What to stock up with prior to leaving the UK.

[ribrage]

Cider .... stop off in Gijon during the "cidre festival" the streets are swimming with the stuff as they poor it from as high as possible into a glass as low as possible , after the festival , when it rains the harbour fills up with the corks washed out of the drains, I never intended staying there a month , now I have a big red nose and a cider belly and a hankering to go back !

part of the fun is walking into a "foreign" super Mercado and finding the last jar of marmite and wrestling it from the hands of the unworthy Spaniard that thinks he will give it to his dog as a treat, one thing you simply CANNOT lower your standards on are T bags .... yes available but expensive as hell with half the amount of tea in the bag. I "smuggled" some large quantities of tea bags back from the last uk visit without cause for concern.

By the way .....is it still raining there ??

 

[RAI]

I've spent over ten years eating slowly through canned/dried food that I bought "for a long sea passage". Food is available everywhere. Boat bits are harder to find and cost lots. That's why we have the low cost airlines, a lot of stuff can be carried, even tenders as "sports equipment". However, paint cannot, so do find space on board for anti-fouling. Anodes are heavy but take up little room in the bilges. I've had no trouble with engine oil, but ATF is a little more difficult to find. Diesel bug killers - take a lot when you find a cheap source, or any source. Having spares for everything eventually pays off. If you don't already have solar panels, get them on eBay and fit them before you leave. Volts are not available everywhere or you may be limited to staying where they are.

 

[dansaskip]

Decent teabags

+1

 

[KellysEye]

We made a list of what we intended to eat and drink every day for the passage days + 2, plus things like shampoo and loo rolls. Also we had two flasks for tea/coffee plus snacks for night watches. Cary spares for everything, except electronics, have look at the spares packs in the chandler. If you have some kit not on the shelf ring the manufacturers and ask what will break, we did and everyone answered. You need all the appropriate tools and exploded parts diagrams. Everything boaty is made for weekend and holiday sailors so everything will break more than once, I spent typically one or two days a week on maintenance or fixing thinks, the longest I didn't have to fix something was one month and the following day three things broke.

If you are sailing offshore over Biscay it's worth both of you doing the RYA First Aid course and a sea survival course, then buy a medical kit. One tip kitchen roll is sterile out of the pack so can be used to stop bleeding. Also cling film is sterile out of the pack and can be used to cover a burn after putting the burnt area in cold water/ice pack on it and after putting on Flamzene cream.

 

[Carmel2]

I was told antifoul had a one year shelf life, is that true?

 

[vyv_cox]

I was told antifoul had a one year shelf life, is the true?

Not in my experience. I had a tin of International Cruiser at home and didn't use it for five years. Turned out to be one of the best we have used. I bought tins of Micron and something else from Skipper Stu, he had bought them from someone else, they could have been ten years old. Worked OK, no worse than anything else.

 

[Carmel2]

Not in my experience. I had a tin of International Cruiser at home and didn't use it for five years. Turned out to be one of the best we have used. I bought tins of Micron and something else from Skipper Stu, he had bought them from someone else, they could have been ten years old. Worked OK, no worse than anything else.

Good to know, thanks.

 

[capnsensible]

Been away since 1999 so would have needed a flippin enormous container to put all this stuff in.......

 

[Artic Warrior]

Interesting idea!

I thought the same,,,,,was wondering the type of drink needed to wash it down though

 

[Appleyard]

Getting back to the original query...get yourself a set of tools appropriate to your boat...and find out how to use them.Equip yourself with the skills needed to fix things .OR you will be in the hands of the chancers.
I cannot believe the people we meet whilst cruising who have no idea how things work, and what to do if they go wrong.they can be excellent sailors,but completely clueless otherwise. This is a lot more relevant than a jar of Marmite.

 

[vyv_cox]

Getting back to the original query...get yourself a set of tools appropriate to your boat...and find out how to use them.Equip yourself with the skills needed to fix things .OR you will be in the hands of the chancers.
I cannot believe the people we meet whilst cruising who have no idea how things work, and what to do if they go wrong.they can be excellent sailors,but completely clueless otherwise. This is a lot more relevant than a jar of Marmite.

You would not believe the number of owners at this marina who get the staff to hoist their sails for them. Some are totally clueless, even about such a fundamental task as this one. I heard of a man who had broken the furling line on his in-mast system and was trying to feed a new one round the drum with the sail furled. When told that the sail would have to come down to allow the job to be done he utterly refused, saying that the sail had been up for seven years and he had no idea how to get it down or back up.

 

[GHA]

Only starry-eyed newbie cruisers think they will be happy on local produce alone..

Unfortunately this is much worse leaving the sunshine and trying to be happy back on UK local produce

 

[Resolution]

Very timely thread for us, as we are just fitting up Resolution for a full summer of sailing in the Med.
First essentials were a Bimini and wind scoops and fans, a new genoa and some new mooring lines. Full check over all other systems, and loads of spares for pumps etc. Inevitably we will have missed out the bit that will break just when we are out on our own, so a healthy credit card and the CA multi language dictionary are in reserve.
F & B wise, we still have some Marmite left over from last year, but have added two more pots!! More importantly, a 12 bottle crate has been secured under my bunk, and populated with 6 single malts and 6 fine rums. Elsewhere space has been made for some gin and some Pimms.
These apart, we should be able to survive on subsistence levels on local wines and foods. But it will be tough!

 

[Steve C Cronin]

At €1.228.I would suggest "Euros"

 

[Steve C Cronin]

You would not believe the number of owners at this marina who get the staff to hoist their sails for them. Some are totally clueless, even about such a fundamental task as this one. I heard of a man who had broken the furling line on his in-mast system and was trying to feed a new one round the drum with the sail furled. When told that the sail would have to come down to allow the job to be done he utterly refused, saying that the sail had been up for seven years and he had no idea how to get it down or back up.

Frightens me, some of the incompetence. However, if the sail is wrapped securely around the foil and assuming the drum to be free of the old line, won't the new one load on to the drum (Mostly, give a turn or two - easily sorted out) when the sail is pulled out on the outhaul? If a Furlin with an endless line, even easier, surely, due to the notch?

 

[Sybarite]

Unless you can't live without your Marmite, not really worth stocking up with anything in the food line. Nobody starves in Europe due to lack of availability of food and on average costs are similar to or lower than UK - plus of course greater variety and often "better".

Anything manufactured and "marine" is mostly more expensive, but it is difficult to predict what you might need except Antifoul where it is worth taking enough to do a couple of recoats. As you say a 32' is short of spare space and there are better uses for the space than carrying things you might not need.

I have no trouble getting Marmite; most supermarkets stock it, but normally only the smallest size.

 

[Sybarite]

When my parents lived in Moscow (recently, not Cold War queues and shortages) we were always taking them marmite, Branston pickle, salad cream, and cling film (my mum said that Russian cling film was rubbish).

Pete

Branstons getting harder to find now. It used to be in most of my local supers but now I have only found them in Intermarché in Brittany.

 

[vyv_cox]

Frightens me, some of the incompetence. However, if the sail is wrapped securely around the foil and assuming the drum to be free of the old line, won't the new one load on to the drum (Mostly, give a turn or two - easily sorted out) when the sail is pulled out on the outhaul? If a Furlin with an endless line, even easier, surely, due to the notch?

I don't know the details but the story was told to me by the extremely competent person who was sent by the yard to sort it out. He said the sail needed to come down and I doubt very much that he was wrong.

 

[MARNEN]

Thanks to all for the responses. Boat is normally stocked with kit and spares for an independent existence. Tempting fate to say I know but we usually manage quite well. The "to do" list is not gettin any shorter but the items with lines through are gettin more numerous.
Stern gantry is next, then the solar panels can go on, then I can install the composting boggery. Oh and once the gantry is on we can sort out a bimini and a V twin anchor sail. Radio stuff has been installed at home for me to practice sending emails and getting weather reports. A busy 12 months ahead.
Thanks again

 

[prv]

then I can install the composting boggery.

Uh oh!

Can I suggest you have a read of Breaking Seas by Glenn Damato? Couple of quid on Kindle if I remember rightly.

Not exactly best-seller literature, but it contains quite a bit about composting toilets on seagoing boats.

The verdict is not a positive one!

Pete