White cliffs of Dover


 

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Across the Channel for Paimpol festival

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 In the last week of July, Falanda and I set off across the channel accompanied by my parents on Karuna.  The morning started out windless so we motored until torbay when the wind picked up and we started sailing, close hauled at about 4.5 kts. The wind increased and a few waves skirted over the stern, splashing the tillerpilot which in turn got wet and packed up.  We then had a few hours of perfect sailing, the helm so light that falanda was steering herself, under full main and slightly reefed jib. At sunset we hove to so that I could reef the main and get changed into some dry, warm clothes before it got cold.  Then it got dark, and we started approaching the shipping lanes, still sailing well at about 6 - 6.5kts.  At this point my batteries were getting low, and I needed the AIS on as we crossed the lanes so I tried starting the engine. I then discovered that the batteries were almost dead rather than low, so faffed around turning everything off, whilst also...
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Brixham Heritage Rally (1 Jul 2024)

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 Earlier this year me and Falanda moved from our winter berth in Penryn to Sailors Creek in Flushing where my friend Jake Whyte was restoring his new boat ‘Radiance’. She is a 37’ gaff cutter, larch on oak frames built in 1936. Radiance was built in a Smack yard in Boston, Linkinshire as a yacht, so is massively overbuilt with 1.5inch planking and 4” frames, she is 13 tonnes.  Radiance had been sitting against a wall in Gweek for 10 years before Jake bought her in March, so after a quick scape off at Tremaine quay, up the helford, he put the sail back on and attached all those bits of rope that assesorise the gaffers. She looked lovely sailing back, touching 7kts with the wind behind us, however on return to Flushing Jake proceeded to make the most worrying holes in the hull as he dug out all the rot.  More holes were made in the deck, and we had fun learning how to scarf in new bits of wood before the whole deck and coachroof was sanded and repainted. Having left the boa...
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Mousehole Sea, Salt & Sail festival (10 July)

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