Royal River 43:48N 70:10W

Millybrown
Mark Hillmann
Fri 7 Nov 2008 22:34
We are back at Royal River now.  A quiet sail up from Diamond Cove enlivened by a sinister grey ship.
 
 
 
 As it came closer it turned out not to be a ship, but a lighter, pushed by a tug.
 It only looked like a James Bond villain ship.
 
 
 
We wound our way up Royal River at the top of the tide.  That is the best time, as Murrel and I learnt coming out on our last visit.  At half tide following the channel needs concentration. 
 
As the high tide was at dusk, the navigation was the chart plotter and echo sounder.  Single handed using real navigation, it would be a serious test.  As it was we only did one circle, as the depth kept dropping.  Zig-zags up the edge of the channel,  using the chart plotter to guess which edge worked the rest of the way.
 
 
 We tied up in the boatyard at Royal River.  The trees are now late autumn/winter rather than summer as it was at our last visit.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  It is more of a yacht storage yard than marina, but has full facilities with sailmakers and mechanics on site.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Milly Brown was lifted out of the water this morning and cleaned off.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Here she is in her final position for the winter.  Twenty eight jobs are on my list so far with the two to be done before lift out completed yesterday:  Engine oil changed and genoa top swivel removed.  This was a bit acrobatic, as the easiest way was to remove the top pin on the forestay and lift it off.  With two men from the yard to haul me to the masthead, it was not too strenuous.   Only twenty two tasks left now and a week to do them, easy.
 
  Can you see the dent in the front of the keel?  That was where we hit a rock in Greenland hard enough to slide everything off the cabin table.  The only other damage is the anode missing from the propeller.  Those lobster pots have a lot to answer for.  Nothing that cannot easily be fixed.
 
 Royal River is as friendly as everywhere here.  The boat next to me has just been sold and the new owner is on his own in a motel until the crew arrive. They will then deliver it down to Chesapeake Bay south of New York, his winter storage area until he takes her round to California next year.  He spent several years building classic style yachts:  We had supper out last night with long discussion of yachts.