The Bosun, a.k.a. my brother Glen, picked me up after finishing work at lunchtime and we hightailed it down to Essex via Tescos in Braintree for supplies and coffee.
Arriving in Fambridge about 4-ish, I hauled the tender off the dock and down the pontoon, pulling the foredeck screws out of the hull in the process. Drat, add another job to the maintenance list.
The ebb was running strongly and it took me three goes to get hold of Brigantias stern during the process of which I dropped an oar and had to frantically paddle downstream after it with the other one and nearly capsized the dinghy trying to get a grab hold on the boat from too far off! Dignified it was not!
On board at last, I fired up the untrusty outboard, sorted out fenders and lines and motored gently up the inside of the pontoon to ferry glide into a space just big enough for us between all the big boys toys. Helpful people grabbed lines (although maybe it's churlish to wish that people would listen when you hand them a line and say "drop it over that cleat and hand the end back to me" rather than just pull the bow in leaving the stern to swing round - I'd got a long line rigged from the bow to the cockpit for a flippin' reason!)
After transferring our kit from car to boat, we had a coffee then loaded up the fuel tank and jerry can for a trip to Asda for petrol. With that back on board, it was off to the pub for grub and beer before retiring at a reasonably sensible hour.
Friday, 30 September 2011
Thursday, 29 September 2011
Something for the weekend sir?
Off to the boat tomorrow afternoon with the Bosun as crew. A chance to make the most of this Indian summer we're currently enjoying.
Forecast is F2 Southerlys on Saturday going round into the West and dropping to F1 by Sunday afternoon. Great! It's the story of 2011 - too much wind last time out, not enough this time and, on Sunday at any rate, what there is is coming from the worst possible direction!
Plan is a gentle weekend exploring further up the Roach than we've been so far. F2 from the South should serve nicely for the outbound trip on Saturday, spending Saturday night on the hook somewhere up the Roach. Odds are we'll end up motoring or motor sailing back up the Crouch on Sunday so we'd better top up the fuel tanks before departing! We have to be back on the mooring by mid-afternoon come what may as I've got to be home by 7:00pm
Forecast is F2 Southerlys on Saturday going round into the West and dropping to F1 by Sunday afternoon. Great! It's the story of 2011 - too much wind last time out, not enough this time and, on Sunday at any rate, what there is is coming from the worst possible direction!
Plan is a gentle weekend exploring further up the Roach than we've been so far. F2 from the South should serve nicely for the outbound trip on Saturday, spending Saturday night on the hook somewhere up the Roach. Odds are we'll end up motoring or motor sailing back up the Crouch on Sunday so we'd better top up the fuel tanks before departing! We have to be back on the mooring by mid-afternoon come what may as I've got to be home by 7:00pm
Wednesday, 28 September 2011
More pics
Just added some additional pics taken by Rik to the Autumn Cruise photo album
Shock horror, there's even a couple of me! It's a wonder his camera lens is still in one piece
Shock horror, there's even a couple of me! It's a wonder his camera lens is still in one piece
Friday, 23 September 2011
Photo album updated
I've just spent a happy hour or two sorting out the mess on the photo album pages at SV Brigantia Photo Album
There's still a few pics missing which are on my Crapberry if I can ever manage to find a way to extract them onto the PC and upload them!
Autumn Cruise - facts and figures
Playing with the new GPS and found the trip computer page ...
In the two and a bit days we were under way we covered 86.37NM in 26 hrs 3 minutes at an average speed (over the ground) of 3.3Kts.
Max speed was a whopping 8.6kts (again, over the ground) which is pretty impressive for a wee little boat with a max hull speed of 5.9kts! Even with a fair tide we must have been sailing well at least for a brief moment :)
Checking back in the deck log, we were motoring or motor sailing (more motor than sail though to be honest) for 6 hours and 23 minutes so we were sailing for 19 hours and 37 minutes. That's a ratio of getting on for 3 to 1 which I'm not too unhappy with especially given the circumstances under which we found ourselves resorting to the smelly noise machine.
Looking at the track log, I'm annoyed to discover that whilst the active log time stamps the saved points, when you save a track into the GPS memory it only stores the position. Memo to self - download the active log each day to the laptop in future!
Never the less, it makes for some interesting analysis. Apart from two areas we pretty much nailed the nav to my satisfaction - there's a major squiggle coming back into the Crouch when we shook out the reef in the main due to several minutes mucking about when the sail refused to hoist fully but otherwise our tracks were pretty much straight lines. I especially like the almost ruler straight track all the way from Medusa to the Wallet Spitway!
However, there is, it has to be admitted, the failed attempt to sail across the Spitway! This is the second time I've utterly failed to make any appreciable headway to windward when reefed and fighting a wind over tide chop. The first time we even had an appreciable fair tide, this time it was cross-tide.
Although we seemed to be tacking through around 100 to 105 degrees, looking at the track our effective tacking angle was actually about 160 degrees! Now Brigantia may be a little old twin keeler but no WAY does she make THAT much leeway! I'm left pondering several imponderables ...
Were we actually tacking through 100 to 105 degrees? I wasn't paying particularly close attention to the compass at the time and now I wonder whether, with the reefed down genoa, our tacking angle was a good deal worse than I thought it was. Without a foam filled luff it would seem unlikely that she'd tack through as tight an angle reefed as she will with full sail but the genoa seemed to be setting OK.
Just how much leeway does she make? My impression, and I'm naturally good at judging angles and relative motions, is that in (relatively) flat water under full sail in a decent breeze she doesn't make excessive leeway. In fact, although I'm a little reluctant to claim it, I can't say as I really notice her making any appreciable leeway at all (and I certainly notice PDQ when we're being set off course by the tide). Certainly, looking at our outbound track, where we put in two tacks as we worked our way up the coast past Clacton, she clearly can sail well to windward in the right circumstances.
Could we have carried the full genoa? Would it have made a significant difference? Perhaps I'm overly cautious but I'm reluctant to put the rig under severe strain. A lot of the running rigging is well worn and starting to show signs of wear and tear (although the genoa sheets look pretty new), the sheet winches are ancient and definitely need replacing and I have no idea when the standing rigging was last replaced. The shrouds and stays look OK but what horrors are lurking where they can't be seen? Especially inside the roller reefing spar, for all I know the forestay may be hanging on by a thread!
Finally, I suspect that to a significant extent the critical problem is that with a small, relatively light and relatively shoal draft hull we're just getting smashed backwards by the power of the waves when trying to fight our way to windward in the face of a short steep choppy sea. In fact, it would be hard to come up with a situation less suited to a boat like Brigantia! She just doesn't have the grip on the water or the power to cope with such conditions. We might well be able to improve matters but I suspect in such circumstances we'll frequently be reaching for the engine starter cord!
In the two and a bit days we were under way we covered 86.37NM in 26 hrs 3 minutes at an average speed (over the ground) of 3.3Kts.
Max speed was a whopping 8.6kts (again, over the ground) which is pretty impressive for a wee little boat with a max hull speed of 5.9kts! Even with a fair tide we must have been sailing well at least for a brief moment :)
Checking back in the deck log, we were motoring or motor sailing (more motor than sail though to be honest) for 6 hours and 23 minutes so we were sailing for 19 hours and 37 minutes. That's a ratio of getting on for 3 to 1 which I'm not too unhappy with especially given the circumstances under which we found ourselves resorting to the smelly noise machine.
Looking at the track log, I'm annoyed to discover that whilst the active log time stamps the saved points, when you save a track into the GPS memory it only stores the position. Memo to self - download the active log each day to the laptop in future!
Never the less, it makes for some interesting analysis. Apart from two areas we pretty much nailed the nav to my satisfaction - there's a major squiggle coming back into the Crouch when we shook out the reef in the main due to several minutes mucking about when the sail refused to hoist fully but otherwise our tracks were pretty much straight lines. I especially like the almost ruler straight track all the way from Medusa to the Wallet Spitway!
However, there is, it has to be admitted, the failed attempt to sail across the Spitway! This is the second time I've utterly failed to make any appreciable headway to windward when reefed and fighting a wind over tide chop. The first time we even had an appreciable fair tide, this time it was cross-tide.
Although we seemed to be tacking through around 100 to 105 degrees, looking at the track our effective tacking angle was actually about 160 degrees! Now Brigantia may be a little old twin keeler but no WAY does she make THAT much leeway! I'm left pondering several imponderables ...
Were we actually tacking through 100 to 105 degrees? I wasn't paying particularly close attention to the compass at the time and now I wonder whether, with the reefed down genoa, our tacking angle was a good deal worse than I thought it was. Without a foam filled luff it would seem unlikely that she'd tack through as tight an angle reefed as she will with full sail but the genoa seemed to be setting OK.
Just how much leeway does she make? My impression, and I'm naturally good at judging angles and relative motions, is that in (relatively) flat water under full sail in a decent breeze she doesn't make excessive leeway. In fact, although I'm a little reluctant to claim it, I can't say as I really notice her making any appreciable leeway at all (and I certainly notice PDQ when we're being set off course by the tide). Certainly, looking at our outbound track, where we put in two tacks as we worked our way up the coast past Clacton, she clearly can sail well to windward in the right circumstances.
Could we have carried the full genoa? Would it have made a significant difference? Perhaps I'm overly cautious but I'm reluctant to put the rig under severe strain. A lot of the running rigging is well worn and starting to show signs of wear and tear (although the genoa sheets look pretty new), the sheet winches are ancient and definitely need replacing and I have no idea when the standing rigging was last replaced. The shrouds and stays look OK but what horrors are lurking where they can't be seen? Especially inside the roller reefing spar, for all I know the forestay may be hanging on by a thread!
Finally, I suspect that to a significant extent the critical problem is that with a small, relatively light and relatively shoal draft hull we're just getting smashed backwards by the power of the waves when trying to fight our way to windward in the face of a short steep choppy sea. In fact, it would be hard to come up with a situation less suited to a boat like Brigantia! She just doesn't have the grip on the water or the power to cope with such conditions. We might well be able to improve matters but I suspect in such circumstances we'll frequently be reaching for the engine starter cord!
Sunday, 18 September 2011
Autumn Cruise - conclusions
All in all it was a good week.
It would have been nice to get in more sailing but we made good use of the time spent weatherbound and we've now got a fully fitted out bridge deck, the batterys moved, shelves in the cupboard above the nav table and the starboard quarter berth reinforced so it doesn't sag when you sit on it any more!
We've also got a working float switch on the bilge pump, the bilges have been cleaned out thoroughly and much space created in the cockpit lockers (no doubt that will fill up PDQ though).
Flogging the tide and chop out of the Crouch up the Whitaker on Thursday morning wasn't a barrel of laughs but once across the Spitway we had a good sail up to Stone Point. Not perfect but not bad. Given that we nearly bailed out and turned back at the Wallet Spitway buoy given how long it had taken to get there it was satisfying to drop the hook at our originally planned destination just as the light faded into darkness. A close run thing though as I wouldn't have fancied getting in there for the first time in darkness.
Having to promptly come back the next day was a nuisance but, after another fairly unpleasant thrash under power to get out to Medusa, we had a stonking sail back down the Wallet, into the Crouch and up to Fambridge. Without a doubt, the best sailing so far and furthermore the first time my passage plan has worked to near perfection. The only flaw was a pilotage error in holding on all the way down to the Wallet Spitway buoy which meant we were being carried onto the Buxey by the combined effects of tide, leeway and wave action. I'll know better next time and cut across much sooner.
On the down side, the engine simply has to go. It drank an entire 23 litres of petroil in not much over 6 hours of running, that's not far short of 4 litres an hour. What's more, I'm not convinced it's delivering as much power as it was earlier in the year and it still has a habit of cutting out when its hot and its throttled back.
To make matters worse, whilst I can tolerate the noise and smell, Rik finds it all but unbearable. All three owners are in agreement - it's time for a new engine as soon as we can raise the cash and find a suitable unit. My strong inclination is to go the whole nine yards and fit a brand new single cylinder 6hp unit. I estimate we;ll recover around half the cost in fuel savings over 3 to 4 years which coincidentally is how long I anticipate we'll keep Brigantia. At the end of that time, the engine will be worth at least half of what it cost new so we should break even on costs (although there will be servicing costs with a new engine if we want to keep the warranty valid of course).
Ah well, it's only money!
It would have been nice to get in more sailing but we made good use of the time spent weatherbound and we've now got a fully fitted out bridge deck, the batterys moved, shelves in the cupboard above the nav table and the starboard quarter berth reinforced so it doesn't sag when you sit on it any more!
We've also got a working float switch on the bilge pump, the bilges have been cleaned out thoroughly and much space created in the cockpit lockers (no doubt that will fill up PDQ though).
Flogging the tide and chop out of the Crouch up the Whitaker on Thursday morning wasn't a barrel of laughs but once across the Spitway we had a good sail up to Stone Point. Not perfect but not bad. Given that we nearly bailed out and turned back at the Wallet Spitway buoy given how long it had taken to get there it was satisfying to drop the hook at our originally planned destination just as the light faded into darkness. A close run thing though as I wouldn't have fancied getting in there for the first time in darkness.
Having to promptly come back the next day was a nuisance but, after another fairly unpleasant thrash under power to get out to Medusa, we had a stonking sail back down the Wallet, into the Crouch and up to Fambridge. Without a doubt, the best sailing so far and furthermore the first time my passage plan has worked to near perfection. The only flaw was a pilotage error in holding on all the way down to the Wallet Spitway buoy which meant we were being carried onto the Buxey by the combined effects of tide, leeway and wave action. I'll know better next time and cut across much sooner.
On the down side, the engine simply has to go. It drank an entire 23 litres of petroil in not much over 6 hours of running, that's not far short of 4 litres an hour. What's more, I'm not convinced it's delivering as much power as it was earlier in the year and it still has a habit of cutting out when its hot and its throttled back.
To make matters worse, whilst I can tolerate the noise and smell, Rik finds it all but unbearable. All three owners are in agreement - it's time for a new engine as soon as we can raise the cash and find a suitable unit. My strong inclination is to go the whole nine yards and fit a brand new single cylinder 6hp unit. I estimate we;ll recover around half the cost in fuel savings over 3 to 4 years which coincidentally is how long I anticipate we'll keep Brigantia. At the end of that time, the engine will be worth at least half of what it cost new so we should break even on costs (although there will be servicing costs with a new engine if we want to keep the warranty valid of course).
Ah well, it's only money!
Autumn Cruise - Days 8 & 9
Not much to say about Saturday. Very breezy from the South West, definitely made the right decision to head back from the Walton Backwaters on Friday! Lazy day lounging around doing nothing much before heading pub-wards for beer and food and some not bad live music.
Today, I spent much of the morning sorting out the wiring to the mast in a vain effort to get the steaming and anchor lights working. The anchor light is definitely dead and I need a new 3 pin waterproof connector to get the steaming light working again.
This afternoon we offloaded kit, tidied and cleaned the boat (memo to self, change out of deck shoes into wellies before swabbing the decks!) and put her back on her buoy before catching a ferry ride back to the pontoon and heading home about 16:00.
Today, I spent much of the morning sorting out the wiring to the mast in a vain effort to get the steaming and anchor lights working. The anchor light is definitely dead and I need a new 3 pin waterproof connector to get the steaming light working again.
This afternoon we offloaded kit, tidied and cleaned the boat (memo to self, change out of deck shoes into wellies before swabbing the decks!) and put her back on her buoy before catching a ferry ride back to the pontoon and heading home about 16:00.
Friday, 16 September 2011
Autumn Cruise - Day 7
02:30 Anchor watch "on deck" (Bru). Very breezy from SE, quite uncomfortable on board.
02:50 Lying OK after the tide turned but beam on to channel due to strong wind. Back to bed!
Plan this morning is for Rik to have a lie in whilst the skipper gets her under way. I can then have a watch below later on (good plan in theory!). Hit the deck at 06:00, under way at 06:40 on the engine.
Very choppy out of the backwaters and into the Medusa channel. By 08:00 the watch below had given up and become the watch on deck! Hoisted the main and motor sailed which helped to steady the motion a bit but still very rock and roll. Passed Stone Bank at 08:07 making 3.5 knots.
At 08:41 abeam Medusa buoy we turned South and five minutes later we were under sail with the engine off making 5 to 6 knots with one reef in the main and about 2/3 of the genoa out! On the wind we fetched the Wallet Spitway buoy without a tack and made to cut across the Spitway.
My inexperience as a navigator and local pilot caught us out here - everybody behind us (and yes, for once, we were not being overtaken by all and sundry!) cut across much sooner as soon as they were clear of the Gunfleet windfarm and now we found out why as the tide swept us down towards the Buxey Sands and we could hardly make any progress beating across the Spitway.
Nothing else for it, on with the noise machine, in with the genoa and 20 minutes of motoring got us back where we should be at the Swin Spitway buoy which we rounded at 11:30.
Now it was off with the engine and out with the full genoa blasting up the Whitaker at up to 6 knots still with a fair tide.By 13:05 we were passed the Inner Crouch and luffed up to shake out the reef in the main. Struggled to get the bullets to run up the luff groove but after a couple of minutes faffing about we got her all the way up and were back on course.
After a brief look at the Brankfleet we decided, for once, that it didn't look too comfortable so pressed on up the Crouch with the wind from the East. Considered dropping the hook at Cliff Reach but it was such nice sailing, for once, we carried on going until we picked up our own mooring buoy at 15:20.
After a couple of hours rest, we decided to move up onto the pontoon for the night as the water in the moorings was getting a bit choppy. Discovered that the main tank was all but dry and transfered the contents of the jerry can into it before motoring the 100 yards or so up to the pontoon at 17:40.
Spent the evening on board, hit our bunks by not much after 9:00pm
02:50 Lying OK after the tide turned but beam on to channel due to strong wind. Back to bed!
Very choppy out of the backwaters and into the Medusa channel. By 08:00 the watch below had given up and become the watch on deck! Hoisted the main and motor sailed which helped to steady the motion a bit but still very rock and roll. Passed Stone Bank at 08:07 making 3.5 knots.
At 08:41 abeam Medusa buoy we turned South and five minutes later we were under sail with the engine off making 5 to 6 knots with one reef in the main and about 2/3 of the genoa out! On the wind we fetched the Wallet Spitway buoy without a tack and made to cut across the Spitway.
My inexperience as a navigator and local pilot caught us out here - everybody behind us (and yes, for once, we were not being overtaken by all and sundry!) cut across much sooner as soon as they were clear of the Gunfleet windfarm and now we found out why as the tide swept us down towards the Buxey Sands and we could hardly make any progress beating across the Spitway.Nothing else for it, on with the noise machine, in with the genoa and 20 minutes of motoring got us back where we should be at the Swin Spitway buoy which we rounded at 11:30.
Now it was off with the engine and out with the full genoa blasting up the Whitaker at up to 6 knots still with a fair tide.By 13:05 we were passed the Inner Crouch and luffed up to shake out the reef in the main. Struggled to get the bullets to run up the luff groove but after a couple of minutes faffing about we got her all the way up and were back on course.
After a brief look at the Brankfleet we decided, for once, that it didn't look too comfortable so pressed on up the Crouch with the wind from the East. Considered dropping the hook at Cliff Reach but it was such nice sailing, for once, we carried on going until we picked up our own mooring buoy at 15:20.After a couple of hours rest, we decided to move up onto the pontoon for the night as the water in the moorings was getting a bit choppy. Discovered that the main tank was all but dry and transfered the contents of the jerry can into it before motoring the 100 yards or so up to the pontoon at 17:40.
Spent the evening on board, hit our bunks by not much after 9:00pm
Thursday, 15 September 2011
Autumn Cruise - Day 6
Plan was to get under way at first light however I misjudged how much before sunrise first light would be and we were maybe half an hour later away than we could have been.
Under way at 06:30 under sail with a very light breeze from the West. By 07:30 the wind had dropped even further and swung round to come from about East North East leaving us creeping along at 1 to 1.6 knots towards the Inner Crouch buoy which we reached at 07:56.
It took another half an hour to reach the Crouch buoy then the same again to get to Outer Crouch No.3. An hour after that, with the tide having turned against us, it was engine on, furl the genoa and get going motor sailing (in truth, mostly motor and not a lot of sailing) at 10:00
By 10:44 we only reached Outer Crouch No.2 making just 1.6 knots at nearly full throttle against a very strong tide. Progress not helped by the steep chop we were having to bash through, conditions that Brigantia isn't overly fond of at the best of times.
We took a short cut over the top end of the Buxey sands to cut off the corner and by 12:50 we were, at last, under sail up the Wallet making 2 knots over the ground.
By 14:00 we were off Clacton close hauled making 4.4 knots. Two tacks towards the Gunfleet saw us past Frinton and making 6.2 knots with the help of the tide and a stiffening breeze.
A check on the chart and the tide tables suggested we would have enough water to cut across the corner and head straight for Walton No.2 buoy and this we did albeit with a bit of a diversion when it got too shallow for comfort and we cut North to find some deeper water.
At 19:30 in the approached to the Backwaters we fired up the engine and motored in to Stone point where we anchored at 19:50 in the very last dying minutes of daylight. The last mile or so we used the nav lights for the first time ever!
Under way at 06:30 under sail with a very light breeze from the West. By 07:30 the wind had dropped even further and swung round to come from about East North East leaving us creeping along at 1 to 1.6 knots towards the Inner Crouch buoy which we reached at 07:56.
It took another half an hour to reach the Crouch buoy then the same again to get to Outer Crouch No.3. An hour after that, with the tide having turned against us, it was engine on, furl the genoa and get going motor sailing (in truth, mostly motor and not a lot of sailing) at 10:00
By 10:44 we only reached Outer Crouch No.2 making just 1.6 knots at nearly full throttle against a very strong tide. Progress not helped by the steep chop we were having to bash through, conditions that Brigantia isn't overly fond of at the best of times.
We took a short cut over the top end of the Buxey sands to cut off the corner and by 12:50 we were, at last, under sail up the Wallet making 2 knots over the ground.
By 14:00 we were off Clacton close hauled making 4.4 knots. Two tacks towards the Gunfleet saw us past Frinton and making 6.2 knots with the help of the tide and a stiffening breeze.
A check on the chart and the tide tables suggested we would have enough water to cut across the corner and head straight for Walton No.2 buoy and this we did albeit with a bit of a diversion when it got too shallow for comfort and we cut North to find some deeper water.
After a tidy up and a meal, we checked the forecast - it doesn't look good for Saturday with Westerlys up to F7 so unfortunately it looks like an early start in the morning and back the way we came again without any chance to explore the Walton Backwaters.
Wednesday, 14 September 2011
Autumn Cruise - Day 5
This morning passed quickly enough sorting out ready to go sailing. All the stuff we'd been using for working on the boat needed to be offloaded back into the cars, below decks tidied up and the lockers sorted out ready for sea.
Let go from the pontoon at 14:00 under motor, 20 minutes later we were making 3 knots over the ground on main alone with the engine off and the stiff breeze right up our stern.
Two hours later, we fired up the engine and motor sailed the last mile or so into the Brankfleet. We were hailed by an anchored Trident 24 as we approached the anchorage but couldn't hear a word over the blasted outboard! No idea what the skipper of the yacht wanted to communicate - he may have wanted us to go away or he may be someone I've been in touch with via the web when we were seriously contemplating buying a Trident!
Engine off and lying to anchor at 16:47.
Hoisted the anchor light at 19:30 and let out more scope at 21:40 after the tide had turned before hitting the bunks for an early night in preparation for a long day tomorrow
Let go from the pontoon at 14:00 under motor, 20 minutes later we were making 3 knots over the ground on main alone with the engine off and the stiff breeze right up our stern.
Engine off and lying to anchor at 16:47.
Hoisted the anchor light at 19:30 and let out more scope at 21:40 after the tide had turned before hitting the bunks for an early night in preparation for a long day tomorrow
Autumn Cruise - Day 5/6 Passage Plan
Forecast is for F4-5 gusting 6 from the West decreasing to F2-3 gusting 4 from the West or North West by this evening.
Outlook for tomorrow is F3/4 Westerlys veering North then East later in the day.
HW today is 14:40BST
Plan is to head downriver on the tide this afternoon and anchor for the night in the Brankfleet with a view to departing at first light tomorrow morning to make passage to Walton Backwaters via the Whitaker Channel, Swin Spitway and Wallet.
Outlook for tomorrow is F3/4 Westerlys veering North then East later in the day.
HW today is 14:40BST
Plan is to head downriver on the tide this afternoon and anchor for the night in the Brankfleet with a view to departing at first light tomorrow morning to make passage to Walton Backwaters via the Whitaker Channel, Swin Spitway and Wallet.
Tuesday, 13 September 2011
Autumn Cruise - Day 4, part 1
Awoke late this morning at about 08:00.
Lovely morning, sun shining, blue skys and much calmer on the water. Very tempting to let go the lines and go sailing but we've things to do and the forecast out at sea is still a bit iffy yet.
We need to finish off the electrics - the depth sounder and GPS power feeds need reconnecting and we need to check that things like the nav lights still work and what have you. If time permits we might get around to using some of the spare plywood to improve storage around the nav table too.
I need a shower and some cigarette papers - silly girl in the Co-Op on Sunday put a single packet in the bag not the box of five I asked for and there's nothing worse than having baccy and no papers.
Tomorrow though looks like a definite go, we'll make plans today. We'll have to be aware that conditions by the weekend will not be ideal for coming back upriver - a stiff Westerly is the worst possible wind for getting back in. Best plan will be to time our return to nip across the Rays'n thus avoiding the long beat down the Whitaker that defeated Jane and I in similar conditions earlier in the year.
More to follow later in the day ....
Lovely morning, sun shining, blue skys and much calmer on the water. Very tempting to let go the lines and go sailing but we've things to do and the forecast out at sea is still a bit iffy yet.
We need to finish off the electrics - the depth sounder and GPS power feeds need reconnecting and we need to check that things like the nav lights still work and what have you. If time permits we might get around to using some of the spare plywood to improve storage around the nav table too.
I need a shower and some cigarette papers - silly girl in the Co-Op on Sunday put a single packet in the bag not the box of five I asked for and there's nothing worse than having baccy and no papers.
Tomorrow though looks like a definite go, we'll make plans today. We'll have to be aware that conditions by the weekend will not be ideal for coming back upriver - a stiff Westerly is the worst possible wind for getting back in. Best plan will be to time our return to nip across the Rays'n thus avoiding the long beat down the Whitaker that defeated Jane and I in similar conditions earlier in the year.
More to follow later in the day ....
Monday, 12 September 2011
Autumn Cruise - Day 3, part 2
Very windy today!
After a leisurely start, we cracked on with fitting out the bridge deck and moving the batterys. By lunchtime, conditions on board were becoming untenable though! Must have been F8 or even F9 in the strongest gusts, the river was rough as hell and even on the inside of the pontoon we were getting bounced around like anything.
After adding an additional spring on the bow (to stop her swinging round into Nordestrevans bowsprit if the bow line broke), we abandoned ship and headed up to the pub for lunch and a pint.
By mid-afternoon things had calmed down a bit and we were back at work re-configuring and re-routing the wiring to the main battery which is now in its new home. We finished hooking the electrics back up in the nick of time just as the sun was setting. The new bilge pump switch has been installed and tested so we shouldn't have the problem of the cockpit well filling up with water again.
The No.1 battery is now fully charged having been on charge since yesterday afternoon. Although the indicator on top was still green, it took an initial charge of over 10A and the best part of 24 hours to drop to the minimum 2A charge. We could do with a better, more intelligent, charger but the one wot we've got will do and hasn't cost me anything.
You won't be surprised to hear that the day ended with a trip back to the pub for grub and beer!
After a leisurely start, we cracked on with fitting out the bridge deck and moving the batterys. By lunchtime, conditions on board were becoming untenable though! Must have been F8 or even F9 in the strongest gusts, the river was rough as hell and even on the inside of the pontoon we were getting bounced around like anything.
After adding an additional spring on the bow (to stop her swinging round into Nordestrevans bowsprit if the bow line broke), we abandoned ship and headed up to the pub for lunch and a pint.
By mid-afternoon things had calmed down a bit and we were back at work re-configuring and re-routing the wiring to the main battery which is now in its new home. We finished hooking the electrics back up in the nick of time just as the sun was setting. The new bilge pump switch has been installed and tested so we shouldn't have the problem of the cockpit well filling up with water again.
The No.1 battery is now fully charged having been on charge since yesterday afternoon. Although the indicator on top was still green, it took an initial charge of over 10A and the best part of 24 hours to drop to the minimum 2A charge. We could do with a better, more intelligent, charger but the one wot we've got will do and hasn't cost me anything.
You won't be surprised to hear that the day ended with a trip back to the pub for grub and beer!
Autumn Cruise - Day 3, part 1
We were both woken up about 03:00 this morning by the very strong gusts of wind blowing through the moorings. Comfortable enough on board, tied on the inside of the pontoon, but very noisy outside.
Rik seemed to get back to sleep whereas I dozed, read, drank coffee, smoked and dozed some more until we both decided to wake up properly about 07:00.
Conditions now as I write are pretty poor. The breeze is gusting strongly, the river is choppy and rain showers blow through from time to time. Pretty much as forecast really and we definitely won't be going anywhere today. At present, tomorrow looks marginal but things should improve as we go into Wednesday.
Looks like it's going to be a day of working on the electrics and what have you. What fun!
Rik seemed to get back to sleep whereas I dozed, read, drank coffee, smoked and dozed some more until we both decided to wake up properly about 07:00.
Conditions now as I write are pretty poor. The breeze is gusting strongly, the river is choppy and rain showers blow through from time to time. Pretty much as forecast really and we definitely won't be going anywhere today. At present, tomorrow looks marginal but things should improve as we go into Wednesday.
Looks like it's going to be a day of working on the electrics and what have you. What fun!
Sunday, 11 September 2011
Autumn Cruise - Day 2
The title is all wrong really, it should probably be "Autumn Go Nowhere"!
Both Rik and I woke briefly in the early hours of the morning to note that the wind had risen from the stiff breeze of the evening before to a very strong gusty breeze indeed. After a bit more kip, we were both wide awake by 06:00. A lazy start to the day with teas and coffees, bacon butties and so on after which I managed to finally watch the second half of yesterdays match on ITV Player. Better still, when I fired up my 3 mobile broadband, it downloaded an update for the dongle firmware to correct connection problems which seems to have worked a treat as it didn't drop out once.
Relieved by Englands recovery, although less than impressed by their performance, I dozed off again for an hour or two whilst Rik amused himself wiring up the new radio. Upon returning to the land of the awake, got stung for two nights on the pontoon at the full rate which cost me £20. The new ferryman, Patrick, isn't cutting us any slack but I gather the management are cracking down on the matter of charges for use of the pontoon so fair enough. It's a bonus if we do get let off but even at full cost we still get most of the benefits of a marina mooring for about half of the cost!
Conditions on the river were pretty much as forecast. A stiff breeze with strong gusts and rain squalls passing through. If we'd felt the pressing need to do so, I dare say we could have sailed in the conditions but it wouldn't have been particularly fun and with an old boat with a rig of uncertain age and condition I'd be worried the whole time about what one of those sudden gusts might do.
As the day wore on, Rik set to on completing his fit out of the bridge deck space whilst I toddled off to Burnham to spend some money at the chandlery on a battery switch, some wire, choc blocks, varnish and a new waterproof connector for the engine charge lead. After popping into the Co-op for milk and baccy, I arrived back to find Rik well on the way to completing the job which, I have to say, he's done far better than I suspect I would have done. Whilst he continued his plywood shaping exploits, I got on with fitting the new engine electrics connector ready for moving the main battery which we should get sorted on the morrow.
With the evening setting in, we tidied up below decks and in the cockpit and then headed back up to the pub again for grub and two pints this time! Last of the big spenders! A cup of char and another fairly early night.
Both Rik and I woke briefly in the early hours of the morning to note that the wind had risen from the stiff breeze of the evening before to a very strong gusty breeze indeed. After a bit more kip, we were both wide awake by 06:00. A lazy start to the day with teas and coffees, bacon butties and so on after which I managed to finally watch the second half of yesterdays match on ITV Player. Better still, when I fired up my 3 mobile broadband, it downloaded an update for the dongle firmware to correct connection problems which seems to have worked a treat as it didn't drop out once.
Relieved by Englands recovery, although less than impressed by their performance, I dozed off again for an hour or two whilst Rik amused himself wiring up the new radio. Upon returning to the land of the awake, got stung for two nights on the pontoon at the full rate which cost me £20. The new ferryman, Patrick, isn't cutting us any slack but I gather the management are cracking down on the matter of charges for use of the pontoon so fair enough. It's a bonus if we do get let off but even at full cost we still get most of the benefits of a marina mooring for about half of the cost!
Conditions on the river were pretty much as forecast. A stiff breeze with strong gusts and rain squalls passing through. If we'd felt the pressing need to do so, I dare say we could have sailed in the conditions but it wouldn't have been particularly fun and with an old boat with a rig of uncertain age and condition I'd be worried the whole time about what one of those sudden gusts might do.
As the day wore on, Rik set to on completing his fit out of the bridge deck space whilst I toddled off to Burnham to spend some money at the chandlery on a battery switch, some wire, choc blocks, varnish and a new waterproof connector for the engine charge lead. After popping into the Co-op for milk and baccy, I arrived back to find Rik well on the way to completing the job which, I have to say, he's done far better than I suspect I would have done. Whilst he continued his plywood shaping exploits, I got on with fitting the new engine electrics connector ready for moving the main battery which we should get sorted on the morrow.
With the evening setting in, we tidied up below decks and in the cockpit and then headed back up to the pub again for grub and two pints this time! Last of the big spenders! A cup of char and another fairly early night.
Saturday, 10 September 2011
Autumn Cruise - Day 1
After picking up the workers and dropping them off at home, I loaded up the last few odds and ends of gear into the car and set off on the journey to the boat about 7:00am. Two hours and two cups of Wild Bean coffee, not to mention a bacon and cheese roll, later I arrived at the moorings.
Conditions were as forecast, quite warm, dry and breezy. A reconnoiter wander down onto the pontoon led to a quick ferry ride down to Brigantia as the ferryman was ready and waiting for passengers. As I expected, she was somewhat down by the stern due to the cockpit well being full of water. Fired up the bilge pump and that was sorted in a matter of minutes whilst I hand sponged the water in the port cockpit locker out (for some strange reason, the starboard locker has a limber hole to drain it into the well but the port locker doesn't).
That brought the stern back up where it should be but she still had a bit of a list to port that needs investigating.
The smoke machine fired up on the third pull and settled down nicely to tickover. I set up the mooring lines ready to go alongside, cast off and motored gently up the inside of the pontoon. Executing a neat drift turn on the tide followed by an inch perfect ferry glide into the space between two other yachts, I flicked the long bow line over a bollard and then stepped ashore to complete mooring up. Of course, it goes without saying that NOBODY was watching!
Desperately hoping to catch the end of the England v. Argentina rugby match, I fired up the little laptop and my new USB digital TV stick only to find that I couldn't get even a hint of a signal. Oh well. Next step is to try an omnidirectional aerial hoisted up to the spreaders. Haven't got one to hand so that will have to wait!
Next task was to clean the weed off the stern and boarding ladder - the latter having folded itself down into the water and acquired a veritable garden. Having done that I started carting my kit down from the car to the boat and getting squared away.
By the time I'd sorted my gear out and got the kettle on and so on, it was heading into the afternoon and lo and behold, as I went up to the car for the last few bits and bobs, Rik arrived.
Rik spent the afternoon fitting the "new" radio/CD player whilst I amused myself trying to watch the match on ITV Player. The free wi-fi wasn't fast enough, the picture kept pausing, and watching it on my new mobile broadband dongle thingy (a gift from my mate Tony) was an exercise in frustration as it kept dropping the connection every few minutes meaning I'd have to refresh the page and watch all the adverts again before I could pick up where I left off. My frustration levels increased even further when I realised that only the first half of the match was available on-line! I was left hanging in suspense with England trailing 9-3.
We spent a happy half hour getting somewhat damp putting up the cockpit tent and then changed into shore rig as the pub beckoned and off we went for a pie and a pint. It really was only one pint too as by the time I'd eaten and quaffed the first one, I was all but falling asleep having had very little kip over the previous 36 hours. Back we went to the boat and I was asleep almost as soon as my head hit the pillow. I vaguely remember Rik popping up on deck to frap the halyards which had come loose but I don't remember him coming back down below again!
Conditions were as forecast, quite warm, dry and breezy. A reconnoiter wander down onto the pontoon led to a quick ferry ride down to Brigantia as the ferryman was ready and waiting for passengers. As I expected, she was somewhat down by the stern due to the cockpit well being full of water. Fired up the bilge pump and that was sorted in a matter of minutes whilst I hand sponged the water in the port cockpit locker out (for some strange reason, the starboard locker has a limber hole to drain it into the well but the port locker doesn't).
That brought the stern back up where it should be but she still had a bit of a list to port that needs investigating.
The smoke machine fired up on the third pull and settled down nicely to tickover. I set up the mooring lines ready to go alongside, cast off and motored gently up the inside of the pontoon. Executing a neat drift turn on the tide followed by an inch perfect ferry glide into the space between two other yachts, I flicked the long bow line over a bollard and then stepped ashore to complete mooring up. Of course, it goes without saying that NOBODY was watching!
Desperately hoping to catch the end of the England v. Argentina rugby match, I fired up the little laptop and my new USB digital TV stick only to find that I couldn't get even a hint of a signal. Oh well. Next step is to try an omnidirectional aerial hoisted up to the spreaders. Haven't got one to hand so that will have to wait!
Next task was to clean the weed off the stern and boarding ladder - the latter having folded itself down into the water and acquired a veritable garden. Having done that I started carting my kit down from the car to the boat and getting squared away.
By the time I'd sorted my gear out and got the kettle on and so on, it was heading into the afternoon and lo and behold, as I went up to the car for the last few bits and bobs, Rik arrived.
Rik spent the afternoon fitting the "new" radio/CD player whilst I amused myself trying to watch the match on ITV Player. The free wi-fi wasn't fast enough, the picture kept pausing, and watching it on my new mobile broadband dongle thingy (a gift from my mate Tony) was an exercise in frustration as it kept dropping the connection every few minutes meaning I'd have to refresh the page and watch all the adverts again before I could pick up where I left off. My frustration levels increased even further when I realised that only the first half of the match was available on-line! I was left hanging in suspense with England trailing 9-3.
We spent a happy half hour getting somewhat damp putting up the cockpit tent and then changed into shore rig as the pub beckoned and off we went for a pie and a pint. It really was only one pint too as by the time I'd eaten and quaffed the first one, I was all but falling asleep having had very little kip over the previous 36 hours. Back we went to the boat and I was asleep almost as soon as my head hit the pillow. I vaguely remember Rik popping up on deck to frap the halyards which had come loose but I don't remember him coming back down below again!
Wednesday, 7 September 2011
Bl**dy weather
Well I've got all me new toys (yippee) but the weather forecast is looking increasingly 'orrible
Saturday looks OK but currently Sunday through Monday is wall to wall gusty conditions with gusts up to F8! Unless that improves dramatically we won't be going anyway until mid-week at the earliest.
There are some maintenance jobs to be getting on with assuming it stays dry at least but there's only so much we'll be able to do within the available finances
Ho hum!
Saturday looks OK but currently Sunday through Monday is wall to wall gusty conditions with gusts up to F8! Unless that improves dramatically we won't be going anyway until mid-week at the earliest.
There are some maintenance jobs to be getting on with assuming it stays dry at least but there's only so much we'll be able to do within the available finances
Ho hum!
Saturday, 3 September 2011
Today I shall mostly be annoyed ...
One beneficial consequence of the long layoff from sailing has been the state of the boat finances! We haven't been spending money so it's been accumulating nicely in the bank.
So I've spent it!
The major purchase is a new GPS. It seems churlish to look a gift horse in the mouth but it has to be said that the ancient Magellan GPS300 Glen donated to the boat is woefully slow, awkward to use, cannot be interfaced to the laptop to download/upload route and track info and to cap it all has ludicrously small text which cannot be read from more than a foot away. Never the less, I'm not ungrateful as it has sufficed for the trips so far and will be useful as an emergency backup.
There was much scratching of the bonce and debate with the dear lady wife over what to purchase though. I was very tempted by the latest Garmin GPS78s with its 3-axis compass, built in barometer, Garmin Bluechart capability (making it a hand held chart plotter rather than just a GPS) and custom chart facility.
However, by the time you add the cost of the mounting bracket, power and data leads and even the cheapest chart pack, it would cost just about as much as one of the smaller chart plotters such as the Standard Horizon 180i that I fancy in the long term. And that, dear reader, was rather more than I wanted to spend at the moment anyway.
So I've settled for a shiney new Garmin GPS72H which appears to be by far and away the most popular model of basic GPS from all the comments and reviews I've read on the subject.
But that's not all, there was still money in the bank and it's no good in there I always say! OK, I always say that as an excuse for spending it but money in the bank is boring and new toys is fun :-)
I've ordered two double hook safety lines so that we can clip on in the cockpit and on the foredeck. Being double hookers, you can clip on to a new attachment point before unclipping from the old one which is a good thing obviously. I haven't yet worked out what to do about jackstays so for now I guess we'll have to do the thing everybody says you must not do and clip on to the guardwires when moving forward from the cockpit to the foredeck in rough conditions or when alone on deck.
It may not be ideal practice but the pulpit and pushpit rails are as securely mounted as anything could be on Brigantia so a fall overboard might pull out a stanchion base but the faller will still be attached to the boat. It's not as if we're intending to be out in a howling gale anyway. I'm actually more concerned about being able to clip on if I'm single handed or we're sailing watch on watch so that a slip or trip doesn't have fatal consequences.
The next essential item on the list is a new float switch for the cockpit well bilge pump. Brigantia doesn't have bilges as I visualise bilges, she has a series of seperate compartments, for want of a better word, which are not connected to each other. So there's no way of pumping out the bilges throughout the boat and the accumulated water under the cabin floors from condensation, rain getting in through the hatch, etc. has to be sponged out of each area seperately. However, there is a large well under the cockpit floor which accumulates rainwater and a previous owner has fitted an automatic bilge pump to stop it flooding completely. Unfortunately, the float switch is knackered and needs replacing.
I suspect with all the rain we've had in recent weeks she'll be somewhat down by the stern by now but I don't think there's any need to panic - if the well fills completely the excess water will then start draining down the cockpit drains stopping the situation getting any worse. I hope!
I couldn't help it though, I had to buy another toy! For the sake of a mere £25, I ordered a basic little hand held wind speed indicator. More than once I've wanted to know just how strong the breeze actually was and felt the lack of the means of measuring wind strength. A full on mast mounted wind system is way out of our reach financially but I'm hoping this little widget will at least tell us whether it's really the forecast F3/4 or actually (as we have suspected more than once) nearer F5/6!
Another item on the wish list I can now cross off is a rechargeable handheld spotlight. Glen actually gave us one of these but it's a big beast. It's very good but it takes up space and eats battery juice! So I've ordered a smaller LED based one that should be easier to stow and less of a drain on our limited electrickery resources.
To finish off the boat related side of the order, I've ordered a new copy of the Thames Estuary Tidal Stream Atlas NP249. We had a copy and it's gone AWOL. I've searched everywhere it could be with no joy so no doubt it'll turn up the moment the new copy arrives. I've also ordered a copy of Reeds Skippers Handbook which I hope will satisfy my desire to have a ready reference for info such as Colregs, sound signals etc.
Oh and in the same vein I ordered a copy of The East Coast Pilot from Amazon the other day to add to the information available to the navigator when planning trips beyond the immediate confines of the river.
That little lot fairly comprehensively flattened the boat bank account. Job done :-)
But that's not the end of the story! Oh no!
As summer moves into autumn, if we're going to make the most of the opportunities to use Brigantia this year, we need better personal kit. Although the wind has been unkind this year (always too much or too little or from totally the wrong direction) we've had very little rain over the summer and so far we've been OK with plimsolls on our feet, normal clothing and cheap plastic waterproofs courtesy of Tescos.
So I decided it was time to gear up before Rik and I head out a week today and ordered myself some new clobber.
Boots and gloves were easy - Gill Shorty cruising boots and Gill Grip sailing gloves. Oilies, on the other hand, were another matter. Jeez they're expensive! One pair of Musto or Gill trousers and a matching jacket would cost more than my entire wardrobe set me back - I confess that I'm not exactly a model of sartorial elegance but even so. I opted to purchase a cheap own brand Windward coastal sailing suit from Force 4 for a fraction of the cost. Time will tell whether it's any good but at about £75 compared to several hundred quid it's got to be worth a go.
I could do with picking up some thermals as a base layer, some decent socks and a couple of fleeces. That lot, however, can come from the clothing department at Asda or Tescos!
And why, you may well ask, am I annoyed today? The order was scheduled to arrive yesterday and didn't :-(
I even stayed up when I got in from work and dozed on the couch so that I'd here the driver knock on the door - to no avail as the knock never came. I'll be surprised if it arrives this morning so I expect it'll be Monday now which means I wasted the extra fiver on express delivery. Again. I shall be asking for a credit on that, you may be sure.
So I've spent it!
The major purchase is a new GPS. It seems churlish to look a gift horse in the mouth but it has to be said that the ancient Magellan GPS300 Glen donated to the boat is woefully slow, awkward to use, cannot be interfaced to the laptop to download/upload route and track info and to cap it all has ludicrously small text which cannot be read from more than a foot away. Never the less, I'm not ungrateful as it has sufficed for the trips so far and will be useful as an emergency backup.
There was much scratching of the bonce and debate with the dear lady wife over what to purchase though. I was very tempted by the latest Garmin GPS78s with its 3-axis compass, built in barometer, Garmin Bluechart capability (making it a hand held chart plotter rather than just a GPS) and custom chart facility.
However, by the time you add the cost of the mounting bracket, power and data leads and even the cheapest chart pack, it would cost just about as much as one of the smaller chart plotters such as the Standard Horizon 180i that I fancy in the long term. And that, dear reader, was rather more than I wanted to spend at the moment anyway.
So I've settled for a shiney new Garmin GPS72H which appears to be by far and away the most popular model of basic GPS from all the comments and reviews I've read on the subject.
But that's not all, there was still money in the bank and it's no good in there I always say! OK, I always say that as an excuse for spending it but money in the bank is boring and new toys is fun :-)
I've ordered two double hook safety lines so that we can clip on in the cockpit and on the foredeck. Being double hookers, you can clip on to a new attachment point before unclipping from the old one which is a good thing obviously. I haven't yet worked out what to do about jackstays so for now I guess we'll have to do the thing everybody says you must not do and clip on to the guardwires when moving forward from the cockpit to the foredeck in rough conditions or when alone on deck.
It may not be ideal practice but the pulpit and pushpit rails are as securely mounted as anything could be on Brigantia so a fall overboard might pull out a stanchion base but the faller will still be attached to the boat. It's not as if we're intending to be out in a howling gale anyway. I'm actually more concerned about being able to clip on if I'm single handed or we're sailing watch on watch so that a slip or trip doesn't have fatal consequences.
The next essential item on the list is a new float switch for the cockpit well bilge pump. Brigantia doesn't have bilges as I visualise bilges, she has a series of seperate compartments, for want of a better word, which are not connected to each other. So there's no way of pumping out the bilges throughout the boat and the accumulated water under the cabin floors from condensation, rain getting in through the hatch, etc. has to be sponged out of each area seperately. However, there is a large well under the cockpit floor which accumulates rainwater and a previous owner has fitted an automatic bilge pump to stop it flooding completely. Unfortunately, the float switch is knackered and needs replacing.
I suspect with all the rain we've had in recent weeks she'll be somewhat down by the stern by now but I don't think there's any need to panic - if the well fills completely the excess water will then start draining down the cockpit drains stopping the situation getting any worse. I hope!
I couldn't help it though, I had to buy another toy! For the sake of a mere £25, I ordered a basic little hand held wind speed indicator. More than once I've wanted to know just how strong the breeze actually was and felt the lack of the means of measuring wind strength. A full on mast mounted wind system is way out of our reach financially but I'm hoping this little widget will at least tell us whether it's really the forecast F3/4 or actually (as we have suspected more than once) nearer F5/6!
Another item on the wish list I can now cross off is a rechargeable handheld spotlight. Glen actually gave us one of these but it's a big beast. It's very good but it takes up space and eats battery juice! So I've ordered a smaller LED based one that should be easier to stow and less of a drain on our limited electrickery resources.
To finish off the boat related side of the order, I've ordered a new copy of the Thames Estuary Tidal Stream Atlas NP249. We had a copy and it's gone AWOL. I've searched everywhere it could be with no joy so no doubt it'll turn up the moment the new copy arrives. I've also ordered a copy of Reeds Skippers Handbook which I hope will satisfy my desire to have a ready reference for info such as Colregs, sound signals etc.
Oh and in the same vein I ordered a copy of The East Coast Pilot from Amazon the other day to add to the information available to the navigator when planning trips beyond the immediate confines of the river.
That little lot fairly comprehensively flattened the boat bank account. Job done :-)
But that's not the end of the story! Oh no!
As summer moves into autumn, if we're going to make the most of the opportunities to use Brigantia this year, we need better personal kit. Although the wind has been unkind this year (always too much or too little or from totally the wrong direction) we've had very little rain over the summer and so far we've been OK with plimsolls on our feet, normal clothing and cheap plastic waterproofs courtesy of Tescos.
So I decided it was time to gear up before Rik and I head out a week today and ordered myself some new clobber.
Boots and gloves were easy - Gill Shorty cruising boots and Gill Grip sailing gloves. Oilies, on the other hand, were another matter. Jeez they're expensive! One pair of Musto or Gill trousers and a matching jacket would cost more than my entire wardrobe set me back - I confess that I'm not exactly a model of sartorial elegance but even so. I opted to purchase a cheap own brand Windward coastal sailing suit from Force 4 for a fraction of the cost. Time will tell whether it's any good but at about £75 compared to several hundred quid it's got to be worth a go.
I could do with picking up some thermals as a base layer, some decent socks and a couple of fleeces. That lot, however, can come from the clothing department at Asda or Tescos!
And why, you may well ask, am I annoyed today? The order was scheduled to arrive yesterday and didn't :-(
I even stayed up when I got in from work and dozed on the couch so that I'd here the driver knock on the door - to no avail as the knock never came. I'll be surprised if it arrives this morning so I expect it'll be Monday now which means I wasted the extra fiver on express delivery. Again. I shall be asking for a credit on that, you may be sure.