Robinetta came out of the water on the 4th December, and I've just been on board today to start clearing her out. It was a lovely bright day, but cold. There was ice on the cover and foredeck when we got to the yard, and the temperature never got above 4C.
A quick look at the outside showed various minor patches of bare wood, but it was too cold to paint, even though the hull was dry.
Alex came with me, and between us we've made a good start on preparing her for the winter ashore. She's got her foredeck cover on, and her main sail off, and a car full of cabin contents are now at home. That includes the charts, which gives me a chance to total up our miles for the season.
We used our engine for 60 hours, covered 431 miles (mostly under sail) and spent 25 days on board. That means we averaged just over 17 nm per sailing day. The engine hours were pushed up by a couple of longish passages under motor, but the wind does not always oblige!
Not bad, given we also spent 10 days sailing out of the Hamble this year! (255nm, in three trips)
Tuesday, 11 December 2012
Sunday, 2 December 2012
End of the Season
Decided we'd sleep on Robinetta on Saturday night, since the OGA AGM was at the West Mersea Yacht Club. Seemed like a good idea since we would not need to drive home, so could drink.
Didn't seem like such a good idea when we came out the yacht club at gone 2200 and saw the frost on the ground, but we were expecting it, so well prepared with extra sleeping bags and plenty of warm clothes. I rowed us out, in bright moon light, with plenty of stars over head, and we were soon tucked up in Robinetta.
Putting our light weight summer quilt sleeping bags outside our normal ones, and wearing lots of layers of clothes plus our warm sailing hats, worked fine as a keeping warm in bed strategy; getting out of bed to go to the heads, not so great!
We woke up to ice inside the port holes, but bright sunshine and a good sailing breeze, so after a fry up we got the sails up, and headed for Tollesbury. The aim was to get fuel to top up the tanks before Robinetta comes out of the water. My 'phone rang as we sailed past the Packing Shed; Mike McCarthy had seen us as he drove off the Island!
We waited until until we were sure we had enough water to get over the sill at the marina (high tide at 1410 West Mersea), and tied onto the fuel dock by 1303. Then we discovered that the chandlers closes at 1300 out of season on a Sunday. They had already cashed up and shut down the computers, so there was nothing they could do to sell us fuel (although they were apologetic).
We went and had a drink at the Cruising Club, being too full of fry up to want a carvery dinner, then headed back to Mersea just after high water. We got the sails up again, but the wind had gone very light, so we put the engine on by Little Cob Marsh Island, and motored back home.
A gentle day's sailing, our last of the season, but very enjoyable despite the cold.
Didn't seem like such a good idea when we came out the yacht club at gone 2200 and saw the frost on the ground, but we were expecting it, so well prepared with extra sleeping bags and plenty of warm clothes. I rowed us out, in bright moon light, with plenty of stars over head, and we were soon tucked up in Robinetta.
Putting our light weight summer quilt sleeping bags outside our normal ones, and wearing lots of layers of clothes plus our warm sailing hats, worked fine as a keeping warm in bed strategy; getting out of bed to go to the heads, not so great!
We woke up to ice inside the port holes, but bright sunshine and a good sailing breeze, so after a fry up we got the sails up, and headed for Tollesbury. The aim was to get fuel to top up the tanks before Robinetta comes out of the water. My 'phone rang as we sailed past the Packing Shed; Mike McCarthy had seen us as he drove off the Island!
We waited until until we were sure we had enough water to get over the sill at the marina (high tide at 1410 West Mersea), and tied onto the fuel dock by 1303. Then we discovered that the chandlers closes at 1300 out of season on a Sunday. They had already cashed up and shut down the computers, so there was nothing they could do to sell us fuel (although they were apologetic).
We went and had a drink at the Cruising Club, being too full of fry up to want a carvery dinner, then headed back to Mersea just after high water. We got the sails up again, but the wind had gone very light, so we put the engine on by Little Cob Marsh Island, and motored back home.
A gentle day's sailing, our last of the season, but very enjoyable despite the cold.
Unexpected delight
Gavin Atkin says of Francis B Cooke:
"Francis B Cooke was one of the great yachting writers of the 20th century and more – a long-lived man, he was first published in 1883 and was still writing in the early 1970s, by which time he was in his early 100s". Read more here
Alison and I were therefore over the moon last night to be presented with the Francis B Cooke trophy for the best log by an East Coast gaffer.
Thanks everyone!
"Francis B Cooke was one of the great yachting writers of the 20th century and more – a long-lived man, he was first published in 1883 and was still writing in the early 1970s, by which time he was in his early 100s". Read more here
Alison and I were therefore over the moon last night to be presented with the Francis B Cooke trophy for the best log by an East Coast gaffer.
Thanks everyone!
Sunday, 11 November 2012
Been wanting to go sailing for a while, but Julian had too much to do, what with work, and his OU course. The weather's not been too good for it either, but when I checked on Friday the forecast said bright sun on Sunday. Not much wind, and only 5C but even a row out to check on the bilges would be good.
Got to West Mersea at 1030, and there was still enough water at the hard to launch Worm there rather than the pontoon. The sky was clear and blue, and there was more wind than expected, certainly worth going for a sail!
The bung closing off the sink sea cock was firmly in place, and after checking Robinetta over we hoisted sail on the mooring, and sailed off at 1200. By 1235 we were passing the Nass Beacon, heading towards Brighlingsea on a run.
The wind was very light, but the tide was with us, so we went over the ground at a reasonable speed. Since we were running there was no wind chill; Julian took off his outer wear and ended up helming in his tee shirt! In November! He had to put a couple of layers back on when the sun went behind a cloud bank, but the weather stayed lovely.
We rounded to the Inner Bench Head buoy at 1437 and headed back to West Mersea. The tide was against us now, but slackening, and we made decent progress fine reaching across the river until the wind died just after the tide turned in our favour. We had to put the engine on at 1520, and motored home, watching the sun set behind Bradwell power station.
We were back on our mooring at 1700, with just enough light left to let us pick it up without problems.
A little more wind would have been good, but days like today are why we don't want to to haul Robinetta out for the winter just yet!
Got to West Mersea at 1030, and there was still enough water at the hard to launch Worm there rather than the pontoon. The sky was clear and blue, and there was more wind than expected, certainly worth going for a sail!
The bung closing off the sink sea cock was firmly in place, and after checking Robinetta over we hoisted sail on the mooring, and sailed off at 1200. By 1235 we were passing the Nass Beacon, heading towards Brighlingsea on a run.
The wind was very light, but the tide was with us, so we went over the ground at a reasonable speed. Since we were running there was no wind chill; Julian took off his outer wear and ended up helming in his tee shirt! In November! He had to put a couple of layers back on when the sun went behind a cloud bank, but the weather stayed lovely.
We rounded to the Inner Bench Head buoy at 1437 and headed back to West Mersea. The tide was against us now, but slackening, and we made decent progress fine reaching across the river until the wind died just after the tide turned in our favour. We had to put the engine on at 1520, and motored home, watching the sun set behind Bradwell power station.
We were back on our mooring at 1700, with just enough light left to let us pick it up without problems.
A little more wind would have been good, but days like today are why we don't want to to haul Robinetta out for the winter just yet!
Flexible working
A lovely day on the River Blackwater is not incompatible with keeping an eye on work. 
Sunday, 21 October 2012
It was still raining on Sunday morning, rather than the mist promised by the forecast, and there was a little wind, which increased through the morning so we could have gone sailing. The weather discouraged us though, sailing in the rain is rarely enjoyable, so we decided to tackle some maintenance instead.
The work surface beside the cooker feels really wobbly at the back, and we can not access the sink through hull easily to turn it on or off. Because of that we have never used the sink. We decided to remove the work surface to check its condition, and that meant taking out the plate rack to make it easier to get at. I had done this before, the first winter we owned Robinetta, and knew it was not that difficult.
All the pans, crockery and glasses got put away in the cupboard over the port berth, then we got the plate/glass rack out. I had forgotten that the wiring for the galley and compass lights ran through the work surface, so we had to undo then re-run them, and then we prised out the tacked in beading that held the work surface down. It was nice and solid, but came off cleanly once I had unscrewed the tap surround that held it in place.
The formica that forms the actual work surface was not in too bad a state, but it was not glued to anything by the hull; Julian pulled it off the ply, and then pulled off a layer of ply, then some fragments of ply, then a layer of ply... Each layer of wood that went to form the ply came up separately, the glue had failed all the way through.
At one point we had the sink held up by its pipe work, with no wood around it. The nut holding the sink in place was too large for any of our spanners to move. Trying to access a screw half hidden behind the sink meant wriggling the pipe work enough to loosen the nut though, and Julian managed to get the nut undone so we could remove the sink. Unfortunately the nut that loosened up was the one holding the pipe to the thru-hull, and shortly after Julian lifted the sink away I had a look and realised that the thru-hull was slightly open.
The toilet thru-hull spanner fitted, but we could not get the thru hull to close even after encouraging it with a hammer. It was not a dangerous situation, the thru-hull is just on the water line and it was only slightly open, but we could not leave the boat unoccupied with it like that.
We have a set of wooden bungs on board, so after we found them where they were hiding we hammered in the one that fitted best, then sealed around it with mastic, aluminium foil, hose clips and electric tape. It sounds like over kill, but we really don't want the bung working loose if there's a storm! At the top of the tide even our sheltered mooring up the Ray can get quite rough, and we're not sure when we'll next get back to Robinetta.
We left just after lunch, with a bucket full of bits of rotten ply and formica to throw away. We've also brought the anchor winch home. There's not much point giving it room on the boat if its going to fall apart when we need it!
Next task is thinking how to replace the galley area we've just destroyed! The racks above will go back without problem, but first we have to service the thru-hull (when we are not in the water!). We want some way of accessing it, and using the dead space beside it. We'll have to re-site the tap and sink too...
The work surface beside the cooker feels really wobbly at the back, and we can not access the sink through hull easily to turn it on or off. Because of that we have never used the sink. We decided to remove the work surface to check its condition, and that meant taking out the plate rack to make it easier to get at. I had done this before, the first winter we owned Robinetta, and knew it was not that difficult.
All the pans, crockery and glasses got put away in the cupboard over the port berth, then we got the plate/glass rack out. I had forgotten that the wiring for the galley and compass lights ran through the work surface, so we had to undo then re-run them, and then we prised out the tacked in beading that held the work surface down. It was nice and solid, but came off cleanly once I had unscrewed the tap surround that held it in place.
The formica that forms the actual work surface was not in too bad a state, but it was not glued to anything by the hull; Julian pulled it off the ply, and then pulled off a layer of ply, then some fragments of ply, then a layer of ply... Each layer of wood that went to form the ply came up separately, the glue had failed all the way through.
At one point we had the sink held up by its pipe work, with no wood around it. The nut holding the sink in place was too large for any of our spanners to move. Trying to access a screw half hidden behind the sink meant wriggling the pipe work enough to loosen the nut though, and Julian managed to get the nut undone so we could remove the sink. Unfortunately the nut that loosened up was the one holding the pipe to the thru-hull, and shortly after Julian lifted the sink away I had a look and realised that the thru-hull was slightly open.
The toilet thru-hull spanner fitted, but we could not get the thru hull to close even after encouraging it with a hammer. It was not a dangerous situation, the thru-hull is just on the water line and it was only slightly open, but we could not leave the boat unoccupied with it like that.
We have a set of wooden bungs on board, so after we found them where they were hiding we hammered in the one that fitted best, then sealed around it with mastic, aluminium foil, hose clips and electric tape. It sounds like over kill, but we really don't want the bung working loose if there's a storm! At the top of the tide even our sheltered mooring up the Ray can get quite rough, and we're not sure when we'll next get back to Robinetta.We left just after lunch, with a bucket full of bits of rotten ply and formica to throw away. We've also brought the anchor winch home. There's not much point giving it room on the boat if its going to fall apart when we need it!
Next task is thinking how to replace the galley area we've just destroyed! The racks above will go back without problem, but first we have to service the thru-hull (when we are not in the water!). We want some way of accessing it, and using the dead space beside it. We'll have to re-site the tap and sink too...
Saturday, 20 October 2012
A quiet evening
It was my birthday on Friday, and when Julian asked what I wanted to do for a birthday treat I decided to go to lunch at the Company Shed, then spend the night on Robinetta so we could get a full days sailing on Sunday.
The plan was always weather dependant, and the forecast was for not much wind, so we did not have great expectations. The lunch was excellent, and then we dropped by Keith and Julie's to give back the clothes we borrowed. After a cup of tea or two and a natter I suddenly realised it was getting dark! We rushed back to the pontoon and jumped into Worm, which we had launched while waiting for our space in the lunch queue (even on a dank Saturday on October the Company Shed was full up!).
Rowing out to Robinetta in the gloaming on a very still evening was relaxing, but quite slow as the tide was against us and I was full of lunch. By the time we reached the mooring it was nearly full dark, and it was only after I boarded Robinetta and found a bundle of cloth in the cockpit that I realised that the sail cover was there, rather than over the sail. Ii must have come off and been put on board for us, but I don't know who by. Whoever it was, thanks! (turns out Rob Williamson saw the problem when he was checking Maid of Tesa. It was high tide, so he rowed straight across the Ray spit and rescued the cover for us.)
It began to spit with rain, so I got the sail cover back on, and then Julian and I spent a quiet night on the boat, listening to the rain. It's strange how enjoyable just being on the boat can be!
The plan was always weather dependant, and the forecast was for not much wind, so we did not have great expectations. The lunch was excellent, and then we dropped by Keith and Julie's to give back the clothes we borrowed. After a cup of tea or two and a natter I suddenly realised it was getting dark! We rushed back to the pontoon and jumped into Worm, which we had launched while waiting for our space in the lunch queue (even on a dank Saturday on October the Company Shed was full up!).
Rowing out to Robinetta in the gloaming on a very still evening was relaxing, but quite slow as the tide was against us and I was full of lunch. By the time we reached the mooring it was nearly full dark, and it was only after I boarded Robinetta and found a bundle of cloth in the cockpit that I realised that the sail cover was there, rather than over the sail. Ii must have come off and been put on board for us, but I don't know who by. Whoever it was, thanks! (turns out Rob Williamson saw the problem when he was checking Maid of Tesa. It was high tide, so he rowed straight across the Ray spit and rescued the cover for us.)
It began to spit with rain, so I got the sail cover back on, and then Julian and I spent a quiet night on the boat, listening to the rain. It's strange how enjoyable just being on the boat can be!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
