long ago in the dark - it always seems a bit weird to be out in the middle of a pitch black ocean rushing along with overcast blanketing out the stars - and NO phosphorescence in the disturbed water - most unusual...

Today was notable for an effort to get radio communications back again - it's been an ongoing problem and has kept me busy on and off since I left Guernsey... Today, I actually soldered the ultra-fine wires of a USB cable together, thinking it would help - but not so... Amazingly though, I finally figured out how to get my laptop to talk 'Bluetooth' to the Pactor modem between it and the radio ... so here we are!! Whilst doing that, I disturbed my chart-plotter - to my horror it ended up with a blue screen and no chart displayed but lots of incomprehensible messages - major disaster, I thought... unable to sort it out... but later, whilst fiddling with the Pactor modem and radio connections below it, suddenly, there it all was again ... right as rain! ... What a relief!... I thought I was headed into more soldering of fine data wires in the Raymarine seabus connection... Now I can sleep well - my AIS alarm is working well and I'm well offshore, away from the shipping and fishing along the Portuguese coast.

Look on 'Travels' page for my noon position report...

Bye for now....

Jeanne
"Nereida"
42N, 013W

Previous reports I couldn't send at the time....

Monday 7Sept09

Ahoy there from "Nereida" in a fog-ridden, relatively calm, Bay of Biscay - we thought we were back in touch again... but not so... have had a major, ongoing struggle trying to make a connection - or the lack of...! Now that it's calmed down from the rough seas of Sat & Sun, I was able to get some jobs done... fix the catch on an annoying, swinging-freely, galley locker door (TG for electric drills... even so, it took an hour), domestic duties: clearing up in galley and also in saloon (loose papers I'd overlooked soon ended up all over cabin sole as we moved about in the seas!!) and finally, but most importantly, removing chart-plotter, radio & Pactor modem from instrument panel to locate serial number of the modem - vital info to enable it to 'talk' to my laptop via Bluetooth so I can send/receive emails and weather info via my SSB (high-frequency) radio.... That turned out to be a lot less hassle than I expected, having tried to avoid the issue by searching through paperwork - but no sign of info there... I'm hoping to be able to send this report later today OK (but I couldn't ... not until Thursday...!) ... The outstanding problem I can't really deal with now is a diesel leak, which I'd thought was fixed before leaving. Because we were moving about so much yesterday, a lot ended up in the bilges - a horrible smell!

Neither of my laptops is talking to the Iridium satellite telephone just now, so that way of emailing is closed until I reach shore... The XP laptop was doing so fine just before I left.. so why has it stopped now...? And the Bluetooth connection was also fine the last time I tested using my SSB radio for emailing.... so frustrating and time-consuming...! But the phone itself is working fairly well - I had a welcome SMS message from a friend (free from www.iridium.com!) and a call this morning from the presenter of 'Five Live' - but unfortunately reception was too poor for the hoped-for live transmission on the Breakfast Show.

At noon today: Posn: 48 17'N, 008 06'W Course: 207T Speed: 6.8kt Wind: SSE F1-2 (6-7kt) Air: 20C Sea: 16.6C Baro: 1022 Swell: WNW 2m 4s Cloud 100%

I'd had to motor since 0540 when I found us drifting E at 1.5 knots. We had been sailing SSW nicely - at 5 knots in fairly calm seas - since 0200 when the wind shifted as drizzle came in. Prior to that, since early Sunday, I'd been headed due W in good sunshine through the heavy shipping just north of the Ushant shipping lanes and then on, unable to turn SW due to the southerly wind direction. I had a nice chat on the VHF radio with the Aussie Capt of the 'Eileen C' after he gave way to me just before noon while I was reefing down in stronger winds (18knots). Whatever happens, I want to avoid sailing well into the Bay itself, for fear of getting 'embayed' (getting trapped in the Bay by the prevailing SW winds) - I'm trying to keep well out, off the continental shelf, in deep water..

Sunday's noon position report: 49 02'N, 005 44'W SOG: 8.4kt (nice tide!!) COG: 270T Wind: S 4-5(~18kt)

12 noon (BST) position: 49 25'N, 002 54'W

Left St Peterport Victoria marina last night after last fish and chips - courtesy of friendly 'Ship and Crown'! Had a cranberry juice rather than their 'Special'. Sat with friend Liz, who'd kindly ferried me around earlier in the day for last minute visits, and ITN TV crew who've been with me a lot of the day. Amusing being filmed (I gather item was later put out on 6 o'clock news, repeated at ten o'clock) but it definitely didn't help me keep to my schedule - too many jobs still to do plus unexpected extras - like the Hydrovane rudder... I fixed it in place - beautifully easy....but then putting in the pin to hold it there, it got jammed and was impossible to release (not helped when I forced it!)... Two Dutch cruisers close by put down their glasses of wine to help me - and eventually sorted it out. Before that, I'd just finished drilling and fixing the remaining two brackets for the under-floor reinforcing strut - which job, when started, caused me to spot water in the bilges - lots!! I'd topped up the water-tank and the overflow into the sink had obviously run in water faster than it could exit. It must have overflowed as I went to close the tap.... Time had to be spent mopping it all up, and more time was wasted trying to set up a 12V power supply to a small pump which would have speeded the job up, but changing a cigar plug from German to British got too convoluted & was taking up too much time so I abandoned it & went back to a floorcloth on the end of a long 'grabber'! (At least that helped get rid of the remnants of the diesel leak in the same place I'd had to clear up two days earlier!)

I had to leave the marina around high water to get over the 'sill' which keeps boats inside afloat when the tide goes out - so after my supper, I went back to 'Nereida' and motored out to a pontoon outside in the main harbour to finish tidying and organizing - so the start of my long passage was delayed until I felt comfortable that I was prepared for putting to sea safely...

I then found the wind still not quite as the weather forecast predicted and decided to get a few hours sleep to wait for a favourable tide around dawn - at least I could make use of that help when I sailed away from St Peterport.

So here we are finally sailing nicely in a WNW F4-5 at around 6 knots but having to head rather more inshore than I wanted in order not to get headed I expect to have to tack out shortly to keep well offshore when rounding Ushant to begin the Biscay crossing - I'm not looking forward to that, since SW winds are expected by tomorrow and Monday. I may have to head well out, not to get 'embayed'. We'll see how that pans out - weather forecasts are rarely correct in detail...

I found very rough water around Guernsey even though I tried to stay in deeper water - a strong 'Spring' tide and lots of rocks around...!! But it's nice to be sailing and on passage finally. ...

Later(7pm): We're really struggling to make headway against the tide... having to tack and making very little real progress ... Speed is 3.5-4 knots over the ground with full canvas and tide is likely to get up to 2 knots against (HW was at 5.30pm) - stronger more inshore so a good reason to try to stay well out - except must try to avoid shipping in lanes to north of here.... It's going to be a frustrating several days, since crossing Biscay is likely to be similar... Oh well,..... at least the threatening rain of mid-afternoon came to nothing and the sky is only lightly clouded and I'm getting frequent 20 minute sleeps to catch up.

7.18pm: Speed (SOG) 2.1 kn, course over ground (COG): 170T - I'm going backwards!!! Wind has dropped to around F2-3 (7 knots or less) so the tide is taking me east.... grrr!!!

8pm: Sun just set. Decided to use the 'iron horse', heading due west to make for waypoint north of Ushant, just outside shipping lanes (busy area)- time to slack water is at least another hour - I'll see what happens then and if there's wind enough to sail... at least on this leg I have this option - not so, once I leave the Canaries. Present position: 48 24'N, 002 10'W

Thurs/Fri 3/4th Sept 09

"Nereida" preparing to start passage to Canaries Friday evening... under a full moon...! HW is just before 7pm so I hope to leave around then. I'm hoping for fair winds initially to head for Ushant, maybe light, but hoping for mainly favourable winds as I continue down across the Bay of Biscay, keeping well off, if possible, to avoid the heavy traffic between Cape Finisterre and Ushant
Log is now reading correctly and fuel tanks and chain locker(& food lockers) are full!!
I've been busy clearing up and stowing away - with lots of interruptions from well-wishers - but many thanks to them!!

Regards,

Jeanne

Anchor chain arrived last week ..and then had to wait while I had  a shelf glassed in to the chain locker.  Wed's task was biking to DSV freight terminal with an angle grinder to cut the chain into 3 pieces - 100m for main anchor, 25m for secondary (plus 100 m multiplait) and 5m, which I worked out weighed just over 7kg or 15lbs, for the end of the Jordan series drogue to keep it well below the sea surface when deployed.   It was quite difficult getting the chain off the pieces of thick wire it had been looped onto for the galvanizing process but helpful guys at DSV took time out to extricate the chain to measure it and then insisted on cutting it  for me - not easy. Talk about fireworks!! Being high tensile chain meant it was more difficult to cut than ordinary chain but my kind helper made short work of the four cuts - I was amazed he didn't end up with his jeans on fire but he seemed oblivious to the stream of hot sparks landing on him.... I was quite pleased to be well out of the line of fire!  

Plan then was to deliver it to nearby fuel dock Fri morning where I'd come to fuel up at high water around midday and get help to load the chain onto 'Nereida' ... which is more-or-less what happened, except that the replacement floorboarding had arrived in the meantime - more problems.... I had hoped it would be a simple matter of making two long cuts to trim it to size, and had already been investigating where I could do that, but found that more intricate cutting was needed than I could manage.    At one point it seemed everyone was looking out for good 'chippies' to help me at short notice... ! (It's the long August Bank Holiday weekend here in the UK so timing for work to be done has been getting difficult).  Mike, one of the Guernsey Harbour Dockmasters, very kindly came to the rescue, offering me the use of the Harbour facilities, & by late Fri morning, Neil, the Harbour 'chippie', had cut the board beautifully, along with a replacement headlining board and an aluminium strut .

   By the time that was done, we were OK to get out over the sill at the marina entrance but not to get back in after the refuelling and chain manoeuvres- which took 4 of us: two lads high up on the pier above the fuel dock, myself receiving the chain as it was fed down & helper Nicholas flaking the chain onto the deck...!!  (It still has to be marked and attached to the anchors)   So I stayed at the fuel dock overnight and then moved onto a waiting pontoon until high water near 2pm Saturday - when I gingerly crept over the sill, half expecting to touch... relieved to say, I didn't, although I should have done!

Early Friday morning, I removed the speed transducer - the impellor was badly fouled with weed and eggs!

You can just make out the position of the marina sill in the foreground and up on the right is a (red) light indicating it's unsafe to try to enter!!

When leaving DSV earlier in the week, I found a group of people in a shed nearby decorating a flower float, ready for the flower festival the next day:

Maybe this coming week, I'll be sailing away from this lovely old harbour-front church!

    "Nereida" in Victoria Marina, St Peterport, 17th August 2009 - no problem celebrating a birthday with flowers here in Guernsey!!

Sunday 16th August 2009

I'm told I should see my anchor chain on Monday (that would be a good birthday present!)... then I'll have  associated problems to deal with, but since I'm now waiting for a replacement main cabin floor section to be sent from Sweden it looks as though I've a week in hand to resolve them.

Spent most of yesterday fitting the port settee leecloth (my passagemaking berth) in the main cabin - difficult getting  one of the fixings in the right place without destroying the saloon/forepeak bulkhead.  It's a problem being single-handed at times - I needed to be in two places simultaneously!!

Have been busy most of today (Sunday) whipping bungy connections to secure gas tanks and flares canisters in place - but gave me an opportunity to work outside for a time in pleasant weather.  Then I got down to clearing up in the saloon before finally getting to the forepeak to sort out the gear there - my next major project (in between dealing with anchor chain) ... I've several items I need to stow there securely (my folding bike among other things) and it's my spares' stowage/sail-bin/general store/'garage' ... so plenty to sort out and organize ready for sailing.

If flooring section arrives by Monday week, hopefully I can 'escape' from here by the midweek, weather permitting.  I need to get going down to the Canaries to see how 'Nereida' sails and check all systems out on a good long passage (about 12 days, I reckon).  I need to leave from the Canaries after final checks and preparations by end September to make Cape Horn mid-January - time is slipping by fast...

Mon 17th August
A lovely sunny day... Started with a visit from Andre to instal my bilge alarm - yet another kind soul being really helpful and friendly in giving me freely of his precious time to help me with my problems.  We also had a useful discussion about organizing the chain locker and how to have the 2nd anchor (20kg Delta) ready to deploy overboard in an emergency - so much important detail to consider...!  Ideally, I should get a partition glassed into place in the locker, and maybe a high shelf to take the 2ndary rope rode so it's in place ready to go...
I relaxed quite a bit today, visiting the Dockmaster here for a long chat (he keeps an eye on all ferries, freighters, fishing boats and small boat movements in & out of the Harbour - it's a busy place!) and then later got on my bike to go to Fermain Bay.  "Nearby," I'd been told... not so near!    Up a LONG steep hill and quite a distance away.  I walked up most of the hill and then had a great freewheel down a steep path to the shore of lovely Fermain Bay - beautiful scenery  and views on the way and thick, mature woods down to the beach - but the highly-recommended 'Beach Cafe', where I was hoping to have a good meal, was closed, it being Monday - no-one had mentioned that.... oh well!.. Back to town, where I ended up at 'Le Petit Bistro' - and had a very nice French meal - no complaints!
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** Digital selective calling (DSC), allows mariners instantly to send an automatically formatted distress alert to the Coast Guard or other rescue authority anywhere in the world. Digital selective calling also allows mariners to initiate or receive distress, urgency, safety and routine radio calls to or from any similarly equipped vessel or shore station, without requiring either party to be near a radio loudspeaker. DSC acts like the dial and bell of a telephone, allowing you to "direct dial" and "ring" other radios, or allow others to "ring" you, without having to listen to a speaker. All new VHF radios have DSC capability.

My efforts at re-positioning the fluxgate compass took a time, as expected, with having to get behind panels & woodwork in order to re-route the wire, but it is now behaving reasonably well in its new position. I presume I'll have to re-calibrate the compass once I get out of here but that's a simple matter of turning the boat slowly through a couple of 360 degrees - no big deal!

I received a couple of parcels, one with warm base- & mid- clothing layers and one with fax paper rolls for my weather fax machine. The Harbourmaster's Office are very kindly forwarding post to the marina office and they bring my post directly to the boat in a dory ... I'm really impressed by how very helpful they're all being!

The week seems to have gone by without my joblist getting noticeably shorter, although I did spend two days cutting a small hole in quite a few loose panels & fixing a locking device and 'lip' on each of them so that they can be prevented from flying about if we should broach (or worse..!). I went up the mast to re-tie some twine that had come adrift between steps and shrouds & fixed some hooks and other items in place in the cabins - minor, but important for living on board.

The latest problems to raise their heads have been a flooring problem (I'm having to repair the floor just ahead of the companionway steps until a new flooring section reaches me - probably in the Canaries),  a charging problem (having checked voltages with a multi-meter, it looks as though the chart table display unit is showing the wrong information on state of charge of my domestic and start batteries, possibly leading to over-charging of the domestic bank), making sure I've sufficient cooking gas to last for several months (I'm trying to fill two empty US tanks tomorrow, with propane if possible), and realizing that with all this time I've been tied to the dock here, sorting out the boat down below (we've had some rain of late!), I've not been paying enough attention to checking on the sailing side of things.  I suddenly realized that I need to deal with a few shackles, eye splices & lines ,..  I had thought all that side of things had been sorted out a long time ago... It's top of the list now!

I was delighted to get an email from the Quartermaster on board the 'Queen of Oak Bay' (a B.C. ferry that runs between Horseshoe Bay, N. Vancouver, and Nanaimo on Vancouver Island) who had very kindly spent quite a time with me last October showing me over the bridge when I was on my way to visit friends in Parksville.  He emailed me because they were wondering how things are going with the new boat and when I was planning to take off. Questions I've had from quite a few people - it's difficult to explain just how many different things I'm having to think about, get organized and then achieve, what with it being a new boat with new instruments etc and also because I expect some difficult conditions while I'm on passage - I'm trying to be prepared for all eventualities!! My latest project is trying to sort out how to get good weather info when I'm in the Southern Hemisphere and far from land - with the patchy, unreliable Internet connection I have here, it becomes really time-consuming trying to sort out the various options or even just to send important emails.

  

I've been meaning to post this photo dating from June when I stayed over in Cowes, at UKSA, before leaving England to come here.  It shows 'Nereida' rafted up alongside the famous 'Gipsy Moth IV'!!

Tuesday 4th Aug '09

Great fun and games this evening at high water with so many boats moving around. Normal to be in a raft of four these days - makes for excellent tea-time spectator enjoyment as people try to move out from within the rafts and others try to come alongside too early...!  The marina staff in their dories often use the dory as a 'pusher' to help people get into position....  All good fun to watch!  And I'm having a great time practising my French there being so many French boats around with the French coast so very close by.  I keep feeling I should be keeping to the right on the road....!

Total waste of time yesterday afternoon - got on my bike with two US propane tanks and went a long way uphill to a local garage who'd said that maybe they could fill them for me - nada!!  Quite apart from fittings giving a problem without a suitable adaptor, I'd already heard that "we only fill our tanks, no-one else's" from the Guernsey Gas company and from another source, "It's against EC regulations to fill ANY aluminium tank anywhere in Europe"....!!   Oh well... at least I had a brilliant fast ride down the hill back to the marina!!

Gave gas locker a thorough clean afterwards, added another lacing eye for secure bungy fixing of tanks and will need to buy two new butane tanks since heard via email that same filling problem for US propane bottles exists in the Canaries.  I don't want to run out of cooking gas whilst still on passage early next year.

Spoke to Simrad about problem with AIS not 'talking to' VHF radio for DSC communication ... useful ... Turned out that I'm missing a power lead which should have been installed in Sweden and the lack of it should have been spotted by the electronics guy working on board at Hamble Point in June.... Nothing like checking out things yourself to get things working properly...! Cable now ordered and should arrive Thursday - easy item to instal.

Spending time on computer & Internet, looking into weather/routeing options - also finding out about 'polars' (useful articles by Stan Honey), although possible that none exist for N380.

This morning had a useful visit from Andre Ferbrache who'd been recommended by Mastervolt UK to sort out my wiring/charging problem.  Have now had everything checked out and wrong wiring (as I'd suspected!) put right - I'm feeling much happier that at least one thing is dealt with OK now!  He suggested installing an audible  alarm on the automatic bilge pump circuit for safety, so I am warned in good time should it start up - they take almost no power and it looks like an easy thing to do, assuming the boat wiring diagram will  show me in which circuit to place the alarm.

Payment organized to Italy - should mean anchor chain starts its journey here by Thursday or Friday - then lots of fun & games dealing with it after it arrives next week.. "Watch this space!!" 

No wonder my autopilot reading was 100 degrees off...!  I was chatting late last night to my boater neighbours, rafted up beside me here in the St Peterport Victoria marina, about needing to dive on a firmly-stuck anchor to retrieve it some years back in a bay off Isla Graciosa, north of Lanzarote in the Canaries... and suddenly realized that my new dive tank had been positioned right beside the fluxgate compass with only a wooden wall dividing them.  No wonder my autopilot tried to make a violent turn on the way here from the Queen Elizabeth marina not so long ago when I activated it so I could organize fenders and mooring lines....   I moved the tank away today to check my theory - and sure enough, the AP reading was promptly in agreement with the ship's compass.  So now I have to move the fluxgate compass from its well-tucked-away position to somewhere else - another job to be added to my already long list....grr! 

Trouble is - I opened up the compass thinking maybe I could undo the wires from inside it, to avoid problems in re-locating it (It's way too big to pass through the holes the wire passes through).  But that was clearly not a good idea, so I quickly put it back together again - cursing as I did so, because that means now that I have the job of tracing the wire back (and releasing it as I do so) to where it's connected to the course computer (- I hope!   Otherwise I have to trace it to the chart table area which is even further away).  Then I'll have to disconnect it and pull all the wire through to re-locate the compass in a new position - yet to be decided on....  I found that the minimum distance needed from the steel dive tank so as not to affect the autopilot heading reading was 0.5 metre - not that much but a lot of work and time will be needed to sort the problem out.

At least today the sun is shining brightly again after a week of overcast, strong winds and frequent rain.  The not-so-good news is I think I may have broken (or at least badly bruised) a little toe when I knocked it some days ago .... it may be 'little' but it can definitely hurt...!  And I'm having to get a tooth problem seen to also!  At least that's happening now when I can get it sorted - better than when I'm mid-passage with no way of getting it looked at!!  (Very nice to have a son who's both an excellent dentist & not too far away.) Fortunately, I'm so busy I don't have time to notice a bit  of pain too much!  

Present preoccupations include completing my dry provisioning for an assumed 7-month non-stop passage - that's a lot of food!!  I've been making lists galore, including sticking them behind locker doors, etc, several revisions & updatings, re-thinking about the best, safe way to stow it all... it's been going on for many days ... but is virtually complete now.  I've been lucky in getting help from people here with cars who have taken me to major supermarkets this week - including a run to the local hospice bookshelves to get some light reading matter in case I find I can relax occasionally over the next few months!  My grateful thanks to Liz and Lucy for their help!

Other concerns have been :
looking over my foul- and cold-weather gear (especially base and mid-layers), finding out what's available and making sure I top up with what I might need in the Southern Ocean, on the assumption that I'll get doused occasionally and then will maybe find I can't dry the clothing out;  
checking on my paper charts and organizing stowage of them - realizing I have gaps & need a few more, at least for passage-making, in case my electronic ones become unavailable for whatever reason - so I have had to find out what's available & then arrange for the ones I need to be sent out.  Kelvin Hughes have been really helpful over the supply of charts & books;
organizing getting lots of fax paper rolls for my Furuno weatherfax - thanks to Furuno UK for discounting them & sending to me;
acquisition of a new 'back-up' laptop - and setting it up with all necessary software to duplicate what's on my main laptop .... what a lot of time that has taken - and is still taking up!
......and everyday living.... with little time to relax!
All not helped by the need to make occasional quick (2-day) trips back up to London to deal with an ongoing concern there!

The high-tensile anchor chain is continuing through its two-week-or-more production process by Maggi Catene in Italy - might be ready to send out within a week, with any luck.

Wi-fi Internet access on board is really frustrating - often unreliable, so another regular time-waster...  I have to make frequent trips to the Visitor Centre or to the nearby friendly 'Ship and Crown' for reliable access, restricted to their opening times.

A regular amusement here is the to-ing and fro-ing of boats at high water when they can get over the entrance sill into the marina from the waiting pontoons outside in the harbour.  Mostly people get it absolutely right when coming alongside but there's the occasional panic!  And I've been surprised to see the nearly horizontal ramp to the dock from the Albert Pier at high water - it's 'spring' tides now & so the water level is particularly high.  (I hear that the water often rises to above the road level.)   But at low water, the same ramp is really steep - not a good time to bring heavy shopping to the dockside.

This week, several boats have dried out over LW on the nearby ledge to look at prop or shaft problems - two had lines to remove from around their prop and another had a major propshaft leak to be dealt with.  It's handy to have the drying ledge there to be used so easily and safely.

Looking at the weather, as I continually do these days, I'm wondering how much of a problem I'll face getting away from here once I'm finally ready - the winds seem to be almost constantly from the SW quadrant - exactly the direction I'll be wanting to make....

Guernsey report 2 - enjoyed 'Björn Again'... Maggi Catene in Italy sort out the anchor chain problem....

I enjoyed the 'Björn Again' concert at the Beausejour Centre Friday fortnight ago (26th June) - lots of familiar Abba songs!  Made me think back to my three months in Sweden early this year & all the many really nice people I met whilst there.  So many, both in Stenungsund and in  who were  so very hospitable and kind to me while I was overseeing the boat being built & fitted out, with so many changes I'd asked for, at Najadvarvet in Henån. ....and such lovely scenery...  I found myself missing all of it and them!  I hope I get back there one day.

At high water one Saturday, the Guernsey Lifeboat came by....

Time seems to be passing by and I'm busy with boat work/projects almost all the time - but my list of jobs doesn't seem to be getting much shorter & I still need to finish so many things on board before moving away from here.

I've been particularly concerned about my lack of anchor chain - I really don't want to go for the sail trials around here that I'd been wanting to get out on without chain in my locker for safety reasons.  The Swedish importer in Ellös, not far from the yard at Henån, had  quoted an unacceptably long delivery time back in Feb/March and I saw no reason why it shouldn't  be sent to the Hamble instead, to arrive after the boat was delivered there mid-April .... "No problem", I was assured back in Feb/March .. 

I'd been wanting calibrated, galvanized, 8mm (1.40kg/m), high tensile (HT) chain (G70) to fit my windlass gipsy, in order to avoid carrying the weight of the same length of ordinary (medium tensile, G40) galvanized, 10mm (2.35 kg/m)  chain (confusingly called 'high test' in the US!).   (Then there's also low tensile chain (G30), commonly labeled as 'BBB' or 'proof coil' - I've learned a lot about chain recently!!)  High Tensile (G70) 8mm chain is actually stronger than the G40 10mm chain (7000kgf as compared with 5096 kgf breaking load) - a definite bonus!  A friend had suggested maybe getting 75m of 10mm G40 chain plus lots of rope if I wasn't able to resolve the problem soon, as a reasonably practical compromise - a very sensible thought which hadn't occurred to me.   This week, I spoke to Maggi Catene in Italy, (who are the highly reputable European chain manufacturers with whom I'd been originally talking) to find out what was happening  - and it turned out that there had been unfortunate wording of the order (I shan't go into the convoluted details!)  ....

To cut a very long story short, Maggi Catene were most concerned when they understood my situation and  are now working hard on the production of my chain (as a prioritized  'special' order for theIr 'Aqua7' - calibrated, short-link, high tensile, galvanized anchor chain) to be sent now, of course, to Guernsey, not the Hamble....  A smaller detail (!) is the logistical problem of getting it into my chain locker from a ship, somehow.... The local chandler, Chris of Boatworks, has sounded very helpful on that score - we'll wait for high water and then make use of his fuel dock inside the harbour entrance.  Seems I'll have to wait over two weeks before I can go for extended sail trials.....

In the meantime, I'll finish checking over (and learning to use!) all my equipment and instruments to see that they are OK, finish the long-term provisioning I want to get done here and try to get the boat ship-shape and tidy.  (I'm still busy with fixing and stowing things)  I noticed when changing marinas, that my compass heading seemed to be out  by 100 degrees (!) and my log impellor still needs cleaning from when I was sitting in the muddy Hamble waters for six weeks - so I've plenty to keep me occupied...!

The good news is the excellent summer that England (and W. Europe in general) seems to be having  - lovely weather, with hot sun at times, and hardly any rain to make doing things difficult on board.  I've got my folding bike out now so have been able to get about more easily, although one day I did relax and take the lengthy 'round-the-island, local-bus-tour' for all of 60 pence.  Guernsey is a lovely island, with lots of mature, unpruned trees, beautiful long white beaches, surfing for those interested and lots of anchorages within easy reach (for those lucky people with chain!) - including the little islands of Herm and Sark a short distance away.  It also has lots of rocks, shallows and big tides to make sailing and navigation interesting.... At Springs recently, HW was 9.5m and LW was 0.9m above chart datum - giving a range of 8.6m (over 27ft).  Not exactly the 11m range of the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia - but not far short!!  "Nereida' was definitely sitting in the mud at the marina dockside at Springs LW, with actual water depth (measured by lead line to calibrate my depth instrument) being 1.9m!!   It's a very steep walk down the ramp to the dock from the roadway of the Albert Pier at low water!   The marina has a 'sill' at the entrance to keep boats inside afloat at LW and movement in and out can only occur for about two hours either side of HW -so they have several 'waiting pontoons' in deeper water just outside the marina entrance (but still well within the protected main St Peterport harbour) for new arrivals to tie up to.

It has been quite sociable here also - two boats (one Canadian!), with friends on board, sailed in unexpectedly last week and other boaters moored up close by have been very welcoming.  There are lots of French, some Dutch and Belgian and lots of British boats coming to Guernsey, usually just  for a few days, some as part of their cruising in the Brittany/Normandy area and others on their way south to the Med.  Things are set to get even busier, now we're into July - I hear that the rafting-up alongside the pontoons here in Victoria Marina will be getting 'interesting' later this month as numbers increase dramatically with kids off school!

I appeared in last Wednesday's 'Guernsey Press' (local newspaper) and my story about losing the previous boat in Mexico has also just been published (in detail & with lots of photos!) in the August edition of 'Yachting Monthly'.

Wed 24th June '09

Thought I'd post photos shown on Mexican TV that I received from Jose and Rocio in Tecpan (they helped me a lot this time last year).    It seems unbelievable that 'Nereida I' has sunk (or become buried) so deep below the wet sand due to the surge from the nearby surf - only her mast top is now visible... the genoa furling forestay is clearly still there, as are the upper shrouds and mast steps.

That compares to the view this time last year.....  So very sad - not to be dwelt on for too long - too painful still.

Back to today's news:  I moved marina! ...From Qu. Elizabeth to Victoria - much more convenient (for a start, I've Internet access on board - that will save me time).  Only problem is I seem to have lost THREE mooring lines since leaving the Hamble - how can that be??  I've searched - but nada!!  (Thursday:  Found two... and then remembered that a crew member dropped the third one overboard as we were leavng River Hamble for sail trials before I left for Guernsey - shan't embarrass him by naming him...!  It sank too fast even to practise 'man overboard' drill!)

The good news is how well the boat is responding under power.  I'd noticed that when first arriving here when I had a nightmare mooring up - stepped off from a stationary boat onto the dock, holding bow & stern lines, only to find 'Nereida' moving gently but irretrievably down the dockside .. I'd seen there was quite a current, as well as wind, affecting her .. but wasn't expecting this much movement... but it was all I could do to tie the end of one line down - not enough...! She ended up around the end of the dock and over the other side... Help..!!  I luckily saved major damage to a finger and thumb in tying the end of the line I did manage to secure (no proper cleats here ... grr!!)  In retrospect, I think I must have left her slightly in astern gear - embarrassing to have to admit to that, but I'm still not familiar enough with the new Yanmar engine and controls (had a Volvo-Penta before) .... & that certainly explains the problem I was confronted with.  But in the manoeuvring in tight spaces both before and then after that event - she responded so well.  I think the Brunton's Autoprop is a great help and certainly I was delighted with the control I seem to have in going astern.  At any rate, so far, I've not hit anything (and I'm determinedly NOT using the bow thruster I ended up with!! To my mind, using it would be a matter of 'chickening out'  .... I should be able to control the boat without it....)
Today, in moving from my berth rafted-up alongside a gaff-rigged boat, my  interest centred on an unexpected tidal effect.  I'd let the stern line slip first (with difficulty, since the line was led to the other boat through a fairlead and then around a post), leaving slipping the bow to later since I expected the bow to blow off in the slight wind.... but in the time it took to try to slip the bow line I found us swinging around in a strong current.  Fortunately, there was room enough - so I tightened up on the line again to let the current do the job of swinging us around most of the way and then let go & went astern, avoiding a boat opposite - whose owner was clearly relieved to see me controlling the boat - almost as much as I was!!

Sat 20th June '09

It's just over a year (Thurs 19th June '08) since losing 'Nereida I' - and here I am, having sailed from England to Guernsey on her lovely new  'big sister' - or, at least, that's how I feel about her.   It's a good feeling and I'm really looking forward to getting to know how the new 'Nereida' sails - faster, that's for sure!!  But a lot of sorting out of gear and stowing/fixing before I go sailing - and lots more provisioning before I leave here in July.  Got a good Winlink email connection last night - but no Sailmail..... that's radio for you!!

Photos of leaving England near sunset through the Needles Channel (Isle of Wight), showing Needles and distinctive Needles LH, and the approach to Guernsey next morning, with entrance to St Peterport harbour:

Thursday 18th June '09

Think I may have finally made up on sleep missed out on 18hr Channel crossing from Cowes the other night - took occasional 15-20 min. timed naps when the many ships crossing my NE-SW path were not threatening, AIS yet again proving its worth. Only felt need to speak on VHF to one ship looking as though it was on collision course to confirm it knew I was there - no problem, he reassured me! I was transmitting on AIS, as well as receiving, so they should all have seen me on their screens - I'm sure that must have helped collision avoidance.
Testing out email/weather transmit/receive on SSB radio from depths of Qu.Elizabeth marina here in Guernsey - absolutely no go on Winlink (Ham) frequencies. Did make contact on one Sailmail frequency last night but not this morning... Hoping that's just the result of being surrounded by other boats/masts... Gas alarm sounds when I transmit on 10MHz or above - may have to disconnect it.

            
Difficult to know where to start - so much has happened on board, and off, over the last month.... and so many people have been so very kind and helpful.... but I'm finally about to leave England for Guernsey (anchor chain problems permitting..)
Some days 'i've felt as though I've been lurching from one problem to another - as fast as one thing has been sorted, another (sometimes consequential)  problem has arisen...  But my helper Nick of 'Yachting Sports' has always come up with great solutions - although we had to admit defeat over the secondary  anchor - intended as a 25kg Rocna, I've twice had to make the journey to Poole to exchange it for another, firstly downsizing to a 20kg Rocna and finally having to get a 20kg Delta.  The problem was the shape of the Rocna - which is precisely what makes it behave so well, reputedly reliably re-setting itself with a change of tide.  Even the smaller Rocna would not stow anywhere on deck without blocking access to cleats or lazarettes and it also could not  stow below deck.
My main aim has been to make the boat and all gear safe in rough seas.  So lots of fixing in place, in addition to finalizing instrument installation, wiring, rigging, sheet leads, etc, etc, etc....
Paul Lawson, an electrical engineer at Raymarine who has been so helpful when I've had instrument problems over the last few years, kindly came out on "Nereida" with friend Julie one Saturday afternoon to calibrate my instruments and check out the installation.  Raymarine are kindly loaning me extra autopilot items free of charge so I will have a complete secondary system - drive unit in place already, course computer and rudder reference unit easily put in place and second control unit available.  Of course, a lot of the time I expect to use my windsteering (Hydrovane) which requires no battery power but I'm sure there will be times when I'll be pleased to have the electronic autopilot reliably available.
Paul and Lorna, from the Customs office based in Portsmouth, have been incredibly helpful over VAT paperwork, making several visits to 'Nereida', even out of office hours, and bringing forms to me - thank you for that!  They've certainly boosted the image of Customs officials at Hamble Point!! 
Susannah, of IMP, has been her usual very friendly & supportive self, and organized sending a dimmer switch at short notice, with Darren, also of IMP, being very helpful over the telephone with advice on the installation  - so my dimmable saloon LED lighting is now working fine! 

Mandy, of Ocean Safety , has been very helpful on safety gear and I was delighted when ACR offered to donate an EPIRB and floating  strobe/'torch light.  Andy (and Craig) of Andark Diving at Swanwick were very welcoming and cheerfully supplied new dive gear, giving me excellent help on pricing!
Pauline, of Force 4 Chandlery, has been really great and arranged for Gill to donate warm base and mid layer items - they'll be much appreciated when I'm down in the Southern Ocean...!!  She has also donated various other chandlery items for the boat.... there's been so much to think about on the equipment side whilst commissioning 'Nereida' - it's certainly kept me very busy for several weeks now, often into the small hours, keeping tabs on everything.  Even this 'blog' is being typed in the early hours..... no other time to do it!!
I've been visiting local supermarkets, trying to provision in advance on certain dried and tinned items - both Waitrose and Tesco have helped with gift vouchers to offset a little of the cost .. 6-7 months of supplies is a lot of food...but I don't fancy getting cockroach eggs mixed in with my flour and rice, hence the provisioning here in England!    (The Canaries are notorious for cockroaches  - I just hope I can keep them from visiting me!)
I had a visit from BBC Radio Solent and also from the Southampton 'Daily Echo', both of whom intend putting their radio/video interviews on their websites this Friday (tomorrow).  They'll be publishing the Justgiving weblink (soon to be added on my 'Links' page) for donations to be made to Marie Curie Cancer Care charity which provides nurses (free of charge)  for terminally ill people to live their last days at home with their family instead of in hospital... a worthwhile cause, I believe.
If all goes well, I'll be in Guernsey next week.  There, I'll stop for several weeks while I check eveything out,  learn to use my new instruments and go sailing regularly to see how the new 'Nereida' behaves.

Postscript Friday 12th June:  Thought I'd lost all this last night - but just found it in draft form .... (sigh of relief!!)  Today, received post from Raymarine with back-up parts loaned for the circumnavigation - very kind - thank you, Derek!  Spent a time chasing around for hydraulic fluid for autopilot - difficult to find but eventually manufacturer of motor unit in Devon helped out so eventually I got suitable fluid.  Also received New Zealand chart cards from Navionics  for chart plotter, sent at short notice. I'm trying to be ready for unexpected landfall needed in case of problems as I sail around ... strong weather makes breakages more likely, even with a new boat...  
New mainsail cover doesn't fit properly and bimini not OK either - not happy about either so will have to deal with them both in Guernsey...  Also, anchor chain just turned up ungalvanised ... major problem to be resolved still but I have 100m of multiplait rope to use in meantime, if needed .  So much still to deal with..... 
Went for a short sail in Solent with Nick and James in the late afternoon to check rig and sheetleads etc -  all looks fine and it was so very pleasant actually to be out  sailing on the water, rather than tied up at the dock.....  Derek of 'Yachting Sports' took photos of the boat as we came back up the river Hamble towards the marina (see top of page).

Home is where Nereida is.......!   Main cabin..... before (temporary) chaos of final wiring of instruments took over! 
                    

Celebrating the naming of Nereida on Sat 18th April '09 at Hamble Point .......
                                                       
                                                                             

".... wonder what Neptune thinks of this 'bubbly'...?"

 Nereida was in chaos today (Friday) with work on deck and down below (instruments, solar panels, wind generator, mast steps - all being seen to) but she looked beautiful  and peaceful last week, having just been named.....!

More photos to come..... Windsteering (Hydrovane) was fitted last Monday and it's nice to see a mast and sails...!   More work to do this coming week, bu the major items should soon be finished .... maybe I'll get sailing soon, but lots of 'toys' to play with, & figure out how they work, in the meantime!

Happy Easter!

It's been an exciting time for me with the new "Nereida" nearing completion.....

First time afloat...!!                  

                                                                       And then she gets a mast...                  

Time to test the engine and prop...                                     

and then go for a lovely test-sail .....in bright sunshine and good wind.... at last.... gorgeous!!

"Nereida" is on her way to England as you read this (today is Maundy Thursday, 9th April)...all very exciting, especially since things got rather hectic (read 'stressful'. ..??!) at the very end ... but all's well and I'm looking forward to meeting up with her and being on the water with her early next week.

It's been difficult saying 'Goodbye' to so many people here in Sweden, from the Najad yard, the Stenungsund Y.C. hotel and others I've met during my time here - they've been so very kind, friendly and helpful and I'd almost taken up residence here since mid-January - even getting a little Swedish going...!

It's been a pleasure working with the guys & gals at Najad in Henån - they clearly take a pride in their workmanship and I think (and hope!) they've enjoyed the challenge of working on my boat. She's rather special and very different from the standard N380 - as they kept telling me! I know they are looking forward to reading of her sailing the oceans - as she was designed to do.

Life has been just a little bit hectic of late, tryng to keep on top of everything going on, as the end came in sight and we tried to keep to a deadline for delivery to England before Easter...!!  I'm catching my breath and trying to relax now that she's en route to the Hamble, between Southampton and Portsmouth... later than hoped but it's been good to have had some extra days this last week since they were needed to sort out a few hiccups!    

All being well, I'll be on board her at Hamble Point Marina straight after Easter weekend.  If you're nearby, come and visit!  Then there'll be the last few things to get done before she's totally ready to go sailing .... I'm so much looking forward to that...

More photos posted on Flickr....   click on this link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nereida/sets/    I'm hoping to post new info on the website 'Boat Details' and other pages a.s.a.p.  - I'm very conscious of the fact that the updating there  is well overdue.....  but in the meantime:

New Boat Details

The new 'Nereida' is a Najad 380, hull number 82, built in 2009 by Najadvarvet at Henån on the island of Orust in Sweden, just north of Göteborg. She is named after the 'nereids' of ancient Greek mythology who were the 'handmaidens of Poseidon' (or Neptune, as the Romans called him) - so she is a 'sea nymph'! On the sea-front at Puerto Vallarta in Mexico is a lovely bronze of Nereida and Poseidon - shown as mermaid and merman.  (I found a smaller version of the same bronze on the seafront at Barra de Navidad.)

LOA = 11.55m (38')  LWL = 9.9m (32'6") Beam = 3.65m (12') Draft = 2.02m (6'7½")
Displacement (empty!) = 9.1 ton (9100 kg/20060 lb) Bolted lead keel = 3.1 ton (3100 kg /6834 lb)
Hull speed - 8.9 kts Mast height 15.63m (50'2") Mast height above waterline - 17.68m (58')

Sail plan
Cutter rig with furling genoa and staysail     P = 14.18m   E = 5.0m   I = 15.3m   I2 = 9.71m   J = 4.25m   J2 = 2.25m

Sails (sq m /sq ft)
Main (fully battened) 41.8/450; Furling Genoa 42/452; Furling staysail 16.5/178; Asymmetric spinnakers 90.6/975; Code zero 65.0/700; Storm jib 12/129;  Trysail --/--

Engine: Yanmar 4JH4AE, 54hp (39.6 kW)

Ground Tackle
2 Rocna25  anchors (25kg/55lb)  - one in bow with chain, one as spare (below)
Anchor Buddy CAB30
Kedge anchor :12kg grapnel, with chain & rope
Chain  100m 8mm HT on main anchor. Also 30m 8mm HT with 100m nylon multiplait
Windlass - Lofrans Project 1500 (electric) taking chain and/or rope rode

Water tanks: 400 ltrs (88 Imp.gall/ 105 US gall) in 3 tanks
Water maker (desalination) - Spectra 12v Cape Horn system with 2 pumps
Diesel tank: 325 l (72 Imp. gall/ 86 US gall)

Solar panels - 2x55W and 2x80W  12V Shell (Siemens)
Wind generator - KISS (Trinidad)
Electrical supplies - 12v DC: 12v 4kVA DC Fischer-Panda diesel generator
Secondary alternator on engine, Mastervolt 130A, with regulator
Shore charger/inverter - Mastervolt Mass Combi 12/2500-100 (230V/50Hz)
230/110V transformer for isolated shore input
5 x 130Ah AGM glass mat batteries (domestic) + 55Ah start battery

HF/SSB radio - ICOM M801 with ATU 141 & line isolator
SCS Pactor modem PTC-IIusb (for e-mail, weatherfax) for Airmail 2000 software (Winlink) 
Furuno FAX408 Weatherfax, also HF radio to computer software
NASA Marine Navtex
VHF radios - Simrad RS82 2-position (25/1W masthead aerial); ICOM ICM71 (handheld) 
A.I.S. - Simrad A150 'Class B' transceiver
Radar - Raymarine 18" radome scanner
Autopilot - Raymarine hydraulic Drive T3 acting on quadrant, S3G course computer with ST6002 control head
Instruments - Raymarine ST60+ wind, speed/log, depth.
GPS - Raymarine Raystar125 dGPS sensor
EPIRB - ACR ...
Charting - Nobeltec Admiral Max Pro version 10.0 using C-Map electronic world charts;
Raymarine E80 and E120 combined radar/plotter with Navionics Gold cards
Garmin handheld GPS 60CSx with Bluechart cards.
Also backup paper charts.  Sextant & tables.

Andersen winches: 2x52ST, 2x40ST, 2x28ST in cockpit; 2 28ST & reefing winch on mast
Wind Steering - Hydrovane, windvane driving auxiliary rudder
Propeller - 3-bladed, automatic variable pitch - Autoprop (Bruntons UK)
Ropestripper (Ambassador Marine) - rope cutter forward of propeller on propshaft

Heating - Eberspacher 8 kW (diesel) circulated hot air; Mojave 3-speed fan heater using engine cooling water; Sigmar 120 cabin diesel heater
Refrigerator - Danfoss compressor - 110 ltrs capacity
Kenwood CD player/Radio (LW/MW/AF) with iPod connection
Liferaft - Avon Modula (4 man)
Tender - Zodiac CR260 (inflatable floor)
Outboard - Mercury 3.5 h.p.

Interior layout of standard N380:

(Note the port settee on "Nereida" has no 'return' since that is where the Sigmar 120 heater is now placed)

Support for the new "Nereida" (Najad 380, hull number 82) in 2009:
 
Sponsors donating equipment:

  Jeppesen (Nobeltec) (USA)
  Cantalupi lighting (Italy)
  Sealevel systems (USA)
  Garmin Europe 
  Dubarry  (Ireland)
  Whale pumps (Sweden/UK)
  Denrex ApS (Denmark)

Support also from:

  Raymarine (UK)
  Andersen (Denmark)
  UK-Syversen (Sweden)
  Brunton's (UK)
  Lopolight (Denmark)
  Dickinson Marine (B.C., Canada)
  Kelvin Hughes (UK)
  ICOM UK
  Selden UK
  Nasa Marine (UK)
  Scanstrut (UK)
  Ambassador Marine (UK)
  Musto UK
   
   
 Many firms, some of whose products I had already been using over the last few years, have very kindly agreed to help me with my new boat, after the loss of my old one, by donating or discounting equipment or spares.  In the present difficult economic climate, it has often been difficult for companies to provide this help - so what has been provided is that much more appreciated!

I have used the Nobeltec electronic charting system since October 2000. I find it really user-friendly and it makes it so easy to plot new passages, with the bonus of good tide & current information for the US and Canada.  As of this year, 2009, I shall be using their excellent new C-Map Max Pro cartography, available in version 10.  I am very grateful for the ongoing support I have received from Jeppesen Marine throughout my recent travels & into the next passagemaking.

Cantalupi Lighting  generously provided dimmable LED overhead lighting throughout the new boat - thanks to IMP Ltd for initiating that!

Sealevel are providing me with the USB hubs and USB-to-serial communications hardware that I will need to connect boat equipment to my laptop - their products are well-known for being very reliable..

I am delighted that Garmin have again provided a hand-held GPS unit.  Their GPS units are so reliable and make a superb emergency back-up - the 60CSx takes Bluechart chips and so is very useful in everyday use, not just for emergencies, with its built-in electronic compass and barometer.

Dubarry boots - are lovely! ... so many people have noticed and commented favourably on seeing me wearing them!!  My old ones saw good use over several years and I'm very happy they're being replaced!

Whale pumps have provided their reliable freshwater footpump and manual seawater pump for the new boat - I expect many years of trouble-free use, as on my last boat. Thank you, Brian.

Denrex ApS  in Denmark kindly sent the Propspeed coating system I wanted for the Autoprop.  I had applied Propspeed when hauled out in Cairns during my first circumnavigation and found it worked well - it's not a toxic antifouling, relying solely on a very smooth plastic finish containing silicon. 

........................................................
 
Raymarine have frequently been very helpful, both in the past and with the new boat, on instrumentation and equipment issues.  They are continuing to be very supportive and are also giving me whatever technical help I need.

Andersen winches are a delight to use and they have several times sent spares & items from Denmark for my winches - servicing them is a job I actually enjoy doing, the winches are so beautifully engineered.

My Brunton's Autoprop, a self-adjusting propeller, is also a lovely bit of engineering & the last one performed impressively, requiring noticeably fewer engine revs for a given speed through the water than the previous fixed prop.

Lopolight kindly sent me heavily discounted LED navigation lights in stainless steel - I'm looking forward to the resulting energy saving on overnight passages. 

Dickinson Marine in Coquitlam, B.C. (Canada) were extremely helpful in the pricing and freighting of their beautifully-designed Sigmar 120 cabin heater which I'm looking forward to using if & when I find myself in colder climes...!

Kelvin Hughes are very kindly helping with replacing books and charts I lost - thank you, Terry!

Icom UK have again been helpful and kindly donated a spare microphone along with a discounted Icom M801 SSB radio & ATU.  I'm hoping the new SSB radio installation will work really well - it will see a lot of use for speaking to other boats and 'ham' radio users, as well as for emailing and weather information.

Selden - both in Sweden and in the US - gave me excellent support in the past and Selden UK are being very supportive this year.

Musto, who very generously agreed to keep me warm and dry on my previous circumnavigation, are still helping, albeit to a lesser extent, this time around - I shall be  using their well-designed clothing again.

Scanstrut design excellent instrument supports - I particularly like their self-levelling radar mount on my stern steelwork. 
 
Nasa Marine have helped with the discounted purchase of their Navtex and their AIS stand-alone units.  AIS is really useful in collision avoidance both inshore and when on long ocean passages - and keeps working in storms when radar is sometimes not!

Navionics UK - their Navionics Gold+ chart cards are used in the Raymarine chartplotters.

Ambassador Marine - their Ropestripper tis placed on my propshaft to protect against lines & thin wire tangling the prop.

Finally, I must say a big "Tack så mycket!" ("Thank you very much") to everyone at Najadvarvet for all their friendly help in the boat construction and fitting out.   So many people have been involved and they all seemed to take pleasure in working on the additions and modifications I brought to 'Nereida II', invariably showing great care and pride in their workmanship. It has been a delight to work with them and I hope they will (vicariously through my website) enjoy my sailing in the new 'Nereida' for many years to come!!

2-3 March - "Nereida" is moved to get a keel - and become a 'complete boat'!

Holes drilled  Nearly! 

(Pipe is being held close by to collect dust)
 

 Nuts tightened                Pretty!       

Spring seemed to have arrived, ...the snow melted away.... and then, one day, winter returned again - thick snow fell....and several cars skidded off into the ditch beside the road.... who said the Swedes can cope with the weather??

Unfortunately, progress on the boat slowed right down with a long list of items not arriving as expected from suppliers.... with plenty still to be installed, I found it difficult not to get increasingly impatient, with delivery being delayed until early April, rather than early -mid March, as I'd been hoping for last month....  "It's a boat, what do you expect?" my friends keep telling me.....!! 

One important safety item I have organized in the meantime is a Jordan Series Drogue from Ace Sailmakers in Connecticut, USA, to attach to the strong points on the stern quarters in times of expected bad storms, ready for deployment in really heavy conditions.  
i've also arranged for a second autopilot  drive unit to be installed 'ready to go' - nothing like being prepared for the worst, although I'd hope to be mainly using my Hydrovane windsteering on my long passages.

The good news, as of 18th March, is that most of the outstanding items have finally arrived, so we're hoping for completion by 2nd April.... arriving in England around 7th April - just before Easter weekend .... I'm keeping my fingers crossed for no more delays....

More photos of lead keel being fitted can be found on Flickr ....  http://www.flickr.com/photos/nereida/sets/72157615499503947/

The snow is finally melting here...! Photos show a free ferry between Orust and Lysekil en route to Smögen from Henån...

Wintry Najardvarvet (Najad Yard), Henan, Sweden - where I'm spending a lot of my time now, keeping a good eye on the fitting out of the new "Nereida" in between discussions on some remaining issues - stern steelwork, strongpoints for a drogue, windsteering fixing points, electronics, sails, 2nd alternator on the engine, etc...   I'm really appreciating a heated car driving seat  (warm & relaxing!) as I drive to and from the Stenungsund Y.C. where I'm staying - a very pleasant, friendly place.  Every Friday and Saturday night, it's really 'hopping' as the only place around where the locals can dance to live music and forget the short, often overcast & dark, cold days.   It gets a good mix of ages (and quite a few really good dancers) and  it's great to see so many people clearly having a good time - plus I get to dance occasionally to 'Abba'  (or at least, to their music!) in Sweden....!!

The boat started out in December being worked on with the deck alongside the hull - but by January, the deck was in place and the boat was soon moved to its new 'home' (see photos below) where it will stay until it is almost ready to truck down to England in early March.
Moving of the boat gave me a chance to get a good first overall view of her -  she looks pretty, don't you think?  And I know she'll sail well, maybe even better than the old 'Nereida' ...  It was a freezing cold Friday night and they took quite a time manoevring her to a precise position - the working platform/floor around in her new 'home' is a very close fit!

I had a busy time at the London Boat Show, meeting lots of people, many of whom were very supportive of my sailing plans with the new boat.  Prior to the Show, I'd already had very welcome help from both Lopolight (their new stainless steel LED navigation lights) & Whale Pumps (fresh water foot pump and sea water manual  pump - both very reliable & used  in my previous boat) - as mentioned in my previous 'blog'.  Andersen (winches) are continuing to be very helpful and, as a result of talking to IMP Ltd about that, I was delighted to find Cantalupi Lighting offering to send me as many overhead LED cabin lights as I need - a big 'Thank you' to Susannah (IMP in UK) and to Giovanni (Cantalupi in Italy)!  That will really help keep my power usage down both on passage and at anchor.   Terry Smallwood of Kelvin Hughes has very kindly offered to help me with my buying of books and charts etc - I lost so many....

Not far from Henan is Smogen where the sail loft of UK-Syversen (sailmaker for Najad) is based, amid dramatic, enormous, granite boulders and bare outcrops,  rounded and smoothed by Ice Age glacier action, overlooking a sea littered with low, bare, granite islands - so unlike the tree-covered Gulf Islands of B.C.  Here I met 'Dallas' who will be making my sails.  I found it difficult not to accept his very tempting  offer of sails in a woven Spectra/polyester 7:3 mix, his price was so good.  It'll be interesting to see how they wear - I've been given conflicting reports on that.  He is convinced that the cloth will do me fine - and it will obviously keep its shape well.   Of course, there'll be a deep third reef in the mainsail and I've asked for reflective tape on the furling genoa 'reef marks' - that has proved so useful overnight when it's really dark.

As part of the stern arch steelwork design problem that's been on my mind for some time now, I've been looking at  using Scanstrut's self-levelling radar mount, with a simple GPS support on it, which can hang to one side of my solar panels (so minimal shadowing) .   It looks like a really neat  well-designed solution and should work well.     This can be combined with other antennae (for AIS, Navtex, weatherfax, Iridium, etc) mounted on a plate above, with all wires leading down into the supporting tube.   I'm not keen to use aluminium if it can be avoided - I prefer to use steel -  so we'll see how it works out in practice.  I'll use a standard SS 2-inch pole instead of their 3-inch powder-coated aluminium pole, which requires the wires all to be led outside near the hinged base, rather than being led down  below decks from inside the tube as I want to do.  I'm hoping to lead the wires directly down into a self-draining lazarette before routeing them forward, to avoid problems of water ingress.   Scanstrut have been very helpful in discussions on the details of their products.

I started the year well by winning a little competition run by Sealevel Systems (USB-serial adaptors etc) - the answer to their December quiz seemed to me to be so obvious, I replied - and won!!  As a result of the direct contact, they have said they are very happy to provide me with  the USB to serial communications   hardware that I will need to connect boat equipment to my laptop - nice of them, since their products are well-known for being very reliable.
The 'good feelings' continued with the news that the Ocean Cruising Club are to award me their Rose Medal for a 'meritorious short-handed passage' (clearly not my very last one...!).  They must have been very short on contenders this year!  But seriously, I feel honoured ... and a bit fraudulent for being given an award for simply doing something I enjoy so much!!   It seems to me that it's the starting out that is difficult for so many... afterwards, all you have to do is to keep going.

A short entry - just to wish you all the best of health and happiness in 2009! May your seas be calm, your winds be warm and pleasant and your current be a favourable one!

November/December: Travelling/seeing friends,..Swedish Olympic sailors,..new BC ferry,..dinghy racing,..more planning for new boat: finally being fitted out.

November: More travel... starting in British Columbia (Canada) where I enjoyed catching up with several friends. I was fortunate enough to be given a detailed tour of the bridge & its instruments by the Captain of the spanking new 'Coastal Inspiration', plying between Nanaimo, on Vancouver Island, & Tawwassen, on the B.C. mainland.... & was able to compare that with the much older 'Queen of Oak Bay' whose bridge I had also been shown over the day before between Horseshoe Bay (N. Vancouver) and Nanaimo. I couldn't get over the lack of any steering wheel or traditional compass... and so many electronic 'bells & whistles' on the new ferry, distinctive in its '2010 Winter Olympics' livery...!

I flew via London to Sweden for further discussions on the new boat... not yet in the yard (the hull was being laid up in Denmark) but needing lots of detailed planning and organizing of equipment in readiness for its arrival and subsequent fitting out. It's due to be completed & trucked to England in Feb/March '09, sailing it south not being a viable option at that time of year. I'm having to make sure nothing has been overlooked on the 'joblist' ... it's so easy for items to get 'lost' and disappear from my lengthy list of changes and additions. As I was stepping off a 380 in winter storage at the yard, I suddenly realized, for instance, that in order to place windsteering gear on the stern (I'm considering a Hydrovane for that), the swim ladder needed to be reduced in width and moved to one side of the 'sugarscoop' if I'm to stand any chance of being able to use it (unlike on my previous boat where that was impossible). It also occurred to me that the 'gates' I'd requested in August to be fitted in the lifelines on either side had gone missing off the list.

Various firms are being very helpful to me on their pricing of the new equipment being fitted, for which I'm grateful... None of it is cheap so "every little bit helps":
Icom UK have helped with a new 801 SSB radio and tuner etc and have donated a spare mic - always useful 'just in case'...! I'm incorporating a line isolator between the ATU and the radio (supposed to cut out interference) & a large sheet of copper will act as an additional ground ... I'm really hoping for a good radio signal- nothing more frustrating than hearing but not being heard properly...!
Raymarine organized sending out an autopilot drive unit and rudder reference unit so they could be properly fitted in the new hull. (A lot of the rest of my instruments will be fitted in England, with much of the cabling being laid, while it is easy to do so, in the yard in Sweden).
Lopolight are helping with masthead and bow & stern navigation lights, anchor light and steaming light - all to be LED. I was delighted when I saw they had introduced a stainless steel version of their aluminium LED bow & stern lights recently - the design is so neat, compared with my previous navlights which I frequently found dangling (or missing!) from the pulpit in big seas... - but there was no way I was going to fix the aluminium fittings of theirs which I'd seen previously onto my stainless steel pulpit or pushpit...!! I'm looking forward to the power saving of having LED lights in as many places as possible. The masthead anchorlight will also 'double' as a strobe light.
I'm putting in lots of power outlets (12V and some 220V) and fitting fans permanently in several places. Furniture is being 'adjusted' in many places to give more useful stowage, with a dedicated tools, spares & workshop area in the forepeak, incorporating accessible 'sailbins'.

While in Sweden, I stayed at the Stenungsund Y.C. - more a hotel than a yacht club, since it mainly seems to cater for local and visiting people on business. But I did hear of a meeting of sailors one Saturday & thought it would be nice to make contact ... which I did, as they paused for lunch, only to discover I was talking to members of the Swedish Olympic sailing team from the Royal Gothenburg Sailing Club (an hour's drive away) who sail from Stenungsund (but not over the winter months!!) They were discussing ideas for future plans to try to improve on their sailing performance, looking ahead to the Olympics four summers away. They were quite envious of the RYA's well-funded, excellent training schemes for British sailors (who did so very well at Quingdao !)

I returned to England and had useful discussions with several people - it's often very useful to hear what ideas other people come up with. Unfortunately, I went down with a heavy cold soon after arriving which rather put me out of commission for several days but I still managed to catch up with a few friends, although nothing like as many as I'd hoped... I was expecting my salvaged gear from 'Nereida' to arrive - but it turned out to have been loaded onto a later ship and, most inconveniently, not expected until early December.. so much for my planning...

Using airmiles (!), I flew to Toronto - I'd last seen Ron & Lena of 'Jacobite' in Trinidad in 2002 and they'd been trying to get me to visit for some time! It was very interesting seeing the old 'Loyalist' area around Picton and Kingston near to Wellington, on Lake Ontario, where they now live. While back in Canada, I spoke to Dickinson Marine/Sigmarine (now all the same company, who have also just taken over the cabin heater side of Force 10) about their Sigmar 120 cabin heater. It's a nice-looking, good-performing, diesel heater used by several boat-friends and I'd been fancying it for some time but restraining myself...! They were also really helpful, both with advice and on price, and sent the heater and all necessary parts for the complete installation to Phoenix, Arizona (my next stop, early in December - on airmiles again!), ready for me to take on to Sweden.

.... and so to December...

After snowy Toronto, Phoenix was warm enough when the sun shone out of a clear blue sky and I was delighted to be able to join in the weekend Arizona Y.C. (!!!) dinghy-racing on a lake formed by a dam in the middle of lovely, hilly, cactus-strewn, desert scenery, but I was frozen on the Sunday, despite wearing lots of layers and a warm woolly hat. "It IS December," Tony pointed out, "& we do have winter weather, even here!" His Viper dinghy is one-year old, great fun to race... and he was very forgiving of my helming errors! (We managed NOT to come last in two of three races - and we stayed dry!!)   I even managed a quick 'side-trip' to San Diego to enjoy catching up with several friends there.... among them Jack Sutphen who kindly presented me with a copy of his newly- published autobiography.

Back to the Najad yard in Sweden, with brief stops in London and then Amsterdam - an unexpectedly enjoyable stopover in COLD weather. With the Rijks Museum & the Concertgebouw both within easy walking distance of my hotel, I was able to wander around & enjoy lots of art from the 'Golden Age', ...including beautiful paintings by Rembrandt, Vermeer & others, often with amazing light effects & detail. I also got to see Damien Hirst's spectacular platinum skull covered in over 8,000 diamonds .... Was this really art, I wondered?? The next day, I went to a thoroughly relaxing, pleasant evening concert, after taking a canal tour and ambling around a very icy, 'Christmassy' city, before catching a tram & then a train to Schipol airport, ready for an early flight the next morning....

So, finally, the newly-completed hull of the new "Nereida" is in the Production Hall at Najadvarvet in Henan with fitting-out in full swing. I took lots of photos of the empty hull, showing its construction details, bilges and limber holes... I've had them raise the water-line ready for the gear that will soon be added to her. (It had been raised twice over the years on the previous boat!) Much of the cabinetry is already complete but a lot of wiring and plumbing will be laid down before that goes in...

A major discussion has concerned the steel arch on the stern to take the radar scanner, wind-generator & solar panels plus GPS and other antennae - it will incorporate the pushpit to make a stronger, more unified fitting. I dispensed with the usual seats on the quarters as being pointless and thereby gained more straight runs for fixing gear to!! I'm also placing the gas-tanks (propane/butane for cooking) in an aft lazarette, instead of forward where they constantly get doused in seawater - I never liked them there and was determined to change their position as a priority. Using horizontal US tanks has made that a simple proposition, with an adapter to convert from the usual Camping Gaz (butane) system.   Whale Pumps have very kindly just agreed to give me the stainless steel version of their manual pump to act as a seawater pump in the galley and I'm looking into using their new Twist Deck Shower on the stern - it looks like a neat fitting.

I'll have to keep in constant contact & make regular visits while production is underway to keep an eye on everything.... Maybe one day next year, I'll be able actually to relax on board ... that will be nice....!