Thinking back on the summer cruise

kunyang

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So, the weather is turning, and I am thinking back on the summer cruise.

Dolphins tail walking in Lyme Bay :)

Dolphins off the entrance to Salclme (you can't get enough Dolphins) :)

Fowey, :cool:

Yealm, watching yachts hit the bar within the moorings, (i was amazed how many people ran aground and I was only watching for a short while) :rolleyes:

Force 7 Easterly catching us out in Studland at 02:00hrs :confused:

All in all a great couple of weeks. :)

What are your memories.


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Hearing a slight moaning noise and looking down to see SWMBO in a crumpled heap with a broken wrist in Northern Holland. It had been going rather well up until then, revisiting old favourites in the Baltic and enjoying a fine summer.
 
Anchored in Gometra Harbour on a perfectly still evening, with a sea otter for company in the water and deer grazing on the hillside. Next morning went for a walk and saw an eagle sitting on a ridge less than 200 metres away.
And that is just one of many great memories in seven weeks on the West coast of Scotland, part of my Round Britain voyage.
 
I am still out cruising, SWMBO has gone home and I have to get the boat back to its winter quarters. Memories:
A pod of dolphins, probably 6 or 7 in Fethiye Bay, about 5 miles out from Gocek last week. The most we have seen together for a few years now.
A wonderful easy sail with just the cruising chute from Palamut almost to Sogut.
9.2 knots on the GPS and 9.6 on the log yesterday with just about 2/3rds of the genoa up and the wind behind the beam, then having to turn back from an attempt to sail the 40 remaining miles to Loryma when the wind hit 40 knots and the sea state was sending green water right over the boat. I bashed back upwind to find a safe mooring.
 
Anchoring in Hope's Cove nr Torquay very late in the evening after a long day's trip from Portland and waking in the morning to see what a beautiful place we were lucky enough to have chosen to stay the night. And we saw lot's of dolphins this year and what we thought was a thresher shark jump almost clear out of the water. Beats your average package tour- we are very fortunate.
Oh and surviving 2 weeks with our two sons (20 and 16) and a small dog with me and SWMBO on a small boat without any outright mutiny.
 
A day sail...

Beating out to the Needles, in a good force 4 waves just starting to come on to the foredeck. My 6 year old daughter and I sitting birds on the branch, with her laughing and screaming as each wave came and washed are feet and splashed our faces...

Enjoying what seem like rare moments we have together...
 
A night passage to Chichester, first time there and in the dark. Anchored at 2am at somewhere called "East Head" - then waking up and the children one by one arriving in the wheelhouse and saying "wow!"
Stopping off at Studland for 2 hours before going into Poole harbour and ending up staying for 10 days, swimming ashore twice a day and catching a huge Bass one evening.
 
We left Woodbridge in early June and have just laid up at Plymouth. Not one dolphin seen all summer!

As for memories, many and wonderful.

We kept stopping for a few days, thinking the next place just couldn't be better. We were wrong every time, the next place was better!

Favorite stops had to be Padstow. Or Mevagisy. Or Teingmouth. Or Weymouth. Or Rye. Or Littlehampton. Or Noss Mayo. Or Itchenor.

And the great people we met on the way.

And carrying the mizzen staysail while trolling for mackerel from Dartmouth to Fowey.

And waking up and pinching ourselves to make sure it was real every morning.

And hardly ever having to go into a marina.

And not wearing oilskins from Dover in June to Plymouth in August.

I chose the right summer to retire!

Ho hum. Got to get a job now to fund next summer!
 
First trip out to Outer Hebrides, which were fantastic in a period of settled fine weather
Fantastic wilderness anchorages
Saw Basking shark, Minkie whale, dolphins, porpoises, seal, otter, eagles, puffins etc
Didn't do anything really stupid, and no major breakdowns, which was all good
Great company
 
At anchor well down stream on the wonderfully desolate river Roach, with no one in what seems like miles, with only a colony of seals for company.

Didn't know it was still possible to find an empty bit of water in the UK.

Gitane
 
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