Fw: Drunken Sailor II

Symphony
Fri 25 Jun 2010 13:52


Subject: Drunken Sailor II

Well hello again from Symphony
 
Much has happened since I last picked up the mouse. We have been bouncing between Southampton, Edinburgh and Aberdeen .
 
The Aberdeen house has been cleared and sold with most of the contents going to charity shops and the tip.....except for Sharon's clothes and shoes which went in a large articulated lorry to Edinburgh.
 
We had our first serious outing at the beginning of the May when we sailed to the Channel Islands. Scary......the previous owner who is a very serious racing sailor.....announced that we would set sail at six o'clock on the Friday night to Alderney which is about 90 miles from Southampton as the crow flies. 
 
Needless to say the weather was cold and damp and we set off to negotiate the Channel Separation Scheme in the dark. This is basically a huge multi lane motorway which funnels all sea traffic in and out of Europe. To cross it, you have to hit it at right angles and cross at a reasonable speed, The marine authorities monitor all traffic on radar and recently a sailor was fined £7000 for loitering in the area!
 
Sail takes priority over powered vessels but needless to say when you are 54 feet long and the container ship coming towards you is 1000 feet long it scares the crap out of you. It was a dark night with a large oily swell and by the time I had got a couple of hours kip and came back on deck Sharon was lying in the cockpit, in a sleeping bag with a bucket next to her. Very ill! Wimp I thought!
 
We arrived in a wet, cold and windy Alderney at 0700 hrs the next morning. After a rest we then explored the bars until midnight! We set off at 0500 the next morning with mega hangovers, Force 8 winds and big seas . Within an hour it was my turn to hang over the rails........with Sharon cackling in the background. 
 
Anway that was our baptism of fire........
 
By the middle of May we decided to set a date for sail away but with a minor change in plans...we are now heading fro the west coast of Scotland rather than the Med. This is a problem for Sharon she now needs to hire the articulated lorry again to remove her summer clothes from the boat and then buy winter ones. I keep trying to peruade her that I am a poor pensioner and that clothes must be darned and mended and made to last for at least 15 years....she keeps telling me to "Fu*k off"
 
Anyway...our list of pre sail away issues with the boat was not getting any shorter. Every time I fixed something I broke something else in the process.....So we bit the bullet last Sunday and set off from Southampton for the west coast via the Bristol Channel and the Irish Sea.
 
We are estimating that it will take us about two to three weeks in easy stages. We did a mega shop and filled the freezer, loaded up with a tonne of diesel, 2000000 ciggies and a couple of cases of whisky and set off, the idea being to remain at sea for the duration.
 
That was the plan.........we are currently in a marina in Plymouth (at a staggering £50 a night) awaiting repairs to our generator, without which we can't make water. We set off with a tonne of water but it is only when you live in a boat or go camping you realise how much you squaunder........for Sharon this is an art form. For her a tonne of water equates to maybe two showers and a hair wash. For me it equates to sufficient water to dilute my evening generous household drams for a week...therefore I have taken to showering once per week whether I need it or not.
 
However since we left Southampton we have had some sailing - most days there has been no wind....endless sunshine, gorgeous sunsets viewed from anchor in bays and coves. We have even been able to get the barbeque going.
 
We have had a few nervous moments .........being about three miles offshore and being approached by a very fast vessel and asked to hurry  because the army were about to commence a live firing exercise! The services have priority over almost the whole of the South Coast for exercises. Having read the guidance I am pleased to note that if you find yourself middle of a range at the wrong time you should "proceed out of the area without delay".....yeh too true mate. I am also reassured to learn that "a submarine at periscope depth will not approach you without asking permsiion". 
 
 
Anyway enough for now - I enclose a couple of photies