Might as well watch some nice weather. This is not an exciting video

Salt bay skiff

My high-light of the season had to be the Salt bay skiff I built in the Spring, Its sitting in the shed gathering (I would say dust, but given the climate its more of a damp grime) and awaiting a new season and I'm really looking forward to getting out in it again.
When the Spring arrives I might get a chance to make the rig for it which will give it a whole lot more scope.
Ken is keen to build another one or perhaps make me build one for him and as long as he will do the coats of epoxy I enjoyed doing the rest, so two could be quite a bit of fun.
I reckon it was great value for money and proved a nice stable boat, Even when put to the test by a very enthusiastic Frenchman :)

Rigging

So despite being looked at like I've lost the plot, I have left the rig up this Winter, but not without some rhyme or reason. First of all I was so busy in the lead up to Christmas and trying to get the house done that I didn't want to spend days packing it all up and bringing it all home, It all has good varnish on and the standing rigging spent all last Winter in a bucket of linseed oil so its well protected. 

Next reason is we still don't have a sail cover and this is a good opportunity to get one made. I also want to get the topsail rigging sorted and do something to simplify the setting of the running back stays which is probably one of the toughest parts of sailing the boat and takes all the attention of the helmsman during a tack ( not to mention a gybe ). The main issue is that they have to be cleated off at the right tension before throwing the highfield lever while holding the mainsheet in tight and making sure she tacks through the wind and thats before dealing with the headsails. The saving grace is that once the helm is put over she carries way very well and rarely misses a tack unless there is a heavy sea to compound things. The levers alone don't give enough slack to allow her to sail so if the main sits on the leeward runner it simply knocks her on her ear until you get the other end uncleated. 

The thing is that they will always be set back the same length so a loop in the rope and a strong hook instead of a cleat would be one solution. another idea that was mentioned was a open cheek deck roller instead of the closed one and let the wire out. What ever the solution is it needs to be something I'm very sure of when the load is on it.

As if that wasn't enough reason I would like to have a sailmaker look at the staysail and see if it can be improved on before making a new one because it never sits very well on the shrouds.

This shows the running back stay fittings, The wire is permanently attached to the highfield lever then goes back through the roller and up through a block about half way to the mast head, then is spliced to a rope which comes back down to the cleat on the back deck,

Poem for Christmas

This poem by Robert Louis Stevenson was shared on In The Boat Shed a couple of years ago and I really like it so here it is again. Wishing you all a Very Merry Christmas and fair winds for the new year.

The sheets were frozen hard, and they cut the naked hand;

The decks were like a slide, where a seaman scarce could stand;

The wind was a nor'wester, blowing squally off the sea;

And cliffs and spouting breakers were the only things a-lee.

They heard the surf a-roaring before the break of day;

But 'twas only with the peep of light we saw how ill we lay.

We tumbled every hand on deck instanter, with a shout,

And we gave her the maintops'l, and stood by to go about.

All day we tacked and tacked between the South Head and the North;

All day we hauled the frozen sheets, and got no further forth;

All day as cold as charity, in bitter pain and dread,

For very life and nature we tacked from head to head.

We gave the South a wider berth, for there the tide race roared;

But every tack we made we brought the North Head close aboard:

So's we saw the cliffs and houses, and the breakers running high,

And the coastguard in his garden, with his glass against his eye.

The frost was on the village roofs as white as ocean foam;

The good red fires were burning bright in every 'long-shore home;

The windows sparkled clear, and the chimneys volleyed out;

And I vow we sniffed the victuals as the vessel went about.

The bells upon the church were rung with a mighty jovial cheer;

For it's just that I should tell you how (of all days in the year)

This day of our adversity was blessèd Christmas morn,

And the house above the coastguard's was the house where I was born.

O well I saw the pleasant room, the pleasant faces there,

My mother's silver spectacles, my father's silver hair;

And well I saw the firelight, like a flight of homely elves,

Go dancing round the china plates that stand upon the shelves.

And well I knew the talk they had, the talk that was of me,

Of the shadow on the household and the son that went to sea;

And O the wicked fool I seemed, in every kind of way,

To be here and hauling frozen ropes on blessèd Christmas Day.

They lit the high sea-light, and the dark began to fall.

'All hands to loose top gallant sails,' I heard the captain call.

'By the Lord, she'll never stand it,' our first mate, Jackson, cried.

… 'It's the one way or the other, Mr. Jackson,' he replied.

She staggered to her bearings, but the sails were new and good,

And the ship smelt up to windward just as though she understood.

As the winter's day was ending, in the entry of the night,

We cleared the weary headland, and passed below the light.

And they heaved a mighty breath, every soul on board but me,

As they saw her nose again pointing handsome out to sea;

But all that I could think of, in the darkness and the cold,

Was just that I was leaving home and my folks were growing old

Towel sail yawl.

Just came across a new blog to follow, Its a new lobster boat being built at Hegarty's. You will probably have to hit translate but will be nice to follow. Most of the current one's were built in the early 2000's so I missed it all.      http://saorbaid.blogspot.ie/

2015 done and dusted

I've been very lazy with writing anything lately, Partly due to trying to finish the house before Christmas and probably more so I started re-watching Lost on Netflix. Don't ask why.

We did however finally get the boats back to Oldcourt and just in the nic of time with the way the weather has been rolling in.
We had a hard time getting the engine bled out after that, Even when finally running it was sounding rough for a good 5-10 mins and I was starting to lose hope in it but then after restarting it again it sorted its self out.
A couple of days later we made a dash and motor sailed round, We made good time and the engine ran sweetly for the full 6 hours. The wind and tide were in our favour but there was a decent swell running and the wind was slack at times giving a pretty rolly day out so it was nice to finally make it into Baltimore and up the river. It was slack low tide on the river and we kissed a sand bar passing Innisbeg boathouse. Nothing more than a mild bump but now we can calibrate the sounder at least.
First thing the next morning I brought the Boy Scott around too and struck a line through boating for this year. I'm not sorry as even as there have been some nice days out there has been so many bad ones that incentive has been low.
I have some things I want to tinker with on the mechanical side of things with Teal this Winter and I am going to leave the rig standing so we can get a proper sail and cockpit cover made before next season. I left her the other day drying on the slip with the bow spirit off and a cover on so she may well be out next day I'm down there.

That cleat is crude and needs sorting out but it is a god send

I had the perfect opportunity for a nice sail to Oldcourt in a slack Northeasterly on Monday but I missed out on it as I had to check out the oil pressure issue and I wanted to do other things with the nice day. The oil pressure problem turned out to be just an electrical fault so was easily fixed and I later regretted not taking the opportunity to go. So when Thursday looked pleasant enough I grabbed the chance.
The wind was on the nose but I planned on motor sailing to make good time round.
I SHOULD HAVE TOPPED UP THE TANK.
There was a good lump in the Stags Sound and I was heeled well over. I had been worried she might draw air and just as I cleared the sound she spluttered out. Over half way to Baltimore. I headed on under sail for about a mile but I was going to have to sail along way South West off the coast to make Baltimore so I opted to turn and run.
I considered Castlehaven as it was close but I had no mooring and the wind was to come up over night so I headed back to Union Hall which was a pleasant enough sail. The wind became very light in the bay and eventually I ended up half a mile from the mooring utterly becalmed on a slack tide.
I was on my own so the plan was to get the engine bleed and running once in the bay and able to leave the helm but for various reasons I couldn't get it started again.
After 2 hours messing and dark setting in I called Ken to come and get Dads tender from the pier and come and tow me back the mooring which all took quite a while more. In which time I dropped my phone over the side. It was very calm, very dark and starting to rain by the time I was finally off the boat, exactly where I had started ten hours earlier.
As days sailing go, this one was frustrating !