Penguin
Mon 12 Sep 2005 23:02
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Thursday September 08 to Monday September
12.
No photo's of the Bay of Biscay I'm afraid,
wouldn't want to make anybody else sea sick, the fish round here have had there
fill, it wasn't the place for a camera.
Left Cameret on Thursday morning after studying the
weatherfax charts for two days all looked well, so we decided to go, how wrong can you be! Started off in a sw
force 3, not a good direction head wind to La Coruna. On the Friday the
wind built and built during the day to gale force wind with gusts of 45kns
in the squalls. Big seas boiling like a witches cauldron, torrential rain,
thunder and lightning.
First the main sail was damaged, and out of
commission, then the stay sail was damaged, with only the engine and a very
small amount of genoa out we made progress but our destination was going to be
impossible to make. Santander was chosen as this could be made in one
tack.
Little sleep keeping the boat on track through the
big waves/swell. With all the technology on board I was on the helm and as
the lights of Santander appeared surfing down these very large waves I asked Rob
what is the bearing to the entrance, expecting something like 134 deg I got head
for the cloud that looks like a Teddy Bear, who needs GPS, I do, because there
was no cloud that looked anything like a teddy bear. I think Rob had had his
head in the smelly bilge to long and was seeing things!
Arrived safely in the Marina at 0500hrs Sunday morning same clothes as the
day we left in, little food eaten. We had invented a good diet, Jak no food
for 3 days, Rob 2 days and Norman 1 day. Crashed out until mid morning
where we could take account of the trip.
Penguin had looked after us well and we needed to give her some pampering
so Monday was spent cleaning the complete boat and getting the sails to the
repairers.
Short hops now to get ourselves to La Coruna leaving here Thursday is the
plan.
'ere we go it's her ladyship.
No picture
Picture this, captain Yorkie at the helm goggles on water from
the side and from above says to his crew "I hope Pacific islands are worth
it after all of this!" Did he get an answer, if he did it disappeared into the
wind.
It wasn't much better inside the boat Rob got hit on the head by the
resuscitation kit and he was only having a rest! The net which holds our fresh
fruit and vegetables was launching bombs around the boat which made visits
to the dunny very dangerous both overhead and underfoot. Mercifully my
avocado was spared or at least we thought it was until today when we inspected
it and it was carefully removed from the boat.
Well where was her ladyship in all this up the mast looking for that
weather window, so which one shall we go through today children the square one,
round one or triangular one?
Phew!
Captain says didn't they do well and what happened in the cricket! Man of
few words. |