Round Britain day 104

[rotrax]

Glad your trip was OK. First Mate and I were not concerned but were keen to know that you had arrived OK. Well done, a good passage.

Strong and seaworthy boats those Westerly Fulmars!

 

[dunedin]

Probably can export the route from my Raymarine E7 chartplotter. If anyone can advise, I will give it a try. The full Round Britain would certainly look good.

Yes, can easily save the track from the e7 onto an SD card (yours is the lower case e-Series, very different from previous upper case E-Series - unhelpful naming conventions by Raymarine).
I have done this since we got our boat so compiled a visual record of the voyages so far.
What I don’t know is how long the track lasts before it runs out of data points (I tend to save every 500 miles or so).
But assuming don’t hit the limit before then, when you reach a natural destination point go to My Data / Tracks and stop the current track, importantly selecting the option to save the track. Then start a new track.
Can then use MyData Export to save to an SD card. There should be two card slots, so make sure don’t overwrite your chart SD card.
Can then load the track into a number of free tools to display on a map, annotate and print.

 

[owen]

Really appreciate this blog. Very well written, its not easy to write consistently interesting copy every day without it becoming" i did this then i did that". Your blog hasnt been like that, together with the forays to museums and other sitesits been fascinating
. Add in your casual descriptions of excellent seamanship especially coming into new harbours, in the dark and single handed it really is commendable. I will be just sorry when it ends. I

 

[LONG_KEELER]

. I will be just sorry when it ends. I

So will I.
Just a thought. Are there any KIWIS on this forum ?
How about a round New Zealand to help us get through the Northern winter .

 

[Kylora]

Yes, can easily save the track from the e7 onto an SD card (yours is the lower case e-Series, very different from previous upper case E-Series - unhelpful naming conventions by Raymarine).
.....
What I don’t know is how long the track lasts before it runs out of data points (I tend to save every 500 miles or so).
......

I've been using the same "Current Track " all season on my e7. At the moment, I'm at 5845 points and 751nm. Hopefully it will last another couple of weeks which will likely be the end of my season.

Ash

 

[Concerto]

Really appreciate this blog. Very well written, its not easy to write consistently interesting copy every day without it becoming" i did this then i did that". Your blog hasnt been like that, together with the forays to museums and other sitesits been fascinating
. Add in your casual descriptions of excellent seamanship especially coming into new harbours, in the dark and single handed it really is commendable. I will be just sorry when it ends. I

You may not believe it but I hated English at school. Things started to change when I started my own business having to write sales litrature and newsletters. Later I helped run a local residents magazine, where I wrote a series of articles as a cat. No one guessed who wrote the Felix articles, but they were the first thing everyone read as I kept being told. That was great fun as I always tackled some local problem or made some observations only a cat would notice. No one thought it was me because I had a dog, but that meant I walked the area more than most people so I saw more I could comment on. I have never been very good at spelling, but I do try to not make any mistakes,

Writing these reports has probably kept me sane and stopped lonelyness during this trip. One couple who I met whilst sailing this trip were also doing a Round Britian via the Caledonian Canal. I first met them in Lowestoft and again in Wells and Hertlepool, then we split. We met up again in Ballycastle and Bangor. They admitted they were cautious whereas I was fearless. Perhaps they are very correct as I push limits many cruising sailors shy away from. There is nothing wrong with a bit of staying safe and within your limits, but sometimes events may overtake you and increase risks to the boat and crew. Training is a starting point but the real world is where you learn and get experience.

From many comments during this trip I hope I have been inspiring some of you to travel further, look around places they visit and to sail in stronger winds. Whilst racing in the 1970's and 80's I have probably pushed performance way beyond what ordinary cruising yachts are expected to do. Also I have suffered many breakages including loosing a mast, breaking a rudder, numerous broaches under spinnaker, shinned up a mast whilst racing under spinnaker and stood on the spreaders to retrieve a lost genoa halyard, even stood on a keel when a spinnaker gybe went badly wrong when a crew did not do as he was instructed. In all of these cases, no outside assistance was required and the boat came home safely. So probably this is why nothing seems to worry me. I do have a deep respect for the dangers of being at sea and what can be thrown at you. Being able to tackle the problems without panicing and knowing from experience what to do to stay safe.

 

[Concerto]

Yes, can easily save the track from the e7 onto an SD card (yours is the lower case e-Series, very different from previous upper case E-Series - unhelpful naming conventions by Raymarine).
I have done this since we got our boat so compiled a visual record of the voyages so far.
What I don’t know is how long the track lasts before it runs out of data points (I tend to save every 500 miles or so).
But assuming don’t hit the limit before then, when you reach a natural destination point go to My Data / Tracks and stop the current track, importantly selecting the option to save the track. Then start a new track.
Can then use MyData Export to save to an SD card. There should be two card slots, so make sure don’t overwrite your chart SD card.
Can then load the track into a number of free tools to display on a map, annotate and print.

I started a new track at the start of the trip, so I should be able to extract the information. Generally I do not enter waypoints, but use the Go to Cursor function. Most days that only involves 3 to 5 points. Sailing by the seat of my pants has always been usual for me, but chart plotters can make you very lazy or reliant on them. Let me investigate how to do this and see what I find. It might even have recorded the total distance I have travelled.

 

[Concerto]

Just finished editting a 5¾ minute video of the conditions on the Newlyn to Brixham trip. The editting only took 2 hours!

In the morning I will load it to YouTube. So keep your eyes peeled for the link.

 

[Blueboatman]

Love the Felix angle .

Think of the possibilities. Cat settles into a sunny Westerly cockpit parked in a quiet corner for an afternoons nap
And then ?

Note pinned to chart table

letter to the captain:

“ Dear Sir,
I am trying to get some sleep here!
Please stop turning this boat around and around.
I am getting woken up at dawn , tipped over, bounced around/dripped on /chased by Scottish dogs /spied on by Shetland seagulls /accosted by strange cooking smells … vibrated at by surfing rudders and trembling double reefed sails , whirred at by buzzing drones , whizzed at by electric bicycles?
Wheres the fish and chips and what happened to my cosy berth ??

I feel that we are going around in circles and it’s making my brain a bit dizzy.
Yours aye,
The Ships Cat
Ps please buy more ships biscuit
(Etc )

 

[lustyd]

In the morning I will load it to YouTube. So keep your eyes peeled for the link.

On this note, can I ask that a few more people log in to YouTube and subscribe (for free!) so Concerto can get a proper YouTube url (aka youtube.com/concerto) instead of the random one in his signature. He only needs 100 subscribers and currently has 73 so not far off being a "proper" sailing channel! Then he can start working on the Patreon begging and get a free B&G upgrade For those unaware, subscribing to channels just shows any new videos they release on your feed, much like your own custom TV channel with your favourite stuff.

Custom URL overview - Computer - YouTube Help

 

[Concerto]

On this note, can I ask that a few more people log in to YouTube and subscribe (for free!) so Concerto can get a proper YouTube url (aka youtube.com/concerto) instead of the random one in his signature. He only needs 100 subscribers and currently has 73 so not far off being a "proper" sailing channel! Then he can start working on the Patreon begging and get a free B&G upgrade For those unaware, subscribing to channels just shows any new videos they release on your feed, much like your own custom TV channel with your favourite stuff.

Custom URL overview - Computer - YouTube Help

Well I never knew that. So please subscribe as there will be plenty more sailing videos to come over the next few months.

Looking at the stats I see so many less people have viewed the 2nd video of this trip than the first. It is different sailing area and some of the drone shots are stunning especially those around HMS Trincomalee in Hartlepool. Seeing many of the coastal castles from the see is not the usual view people know. The video is 12½ minutes long and took about 11 hours to edit with no clip from memory longer than 7 seconds. If you have not watched it, this is the link.

The most popular video is the one of Concerto at the boat show and closely followed by the 1st part of the Round Britain trip, even though it has been posted for far less time. My favourite videos are the day I first had dolphins alongside the boat and the magical day ghosting up the Medway when for 8 miles I had the river to myself and slowly sailed with the tide with me on a glassy sea.

 

[Frogmogman]

On this note, can I ask that a few more people log in to YouTube and subscribe (for free!) so Concerto can get a proper YouTube url (aka youtube.com/concerto) instead of the random one in his signature. He only needs 100 subscribers and currently has 73 so not far off being a "proper" sailing channel! Then he can start working on the Patreon begging and get a free B&G upgrade For those unaware, subscribing to channels just shows any new videos they release on your feed, much like your own custom TV channel with your favourite stuff.

Custom URL overview - Computer - YouTube Help

Done. Thanks for pointing this out; I didn’t know about it either.

up to 75 now btw.

 

[lustyd]

Yes it's a lot easier when you tell people "youtube slash Concerto" down the pub

 

[skua164]

Also subscribed.

 

[Concerto]

It took a while to load but here is the video of the weather on day 104. Enjoy.

 

[Frogmogman]

It took a while to load but here is the video of the weather on day 104. Enjoy.

Quite punchy of you persisting with plan A in those conditions with such a long leg, rather than diverting into Plymouth, say.

 

[SaltyC]

Subscribed, now at 79.

 

[dunedin]

I started a new track at the start of the trip, so I should be able to extract the information. Generally I do not enter waypoints, but use the Go to Cursor function. Most days that only involves 3 to 5 points. Sailing by the seat of my pants has always been usual for me, but chart plotters can make you very lazy or reliant on them. Let me investigate how to do this and see what I find. It might even have recorded the total distance I have travelled.

Having started the new track at the start, yes you should be able to capture your voyage details.
The track is unrelated to waypoints used (or not), but covers the actual route taken.

When ready to capture the track either PM me or start a new thread nearer the time and can describe how to do it, including simple post processing.
This is an example of one short leg of our summer trip extracted from our e7 plotter - yours will be rather bigger

Your e7 plotter also has a log based upon GPS track. If noted the plotter log at the start it will show the exact distance covered since then (distance over ground, unlike a traditional log which is distance through water - and typically imprecise due to lack of calibration and/or weed)

 

[creeks]

Subscribed x4?

 

[Schuss39]

Subscribed.