SV Accomplice Blog week 1 6/8 to 13/8

We managed to leave Saxon Wharf, Southampton on schedule following months of refit work and improvements with the support of local skills and the kindness of friends and family.

Our trip down the Solent to Yarmouth set the tone of the week to come, sailing into headwinds.

We took an opportunity to cross the Channel in a momentary lull in the weather and scurried across under motor to arrive as fresh headwinds resumed instigated by lows sweeping across the UK.Time in Cherbourg, France was spent usefully bailing diesel out of the bilges as a result of the failure of 2 fuel tank fittings and resetting them.

Another lull allowed us to escape the clutches of Cherbourg and motor into headwinds through the Alderney race down to Guernsey accompanied by rain, black foreboding skies with the threat of thunder thrown in for good measure. We entered into St Peters Port in the sunshine which was a welcome relief.

A quick overnight and early start saw us underway to Roscoff, motoring into headwinds with a very confused sea, oh yes again dark skies with moments of brightness and patches of rain and 11 hours of it. Mike was steadfast at the wheel in rain and shine, Janet still finding her sealegs (aka. dozing and feeling sick).

It looks like we will be stalled again as Finisterre is hit with strong SW winds.

The sailing and slow progress have been disappointing but has been more than compensated by the excellent cooking skills of our chef Andrew Y (esp the Guernsey fresh scallops!), dolphins, beers, exploring, laughs,and occasional blue sea and sky.

The weather ahead looks continually unsettled and our plan to reach Spain by next Wednesday together in question.

Andrew W, Janet, Mike and Andrew Y

14.8.19 Roscoff, France