Trad Nav weekend?

[Phoenix of Hamble]

Reading Jimi's thread on Scuttlebutt, it has struck me that its been a very long while since I used my traditional nav skills in anger.

For many of us, even those brought up sailing in the days of paper, pencil and dipping distances, that maybe we've had GPS's and Plotters just a little bit too long...

So.... a proposal...

As east coast sailors, guardians of the art of sailing, how about nominating a weekend in advance, where you commit to turning off all the electronic position fixing devices, and do the whole weekend the traditional way?... perhaps pick a weekend that will be a challenge commensurate with your experience?

It might be useful to force ourselves to drag from the deepest recesses of our minds, some of those techniques used so long ago... as a gentle reminder should we ever need to use them...

I'll start it off....

Morgana - I commit to doing the outbound leg of our planned Brugge trip this year with the GPS and plotter turned off.

 

[Athene V30]

Morgana - I commit to doing the outbound leg of our planned Brugge trip this year with the GPS and plotter turned off.

At least in the old days - swing that lamp - we had the wonders of Radio Direction Finding to update the DR / EP.

I did get bored on one of my trips last year and started fixing as I ran along the French coast, only every 30 minutes or so not like the 6 minute visual fixes I did from Newcastle a few weeks ago in Trumpeter (the 'new' Raider) increasing to 3 minutes when approaching / leaving harbour. No students onboard so I had to earn my keep!

Assuming I go to Calais at the end of May I'll try and remember to do that without GPS / Chart Plotter. Luckily variation is almost nothing on the East Coast!!

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

RDF to update the EP?

Hah!... with the old yacht systems, in anything over a F4 you were lucky if it placed you in the same coastguard region, let alone get an accurate fix!

 

[Athene V30]

RDF to update the EP?

In anything over a F4 you were lucky if it placed you in the same coastguard region, let alone get an accurate fix!

Navigation = the art of knowing where you arent!

Kids these days they don't know how easy they have it!!

 

[tillergirl]

You remind me I have an old RDF in the shed. What were they called? Locata - never located anything. I seem to recall in all the years I had it, it only picked up one signal - was it the Sunk Beacon? And the Navstar Decca always went down as we went past Osea (no sarky comments please about needing Decca to navigate past Osea). I seem to recall if you didn't turn it on from where you last turned it off, it had a hissy fit and wouldn't triangulate or whatever it did.

Anybody lend me a plotter to turn off for Morgana's challenge?

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

Anybody lend me a plotter to turn off for Morgana's challenge?

No hand held GPS's or any other sort of GPS either..... no cheating!

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

You remind me I have an old RDF in the shed. What were they called? Locata - never located anything. I seem to recall in all the years I had it, it only picked up one signal - was it the Sunk Beacon?

Never used one in the Thames Estuary, so no idea where the beacons were.... in fairness, they did work OK at the western end of the channel, and were quite useful for a crossing over to/from the Channel Islands.... IIRC, there was a beacon on Start pt and another by Falmouth.... but the last time I would have used RDF would have been in the late 80's....

 

[tillergirl]

Actually thinking a bit more I think it picked up the aero beacon at Southend - but this might be scribble, have been at the Rum Cocktails this evening.

Should we also go back to Seafarer Echo sounders that read zero on the digital reading if it goes right round the dial to 20+ metres for this challenge as well? Remember stopping in fog in the Barrow Deep terrified when the digital reading read 0.9 metres when I though I was in the middle of the channel (I was - in 20.9m of water). Turning the knob to x6 did solve the problem but not before I had hove to and rather foolishly stuck the boat hook round all sides au bateau. And then one rainy night over the Ridens de la Rade when I thought it was a bit shallow, it lit up all round the dial and no fiddling with the Gain did anything.

 

[FullCircle]

I promise not to switch mine on at all until May.

 

[DanTribe]

How traditional do we want to go?
I once heard a tale of a polynesian navigator who rested his scrotum on the prow of the canoe, the better to judge wave rythm.
This might be unacceptable off Frinton.

 

[MoodySabre]

I'm having the Decca aerial taken off my mast this week. That's as far as I'm going. Emperor's new clothes

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

How traditional do we want to go?
I once heard a tale of a polynesian navigator who rested his scrotum on the prow of the canoe, the better to judge wave rythm.
This might be unacceptable off Frinton.

But would probably be well received anywhere near Clacton pier....

 

[Koeketiene]

How traditional do we want to go?
I once heard a tale of a polynesian navigator who rested his scrotum on the prow of the canoe, the better to judge wave rythm.
This might be unacceptable off Frinton.

That would depend - is your scrotum still presentable?
If in doubt, feel free to post pictures; so the forum panel could advise

 

[Wunja]

That would depend - is your scrotum still presentable?
If in doubt, feel free to post pictures; so the forum panel could advise

NOOOOO!

Last time someone did that we ended up with a new forum!

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

Report just coming in.......

A man has been arrested after being seen cruising up the Crouch with his gentalia exposed.

The man, named locally as Dan, was reported as saying that he'd forgotten about the fresh epoxy coating he'd just finished on his bow, and found himself in the unfortunate position of having glued his testicles to the bow sprit.

A large group of, mainly female, firefighters are currently employing careful use of a series of solvents in an attempt to extract him.

A firefighter spokesman described the situation as 'hard to deal with'

Its believed to be part of a strange new navigation ritual inspired by Pacific Islanders.

Locals said they are getting rather fed up of it, as its the third time this year that members of the Crouch cruising community have glued body parts to their boat, with the well publicised 'naked helming after sikaflexing' incident onboard luxury yacht Fullcircle earlier in the year receiving a great deal of publicity.

Meanwhile, the police are exploring links with an east coast resident who appears to regularly disappear off the pacific and far eastern destinations. It is believed he may be a key factor in this new fad, and is secretly distibuting hidden messages through a well known local pilotage book.

The RCYC refused to comment as they prepared for their annual Clacton Cruise

 

[Bru]

I promise not to switch mine on at all until May.

I promise not to switch mine on until I've bought it!

 

[Koeketiene]

Report just coming in.......

A man has been arrested after being seen cruising up the Crouch with his gentalia exposed.

The man, named locally as Dan, was reported as saying that he'd forgotten about the fresh epoxy coating he'd just finished on his bow, and found himself in the unfortunate position of having glued his testicles to the bow sprit.

A large group of, mainly female, firefighters are currently employing careful use of a series of solvents in an attempt to extract him.

A firefighter spokesman described the situation as 'hard to deal with'

Its believed to be part of a strange new navigation ritual inspired by Pacific Islanders.

Locals said they are getting rather fed up of it, as its the third time this year that members of the Crouch cruising community have glued body parts to their boat, with the well publicised 'naked helming after sikaflexing' incident onboard luxury yacht Fullcircle earlier in the year receiving a great deal of publicity.

Meanwhile, the police are exploring links with an east coast resident who appears to regularly disappear off the pacific and far eastern destinations. It is believed he may be a key factor in this new fad, and is secretly distibuting hidden messages through a well known local pilotage book.

The RCYC refused to comment as they prepared for their annual Clacton Cruise

 

[DanTribe]

Report just coming in.......

A man has been arrested after being seen cruising up the Crouch with his gentalia exposed.

The man, named locally as Dan, was reported as saying that he'd forgotten about the fresh epoxy coating he'd just finished on his bow, and found himself in the unfortunate position of having glued his testicles to the bow sprit.

A large group of, mainly female, firefighters are currently employing careful use of a series of solvents in an attempt to extract him.

A firefighter spokesman described the situation as 'hard to deal with'

Its believed to be part of a strange new navigation ritual inspired by Pacific Islanders.

Locals said they are getting rather fed up of it, as its the third time this year that members of the Crouch cruising community have glued body parts to their boat, with the well publicised 'naked helming after sikaflexing' incident onboard luxury yacht Fullcircle earlier in the year receiving a great deal of publicity.

Meanwhile, the police are exploring links with an east coast resident who appears to regularly disappear off the pacific and far eastern destinations. It is believed he may be a key factor in this new fad, and is secretly distibuting hidden messages through a well known local pilotage book.

The RCYC refused to comment as they prepared for their annual Clacton Cruise

Yes, very good, but let's try and keep these fantasies of yours under control.
I don't think I would send for the fire brigade, have you seen the thing they use to take car roofs off!
Ooh er!

 

[ChattingLil]

How traditional do we want to go?
I once heard a tale of a polynesian navigator who rested his scrotum on the prow of the canoe, the better to judge wave rythm.
This might be unacceptable off Frinton.

err. might be a bit out of my league.

 

[Kilter]

Report just coming in.......

A man has been arrested after being seen cruising up the Crouch with his gentalia exposed.

The man, named locally as Dan, was reported as saying that he'd forgotten about the fresh epoxy coating he'd just finished on his bow, and found himself in the unfortunate position of having glued his testicles to the bow sprit.

A large group of, mainly female, firefighters are currently employing careful use of a series of solvents in an attempt to extract him.

A firefighter spokesman described the situation as 'hard to deal with'

Its believed to be part of a strange new navigation ritual inspired by Pacific Islanders.

Locals said they are getting rather fed up of it, as its the third time this year that members of the Crouch cruising community have glued body parts to their boat, with the well publicised 'naked helming after sikaflexing' incident onboard luxury yacht Fullcircle earlier in the year receiving a great deal of publicity.

Meanwhile, the police are exploring links with an east coast resident who appears to regularly disappear off the pacific and far eastern destinations. It is believed he may be a key factor in this new fad, and is secretly distibuting hidden messages through a well known local pilotage book.

The RCYC refused to comment as they prepared for their annual Clacton Cruise