Two weeks and a Targa 33

[Sailorsam101]

I've just come back from almost two weeks afloat and I thought I would bore you all with the events that occurred.

Day one.
Try to get to Guernsey but get stuck in Lymington due to fog..great start.


Day two
Head off at 8am into five miles vis with AIS but no radar..all good so far. Reach the shipping lanes and of course vis drops to a mile. AIS working well until a black shape looms ahead...a massive oil rig just sitting in the east bound lane..no tugs...not moving just sitting there and NOT on AIS.

Stop for lunch in Alderney on the anchor. Forecast says a nice gentle F2 but we are sat in a F6!!!!

Fast trip to St Peter Port and all is well apart from a sea sick SWMBO!

Day three
A nice way hot day on the beach.

Day four
If we want to move in the next few days it has to be today and fog is forecast again! But the lady wants to stay put...so we do.

Day five
Fog..fog with a little bit more fog all day

Day six
Fog and this time rain as well

Day seven
Leave the boat and fly back to Southampton to pick up the kids.

Day eight, nine and ten
At home doing family stuff...!

Day ten
Take the condor to St. Peter port..should take 3 hours but one engine down so it takes 7...seasick lady again!

Day eleven, twelve
Pouring down all day...boat is nice and clean on the outside now.

Day thirteen
Warm but too windy to go anywhere.

Day fourteen
Fast trip to St Helier. Arrive at the perfect time before most yachts. Get a finger pontoon straight away and then have a beer while watching the yachts fight for what's left.
Nice evening seeing the island in hot sun.

Day fifteen.
Almost a crew mutiny when I say we need to head back for the UK today. It's a F2 SW and hot and sunny...she wants to sunbath...kids want to swim in the sea. I want to get home before the N5 come in just after yet more fog...bloody weather.
So we leave and have a great crossing...flat calm and 20kts all the way apart from over the bridge which was a rough as hell. 6.5 hours from St Helier to the folly can't be bad me thinks.

Day sixteen.
Starboard cone clutch is failing...great...also see the both starboard props have big chunks taken out on them...great again.

Home to give the wallet a rest.

The boat was perfect...some of the crew were not!!! 8 hours motoring at 22kts used just under 400ltrs which I'm happy with.

The weather this year is just mad and did spoil what I was hoping to be a nice two weeks away...there are only so many time one can play Uno..!

 

[rafiki_]

Sounds like an adventure! We were very lucky with the weather on our trip. Not too shabby this week either.

 

[BruceK]

We're out for two weeks from the 19th. Hope our weather is better.

 

[Nick1150]

Thanks for sharing

tell us more about the boat, the issues you had, seakeeping, etc.... Why the captain got sea sick?

wish next time to find better weather

 

[KINGFISHER 9]

You're boating in the wrong place! It's been 30 degrees and over for the last week here (South of France) ... Wednesday and Thursday (34 degrees) we had to run with the sun roof shut because it was too hot! Time to sell the kids and make the move ... 300 days of sunshine a year!

 

[wellf100]

Unlucky Sailorsam..... the fog has been terrible over here this year. After several hours delay in Birmingham airport I flew back with my wife and 2 young kids on Friday evening to find it was still too foggy to land so we ended up in Jersey. After much discuscussion and deliberation it was decided that we had to stay on the plane and fly back to Birmingham!! Finally ended up finding a hotel at gone midnight somewhere in the maze of the NEC sheds. Then back to wait at the airport all day Saturday for the next flight. Finally got home late on Saturday with 2 very tired kids.

There's been some very nice days but I've not been out anywhere near as much or as consistently as last year due to fog or wind or general gloominess...or all 3!

Looks like things are starting to improve weather wise though...

p.s. condor cancelled again today...my dads turn to get stuck on the mainland :livid:

 

[KevB]

We're out for two weeks from the 19th. Hope our weather is better.

It's going to be perfect in the UK as of about the 18th when I'm off to Spain for a couple of weeks. Guaranteed...

 

[BruceK]

It's going to be perfect in the UK as of about the 18th when I'm off to Spain for a couple of weeks. Guaranteed...

DONT CANCEL!! :encouragement:

 

[Promarine11]

Ship to Mallorca.

 

[Bigplumbs]

Next year book a nice villa in Skiathos and have two weeks in the sun. Plenty of boats to hire over there also for day trips

Dennis

 

[Bandit]

You made a fundamental mistake.

You took your holiday on the boat at the same time as I did, people I see on holiday often complain how unseasonably bad the weather is when I see them.

i was away from Guernsey on the in northern Brittany from the 23 July to the 6th August so wet, windy and fog.

Mind you the two weeks before I went when I was at work were lovely.

CI Normandy and Brittany is a lovely cruising area. One option next year might be to bring the boat over with mates to Guernsey the week before and then come over with the family by air or Condor and then do the reverse at the end. That way they could enjoy the short hops and not endure the long cross channel unless perfect weather prevails.