CliveG
Well-Known Member
I have been trying to get Sirenia home for the past few weeks.
The forecast for yesterday was a bit of putting but we went for it.
I had sorted out all the kit and the trailer last Sunday so we where ready to go.
Filled the Range Rover up with LPG on the way and found that the fill valve was leaking.
Shut of the gas at the tank and carried on on petrol.
We has decided to recover at Ramsholt along side the stone quay on the firm sand.
We got her onto the trailer and started to pull her out and things were going well until I stopped part way out to check that she was sitting in the trailer o.k.
She was not centered correctly so we tried to let her back in to sort her out.
No movement.
O well just haul her out and we will sort it out ashore.
No movement apart from the Range Rover digging it's self in.
Add more rope to ger the RR onto harder ground.
Still no go.
Ask a chap from the pub to give us a hand with his Land Cruiser.
Result = 2 4x4s with spinning wheels.
Our friend then offered to fetch a tractor from a farm up the road.
Whilst we where waiting for that to arrive it was suggested that we put a strap around Sirenia and square her up on the trailer by pulling her across with the RR.
That worked well.
The tractor arrived and succeeded with some wheel spin.
Finally ashore at 4 o'clock
We got her mast down and stowed everything for the road.
The next challenge was getting though the gate posts at the top of the pub drive.
The posts are 9'6" apart.
Sirenia has a beam of 9'3".
Should go.
It was now dark so quite hard to see what was going on.
It was a tight squeeze but we made it after a bit of shunting.
We then found that the LPG system was not playing at all and the fan belt to the alternator had broken.
We drove up to Woodbridge and stopped in a garage but they did not keep any fan belts.
A local at the garage offered to lead us to a Motor Accessory shop that was still open.
They had a belt - Result.
Enough adventures for one day lets go home!
Passing Stowmarket on the A14 the RR started running a bit rough.
By Woolpit we were down to a couple of cylinders and going no further.
We manager to crawl onto the entry slip road to get out of the way of the thundering trucks.
Time 7.15 p.m.
A call to the breakdown service got them on the way but with the comment that they would not be able to recover the trailer.
A call to a Tim's mate got him on the road with his RR.
We put Sirenia behind that RR and Tim & his Mate took her home.
I sat by the A14 and waited.
The RAC van got to me at 9 o'clock and told me that he could not fix it and I needed recovery. I had told them that when I called.
The recovery truck arrived at 10.15 and i was back home at 11.00.
The one good point - The weather was not as bad as forecast.
I am now resolved that once Sirenia is back on the water in the spring I am not bringing her home again.
All I need to do now is find a way of getting her back to the coast.
The forecast for yesterday was a bit of putting but we went for it.
I had sorted out all the kit and the trailer last Sunday so we where ready to go.
Filled the Range Rover up with LPG on the way and found that the fill valve was leaking.
Shut of the gas at the tank and carried on on petrol.
We has decided to recover at Ramsholt along side the stone quay on the firm sand.
We got her onto the trailer and started to pull her out and things were going well until I stopped part way out to check that she was sitting in the trailer o.k.
She was not centered correctly so we tried to let her back in to sort her out.
No movement.
O well just haul her out and we will sort it out ashore.
No movement apart from the Range Rover digging it's self in.
Add more rope to ger the RR onto harder ground.
Still no go.
Ask a chap from the pub to give us a hand with his Land Cruiser.
Result = 2 4x4s with spinning wheels.
Our friend then offered to fetch a tractor from a farm up the road.
Whilst we where waiting for that to arrive it was suggested that we put a strap around Sirenia and square her up on the trailer by pulling her across with the RR.
That worked well.
The tractor arrived and succeeded with some wheel spin.
Finally ashore at 4 o'clock
We got her mast down and stowed everything for the road.
The next challenge was getting though the gate posts at the top of the pub drive.
The posts are 9'6" apart.
Sirenia has a beam of 9'3".
Should go.
It was now dark so quite hard to see what was going on.
It was a tight squeeze but we made it after a bit of shunting.
We then found that the LPG system was not playing at all and the fan belt to the alternator had broken.
We drove up to Woodbridge and stopped in a garage but they did not keep any fan belts.
A local at the garage offered to lead us to a Motor Accessory shop that was still open.
They had a belt - Result.
Enough adventures for one day lets go home!
Passing Stowmarket on the A14 the RR started running a bit rough.
By Woolpit we were down to a couple of cylinders and going no further.
We manager to crawl onto the entry slip road to get out of the way of the thundering trucks.
Time 7.15 p.m.
A call to the breakdown service got them on the way but with the comment that they would not be able to recover the trailer.
A call to a Tim's mate got him on the road with his RR.
We put Sirenia behind that RR and Tim & his Mate took her home.
I sat by the A14 and waited.
The RAC van got to me at 9 o'clock and told me that he could not fix it and I needed recovery. I had told them that when I called.
The recovery truck arrived at 10.15 and i was back home at 11.00.
The one good point - The weather was not as bad as forecast.
I am now resolved that once Sirenia is back on the water in the spring I am not bringing her home again.
All I need to do now is find a way of getting her back to the coast.
or, what, £2500.00 for a marina.
must admit I'm following advice given and selling my old trusty Rangie and going for something a bit more up to date instead, which is a shame as I still like her. Might well take up an offer of £400 which has been made but I was hoping for more 
. Not sure what to go for instead but Louise seems quite keen on the L200, just not sure it's much of a towing motor
