Flying Fish 2013 1 - Medex

2013/1
The Journal of the Ocean Cruising Club
1
2
OCC
officers
ADMIRAL
COMMODORE
VICE COMMODORE
REAR COMMODORES
REGIONAL REAR COMMODORES
GREAT BRITAIN
IRELAND
AUSTRALIA
NEW ZEALAND
USA NORTH EAST
USA SOUTH EAST
WEST COAST NORTH AMERICA
ROVING REAR COMMODORES
PAST COMMODORES
1954-1960
1960-1968
1968-1975
1975-1982
1982-1988
1988-1994
1994-1998
1998-2002
2002-2006
2006-2009
2009-2012
FOUNDED 1954
Mary Barton
John Franklin
George Curtis
Mark Holbrook
Dick Guckel
Peter Whatley
John Bourke
Dinah Eagle
Nina Kiff
Doug and Dale Bruce
Sid and Rebecca Shaw
Tony and Coryn Gooch
Graham and Avril Johnson, Rosemarie and Alfred
Alecio, Mike and Liz Downing, David Caukill,
David and Susie Baggaley, Simon Fraser and Janet
Gayler, Chris Cromey and Suzanne Hills, Scott
and Kitty Kuhner, John and Christine Lytle
Humphrey Barton
Tim Heywood
Brian Stewart
Peter Carter-Ruck
John Foot
Mary Barton
Tony Vasey
Mike Pocock
Alan Taylor
Martin Thomas
Bill McLaren
SECRETARY Richard Anderton,
Secretary, Ocean Cruising Club Ltd
10 Carlisle Road, Hampton
Middlesex TW12 2UL, UK
Tel: (UK) +44 20 7099 2678; (USA) +1 360 519 5401
Fax: (UK) +44 20 3397 0076
e-mail: [email protected]
EDITOR, FLYING FISH Anne Hammick
Falmouth Marina, North Parade
Falmouth, Cornwall TR11 2TD, UK
Tel: +44 1326 212857
e-mail: [email protected]
OCC ADVERTISING Simon Williams – contact details page 220
WEBSITE www.oceancruisingclub.org
1
CONTENTS
PAGE
Editorial
The Commodore’s Column
The 2012 Awards
Sailing South in New Zealand
Irish Sea Hopping
Sable Island
Reviews
3
4
7
23
37
43
55
Sailing Sea Topaz around Sulawesi
Sending Submissions to Flying Fish
Foraging under Sail
Through the White Sea Canal
New Caledonia
Coming Out
A Summer Cruise to Romania and...
Bulgaria with Safari of Howth
A Voyage to the West Indies, Part 1
From the galley of ...
(also on pages 193/194)
A European Atlantic Contra-flow
From Palm Trees to Penguins, Part 2
Septennial Passage
Silver Surfer Rides New Wave
Back to the Atlantic
A Summer in the Balearic Islands
Nome from Home
Obituaries and Appreciations
Advertisers in Flying Fish
Advertising Rates and Deadlines
66
78
81
86
101
113
Katie Thomsen
Steve Pickard
John Van-Schalkwyk
Sailing into Solitude; Bull Canyon; The
Crash Test Boat; Eileen Ramsay: Queen
of Yachting Photography; Dublin Bay:
The Cradle of Yacht Racing; Cost Control
while you Cruise (DVD); The Boat Galley
Cookbook; Last of the Wooden Walls;
Walking on Water; Trade Wind Foodie
Duncan & Ria Briggs
Sonja Brodie
Jarlath Cunnane
Mike Bickell
Rosemarie Smart-Alecio
118
131
140
Ken & Carmel Kavanagh
Cdr Vernon Nicholson
Nina Kiff; Misty McIntosh; Linda Lane
Thornton; Sonja Brodie; Bill Salvo
Jim & Sonja Brodie
Tim Barker
Iain Simpson
Avril Johnson
Almuth Otterstedt & Edi Keck
Bill Salvo
Bob Shepton
143
152
164
171
181
189
197
208
219
220
HEALTH WARNING
The information in this publication is not to be used for navigation. It is largely
anecdotal, while the views expressed are those of the individual contributors and are
not necessarily shared nor endorsed by the OCC or its members. The material in
this journal may be inaccurate or out-of-date – you rely upon it at your own risk.
2
We l c o m e t o
another fat and very healthy Flying Fish, with
contributions from
all over the globe. Seven of these are illustrated – and vastly
clarified – with plans drawn by Maggie Nelson, who’s been our ‘artist in residence’
since 1996/1, making this her 35th issue. (Prior to that, when FF featured a plan at
all it was drawn by yours truly, and fairly amateurish they were too). Maggie’s plans,
on the other hand, have gone from strength to strength, in colour since 2007/1 and
frequently achieving the impossible in terms of fitting quarts into pint pots. All I do
is forward the article plus a list of places that I’d like included, and leave the rest to
her. Oh that all my tasks as editor were so easy!
That’s why I was so delighted when Maggie was awarded the David Wallis Trophy
for 2012. This handsome engraved salver,
donated in 1991 by the family
of my predecessor, is presented annually
for ‘the most valuable
contribution to Flying Fish’, and it
would be difficult
indeed to think of anyone who
has contributed
more to Flying Fish over the years!
There’s no set
rule as to which article gets a
plan and which
doesn’t, but if yours is one of those
chosen, and you’d
like a copy for your blog (or any other
non-commercial
use), then e-mail me at flying.fish@
ocean cruisingclub.org.
In addition to cruise accounts from every continent – Africa, the Americas,
Antarctica, Asia, Australasia and Europe – not to mention most of the seven seas, this
Fish contains a most unusual article. It’s the first part of a transatlantic passage – the
second part will appear in Flying Fish 2013/2 – and breaks two of my cardinal rules,
being written in log format by a non-member. Even so, I’d really like to thank Myles
Bowen (who certainly is an OCC member, and has been since 1994), not merely for
forwarding me a copy of the late Commander Vernon Nicholson’s A Voyage to the
West Indies, but also for obtaining permission from his daughter-in-law for us to publish
it. So who was Vernon Nicholson? Well, turn to page 131 for the full story, but even
if you’ve never sailed in the Caribbean you’ve probably heard of English Harbour,
Antigua. No? Well, read on...
Finally, the usual mantra. The DEADLINE for Flying Fish 2013/2 will be Tuesday
1 October, but if there’s anything like the last minute avalanche we saw last year you’d
be wise to get your submission to me – or at least get in touch to warn me it’s imminent
– by the middle of September at the very latest. Meanwhile, happy reading!
Dream Away lying peacefully in Matuku, Lau Group, Fiji, having been
piloted through the convoluted, reef-strewn entrance using Google Earth
chartlets (see page 171). Photo Avril and Graham Johnson
3
THE COMMODORE’S COLUMN
One of the tasks that the Committee has been quietly getting on with is an overhaul
of the Club’s membership rules and rate structure. This has coincided with a fairly
radical re-structuring of the Committee itself, which will be reported elsewhere,
but we have divided all club activities into a series of portfolios, each with its own
chairman and standing sub-committee. ‘Membership’ functions now come under Rear
Commodore Mark Holbrook.
Arising out of the first phase of our strategic review, we found that there was
considerable resentment among members to the previous practice of charging two
joining fees when a couple joined under the joint membership rule, and this was
inhibiting both partners of a couple joining. The joining fee is intended to cover the
costs of admitting a new member, the major cost element of which is the substantial
expense of mailing a ‘new member pack’. As a condition of joint membership is to
have only one mailing address and hence only one mailing per address, there was
no logic to sustain the ‘double’ joining fee for new joint members, and this has now
been dropped. We are hoping that this will encourage many more members to enrol
their sailing spouses, a large number of whom are equally qualified but hitherto have
gone unrecognised. As my wife keeps telling me, it is important for the woman of the
partnership, who has sailed an equal amount of miles and survived the same experiences,
to be recognised for her own achievement!
At the same time we simplified the joining fee structure, so that both full and associate
members pay the same but there is no longer an additional fee when an associate
member qualifies for full membership. Again there was no logic for this, and we felt
that the event should be celebrated rather than penalised! There is no joining fee for
youth members nor for members re-joining after a lapse of membership.
An application from a family of five caused us to examine our policies for
membership of children; in fact we previously had no policy. This has now been
addressed and we have created a new category, family membership, which must
include one parent as a full or associate member and children under 18 living at the
same address. Adults will pay the respective single or joint membership rates, and
children a nominal £5 per year. Once over the age of 14, children may complete
a qualifying voyage and become full members, passing into the ‘young members’
category where they benefit from a 50% discount on the full subscription. We are
hoping this will draw in families sailing with children and provide a very welcome
new input to the young members group.
We have been working on introducing an on-line application process, as we recognise
that the present mail-based application process is out-of-date and can be difficult for
those cruising in far-away places. Unfortunately it is taking time to achieve the degree
of security required, but we are committed to providing a solution.
The Membership Group is continuing to work on a host of membership issues
which are aimed at providing a better service to members, and hopefully you will
be seeing further evidence of this in the near future. Whilst on the subject of
membership, at the time of writing we are finalising the publication of a new edition
4
of the Members’ Handbook, which should be with you well before you read this
letter. This edition will include, for the first time, the names of members’ spouses,
whether members in their own right or not. The process of collecting this information
had, at the time of writing, already generated over 780 emails and I would like to
thank those members who responded so enthusiastically and so promptly. Within
these responses there was overwhelming support from members for the decision to
recognise their spouses.
A disappointing feature of these responses was that a very large number of members
recorded having difficulty in using the OCC website to enter or to update their personal
information. As the membership database is central to all Club communications it
is essential that it is kept fully up-to-date to facilitate easy communications with
members and to prevent mailed publications going astray. Investigation of these
difficulties and solving these problems is now a priority for the Website Team under
Rear Commodore Dick Guckel.
Finally, you will see in the new Handbook that we have reprinted a wonderful
description of the OCC written many years ago by former Commodore Tony Vasey. I
won’t repeat it here, but you will see that the theme is ‘that the OCC is its members’.
So very true today, as ever.
John Franklin
[email protected]
5
6
THE 2012 AWARDS
The Awards were presented following the Annual Dinner held aboard HQS Wellington
in London on Saturday 20 April 2013. This historic vessel, built in 1934 and now the
floating livery hall of the Honourable Company of Master Mariners, proved a superb
venue and was much admired by the many members and guests who attended the event.
THE OCC AWARD OF MERIT
One or more awards, open to members or non-members who have performed some
outstanding voyage or achievement. Three awards were made for 2012, all to nonmembers, listed here in alphabetical order.
Based near Dover, North Carolina, Dick
Giddings is a legend on the east coast of the
USA and one of the unsung heroes of the
cruising community despite being ‘disabled,
and living on the smell of an oilrag’ – the
long-term effects of childhood polio. When
no longer able to sail actively he ‘sold the
boat but kept the radio’, and for many years
has given selflessly and unstintingly of his
time and effort. Dick has a major presence
every day and serves one day a week as a net
controller on the East Coast Cruiseheimers
Net [http://www.bigdumboat.com/network.
html] which meets every morning at 0830
Dick and Judy Giddings in Oriental,
North Carolina. Photo Jim Austin,
© www.jimages.comAustin
Eastern Time, and he also operates the
daily DooDah net [http://bigdumboat.
com/doodah.html] for offshore passagemakers, which meets at ‘1700 ET daily,
Rain, Shine, or Moonlight’.
Gus Wilson accepting the Award of
Merit from Commodore John Franklin,
on behalf of Dick Giddings
7
These nets are a check-in service but, even more importantly, they provide contact
between cruisers and those ashore – the times when a cruiser has been unable to
contact home except via Dick Giddings are too numerous to mention. Finally, he
keeps a watchful eye on the yachts on passage in his area, and if they don’t log in he
puts the word out to the emergency services.
From 2005 until 2008 Dick and his wife Judy organised the Southbound Cruisers
Reunion, a large gathering of new and old cruisers keen to share East Coast knowledge.
They are currently assisting with the Salty Dawg Rally for yachts on passage to
the Caribbean, providing a contact point for the crews’ families at home plus
communications with the fleet twice a day on a variety of frequencies. Judy supports
all these efforts, and stands in on the radio when needed.
As Dick was unable to attend the Awards presentation, his OCC Award of Merit
was collected on his behalf by his old friend Gus Wilson.

In a career spanning more than 40 years, historian and writer Tim Severin [http://
www.timseverin.net] has – among other adventures – sailed a 36ft wood and leather
currach 4500 miles from Ireland to Newfoundland to recreate the 6th century voyage
of St Brendan (The Brendan Voyage, 1978); captained a replica 9th century Arab dhow
across nearly 6000 miles of ocean from Oman to China to investigate the legends of
Sinbad the sailor (The Sinbad Voyage, 1983); steered a Greek-built replica Bronze Age
galley through the Bosphorus
to the Black Sea in search of
the landfalls of Jason and the
Argonauts, and the following
year from Troy to the Ionian
islands, the route of Ulysses’
homeward voyage in The Odyssey
(The Jason Voyage: The Quest for
the Golden Fleece, 1986, and The
Ulysses Voyage, 1987); crossed a
large part of the Pacific on a 60ft
bamboo raft built, to test 3rd
century BC accounts of a voyage
from China to America with just
such a vessel (The China Voyage,
1994); retraced the journeys
of Victorian naturalist Alfred
Russell Wallace through the
Indonesian Spice Islands using
a 19th century prahu (The Spice
Tim Severin displays his
OCC Award of Merit
8
Islands Voyage, 1997); traced the authenticity of Herman Melville’s white sperm whale
Moby Dick in remote parts of the South Pacific and Indonesia (In Search of Moby Dick,
1999); and travelled to Juan Fernandez island off Chile to explore the background to
Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe (Seeking Robinson Crusoe, 2002).
More recently Tim Severin has turned his hand to writing historical fiction, with the
Viking and Adventures of Hector Lynch trilogies, and Saxon: The Book of Dreams last year.
It was particularly fitting that OCC Founder Member Colin Mudie, designer of
nearly all Tim’s craft in addition to many other well-known vessels, was among those
present to see him receive his OCC Award of Merit.

Drawing inspiration
from Frenchman Eric de
Bisschop, who sailed a
double canoe from Hawaii
to France in 1939, in
1953 James Wharram
[http://wharram.com/
site] designed and built
his first offshore cruising
catamaran, the 23ft
6in Tangaroa. Sailing
Tangaroa off the British
coast convinced him of the
seagoing qualities of the
double canoe, and in 1956
he set out aboard her on
the first of his pioneering
transatlantic voyages,
repeating it three years
later with the 40ft Rongo.
Sixty years on and
James Wharram is still
designing, building and
sailing offshore catamarans
– a career far longer than
that of any other multihull designer. In 1987 the Multihulls Buyer’s Guide calculated
that he had sold three times as many plans as any other multihull designer worldwide,
and design sales have since topped 10,000 – though he would be the first to admit
that some plans go to ‘dreamers’ and he has no idea how many have actually resulted
in finished vessels.
For many young and adventurous sailors a home-built Wharram was their initial
passport to ocean cruising – including for Geoff Pack, remembered in another of the
Club’s awards – and there can be few corners of the globe they have not cruised.
9
THE OCC AWARD
Made to the member or members
who has/have done most to ‘foster
and encourage ocean cruising in
small craft and the practice of
seamanship and navigation in all
branches’.
Fergus and Kay Quinlan [http://
www.pylades.net] live in County
Clare on the west coast of Ireland, to
which they returned in August 2012
from a three-year circumnavigation
aboard Pylades, their 12m steel Van
der Stadt-designed Caribbean. Their
voyage – which largely followed
Kay and Fergus Quinlan
the classic trade wind route – was
inspired by the spirit of Charles Darwin, coinciding with the 200th anniversary of his
birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of The Origin of Species.
Perhaps the most unusual aspect of their achievement, however, was that unlike
the overwhelming majority of ocean cruisers who
buy their boats ready made, Fergus and Kay built
Pylades from scratch, a project which took 6000
hours over three years, from learning to weld in
1995 to launching in 1997.
Regular contributors to the Irish Cruising Club
Annual over the past few years – and winners
of the ICC’s Faulkner Cup for the past three –
Fergus and Kay were hesitant to send the same
material to Flying Fish. Hopefully they’ve now
been persuaded, we’ll be able to share some of
the highlights of their circumnavigation in Flying
Fish 2013/2.
Pylades in the French
Marquesas, May 2010

THE GEOFF PACK MEMORIAL AWARD
For the person (member or non-member) who, by his or her writing, has done most
to foster and encourage ocean cruising in small craft.
An eventful series of voyages in the Merchant Service pumped salt into the bloodstream
of the young Val Howells [http://www.valhowells.com], resulting in a succession of
10
Val Howells’ Scandinavian Folkboat Eira before
the 1960 OSTAR. Photo Squibbs Studio, Tenby
sailing dinghies and the eventual acquisition of a
Scandinavian Folkboat. This vessel, launched in
1958 and named Eira after his wife, was sailed in the
1960 Observer Singlehanded Transatlantic Race
(OSTAR) in which Val was invited to take part
by Lt Colonel HG ‘Blondie’ Hasler. At the time
the whole concept of a singlehanded ocean hrace
was novel. The boats were small and wooden, the
word electronics was not even in the dictionary,
and sponsorship was non-existent. Skipper and
boat thus played a not insignificant part in helping
to establish what has become a major event in the
international yachting calendar. Val’s account of
his 62-day passage from Plymouth to New York
was published in 1966 under the title Sailing Into Solitude.
In the second OSTAR, in 1964, Val Howells sailed the 35ft Akka, finishing third
after 32 days at sea despite being rammed by a spectator boat at the start. His next
notable sailing experience was of skippering a 70-passenger staysail schooner in the
Caribbean, after which he and his wife settled in Wales and became involved with
‘farming, horses, inshore fishing, and a succession of restaurants’. In 1976 it was back
to sea again, when Val and his son Philip both entered OSTAR, sailing identical
40-footers which they had built themselves.
Val Howells, winner of the
Philip completed the race, but sadly Val had
Geoff Pack Memorial Award
to drop out due to ill-health and a serious
accident. This did not, however, prevent
him making a three-year circumnavigation
in the same yacht a few years later.
The sailing public’s appetite for a good
seafaring yarn remains as strong as ever, and
nearly half a century after its first publication
Val has extensively re-written Sailing Into
Solitude and set up his own publishing
company to produce it. A review of this new
edition will be found on page 55 ohf this
Flying Fish. Also republished is his second
book, Up My Particular Creek, which tells the
story of the 1976 OSTAR, the problems that
Val faced in coming to terms with perceived
failure after enormous personal effort, the
way he overcame these problems, and the
first leg of his circumnavigation.
11
THE JESTER
MEDAL
Donated by the Jester Trust,
and awarded to a member or
non-member for a noteworthy
singlehanded voyage in a boat
of 30ft or less overall.
The Jester Medal for 2012 goes
to Matt Rutherford [http://
solotheamericas.org], who
sailed his 27ft Albin Vega Saint
Brendan singlehanded non-stop
around the Americas in the
face of enormous challenges
to benefit CRAB (Chesapeake
Matt Rutherford with Rob Kloosterman,
Region Accessible Boating), a
Secretary of the Albin Vega Class Association,
non-profit sailing programme
who had travelled from Holland for the occasion
for people with disabilities,
based in Annapolis, Maryland. Among his motivations for the voyage was to show
people, particularly those with disabilities, that far more can be accomplished in life
than they might ever have thought possible. By no means a newcomer to long passages,
Matt’s previous sailing experience included a 15,000 mile Atlantic circuit in a Pearson
323 – singlehanded, of course.
Saint Brendan left Annapolis on 13 June 2011 loaded with around
2500lb of stores, turning left after crossing the Chesapeake Bay Bridge
Tunnel to head north past Newfoundland and enter the Northwest
Passage in early August. Emerging from its western end nearly seven
weeks later, Matt made his way down the west coasts of Canada,
the USA, and Central and South America, rounding Cape Horn
Matt and St
Brendan on
their return to
the Chesapeake
after more than
ten months
at sea. Photo
Mark Duehmig
12
on 5 January 2012. The final leg took him north again, past Argentina, Brazil and
the Caribbean, to re-enter the Chesapeake Bay at 1048 EST on 18 April. In all he
covered 27,077 miles in 309 days, an average of nearly 87½ miles per day, and raised
more than US $120,000 for CRAB.
Conditions inevitably took their toll on both yacht and equipment. Two of the three
GPS units failed, along with the VHF and AIS, and all four solar panels packed up,
as did the wind generator. When the watermaker, an essential item, ceased to work
friends arranged for a box containing replacement parts to be transferred mid-ocean.
The engine finally failed off the east coast of South America – leading to a too-close
encounter with a heedless freighter – while a knock-down off Cape Hatteras put paid
to Matt’s laptop. But fortunately the trusty Monitor windvane kept on steering....
Matt’s achievement was honoured by the OCC with a Special Award on his return to
Annapolis last year, and we were delighted that almost exactly a year later he could be
with us in the UK to accept the Jester Medal in the presence of so many OCC members.
THE ROSE MEDAL
For the most meritorious short-handed voyage made by a member or members
(awarded this year for a series of short-handed voyages).
David Tyler [http://my.yb.tl/tystie34] is one of those low-key cruisers who claim they
are simply doing what they want, where they want. In David’s case this has meant
more than a decade sailing his 11m junk-rigged Tystie. During several long summers
he sailed north with mountain walking as the primary objective. Deciding to cut loose
from the UK in 2006 he, together with Fran Flutter, OCC, headed south to Cape
Town, then north again to transit the Panama Canal.
Fran Flutter
and David
Tyler
13
Tystie left the Coconut Milk
run in the Marquesas, heading
north to Hawaii, Canada and
Alaska. Two years later she
rejoined the trans-Pacific route
via California and Mexico,
visiting Polynesia, the Cook
Islands, Samoa, Tonga, New
Zealand and Australia. At
this point Fran had to leave
the ship and David continued
alone. After a winter in
Tasmania, he altered Tystie
from a wing-sailed ketch back
to her original single junk sail
in New Zealand, then sailed
north to Tahiti and Hawaii
once more.
David is Chairman of the
Junk
Rig Association [www.
Tystie in 2010, rigged as a wing-sailed ketch
junkrigassociation.org], and
championed the benefits of the rig when accepting the Rose Medal. On returning to
Tystie in Hawaii, David plans to head north to Kodiak, Alaska and British Columbia.

THE RAMBLER MEDAL
For the most meritorious short voyage made by a member or members.
Although nominally awarded for a ‘meritorious short voyage’, Jim and Kate Thomsen
[www.tenayatravels.com], received the 2012 Rambler Medal at least partially for their
actions once ashore.
Originally from
Tenaya in crystal-clear
the United States,
Pacific waters
Jim and Kate left
Europe aboard their
Hallberg-Rassy 40
Tenaya in 2007.
Having reached the
Pacific Ocean early
in 2010 they sailed
via the Galapagos
Islands, Marquesas,
French Polynesia,
14
Jim and Katie at
Chesterfield Reef,
northwest of
New Caledonia
Rarotonga, Palmerston,
Nuie, Tonga and Fiji,
before turning south for
New Zealand. 2011 saw
them head back northwest
to New Caledonia and
Vanuatu, islands which
they enjoyed so much that
they decided to return the
following year – though not
before sailing around New
Zealand’s South Island,
as described by Kate (and
illustrated by Jim) in Sailing
South in New Zealand (see
page 23 of this issue).
In August 2012 they returned to Vanuatu, to be greeted as old friends. Before long
Jim was at work, first fixing a water pump and then – calling on skills learned 40 years
previously – mending old, hand-cranked sewing machines. Other casualties brought
to Tenaya for attention included solar powered lights, battery operated speakers, mp3
players, flashlights, watches and mobile phones. Then word went round that they were
willing to take and print passport photos, so the ‘sewing machine man’ became ‘the
Photographer’ ... “It was fun to take the passport photos and meet so many of the men
from the nearby villages... Even more fun was taking pictures of families; husbands,
wives and children who had never owned a picture of themselves. During our three
months in Vanuatu we printed more than a thousand 4in x 6in pictures. It would have
been even more if we’d had more paper and ink.” Kate and Jim promise an article
detailing their experiences in Vanuatu for Flying Fish 2013/2.

THE VASEY VASE
For a ‘voyage of an unusual or exploratory nature’ made by a Club member or
members.
Rev Bob Shepton [http://www.bobshepton.co.uk/about.html] received the Vasey Vase
for the third time – having previously won it in 1998 and 2004 – for his two-month
voyage through the Northwest Passage aboard his Westerly 33 Dodo’s Delight, as described
in Nome from Home (see page 197 of this issue). Bob’s crew comprised four South
15
The Rev Bob Shepton with the
Vasey Vase. He promised he wasn’t
about to deliver a 40-minute sermon!
African climbers, two of whom had
never sailed before, so they naturally
stopped to make various ‘first ascents’
along the way.
During an exceptionally full and
varied life, Bob has been an officer in
the Royal Marines, a full time youth
leader in east London, and chaplain to
two schools. Many seasons of exploring
have made him an expert on the waters
around Greenland, and in addition to
frequent appearances in Flying Fish
his writings are often to be seen in the
commercial yachting press as well as in
the publications of the Royal Cruising
Club, the Alpine Club and the Arctic
Club.
In contrast to the large, purpose-built yachts chosen by many who sail in Arctic
waters, Dodo’s Delight is a standard 33ft Westerly Discus built in 1980. She is the second
of that name, and an almost exact
replica of the first which was destroyed
by fire in January 2005 while Bob was
wintering in the ice in Greenland – see
Triumph and Disaster, Flying Fish 2005/1.

THE DAVID
WALLIS TROPHY
For the ‘most outstanding, valuable
or enjoyable contribution to Flying
Fish’, as nominated by the Editorial
Sub-Committee. The trophy, a silver
salver, was a gift from the family of
the previous editor of our club journal.
Maggie Nelson holds the David
Wallis Trophy (which can be seen
more clearly on page 3 of this issue)
16
As soon as Maggie Nelson was nominated to receive the David Wallis Trophy for
2012 further suggestions became redundant. Maggie began drawing chartlets for
Flying Fish in 1996, making this her 35th issue, and must have produced close to a
hundred over the years. In addition to being most attractive in their own right, they’re
invariably models of clarity on which the most convoluted voyages can be followed
with ease, and as such are a truly ‘valuable’ contribution. See the Editorial (page 3)
for a little more background as to how the system works, or turn to any of pages 24,
44, 66, 86, 118, 144 or 152 to admire examples of Maggie’s skill.

THE WATER MUSIC TROPHY
Awarded to the member or members who has/have contributed most to the OCC
by way of providing cruising, navigation or pilotage information.
John Kirkus has appreciated the growing importance of a library of yacht tracks to
assist navigators to identify safe routes and anchorages, especially in areas where the
chart data is unreliable. His Bluesipps Track Library [http://bluesipp.blogspot.com] is
linked to the Cruising Information section of the OCC website and includes tracks –
downloadable into a chart plotter – of previous courses sailed in:
Australia, Bonaire, Brazil, the Canary islands, the Cape Verdes, the
Chagos archipelago, the Cook islands, Curaçao, Cyprus, Dominica, Egypt,
French Polynesia, the Galapagos
Islands, Gibraltar, Grenada, India,
Indonesia, Italy, Madagascar, the
Marquesas, Martinique, Morocco,
Mozambique, New Caledonia,
New Zealand, Oman, Panama,
the Philippines, the Red Sea,
the Seychelles, Singapore, South
Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, St Helena,
St Lucia, St Vincent, Bequia and
the Grenadinehs, Thailand, Tonga
and the Tuamotus.
Having realised the importance
of recorded tracks, John has put
considerable technical expertise and
many hours of effort into developing
this innovative resource.
John Kirkus with the
Water Music Trophy
17
THE QUALIFIER’S MUG
For the most ambitious or arduous qualifying voyage by a new member, or members,
as submitted for publication in Flying Fish or the Newsletter.
There was a short discussion in the Awards Sub-Committee as to whether this award
should be made to the entire Smith family – David, Sarah, Bethany and Bryn– or whether
it should go to Sarah alone, as author of Cape’s Atlantic Crossing: The Good, the Bad and
the Ugly (Flying Fish 2012/2,
page 61). It took very little
time to reach agreement,
however – for the Smiths
[http://blog.mailasail.com/
cape/247], cruising is plainly
a family affair.
The Smith family at Sint
Maarten’s Heineken
Regatta in March 2013.
Bethany, David and
Bryn had been working
on the water taxis
Sarah, David, Bethany
and Bryn left the UK in
2007 aboard Cape, their
Gitana 43. They explored
the Atlantic coasts of Spain
and Portugal, then spent three seasons in the Mediterranean followed by a year in the
Canaries, working and home-schooling as they cruised. At the time of their qualifying
passage from The Gambia to Tobago in March 2012, Bethany was 13 and Bryn was
12, making them the youngest
full members of the OCC.
Cape in the
After spending the hurricane
Mediterranean
season in Tobago and Trinidad,
during which Bethany became
a regular contributor to the
Newsletter and Bryn had several
pieces appear in publications
such as Caribbean Compass,
Cape began a leisurely cruise
north through the Lesser
Antilles. It seems a very good
bet that we’ll be hearing from
them again soon!
18
THE OCC PORT
OFFICER MEDAL
Instituted in 2008, the Port
Officer Medal is awarded to one
or more Port Officer(s) who
has/have provided outstanding
service to the Club and the wider
sailing community by developing
and promoting their port.
John van-Schalkwyk is OCC
Port Officer for Jeddore and
Halifax, Nova Scotia. He has
been described as ‘one of the
club’s most outstanding and
enthusiastic members and Port
Officers, friendly to all who come
his way and showering them with
an abundance of hospitality and
John van-Schalkwyk
helpfulness’.
with Commodore John Franklin
Since being appointed a few
years ago, John has reinvigorated the OCC in Nova Scotia by supporting the club,
generating publicity and encouraging many new members to join. He was instrumental
in helping make the 2011 Newfoundland Cruise such an outstanding event, organising
social events in both Baddeck, Cape Breton, and St Pierre island, and in 2012 organised
a very successful dinner at the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron which was attended
by a number of local yachting luminaries, including the Commodore of the RNSYS.
When visiting yachts come calling at their waterfront home in Jeddore, John and his
wife Heather ‘treat their guests like visiting royalty, with limitless food, drinks and good
humour’. They have a special guest mooring on their dock for visiting OCC boats, and
John knows all the yacht service providers
in the Halifax area and is often able to get
things done quickly when help is needed.
His enthusiasm and commitment to the
OCC is obvious to all who meet him.
In addition to his duties as a Port
Officer, John manages to fit in a little
sailing from time to time – see Sable
Island on page 43 of this issue. Perhaps he
should be redesignated as Port Officer for
Jeddore, Halifax and Sable Island?
Not so much flying the flag as holding it...
19
THE BARTON CUP
For the most meritorious voyage made by a member or members.
Readers of Flying Fish 2012/2 will not be at all surprised that the OCC’s premier
award has gone to Patrick and Amanda Marshall [http://www.sailblogs.com/member/
egret/?xjMsgID=203539] for their ‘directionally challenged’ Atlantic passage aboard
their Sweden Yachts 390, Egret, as described in that issue.
Some
seek
challenges, others
have challenges
thrust upon them,
and few things could
be more challenging
than losing the
entire spade rudder
of a fin-keeled yacht
just four days into
an Atlantic passage
with 1500 miles still
to go. Indeed, several
yachts have been
abandoned or even
scuttled mid-Atlantic
following steering
failure. Patrick and
Amanda showed great
Amanda and Patrick Marshall aboard
Egret in the Bahamas. Photo Phil Robin
determination and excellent seamanship
during the remainder of their 26-day
passage, and their well-written account
contains information which would be
invaluable to anyone faced with a similar
failure in the future.
By the time the Awards took place Egret
had just transited the Panama Canal into the
Pacific where, in Amanda’s words, “We hope
to have a pleasurable sail to New Zealand
with no incidents worthy of awards”.
Egret at anchor in the Bahamas.
Photo Patrick Marshall
20
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SAILING SOUTH IN NEW ZEALAND
Kate Thomsen
(Kate and Jim, who originally hail from the United States, have been cruising aboard their
Hallberg-Rassy 40 Tenaya since leaving Holland in 2007. They transited the Panama Canal
in May 2010, and since then have cruised the Pacific extensively, for which they were awarded
the Rambler Medal for 2012.
All the photographs were taken by Jim – go to their highly professional website at www.
tenayatravels.com to admire many more!)
“You’re going where? Why? Just rent a campervan and drive there!” That was the
response we got from most people when hearing of our plans to sail around the South
Island of New Zealand. Indeed, South Island has a well-deserved reputation for intense
and sometimes quite nasty weather. Storms barrel across the Tasman Sea on a furious
mission to scour the western coast. Steep, large, dangerous waves rise rapidly and,
combined with storm force winds, will wreak havoc on any boat caught out.
My husband, Jim, and I did the campervan thing last year and had a fantastic time
exploring the ruggedly beautiful South Island. Our tubby little land-yacht always made
a beeline for harbours, bays and lookouts along coastal roads to assess the seas. Could
we sail here? The possibility loomed large. Noonsite [www.noonsite.com], which gives
advice about sailing around Cape Horn, recommends driving around South Island.
Undeterred, Jim sent messages to both Jimmy Cornell of Noonsite and Ken Campbell
of Commander’s Weather for their input:
Jim,
You are absolutely right; if you have plenty of me (which most people don’t)
sailing around South Island by watching and wai ng for good weather is the way
to do it. I wish I had done it myself!
Good luck,
Jimmy (Cornell)
Hi Jim,
Jan and Feb is the best me of year to do that trip. We have worked with many
clients and your plans are exactly correct other than Feb is just as good as Jan.
Just have op ons for stopping if the weather is bad, but I have seen highs set up
over South Island for 7-10 days during those months, so the weather can be very
nice. Hey, they always say summer in NZ does not start un l Christmas!
Kind regards,
Ken Campbell
This trip seemed the perfect opportunity to take a step forward in our sailing lives, increase
our knowledge, improve our skills, and visit spectacular places only accessible by boat.
23
24
With a bit of trepidation we tossed off the
dock lines in the Bay of Islands and headed
north around Cape Reinga, the tip of
North Island, and down the western coast.
We would sail all the way to Milford Sound
if the weather held. If it deteriorated, the
plan was to duck into Golden Bay at the
top of South Island and wait.
It seems Mother Nature wanted us to visit
Golden Bay and the scenic Abel Tasman
National Park. As we approached Cook
Strait, she began to huff and puff and stirred
up a menacing brew which convinced us to
take refuge. We spent eleven days exploring
this gorgeous area before she was satisfied
that we were duly impressed and allowed
us to continue on to Fiordland.
Five days later dawn broke as we floated
outside the entrance to Milford Sound.
The air was cool without a breath of wind
as Tenaya motored in past the overlapping
headland. Misty clouds hung on the
shoulders of towering, tightly-clustered
peaks and gathered in the folded valleys
Happy to have reached Milford Sound
of a dramatic, eerie, monochromatic grey
landscape. Waterfalls poured down vertical walls and spilled from classic U-shaped
hanging valleys, and we felt the spray as Tenaya passed Stirling Falls. In the shadow
of Mitre Peak, which rises 5500 feet directly from the sea floor, we were reminded of
Mitre Peak at the head
of Milford Sound
25
Anchored and tied to shore at Alice Falls in George Sound
our own insignificance. What a spectacular place! We were thrilled to have arrived
under our own power.
Arriving by car, bus or plane, 500,000 people visit Milford Sound each year. We
were keen to move on to more secluded areas, but before we did, we prepared the boat
for what lay ahead. A dozen bottles of 98% DEET and mosquito netting for all the
hatches were put in handy locations. Two bags each containing 100m of line were
fastened to the base of the shrouds on either side. Our kayak was inflated and lashed
to the dinghy already mounted upside down at the bow. The paddles were assembled
and tied to the coachroof, as was a fender with 30m of line to be used as an anchor
buoy. Four containers of diesel were secured behind the dinghy, and the storm jib
remained fixed at the bow. Our normally tidy girl looked like a yard sale, but she was
ready to head further south in the Roaring Forties.
Fifteen fiords, mistakenly
named sounds, make
up the vast Fiordland
National Park located in
the southwest corner of
South Island. Those in the
north are narrow and steepsided with dramatic peaks
rising out of the water to
lofty heights; those further
south are lower with wide
Using our inflatable kayak
to take lines ashore
26
open mouths. There are bays in some, islands in others. Several have long, narrow
arms branching out. As far as the eye can see, a blanket of dense forest covers the
mountainous land. Harsh weather, more than 7m of rain each year, and tiny but
vicious sandflies have kept human habitation at bay. We spent a month in this remote,
magical area exploring Milford, George, Thompson, Bradshaw, Doubtful, Breaksea and
Dusky Sounds. None are more than a day sail apart. We chose those fiords with safe,
all-weather anchorages – and yes, the word fiord is spelled with an ‘i’ here.
We left Milford Sound in the stillness of the morning fog and motored 25 miles
south to George Sound. As we made our way towards the head of the fiord the sky
gradually cleared. On either side of us rose tall mountains until we turned into Alice
Falls, a tiny cove adjacent to a waterfall. Once the anchor was set we eased the kayak
overboard. In a move that would become very familiar, I tied a line around my waist and
paddled it out from the most vulnerable side to secure the stern. Next I did the same
for the opposite side. Here, as in several anchorages, a line was strung across the narrow
cove and I simply tied
through loops in it. Later,
in different anchorages,
I would have to tie the
lines to trees ashore. At
low water we hopped into
the kayak to explore and
it was possible to paddle
right next to the steep
walls and overhanging
vegetation. Around one
bend we found heaps of
mussels hanging from a
partially submerged limb.
Guess what we had for
dinner?
Enchanted by the
mountains and early
morning sky reflected on
the glassy water, we were
slowly easing away from
the anchorage when a
splash interrupted the
tranquillity. Dolphins!
They frolicked at the bow
for half an hour, darting
Adult and juvenile
dolphins frolic at the bow
in George Sound
27
Tenaya anchored at the head of Doubtful Sound
back and forth, gliding close to the surface and arching out of the water. One juvenile
was especially endearing – numerous times it rolled over to reveal a white belly which
it rubbed on the bow. The inquisitive creatures left when the water began to ripple.
We continued south to Thompson Sound which is part of the Doubtful Sound complex.
A boat can travel more than 100 miles in these protected waters with a variety of safe
anchorages. We spent over two weeks exploring this area. At Precipice Cove, near the
Rainy days make for
lots of waterfalls
28
head of Bradshaw Sound, a charter fishing boat pulled up next to us one night. On his
way out the next morning he tossed a bag of crayfish onto our deck.
Our plan was to refuel in Deep Cove at the head of Doubtful Sound and leave the
following day. Billy, the one and only resident, manages the Deep Cove Outdoor
Education Trust and hostel. He offered laundry and internet access and welcomed
us into his home. When our starter died, he arranged for a replacement that was
delivered in less than 48 hours.
With 20 knots on the nose and pelting rain, we made our way down Doubtful
Sound to the Tasman Sea. The image may suggest misery, but rain in Fiordland brings
the landscape to life. Hundreds of waterfalls flow like white ribbons winding around
gigantic, rumpled, green gifts. It is a feast for the senses. It was a fast and fabulous sail
20 miles south to Breaksea Sound, the entrance to the Breaksea/Dusky complex. The
cloud resting on the sea spent the day reeling in and out the visibility and showering us
with
rain. As we approached, it cleared to about one mile and the wind kicked up
30 knots. With sails rolled into tiny pennants, we were still
over.
Entering Breaksea
Sound in over
30 knots
making
5 ∙ 6 k n o t s XXX
through the rocky entrance.
Southern Winds, the green Department
of Conservation boat with dolphin researchers on
XXX
board, which had left Doubtful Sound behind us, quickly passed,
and was now hovering just inside the protected waters. It was a reassuring sight. As we
neared the head of Breaksea Sound we were again joined by bottlenose dolphins who
escorted us into the anchorage. More researchers on the tender from Southern Winds
cheered as they saw our companions at the bow. They and one other fishing boat were
all we saw that day. Meri Leask runs Bluff Fisherman’s Radio with daily SSB schedules to
keep track of the handful of fishing and charter boats in the waters of South and Stewart
Islands. She encourages yachts to participate, so we and the six other yachts south
29
Looking for dinner
at Luncheon Cove,
Dusky Sound
of 44°S checked in
each evening. In
this remote area, it
was comforting to
know that she and
other skippers knew
our whereabouts.
The Breaksea/
Dusky complex
is
another
combination of
interconnected
fiords where boats have more than 100 miles of refuge from the turbulent seas outside.
Dusky Sound is the longest, at more than 26 miles, and was named Dusky Bay by Captain
Cook as he passed by late one day during his first voyage to New Zealand – indeed, the
entrance is wide with many rocky and wooded islands. It is a beautiful area with several
safe and lovely anchorages, and Outer Luncheon Cove was one of our favourites. It
is a calm patch of water surrounded by islands and, for some reason, the bothersome
sandflies which are found in abundance everywhere else in Fiordland do not exist here.
How nice it was to lie in the sunny cockpit or paddle around wearing nothing but a
swimsuit! New Zealand fur seals cavorted in the water and barely noticed as we passed
in the kayak. We collected dozens of mussels and I snorkelled for paua (abalone).
Captain Cook named Pickersgill Harbour after the lieutenant on his second voyage to
New Zealand – we may have even tied a stern line to the same horizontal tree he used 239
years ago. While we were secured in the snug cove a charter fishing boat pulled up and
asked if we liked crayfish.
“Yes!” we exclaimed in
unison. In no time, a
bin filled with five large
and prickly crustaceans
was handed over the
lifelines. Our buckets
and pot were wholly
inadequate for their size,
but we managed to cook
and devour each one.
Collecting paua
(abalone) in Luncheon
Cove, Dusky Sound
30
Just one of five crayfish, a gift
from fishermen at Pickersgill
Harbour in Dusky Sound
To the south of South Island lies
Stewart Island, the third largest island
in New Zealand. This windswept bit of
land straddles 47°S, and the westerlies
often blow at gale or storm force to
blast the rocky western coast. The
eastern side is more protected and has
two large, safe harbours, Paterson Inlet
and Port Pegasus. Ferries from Bluff and
small planes from Invercargill bring
visitors to Oban, the island’s only town.
Several well-maintained tracks lead
around and across the northern part of
the island, but access to the southern
part is by boat or float plane only. No
roads or tracks lead to Port Pegasus –
most of the 400 residents of Oban have
never been down there.
Adventurous pioneers of various
nationalities began arriving in the 18th century, and sealers, whalers, prospectors,
shipbuilders and flax harvesters settled and married Maori women. Eventually the
industries disappeared and the bush reclaimed most traces of their existence – what
remains is an interesting mix of hearty people who have continued to survive in
this harsh environment without many of the comforts of the mainland. Tourism,
conservation work and fishing for cod, paua and crayfish are the main industries today.
After nearly two months exploring South Island it was time to move on, and we began
to watch for a weather window to cross the notorious Foveaux Strait. Two weeks later
we got it. A high was building over the area, so the strong winds and rough seas would
ease long enough for us to make the 130 mile overnight passage from Dusky Sound
to Port Pegasus. Our route would take us southeast past the Solander Islands and the
western side of Stewart Island, around South and South West Capes, and up to Port
Pegasus. South West Cape is one of the five great southern capes – only Cape Horn
is further south. This knowledge was somewhat angst provoking.
Up at dawn, we freed ourselves from the mooring outside Luncheon Cove and
headed out to sea. We were sad to be leaving the magnificent and pristine wilderness
of Fiordland, but were excited to be heading for the completely different – and even
more remote – Stewart Island. The sun was warm, the winds were light and the seas
were slight. Sooty shearwaters gathered in large numbers, while prions and terns darted
about. Mollymawks, small members of the albatross family, joined the larger royal
31
Dawn arrival at Port Pegasus
albatrosses soaring effortlessly for miles. The night was magical with a full moon and
glassy sea. Clouds rolled by as the Southern Cross sparkled directly overhead. At one
point during his watch Jim saw odd columns of light shooting skyward. He pondered
for a moment before realising they were the Southern Lights.
We were certainly surprised when the weather report that evening said there was a
storm warning for the area. Not a gale warning, a storm warning. That’s 48+ knots! Where
did that come from? We ensured the boat was ready and waited nervously. We rounded
South Cape on 10 March, the same day that Captain Cook had 242 years earlier on his
first voyage in the Endeavour, and slowed the engine down to arrive after dawn. A swath
of pink on the horizon intensified, while the eastern sky turned a deep magenta and
the western sky a brilliant deep blue before the sun rose. It is easy to understand why
the Maori name for Stewart Island is Rakiura, which means ‘Land of Glowing Lights’.
As we entered the South Arm of Port Pegasus we passed a rare yellow-eyed penguin
lazily fishing while a sea lion bull noisily followed us.
There are several all-weather anchorages in Port Pegasus and we headed for Evening
Cove as the storm warning was still in effect. The guide book says to drop the anchor
in the middle of the cove and tie two sternlines to shore. It was low water when I
paddled the windward line over to a strong tree with several lines tied around it, so
instead of looping around the trunk, which was overhead and hard to reach, I ran our
line through a loop in the beefiest line. Then I paddled the other stern line out and
secured it around another tree. Once settled, we crawled into bed for a nap as the
strong winds finally arrived. It was disconcerting to have so much wind on the beam,
and we awoke several times during the night to check the anchor and lines. In the
morning we worried we might be stretching too close to the rocks, but feared taking
in any scope. Then, as we sat in the cockpit considering the situation, the windward
line went slack. Jim jumped up, started the engine and steered us into the middle of the
cove. When I pulled the line in, the bowline was still tied – the existing line around
the tree had broken. Thank goodness it hadn’t happened during the night! Needless
to say, after that both stern lines were tied around the thickest trees I could find, and
32
a third was added off port mid-ships as that was directly into the wind. Tenaya looked
like she was caught in a spider’s web, but she was safe and secure.
Stewart Island is very different from Fiordland. At first glance it appears open and
mellow, but on closer inspection the vegetation is often impenetrable. The rolling hills
are dense with scrubby brush, grasses, flax and tall rimu trees, and here and there are piles
of granite outcroppings. The whole island is rugged, windswept and isolated. When the
weather cleared we went exploring. A track leads from the anchorage at Evening Cove
up to several granite domes, so we hiked to the top of the nearest. The track disappeared
for a while and we made our way through the thick bush, from boulder to boulder, until
we found it again, leading to the summit and magnificent views of Port Pegasus.
Our guidebook showed a track leading from a little cove at the southern end of South
Arm across to Boat Harbour Cove in Broad Bay. We were told that it was is very pretty
and there was once a settlement nearby. Hoping to hike over and see it, we motored a
short distance, anchored, and tied two lines to shore. Once Tenaya was secure I paddled
along the edge of the bay. Swaying kelp alternately hid and revealed the golden rocks
just below the surface. Suddenly I glimpsed a large paua in six inches of water. Excitedly,
I reached down to pry it off the rock. No luck. I paddled back to the boat, pulled on my
wetsuit and snorkelling gear and gathered my proper paua prier and less than enthusiastic
husband. I had an additional incentive to get in the water – it was the last day of the
scallop season and we had yet to collect any ourselves.
“Katie, you have to put your wetsuit on and dive for your scallops...” were the e-mailed
instructions from Billy of Deep Cove. When I responded that it had been cold and
windy and I was hesitant to get in the water, he wrote, “Don’t be a wussy, get in the
water and paddle around looking down and you will see them”. Well okay then, I am
not a wussy. As we paddled along the shore looking for more paua, a blue cod sprang
out of the water and flopped about on a nearby rock. As Jim brought us alongside, I
scooped the suicidal delicacy into the kayak. That’s the first time we’ve ever caught a
fish without a line! Without a doubt, blue cod are our favourite fish – and they’re only
found in this region, nowhere else in the world. In the middle of the bay I peered over
Tenaya secured by lines
in Evening Cove
33
Rocky islands and outcrops at Port Pegasus
the side of the kayak but could not see any scallops, however Billy’s words rang in my
head so over the side I went. They were everywhere! I collected our limit of twenty
in no time. As Jim paddled our dinner back to the boat I swam back for another try at
the first paua but it held firm. I found several more but they were so big I was unable
to dislodge them, and only succeeded in getting a small one.
Twice we went in search of the settlement in Broad Bay, and twice we were turned
back by impenetrable bush. Whatever track had been there twenty years earlier, when
the guidebook was written, had long since vanished. With no signs of habitation we
were keenly aware of our isolation yet relished the solitude. The only other boats we
saw in Port Pegasus were two yachts, two fishing boats and Southern Winds, this time
with sea lion researchers on board.
As a gale warning was in effect the day we moved to North Arm we secured Tenaya in
another all-weather anchorage with stern lines tied to shore. The wind blasted through
the treetops but very little stirred the water in protected Ben’s Bay. There is a tiny cove
not far away that, if you were not searching for it, you would surely miss. A narrow
opening between two rock walls is just wide enough for a dinghy to squeeze through.
The tapered entrance widens into a secluded cove of emerald water with a sandy shore
and bottom. Dark rocks lie scattered about, while ferns and other foliage dripping with
moisture cling to the steep, dark walls and form a canopy of green. It’s an enchanting
little wonderland completely unlike outside. Further up the arm ruins can be found from
an old fishing and freezing station as well as those from a tin mining operation. xxx
We awoke at dawn for the 50 mile trip north to Paterson Inlet. Our timing was right
for the current that runs along the coast, so we had a nice boost all the way. Wind
speeds were 4–7 knots, the seas were moderate with the swell from two directions, and
the temperature was quite chilly. We anchored in Golden Bay, a quiet setting close to
Oban. How easy it was to simply drop the hook, attach the snubber, back down and
34
Cleaning the Port Pegasus scallops
be done with it. After so many weeks in
remote anchorages, it was nice be in a
town again with restaurants, a store, wifi
and a marvellous little museum. We met
several local people who invited us to their
homes, and one offered us the use of his
mooring at Ulva Island, a bird sanctuary.
Before we were ready to leave this
beguiling island we received word from
our weather router that a window was
opening to sail to Dunedin on South
Island’s eastern coast. We had a fabulous
overnight sail with winds 20-30 knots
from behind and following seas.
Many foreign yachts arrive in New
Zealand each year to wait out the cyclone
season, but most venture no further south
than Auckland. With such wonderful cruising grounds that seems a pity. Yes – it rained
on several days, we had some fog, and the wind blew at gale force as often as not, but
we were safe and comfortable inside the protected coves. We are glad that we allowed
enough time to travel only in good weather. If in doubt we waited and enjoyed the special
place we were in, while savouring the solitude and appreciating the beauty. Members
considering sailing around New Zealand can find our informative 17-page PDF in the
Cruising Information Service section of the OCC website, as well as many more facts
and photographs on our website at www.tenayatravels.com.
Smuggler’s Cove, near Ben’s Bay
35
36
IRISH SEA HOPPING
Steve Pickard
(Steve holds an unusual record, having written for Flying Fish six times since 2005/2 but
featuring a different boat on each occasion! In 2005/2 it was Fiddler III a Neptune 33; in
2006/2 the 68-year-old Maurice Griffiths-designed Lone Gull; two years later he was back
with Mojo, a Leisure 17; in 2009/2 he singlehanded Samharcin an Iar, a Westerly Conway,
across the Atlantic; and in 2011/2 Hobo, a slightly newer Westerly 36, served as his ‘research
vessel’ around the Iberian Peninsula. For Steve’s earlier exploits, download his very amusing
new e-book, Rambling under Sail, from Amazon (review in Flying Fish 2013/2).
For reasons not clear, not even to me, I found myself at the beginning of 2012
in possession of a 25ft Colvic sloop called Springtide. She lay on the outskirts of
Southport, which is on the eastern edge of the Irish Sea. Hobo, star of last year’s
exploits on the Biscay coast, rested the while in the Provençal sun.
Springtide has a long keel, 8ft beam
and 3ft draft, and is possessed of a
Yanmar 10hp engine. Her berth was
in the winter laying-up yard of the
Blundellsands Sailing Club, to which
I quickly applied for membership.
The BSC is run on co-operative
lines and has amongst its attractions
a beautiful clubhouse looking out
onto the Queens Channel and the
mountains of Wales, moorings on
the River Alt, and the laying-up yard
to which we must return...
Springtide had lain in the Norfolk
Broads before journeying north, and the muddy waterline a foot above where it should
have been indicated to the passer by the devastation that must lie within. So it was, and
much of the spring was spent in making her seaworthy. Seaworthiness was essential,
because my first cruise in her was to the Isle of Man for the TT races*, an event I
had last visited in 1967. Spice was added to this trip by the prospect of some healthy
competition with my son Rohan, also a member of the BSC and also possessed of a
similar-sized boat, in his case a 23ft Westerly Pageant called Wren.
I arrived from France at the end of May, with but one day left of a diminishing spring
tide to get her afloat before a long wait would put paid to my plans for attending the
races. Launching at the BSC is done partly by manpower and partly by an enormously
powerful electric winch. I had positioned the trailer where the tide should pluck
the boat from it. A last minute improvement of arrangements on the boat had me
* TheTourist Trophy motorcyle road races, held annually in late May and early June.
37
scurrying about, the result of which was a slip which nearly removed my kneecap!
It is worth noting here, for those readers who like to visualise things, that from that
day forth I limped heavily to the left...
I slept on board, and through the night the wind howled from the northwest making
fatigue and anxiety uneasy bedfellows. Dawn brought with it a lull and against the making
tide I plugged downstream, passing as I did so Rohan and his, to my eyes, excessively
crewed boat. In the Queens Channel we both hoisted sail and Wren drew ahead. Such is
the respect we old hands have for what is called ‘local knowledge’ that I blindly followed
him over the Formby Flats, an area that has so many wrecks on it that in some cases they
overlie each other! An anxious call from Wren on the VHF advised me after a while to
look to my depth sounder. There was 4ft underfoot, so it could have been worse.
Deepish water soon arrived – 4m being regarded hereabouts almost as blue water –
and Blackpool Pier loomed out of the murk. I first saw the sea at Blackpool on a day
trip from the grime of 1950s Manchester, and the salty tang on the western breeze
spoke to me then as it does now. Wren showed an inclination to disappear into the
northwest due, I thought, to an excessive use of the engine. I settled down to what
the late great Eric called ‘a long spell at the helm’.
She was surprisingly easy to steer, a light wind from the west not raising sufficient
waves to hobby-horse such a short hull, and never carrying any helm, even when
motor-sailing to windward. Such conditions are conducive to reflection and so the
morning passed, the soft sounds of the sea, the movement through time and space and
everywhere the little improvements so laboriously toiled over to delight the eye. By
early afternoon the wind had dropped altogether and the sun blazed down. To the north
Father and son debate who won race to the Island
38
Moored in Douglas inner harbour
the mountains of Cumbria showed their tops
and a little later the ‘Island’ showed herself
to the northwest. It is said in the bar of
the BSC that the ‘Island’ is unfortunately
10 miles too far, and as the long evening,
delightful as it was, passed into night, I was
inclined to agree with them.
Shortly after dark I rounded the
breakwater and ghosted up to the floating
pontoon in the outer harbour, where Wren and her crew were waiting with
refreshments ready to hand. The Isle of Man and Douglas are such a contrast when
coming from the low-lying Lancashire coast, it could be Ireland, Scotland, Wales or
Brittany – anywhere but Lancashire!
Next morning we locked into the inner harbour with many other boats that had
arrived during the night. It was, incidentally the worst overnight berth I have ever
occupied. Access is gained by a bascule bridge and a flapgate, and God help those
near that accursed gate when it lifts in the middle of the night and a fresh easterly
wind is blowing! Outside the inner harbour is a part of the harbour which dries, and
here can be found the tragic remains
of Solway Harvester, the Scottish
scallop dredger that foundered in the
Irish Sea in January 2000 with the
loss of seven lives, the crushed bows
a mute testimony to the collision
with the sea bed.
The afternoon saw me drawn by the
thunderous roar of frantic motors into
hobbling the mile or two to the race track,
which hereabouts consist of the main roads.
The long limp to Quarter Bridge Road
took me past the statue of George Formby.
His film No Limit, the everyday story of
a Lancashire lad playing the ukulele and
winning the TT, plays ceaselessly in the pubs and bars. The next week does not belong
in a sailing journal so shall be skipped over, even the touching scenes of me heroically
limping to and fro due to my lack of foresight in not bringing a bicycle.
39
George Formby, combining
racing leathers with a ukelele
A week later I locked out of the
inner harbour and tied up to the
floating pontoon for the night.
This turned out to be shorter than I
had hoped, due to a swell causing a
banshee wail where the pontoon met
the piles. It was 0345, but already the
light was beginning to penetrate the
dark. By the time I had had a cup of
tea in my cosy berth it was time to go
and out we swam, breasting the idle
swells as they rolled in from the east. I tuned in the radio as we made our offing, and
the dulcet tones of Ireland came in over the airwaves and called me to her. I could
have gone, I should have gone, but made instead for Wales.
In the late morning we slowly came up to the western approach to the Queens
Channel. Coinciding with this seamark we began to enter a region of thick fog, and
for a time my ears became my eyes. Once more into the sunshine we sailed and there
lay Anglesey, suspected for a while of being Ireland! The coast opened up to right and
left, and by 1600 the long channel to Conway had been negotiated and I was tied up to
a buoy with Snowdonia to my south and the castle defending the town to the east. Too
satisfied with my situation to have any desire to go ashore, with glass in hand I dreamed
away the rest of the afternoon and evening and slept well in tranquil surroundings.
I left early, so as not to be too late on the tide, but once out in the bay I had an hour
or two before the tide turned to carry me back to the Alt. I hove-to to have breakfast
and air the bedding in the warm morning sun. But all too soon it was time to be off,
so casting off the jib sheet I let draw and soon brought the Great Orme Head abeam.
The wind was light and in the east, which meant the sand banks of the River Dee
as well as those off the Mersey had to be sailed over and not into. The secret of such
proceedings is the possession of a good depth sounder and a knowledge of where
lies deep water. On this occasion the old adage about ‘When you can see a seagull’s
kneecaps its time to tack’ also came in useful.
Passing the day in this agreeable manner I arrived off the Alt in good time, and with
the tide sluicing over the sand threaded my way back to my mooring which, although
at a drying height of 4m, lay in a pool of deep water.
As mentioned earlier, members’ yachts are kept in the club yard on trailers, and each
trailer is a testament to its owner’s prowess in engineering and common sense. The trailer
I had launched from was not mine and I had therefore need of another. Someone very
kindly gave me one which consisted of two miss-matched axles and a couple of railway
lines which, if encouraged, would bind each axle to the other. I slaved and laboured over
this trailer, and in the process carelessly threw to the ground sundry bits of wood with
nails in them. One day and in what seems like slow motion I stepped off the trailer and
40
onto the two inches of nail pointing maliciously skyward from its mother plank. How
to describe those moments ... especially when, moaning softly, I was obliged to pull it
out... Days later I was sufficiently recovered to recommence my ambulatory activities
– it was small recompense to have wounded my right foot and so balanced up my limp.
After some time at home in France, once more I arrived hot-foot with a burning desire
to explore the rim of the northern part of the Irish Sea, and once more Wales proved
my undoing. Seduced by advantageous terms, I agreed to go racing at the Conway
River Festival. In return were offered numerous meals, cups without number and free
berths in the marina. Once more I diced with the fast running tide in the Alt, but this
time I failed to remember where deep water was and ran aground the wrong side of a
withy. With the wind and tide pushing me onto the bank, against all probabilities I
came off backwards with the engine hard astern and the helm hard down.
The wind was southwest and fresh, but reefed and with the ebb I did not have to
busy myself with too many inshore tacks before rounding the Great Orme Head. The
three mile channel to Conway was nearly dry when I reached the upper part, and once
more I ran aground after bumping about over the whole width of the channel. We were
soon off, however, and not much later were tied up outside the marina.
At this point my wife, Deirdre, joined ship and the next day, racing number
stuck to what I believe are called buttocks, we set forth to amass some silverware.
“Don’t worry,” I said as we trailed the fleet, “our handicap is so advantageous we are
bound to win something!” We didn’t. Next day some friends of not inconsequential
dimensions arrived to lend a hand. We hadn’t seen them for years, so conspired to be
un-sportsmanlike and retire after the first leg. Passing the committee boat to advise
them of our retirement they asked, “Too far?” to which I replied, “Absolutely!” This
tactic, if such it be, paid dividends, because the next day we were called up on the
VHF by the committee boat to ask if we would like to be demoted to the Corinthian
class – to which I again replied, “Absolutely!”. A gentle sail followed, and that evening
Springtide came into possession of the first of her engraved gin glasses!
A similar tale was told the next day, but the day after that Deirdre had departed and
the weather had deteriorated. Against my heartfelt desire to stay in my bunk, a sense
of duty compelled me to pull in the reefs and don the old yellow oilies. Struggling out
to the line I hove-to to windward of it and watched the other classes drive off into the
wind and spray. The following hours were spent trying to look to windward without
swallowing too much water, and re-attempting a tack when stopped midway by a wave
on the bow. Finally we were on the downwind leg to the committee boat and the deep
satisfaction of a week well spent suffused all!
The homeward run to the Alt was a dream – crisp waves ran up astern, made metallic
by the crystal-clear sky and the bright sunshine. The jib poled out to port balanced
the main to starboard and the log read 5 knots and sometimes a little more. Hour after
hour I clung to the helm until after the Dee was passed, when
the wind fell light and the slow approach to the Alt took me
over the Burbo Bank. Almost exactly at high water did I tie up
fore and aft, another small trip but so many memories!
41
42
SABLE ISLAND
John van-Schalkwyk
Port Officer Halifax, Nova Scotia
(Morning Watch is a Luders 36 built by Cheoy Lee in Hong Kong in 1970. She is slooprigged with a roller-furling genoa, though she also carries a running forestay and can fly a
staysail or storm staysail if necessary.
John was awarded the Port Officer Medal for 2012 in recognition of his outstanding
friendliness, hospitality and helpfulness – see page 19).
Sable Island is a difficult place, famous for its ‘wild’ horses and known in Maritime
Canada as ‘the graveyard of the Atlantic’. It is a sand spit 90 miles off the coast of Nova
Scotia with dunes no more than 90 feet above sea level. It is surrounded by shifting
sand bars, major ocean currents which can run hard, and sits close to the edge of the
continental shelf. Though 26 miles long, it is only a mile wide at its widest, in the
shape of a gentle east/west crescent. I am a fair weather sailor and do not have any
need to sail to difficult places.
Sandy, our nine-year-old nephew (‘Mr Bear’ to us), was interested in the ‘wild’
horses on Sable. When his grandmother gave him a book for Christmas about Sable
Island, my wife Heather and I suggested we might sail to the Island – and there was no
backing out. To go ashore one must obtain a permit from Parks Canada, so in the first
week in January I applied. The permit required that we anchor on the north side of the
Island, as there are more shoals and several oil/gas rigs on the south side. Although the
prevailing summer winds are from the southwest bad weather comes in from the north,
Morning
Watch
43
44
meaning that in bad weather we would be anchored on a lee shore. The frontispiece
in Bruce Armstrong’s book Sable Island shows almost 200 ‘known’ wrecks since 1583,
and there are reports that the Island is roamed by the ghosts of sailors and passengers,
wrecked and lost in the dangerous shoals which surround it.
In early January I corresponded with Mannie Laufer, who has sailed to Sable Island
a number of times. Let me quote him:
‘First and foremost, there are absolutely no facili es for yachts on Sable Island.
None. You’re on your own... The informa on you’ll get from [the Coast Guard]
with permission to land will mainly ask you to respect the flora, fauna and fragile
dunes. Please do. For the rest, if you are somewhat roman c rather than too
scien fic, you’ll have a be er me. At night, at anchor, you’ll likely hear the
ghosts of seamen lost years ago, moaning in the night. They sound almost like
seals howling at the moon.’ (Sable Island hosts the world’s largest Grey Seal
pupping colony.)
Saturday 25 August 2012 and there were hurricanes out there. Hurricane Isaac was
moving to the west of Florida, but Joyce was petering out and what was left of it
would be well west of New York City by Wednesday, the day we planned to return.
We were ready to go. Heather had prepared several dinners, the boat was loaded, our
Zodiac upturned on the foredeck and lashed down, our seldom-used staysail aboard,
and our fuel topped up.
I had put off a final go/no-go decision until after the 1000 weather forecast. The
GRIB files showed 10 knots of wind from south-southeast for early Sunday, and 10–15
knots from southwest on Sunday afternoon and Monday. Environment Canada’s 1000
forecast was similar. Tuesday was southwest 15–20, and Wednesday northwest 15–20.
This agreed with the GRIB files. From our mooring in Jeddore Harbour it is 140 miles
(about 26 hours) on a southeasterly course to Sable. Northwest winds on Wednesday
would put the wind on the nose for the return – we would be on a lee shore if we stayed
anchored off. School for Mr Bear started the following week, however, so there was
no postponing. It was go or no-go.
It is said that the sailor who waits for perfect weather never leaves port. On Saturday
morning I made the decision to go – and to start back late on Tuesday. We had planned
to arrive on Monday morning and spend Monday and Tuesday on Sable Island and
start back on Wednesday, but... On Saturday evening, after a family dinner at home,
Heather, Johnny (her brother), Mr Bear and I boarded Morning Watch. There was a
half moon, clear sky and no wind. We were ready.
Sunday 26 August, 0608: Cast off the mooring. Motoring. No wind. A beautiful,
clear, cool sunrise with sea smoke. 140∙3 miles to go. The stove would not light for
coffee – the gas would not flow. As backup we had aboard a one-burner butane stove,
so we made coffee on the backup. Later I checked the LPG system and found low
voltage at the solenoid, so I jury-rigged a new wire. Cruising is maintenance under way.
Just before noon I ran the jackline. Heather served curried egg salad sandwiches with
chips and gherkins. The wind had been slowly building and we now flew the main
45
and genoa, still motoring. The wind was southerly 8–10 knots and just forward of the
starboard beam. At noon we had 113 miles to go and our ETA was 0845 Monday. It
was sunny, warm and clear with a gentle sea running.
1635: Dolphins. We woke Mr Bear to see them.
1904: Mr Bear spotted our first whale. Heather heated homemade corn chowder,
cheese and crackers for supper.
2000: Radio (SSB) contact with Sheldon, VE1SJP. (We’d set up a schedule before
sailing). Sheldon lives in Three Fathom Harbour about 13 miles west of Jeddore. I
reported all well aboard and that we’d sighted dolphins and whales. Sheldon then
reported our progress to Heather and Johnny’s mum, who is 96 and lives with us and
was worried about us. There was now enough wind to make 5∙6 knots under sail alone.
Clear sky, half moon and a settled sea.
Monday 27 August, 0139: Woke for my 0100 watch and found Heather and Johnny
in the cockpit: “You should have woken me!” “It’s too beautiful to go to bed,” said
Heather. We had agreed on 2-hour watches at night, but the timing had become elastic.
Later Johnny came on at 0400; I’d forgotten to wake him at 0300.
0555: The wind had gone light. We took in the genoa and started the motor. Distance
to go was 12∙8 miles, ETA at our anchor waypoint 0830.
0634: “Land Ho!” Johnny spotted Sable Island, a ‘lump’ in the distance. Lots of blue sky.
0755: I contacted Sable Island on the VHF and spoke with Gerry Forbes, the Station
Manager of the Sable Island Station. I told him we were approaching the 60°W line of
longitude as instructed in the landing permit, and would run down the line to anchor
about 400 metres off the beach. Fifteen minutes later we were at 60°W, turned into
the wind, doused the mainsail and motored to the point we planned to anchor. Gerry
had suggested we come in at noon and said that Zoe Lucas would meet us on the beach.
0925: Anchored with 15ft under the keel. 148 miles on the log in 27½ hours for an
average speed of 5∙4 knots.
Sable Island
We were excited that Zoe Lucas, resident researcher on the Island for seven or eight
months of the year, would be there to meet us. She first went to Sable Island in 1971,
became a field assistant with Dalhousie University three years later, and by the early
1980s was involved full-time with research programs on Sable. Since 2002 she has
been the ‘voice’ of the Island, preparing and managing the content of the Sable Island
website [http://www.GreenHorseSociety.com]. Mr Bear was thrilled she would meet
us, after reading all about her and the ‘wild’ horses, and had packed his Christmas gift
book into a zip-lock plastic bag for her to sign.
1145: Set off in the Zodiac. Some swell breaking on the beach ... and Zoe was there
to document our less than perfect landing.
46
Right after the photo
on the left was taken
we were swamped,
and the Zodiac filled
with water and sand
(below). It was all
Johnny and I could do
to keep it from being
sucked out to sea by
the undertow. We
arrived ashore soaked
through, but pleased to
be on Sable Island. Zoe
Lucas, about whom we
had read so much, is
a small woman with
an engaging smile, “A
colourful and comic
landing,” she said. She
wore a ‘Yellowstone’
khaki wide-brimmed
A very damp
hat, a field jacket
landing.... Photos Zoe Lucas
with lots of pockets,
pyjama-style trousers
and hiking sandals.
We collected ourselves and walked to the Station House to meet Gerry Forbes.
Zoe took our crew to her ‘lab’, a multipurpose workspace where specimens are stored,
while I went with Gerry to the Station to look at the weather forecast, my continuing
worry. It was roughly the same as before, except that the wind was now predicted to
veer west 15-20 knots on Tuesday evening, with seas building to 2–3m. It looked as if
47
Morning Watch waits for us at anchor
the wind was starting to veer sooner than in the earlier forecast. We had to be away
by Tuesday evening at the latest.
Gerry and I rejoined the crew and he drove us all east to the middle of the Island
(he has a Jeep with large sand tires). There we disembarked, and Zoe took us on a
2½ hour walk past Bald Dune. Rising against a clear sky, the dune is large, wide and
slowly migrating toward the southeast. We could have been in the Exumas – sunny,
Zoe, Mr Bear, Johnny and Heather
48
Heather photographing a ‘family
band’, which could not care
less about our presence
warm, white sand, blue sky, blue/green sea, dunes, and places with lots of marram
grass (Ammophila breviligulata), which holds beach sand together and helps with the
formation of dunes. And then there were the horses...
The horses on Sable Island run free, and people on the Island only involve themselves
with a horse if it runs into trouble as a result of a man-made object such as a fence.
Otherwise they are left to fend for themselves. Zoe knows every horse, and explained
the relationships of the stallions to the mares and to the family band, the ‘bachelor
stallion’ groupings, and how their social structures work. On our walk we saw at least
half a dozen family bands all going their own way and paying us no attention. There
In one area, the sand had a different composition. Zoe explained that, because of
the various weights of the sand grains, the wind created unusual colour patterns
49
The horses appeared to
be in good condition
are a number of fresh water ponds on the island where they drink, and if they are not
near a pond they can scrape the sand with a hoof and fresh water pools up.
Gerry picked us up at the end of our walk at about 1530 and drove us back. We got
out a few hundred yards from the Station to see one of the few trees (a Scotch pine)
on the Island. There was a large tree planting project in 1901, but the few that are
there now are from a more recent planting. Back at the Station Gerry took us on a
tour to show where they make hydrogen to fill the weather balloons they launch twice
each day, simultaneously with approximately 800 other upper air stations around the
world, and showed us the many other stations where data are recorded on a daily basis.
Climatological record-keeping on Sable Island began in 1871 and has been
continuous since 1891. It is, however, far more than a weather station, and during the
last few decades the Station’s role has greatly expanded. As the only continuous human
presence on the island, its staff provide year-round stewardship, as well as expertise
enabling a wide range of programs relevant to issues of sovereignty, safety, terrestrial,
marine and atmospheric environment, and heritage. (Condensed from http://www.
greenhorsesociety.com/Station/Sable_Island_Station.htm).
At about 1730 we climbed back into the Jeep and Gerry and Zoe drove us to our
The Tree, Zoe
and Mr Bear
50
Zodiac on the beach. There was still a swell coming in, but it seemed tamer. Not so.
We got wet again, and it was clear this was not the place to launch. So Gerry took the
Jeep back and brought the truck, loaded us in with Zodiac, outboard and bags, and
drove several miles west along the beach to where the Island curves gently north and
the beach would be in its lee.
We launched the Zodiac, shipped some water, and paddled out about 100 yards
before trying the outboard. It fired and died. After many pulls it still would not fire ...
Johnny tried ... many more pulls, and finally it started. I was convinced that its soaking
when we landed had done it in. We were well out of paddling distance from Morning
Watch, but had to make a go of it because there is no boat on the Island – our Zodiac
was our only means of returning to the boat. With Johnny handling the choke and I
Our first
attempt to
launch,
before
Gerry
drove us
further
down the
beach.
Photo
Zoe Lucas
the throttle we managed to keep it running and eventually our 2∙5 horsepower got us
home to Morning Watch, but it took 45 minutes. Early in the passage Heather looked
back and saw that the truck was stuck in the sand. The Gator (a small utility vehicle
with six wheels equipped for sand) was on its way to help. I felt terrible and thought
about going back, but it was out of the question.
1925: Boarded Morning Watch, which was rolling aggressively. Johnny threw himself
onboard and then dragged each of us onto the rolling deck. We’d had a great afternoon,
and though we were dog tired, sandy and wet we were all agreed that we’d had the best
time possible on the Island. We could not top our experience the next day so would
leave in the morning. I would have preferred to leave after dinner to get ahead of the
weather, but we were tired and that would have been a mistake. For dinner Heather
served salad and a hot curry – a superhuman feat on her part.
51
2000: Tried to reach Sheldon on the SSB, but no contact. Then to bed. Morning
Watch was still rolling, and I considered weighing anchor and moving west to where
the Island curved slightly north, to anchor in the lee of the Island. But we were tired
and, at that point, the roll did not seem too bad – I suspect nothing would have seemed
too bad right then.
Tuesday 28 August, 0740: Sunny, wind southwest 8–10 knots. Johnny and I brought
the outboard and Zodiac aboard. A little later I called Gerry on the VHF, told him
we were leaving, and thanked him for a wonderful day. We all felt that we could not
improve on the previous day, and I was keen to get moving before the wind clocked
around to the northwest.
0853: Weighed anchor, hoisted the main and motored out. At 1040 we put a reef
in the main and flew the genoa with two reefs, but kept the motor ticking over and
were doing 7 knots over the bottom with 124 miles to go. By 1235 we had taken in
the jenny, put a second reef in the main, and were motor-sailing close on the wind
at 5∙5 to 6 knots. The seas were large and regular from the southwest with only a few
whitecaps. At 1530 we heard a strong wind warning: southwest 20–25 knots veering
northwest 20 before morning, with seas 2–3m. Winds diminishing to northwest 15
knots near noon on Wednesday. Risk of thunderstorms.
1620: Motor sailing hard on the wind with two reefs in the main and a handkerchief
for a jenny. Speed through the water 6∙9, over the bottom 6∙2. Our ETA at the mouth
of Jeddore Harbour was now 0800. Dark clouds ahead with some light rain.
1930: Took in the genny, hardened in the main, and fell off 15° to keep us moving.
It was rough going with a lot of motion. Heather’s description of our return passage
was the ‘Blood, Barf and Bruise Cruise’. Ten minutes later Johnny came out of the
forepeak holding his head with blood running down. In Heather’s words:
“Johnny bashed his head on a porthole closure and came out of the V-berth with blood
dripping through the fingers of the hand he held to his head. We immediately put ice
on the wound and went through several towels before the bleeding finally stopped. At
first, it appeared much worse than it turned out to be. It is a gash that does not require
stitches and is appropriately in the shape of Sable Island itself! He suggested filling it
with sand and adding miniature horses as a monument to our visit!”
2000: Tried to reach Sheldon on the SSB but no luck. When we were back in Jeddore
I spoke with him by phone – he also could not raise us. Dinner of cheese, crackers and
Cup-A-Soup. The seas were large – it was a boisterous ride.
Wednesday 29 August, 0000: Heather’s watch. Headed by the wind, which had
clocked around to west-northwest. Still motor-sailing with the double-reefed main,
but fell off another 15° and bumped up our RPMs.
0615: Beautiful, clear morning – blue sky with a few puffy white clouds above the
southern horizon. Sea and wind easing after a wet and messy night, during which
we tacked several times.
52
1311: Entered Jeddore Harbour. Almost home. Shook the two reefs out of the main
and continued motor-sailing. On our mooring by 1415. The return passage was 156
miles and took 29¼ hours, an average speed of 5∙3 knots.
We had had an adventure, and a wonderful time on the Island. I had worried constantly
about the weather – much more than normal because we did not have a good forecast
for the return passage and, if the wind came in hard from the northwest on Wednesday,
the open anchorage would be untenable. As it turned out, the wind was less than
predicted and the ride back less rough than I had expected.
In ending let me quote from Bruce Armstrong’s book Sable Island:
‘Later, on transatlan c voyages, he (Dr Melville Bell Grosvenor, Alexander
Graham Bell’s grandson) o en saw the steady flashes of Sable’s lighthouses.
‘Once my ship passed at daybreak,’ he wrote ‘and Sable lay so close ... we could
see its pale dunes lying low and ominous. On other ships we passed cau ously in
fog. Every me, the captain had sighed in relief, “Sable astern”.’
Indeed. Sable astern!
Goes With Anywhere
Tel: 01326 574402
www.Tilley.com
53
Esse nti al R eading from
A DL A R D COLE S N A UT I C A L
To order, or for more information and to sign up to receive news on
new titles and special offers throughout the year, visit our website
p p p' Z ] e Z k ] \ h e ^ l ' \ h f
54
SAILING INTO SOLITUDE – Val Howells. 2011 edition published by Landsker
Publications [http://www.valhowells.com/landskerpublishing.html] at £17.99
hardback or £8.99 paperback, as well as in various e-book formats. 351 236mm x
167mm pages (paperback edition). ISBN 978-0-9542-7322-4
As Val himself says, ‘this book offers a transparently honest account of what happened
... in the first single-handed transatlantic small boat race ... an event now known ...
as OSTAR 1960’.
Originally published in 1966, and with Val Howells now in his 80s and the only one of
the original five competitors still with us, he has re-written Sailing into Solitude and added
a lot of new material. The result is a compelling mix of rip-roaring yarn, autobiography
and fascinating sailing history plus personal insights into Chichester, Hasler, Lacombe
and Lewis. But more than that, it is an intensely personal exploration of being ‘alone
in the unremitting partnership of sea and boat during a long ocean voyage’.
Howells’ boat Eira was a clinker built Folkboat, 25ft overall and with no more than
4ft 10in headroom. She was a small boat to embark on a major ocean passage, and
short on space – Val Howells is over 6ft tall.
The run-up to this first race across the Atlantic from Plymouth to New York shows
the challenges and concerns, what to take, where to stow it. But finally they’re all off.
Scant hours after leaving Plymouth the other boats are out of sight. Val Howells, the tall,
bearded Welsh sheep farmer is alone amongst the shipping of the Western Approaches.
The beginning of voyage apprehension, the lack of sleep, the failure to eat, the thump
and groan of the tiny wooden vessel working her way to windward all take their toll ...
then he discovers the battery, the only means of powering the VHF radio, is destroyed.
And for this he’d jettisoned that pièce de résistance, his yellow bucket toilet?
With no communication and the later loss of his watch and only chronometer in a
storm, with only six books aboard to distract him (including The Farming Ladder and
Is Sex Really Necessary?) our skipper’s mind wanders freely. Sailing into Solitude is so
much more than just another ship’s log with some extra descriptive passages thrown in.
Loneliness, apprehension, fear, indecision, self-doubt, perseverance, bravery – Howells
mocks himself unmercifully, showing a sense of his own ridiculousness that is missing
from many seafaring adventurers. As a result we are right with him on board Eira,
closely involved in the voyage.
This book is a must for every cruiser’s bookshelf.
JcT
55
BULL CANYON – Lin Pardey. Published in hardback with dustcovers by Paradise
Cay Publications [www.paradise.com] at US $24.95 / £16.35. 304 152mm x
229mm pages with 50 or so black-and-white photos but sadly no maps. ISBN
978-1-9292-1467-9
Early in their relationship, Lin expresses doubt that one person can create something as
large and intricate as a boat. “You don’t build a boat”, Larry answers. “You build a keel
timber. When that’s finished, you build a stem. Think of each piece as a separate goal
in itself and watch the pieces fit together until you have a complete boat. That way you
can enjoy each step and celebrate each triumph without getting overwhelmed.”
Intentional or not, this serves well as a metaphor for many cruisers’ step-by-step
approach, not least the Pardeys themselves. It therefore comes as something of a surprise
that Lin’s latest book dives backwards more than thirty years, to the four-year period
in the late ’70s and early ’80s during which Taleisin took shape. Indeed, with its heavy,
textured, two-tone covers, traditional dust jacket, slightly rough off-white paper and
black-and-white photos, one could be picking up a book published any time in the
last fifty years, an impression reinforced by the somewhat old-fashioned typeface and
the simulated ‘manual typewriter’ font of the chapter headings.
As Lin says in her Acknowledgements, she did not find Bull Canyon an easy book
to write and put it aside several times. Had she breezed through it thirty years ago one
suspects the result would have been very different. Not only have the intervening
years allowed time for reflection, they must also (although she does not say so) have
permitted far greater honesty about their neighbours in the eponymous Bull Canyon,
nearly all eccentric and some, one suspects, not entirely comfortable with the drive
and dedication of the young couple who decide that a mountain valley some 50 miles
from the ocean is the perfect place to build a 29ft sailing yacht. Nevertheless they are
made welcome, and much of Bull Canyon portrays a happy if challenging environment
where the very remoteness sees friendships formed and resources pooled.
Living – and working – without telephone or electricity present particular challenges,
not least when floods wash away the dirt road and fire threatens the valley. Rats, snakes
and a pollen allergy all intrude, and not all the visits from their coastal friends and
family go smoothly. I could really empathise with Lin when she became stressed by all
the interruptions to her writing – their only source of income. (It’s amazing how many
people can’t seem to understand that writing is work. We all write letters (or used to),
and a book is just an extra-long letter .... isn’t it?)
As Taleisin gradually takes shape, and Lin wins her battles with the utility companies
to get first the telephone and then electricity brought to their rented property, the tone
of the book changes. There’s suddenly less reason to stop and chat with neighbours
or to spend time in the local town, and the perceived increase in property values
wreaks its usual havoc. As the boat nears completion they feel the pull of the sea
ever more strongly, and though clearly quite ready to leave the canyon and move
on Lin is nevertheless surprised that none of their ex-neighbours drive down to see
Taleisin launched. In a way, life has moved full circle.
I enjoyed Bull Canyon, and having first met Lin and Larry in the mid 1970s could
56
easily visualise them at work. I had more trouble visualising Bull Canyon itself, and
would have really appreciated a map of the area. Nothing detailed – not even to scale –
just a hand-drawn sketch map with a winding road, a ‘north’ arrow, and little drawings
labelled ‘stone cottage’, ‘Pete and Sandy’s place’, ‘where the fire stopped’ etc.
Lin writes with her usual dexterity, carrying the reader with her in good times and
bad, and though the conversations, in particular, must have been ‘reconstructed’ she
avoids any of those irritating contradictions which so often mar accounts written well
after the events they portray. In more recent years she and Larry have based themselves
in New Zealand – perhaps that will provide the meat for another ‘shorebased’ book?
AOMH
THE CRASH TEST BOAT – Paul Gelder. Published in paperback by Adlard
Coles Nautical [www.adlardcoles.com] at £16.99. 176 246mm x 188mm pages
with hundreds of dramatic colour photographs. ISBN 978-1-4081-5727-5
Visitors to the 2012 London Boat Show were startled to see the splintered and charred
remains of a yacht that had been deliberately destroyed by the Yachting Monthly team
in their efforts to simulate various marine disasters. The recently published Crash Test
Boat is based on the series of articles resulting from their endeavours and published
originally in Yachting Monthly.
A 40ft Jeanneau Sun Fizz ketch was put through a series of eight potential disaster
scenarios:







Running aground
Capsize
Dismasting
Raising a jury rig
Sinking
Major leaks
Fire and explosion
My initial response to The Crash Test Boat was scepticism, based on the fact that all
the ‘disaster’ scenarios in the book were carefully pre-planned and stage-managed.
In real life, disaster usually strikes like the unexpected bolt from the blue. However,
any initial reservations were gradually dispelled. As Mike Golding points out in his
foreword, every car is tested in this way before it can go on the road and potentially
life-saving lessons are learned in test situations.
Each chapter deals with one of the above events and offers advice and suggestions
on methods to prevent accidents. The team explore the best remedies and show what
worked best for them and, almost as important, what did not work. Also included are
real-life stories which make fascinating and sobering reading, particularly the fate of
the Nicholson 55 Lord Trenchard. One very useful feature of the book is the inclusion
57
of scannable QR codes linking to internet videos, and the final link, showing the
devastating effects of a gas explosion on board, will definitely concentrate the mind on
the importance of gas safety. No gas appliance should be without a flame-failure cut-off
device, and the fitting and maintenance of gas alarms should be a top priority. The
chapter on fire fighting and fire extinguishers is also informative and essential reading.
There is a very interesting approach to dealing with major leaks. In my experience
the most common cause of sinking is from corroded skin fittings, seacocks and failed
shaft seals. Some innovative suggestions – including a real-life instance of using the
cap from a soft drink bottle – are proposed for creating temporary emergency repairs.
Lessons learned, the tools used, what worked and what didn’t, all make interesting
and informative reading.
After a lifetime of sailing I can claim the rather dubious honour of considering myself
an authority on unintentional running aground, and felt that the book fell a little short
on this topic. How, for instance, does one deal with a grounded bilge-keel yacht? Heeling
won’t reduce its draft, nor was there any mention of using legs to support a grounded
vessel as the tide recedes. The implications of grounding can be different depending
on tidal conditions, wind direction, sea state and whether the bottom is sand or rock,
and every scenario requires different actions. I would have been interested to hear
some advice on how to deal with a yacht aground on a rocky lee shore!
In the event of dismasting, it may not always be a good idea to immediately start
cutting away the rigging unless the sea state is endangering the vessel. Securing the mast
alongside might be worth considering and could avoid loss of vital jury rig components.
Besides, it is almost impossible to cut slack stainless steel rigging wire with a hacksaw!
The book’s origins in the series of articles published in Yachting Monthly are a little
too obvious for my taste. I found the layout and use of photographs slightly OTT – I
think I know what Pete Goss meant when he is quoted on the front cover saying “It’s
like Top Gear afloat”. Those minor quibbles aside, The Crash Test Boat should be read
carefully by all mariners. It makes a valuable contribution to safety at sea and may
possibly prevent a disaster becoming a tragedy.
JC
EILEEN RAMSAY – Barry Pickthall. Published in hardback by Adlard Coles
Nautical [www.adlardcoles.com] at £25.00. 160 250mm x 250mm pages with many
of the subject’s black-and-white and colour photographs. ISBN 978-1-4081-7841-6
The subtitle of this book is ‘Queen of Yachting Photography’ and it is apt, for Eileen
Ramsay was a pioneer in the early days of ‘yachting’ photography when there were
few rivalling the work of Beken of Cowes and none that was female. She made an
immediate impression with her twin-lens Rolleiflex camera held dangerously low over
the water, and her resulting photographs made an equally immediate impression on
all who saw them. They were exciting and of the highest quality.
58
Eileen’s main working period was from the end of the 1950s to 1970, and the resulting
archive contains many of the finest photographs of sailing and sailors available from
that time. Seeing a good selection of them here brings back many memories of the
time and reminds me of just how good Eileen was at capturing the spirit of sailing then,
whether we are looking at racing dinghies, offshore racing yachts or the competitors
in the first singlehanded transatlantic races. Her work was always considered and
her eye acute; nothing was contrived and the boats looked like boats, not floating
billboards as so many do today.
Some of the photographs are in colour, and it reminds us that Eileen was one of the
first photographers to supply full colour photos for magazine covers as the transition
was made from black-and-white – albeit reluctantly on the part of some publishers,
who focused on the printing costs.
From a production point of view, whoever supplied the prints for this book could
have spent a little more time ‘spotting’ them to remove dust marks, but on the whole
their reproduction is excellent and how nice it is to see such beautifully smooth grain
in a good monochrome picture. Apart from appreciating such bygones, what’s really
sad is to notice just how young some of the sailors in the photos now appear. That
really is a measure of how time has passed in the life of this admirer of the true ‘Queen
of yachting photography’.
A lovely book for anyone with an interest in yachting history.
CJ
DUBLIN BAY: The Cradle of Yacht Racing – Hal Sisk. Published in limpback by
Peggy Bawn Press [http://peggybawnpress.com] at €21, which includes postage and
packing worldwide. Available only through Peggy Bawn Press, c/o Copper Reed
Studio, 94 Henry Street, Limerick, Ireland. E-mail: [email protected].
52 horizontal A4-size pages with both colour and also black-and-white photos and
drawings. ISBN 978-0-9571-1231-5
Hal Sisk, who wrote this book, is no ordinary author. He is an engineer and owns two
sensational yachts. His sailing yacht is the 118-year-old, 36ft (11m) Peggy Bawn, which
he had superbly rebuilt seven years ago. His other yacht is that rare creature, an ocean
cruising powerboat. She is so long and lovely she was invited to take part in the 2012
Queen’s Jubilee Parade on the Thames. Hal set up a book-publishing business and called
it after his sailing yacht. Would that there were more like him, not least because he
insists on quality and avoids that curse of modern publishing, gaggles of printed errors.
(There is at least one bunch of people in the sailing world who run private competitions
to see who can spot the most mistakes in newly published books and magazines.)
Hal is a member of the Association of Yachting Historians and he writes from the
heart ... and brain. He shows by extensive research that popular racing of dinghies and
small sailing boats at an ‘official’ level started in Dublin Bay. He also demonstrates that
59
the Yacht Racing Rules, now agreed upon and used all over the world, were born and
nurtured in the same area. The years 1854 to 1874 were the critical ones when yacht
racing took off and became the sport which is now enjoyed on all waters from oceans
to small lakes, from pole to pole. It is even found in countries where the politics are
far left and where other freedoms are heavily curtailed.
Of course the level of freedom varies, and one tale not included in this excellent book
involves a royal regatta, run some years ago by an eastern potentate where the ruler’s
daughter had to win – which she did, but by means which were well outside the Racing
Rules. The young lady was not allowed to get her feet wet when she sailed her dinghy
to the shore. Instead the boat, with its royal personage ensconced, was lifted gently
from the water and carried up the beach by a bunch of lackeys while the spectators
(who knew what was good for them) stood and respectfully clapped. But I digress ...
Dublin Bay has all the right facilities for yacht racing, with a close-packed bunch of
exceptionally fine clubs grouped on the shore. The Bay is protected from the prevailing
winds, and the local ‘wines’ are rightly popular, so that they are ideal for celebrating
a win or easing the pain of a defeat. Hal’s book has lots of anecdotes about the Bay,
including the story of the first race covered by a radio commentator. There are also
brief biographies of the leading characters ... and characters they certainly were.
This delightful book is copiously illustrated by colour and monochrome photographs,
as well as accurate drawings. Especially notable are the superb panel paintings in the
Royal Irish Yacht Club done by an amateur artist in 1887. These pictures should set the
minds of flag officers of every club buzzing. With so many artists about these days, now
is surely the time to get clubhouses the world over decorated with accurate illustrations
of the current yachting scene. Let’s hope this book starts a fashion for having clubhouse
walls enhanced with specially commissioned oil paintings.
IN
COST CONTROL WHILE YOU CRUISE – Lin and Larry Pardey, DVD edition.
Published by Pardey Productions [www.pardey.com, www.landlpardey.com] at US
$19.95 / £14.95 / NZ $30.00. 65 minutes running time. ISBN 978-1-9292-1424-2
The fourth part in Lin and Larry Pardey’s Offshore Sailing DVD series, Cost Control
while you Cruise covers much the same ground as their book Cost Conscious Cruiser:
Champagne Cruising on a Beer Budget. Aimed at the novice cruiser, it nevertheless
provides food for thought for more experienced hands. An interesting idea, for example,
is the use of a nylon drifter in very light airs to cut down on fuel costs for those of us
who have engines – unlike the Pardeys themselves.
As well as covering the basics (buy local food, get comfortable at anchor to avoid
marina charges, insurance options), the Pardeys emphasise the need for long-term cruising
boats to be ‘unstoppable’, that is to keep key systems independent, so that in the event
of a single failure it’s still possible to keep going until you reach a place where repairs
60
are easy to organise and affordable. It also means avoiding excessive reliance on fancy
electronics and keeping up with preventative maintenance on your sails and other gear.
The 65-minute film also covers the temptations to visit home or cruise in company
and offers viable alternatives. And, as Lin rightly points out, visiting lesser-cruised
regions can be a lot cheaper. Video extras include a useful guide to buying meat and
long-life vegetables and several trailers for other Pardey DVDs, which include footage
on how to set a kedge anchor and creating a sturdy bow roller.
Two small criticisms – firstly, the random musical interludes seemed to me an
unnecessary distraction; secondly, the background photos framing the footage shot in a
smaller aspect ratio are rather distracting – a black background would have been easier
on the eye. Still, these are minor points on an overall enjoyable and informative film.
As a cost-conscious cruiser, I’d have to choose between the DVD (which has a
price tag of £14.95) or the book (Kindle edition £15.54). The film has the advantage
that it shows very clearly how to do things such as checking sails and, of course, the
shots of cruising life make you want to get out there immediately. The book contains
a lot more detailed information, however. Personally I’d plump for the book, but as a
gift for friends who are thinking about setting off on their first long voyage the DVD
would be a fine choice.
SB
THE BOAT GALLEY COOKBOOK – Carolyn Shearlock [www.theboatgalley.com]
and Jan Irons [www.commutercruiser.com]. Published in paperback by International
Marine/McGraw-Hill [www.internationalmarine.com] at US $36.00 / £25.99.
464 230mm x 190mm pages with black-and-white drawings and photographs, 800
everyday recipes, and essential tips for cooking aboard. ISBN 978-0-0717-8236-4
I had the opportunity to meet the authors at the Annapolis Sailboat Show last year,
and reading their book confirmed my feelings about them – they’re the sort of cruisers
you’d like to meet and share a meal with while cruising. They deserve congratulations
for pulling together their combined experience into a clearly written and well-organized
cookbook, with tabs keyed to each section and a detailed index – important elements
for any reference book.
The Boat Galley Cookbook targets an American audience but includes helpful tips
and recipes that any cruising sailor would find useful. While Shearlock and Irons have
visited a more limited range of cruising grounds than some OCC members, from the
western Caribbean to Cartegena and the Sea of Cortez to El Salvador, much of their
advice applies to just about anywhere. And when they do list brand-name products
that might not be available in other parts of the world, they also provide step-by-step
instructions for making the same recipe or spice mix from scratch.
In the first section ‘A Galley Frame of Mind’, the authors de-mystify all aspects
of cooking aboard. This section is particularly useful for those new to the galley, but
even the experienced sailing cook will find having all of the information in one place
61
extremely helpful. I wish it had been available when I started cruising 20 years ago or,
better yet, when my husband and I began full-time cruising in 2005. They cover topics
cooks don’t think about in their home kitchen but many of us have learned through
trial and error, like making do with what you have on board, and coping with limited
space, the motion of the boat, and no (or few) electrical appliances.
Eating well while enjoying cruising is what The Boat Galley Cookbook is all about,
and the authors give a comprehensive review of how to do this, including chapters on
equipping the galley, provisioning, making food substitutions in recipes, special galley
cooking techniques, etc. A chapter on measurements and conversions includes metric
conversions, but non-US members may also want to tape the handy conversion chart
on the last page of From the Galley of ... in the online version of Flying Fish 2009/2 to
the inside of the front or back cover.
Although I haven’t field-tested any of the 800 recipes in the second section of the
book, they include many so similar to the ‘go-to’ ones of my own that the authors
established immediate credibility with me. As someone conscious of healthy eating,
there are a few – ‘killer bread’ is at the top of the list – that would be banished from my
menus for the sheer quantity of butter, sugar or mayonnaise alone, but for the most part
the book promotes a healthy cruising lifestyle. The authors even include vegetarian
recipes and describe how their own meat consumption was reduced while cruising,
sometimes to stretch galley provisions while remaining in a favorite anchorage for a
few extra days. This is a concept many of us can relate to.
Having carried more than a dozen cookbooks while cruising I would gladly exchange
this for many of them. In fact, I’ve packed it in my duffle, along with other essential
spares and boat supplies, ready for the upcoming cruising season. The Boat Galley
Cookbook is a must-buy for anyone new to the galley and a great resource for those of
us who consider eating good food part of the cruising adventure.
MAB
LAST OF THE WOODEN WALLS – edited by Rob Hoole. Published in hardback
by Halsgrove at £24.99; obtainable from [www.navybooks.com]. 160 A4-size pages,
many with black-and-white illustrations. ISBN 978-0-8570-4127-2
The Last of the Wooden Walls is a history of and dedication to the 118 Ton Class
minesweepers built for the Royal Navy in the 1950s and the last wooden ships to serve
in the RN. With an overall length of 153ft (46∙6m), a standard displacement of 360
tons and a draught of only 8ft 2in (2∙49m), they were built of wood on aluminium
frames with an aluminium superstructure so that they could operate effectively against
magnetic mines. They provided a response to the perceived threat of any aggressor to
mine the coastal waters and harbour approaches of the UK and Northern Europe in
the event of any conflict which, thankfully, never took place.
The early chapters cover the design and construction of the ships and their equipment.
62
The majority of the book describes their operation in various roles throughout the
world, with many interesting reminiscences from those involved.
Some of the ships were commissioned as minesweepers; others were placed in the
reserve and never saw service; many were used over a period of 30 or more years to fulfil
a variety of tasks for which they were never designed but which they accomplished
with considerable success. Others were sold to the navies of foreign countries.
Apart from meeting the minesweeping commitment of the Royal Navy to NATO
from the early 1950s until the 1980s, the ships served as patrol vessels in fishery
protection, the Cyprus patrol, the Indonesian conflict, anti-piracy in Hong Kong,
the Northern Ireland patrols and had a long presence in the Arabian Gulf. They also
provided the eleven ships manned exclusively by the Royal Naval Reserve over the
period. During the years between the Korean War and the Falklands conflict (1953
to 1982) certainly the majority, if not all, the awards for bravery in the RN were
earned in Ton Class minesweepers.
There must be more than a few OCC members with happy memories of serving
in these ships, in either the RN or the RNR. Your reviewer was the Navigating
Officer of one during his National Service in 1957, and ended up commanding
one in the RNR between 1969 and 1977. An interesting read whether or not you
were involved.
PJC
WALKING ON WATER – Kos Evans. Published in hardback by Adlard Coles
Nautical [www.adlardcoles.com] at £30.00. 160 230mm x 273mm pages, many
full colour photos. ISBN 978-1-4081-7844-7
Kos is better known as Kos, her childhood nickname, than she is by her real name of
Koren Evans (actually that’s her maiden name, but let’s not confuse things).
After discovering the wonderful world of the darkroom – oh, how I miss those
heady smells and quiet warmth, now replaced by harsh computer screens and
failing backup devices – and teaching herself to develop and print black-andwhite photographs, Kos stepped into the deep end of marine photography with a
commission to photograph powerboat racing for a PR company while still only a
17-year-old schoolgirl. There followed three years of more formal training at the
London School of Printing, and suddenly her highly recognisable blonde curls and
bright smile began to pop up in press offices for big sailing events all around the
world. Kos had arrived, pink sailing jacket and all.
Kos quickly became known for photographing sailing yachts from their mastheads,
but she was actually much better than just a daredevil young thing – she was rapidly
becoming a highly creative and technically competent photographer. Okay, she
also had good looks and innate self-promotional skills that many of us envied as we
struggled to pay our mortgages and (occasionally) see our families, rather than swan
about from one regatta to another in a blaze of publicity. Were we jealous? Of course,
but I hope it was moderated by respect.
63
This retrospective book gives a revealing and entertaining glimpse into the exciting
professional life Kos has led since the beginning of the 1980s, as she recalls key events
and jobs, together with such comments as: ‘The one thing that struck me about Maxi
yachts back in the 1980s was the size of the guys who sailed them. They were huge,
because the heavy yachts were powerful and difficult to sail.’ What struck me, at the
same time, was the sheer beauty and raw power of these vessels as they drove head
on towards my lens with seas breaking across their bows and rows of eager deckhands
sitting, soaked, on the weather rail. Different impressions of the same things that made
us create different pictures – it was good fun.
Towards the end of the book Kos introduces her most recent work, which is far more
art than record and, indeed, she has formed a highly productive working relationship
with Pippa Blake, the abstract artist wife of the late yachtsman Sir Peter Blake. As
Kos says, like so many photographers she is a frustrated painter, and it’s nice to see so
much of her artistic nature coming out in her recent photographic work.
This is an interesting book if you’ve any feeling for the subject and also, of course, if
you are a fan of Kos’s work. It certainly includes some excellent maritime photographs,
but I couldn’t help a sense of disappointment that (in my opinion) the selection omits
some of Kos’s best work. It would certainly make a very nice coffee table present, but
nevertheless, I found it vaguely disappointing.
CJ
AND HOT OFF THE PRESS .....
THE TRADE WIND FOODIE – Rod & Lu Heikell. Published in paperback by
Imray Laurie Norie & Wilson [www.imray.com] at £17.95. 296 234mm x 156mm
pages in full colour throughout. ISBN 978-1-8462-3502-3
Unbound page proofs of The Trade Wind Foodie reached me shortly before this issue
went to press. A full review will appear in Flying Fish 2013/2, but first impressions are
that the title tells only half the story, if that. Although the book kicks off in the galley,
it’s not long before we join Rod and Lu aboard Skylax as they set off on a westabout
circumnavigation, shopping, cooking and eating (or course!) as they go.
The second part of The Trade Wind Foodie is devoted to recipes, most fitted onto a
single page and all illustrated by at least one photograph. All carry an ‘Up to Force ...’
tag, though this rather overlooks the fact that Force 5 in a 46 footer is a very different
animal to Force 5 in a 31 footer! Practical hints on catching, killing and gutting/
filleting fish caught my eye, as did the heading ‘Snacks and other food’ ... some of
these will definitely be tried at home!
The Trade Wind Foodie wraps up with Skylax’s own ‘Provisions List for Ocean
Passages’ and a short bibliography.
64
AOMH
Navigation in your pocket
Imray chart Apps for the iPad
Imray have joined forces with software
developer Tucabo to produce a fully
functioning chart navigation package based
on high quality raster images of Imray and
official charts.
TUCABO
Download the free Marine
Imray Chart App 2.20 which
contains the navigation
software and demo charts
from the App Store and then
the following chart areas can
be downloaded:
Imray Chart Navigator Apps feature
Waypoints
Routes: distances, targets, bearings
Position and destination
Course to steer, speed and bearing
Magnetic compass
Distances, bearings from any point to any point
Electronic bearing line
GPS and instruments
Tides with full functionality from Tides Planner
Aerial photographs (subject to coverage) and
harbour plans
Tracks which you can share with friends
GPX import /export
65
• Imray Charts North Sea
• Imray Charts British Isles
West coast and Ireland
• Imray Charts English
Channel
• 1800 series Netherlands
Small Craft Charts,
• German BSH Charts for the
North and Baltic Seas
• Danish (KMS) Charts
• Imray Charts Atlantic Europe
• Imray Charts Western,
Central and Eastern
Mediterranean
• Caribbean Sea
• Australian Hydrographic
Office charts for East and
South Australia with
Tasmania
SAILING SEA TOPAZ AROUND SULAWESI
Duncan and Ria Briggs
(Ria and Duncan have been cruising for nearly eight years in their steel Callisto 435 cutter,
Sea Topaz. They started in Turkey, then headed west, crossed the Atlantic and Pacific,
and are currently based in Malaysia. They always fly their OCC burgee and have made
many friends as a result. Their adventures can be followed on their blog at http://blog.
mailasail.com/seatopaz.
To avoid breaking up the text, the co-ordinates of many of the harbours and anchorages
mentioned are listed at the end. Further information about many of these places will be found
in the Anchorage Notes for Sulawesi which Duncan and Ria have posted on the Cruising
Information Community website.)
We had really enjoyed our cruise from Darwin to Singapore through Indonesia in
2011 as part of the Sail Indonesia Rally and were keen to explore more of this huge
and fascinating country if we got the chance. In May 2012 we joined the Sail East
Malaysia Rally, as we wanted to visit the northern side of Borneo where we had lived
years before, and as this ended in Tawau in eastern Sabah, pushing further east and
exploring Sulawesi (formerly known at Celebes) seemed an obvious way to go. The
island looked so interesting on the chart, and a ‘remote and rarely visited’ from Lonely
Planet decided it. We chose to go clockwise, exploring the northern coast, then the
eastern, and finally the southern parts. From there we would return to Singapore via
the south coast of Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) and the island of Belitung.
We arranged a CAIT (Indonesian Cruising Permit) and a sponsor letter for visas
through Raymond Lesmana, our contact in Indonesia from the Sail Indonesia Rally
2011, who acted as our mentor and advisor throughout our trip and was outstanding.
There was, however, very little cruising information available for Sulawesi. There
is some in the Cruising Guide to Southeast Asia Volume 1* and also in the Sailing
Directions (en route) for Borneo, Jawa, Sulawesi, and Nusa Tenggara*, which gave more
information but was essentially for big ships. We also obtained a copy of the cruising
notes of SY This Way Up, which gave details of the north coast of Sulawesi from their
cruise in 2011. We tried two electronic charting programs, but both were very basic
and inaccurate, generally putting us 0∙9 miles too far north and/or east and giving no
depths near the coast line. At the resort at Pangembang we later found an Indonesian
chart for the Togean Islands, Chart No 101. We took photographs of the relevant
areas and printed them out, and they were very helpful. Apparently Indonesian charts
are only available in Jakarta.
* Cruising Guide to Southeast Asia Volume 1, by Stephen Davies and Elaine Morgan,
published by Imray Laurie Norie & Wilson Ltd, 1st edition 1998, ISBN 978-08528-8296-3; and Publication 163, Sailing Directions (en route) for Borneo, Jawa,
Sulawesi, and Nusa Tenggara by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
2005, Ninth Edition.
66
67
A very long line of fishing platforms
Tawau to Tarakan
In early September 2012 we left Tawau in Sabah, Malaysia with our Dutch friends aboard
SY Kind of Blue, and motor-sailed to the anchorage at the north end of Pulau Bungyu*.
Along the way we saw a number of very big Fish Attraction Devices (FADs), the largest
we had seen. There are several coalmines on Pulau Bungyu so there were plenty of
tugs and coal barges, either anchored or manoeuvring. We reached the anchorage off
Tarakan late in the afternoon – again there was a lot of small boat movement, and a
strong current. The next day we checked into Indonesia, which was more difficult than
the previous year as we did not have the backup of the Rally this time. We did, however,
have Raymond’s contacts Dewi and Rory from the Department of Tourism.
The following morning the first group of four officials arrived on board at 0900
claiming to be from ‘Quarantine’ and came with a photographer but no paperwork. After
taking lots of photographs of us and themselves they left. Later two more quarantine
officers came, this time with paperwork, then customs officers with more paperwork.
We then had to wait for a boat to collect us to take us to Immigration and Customs. At
Customs: more papers to sign, more waiting, but still no clearance. The difficult issue
was the ‘self guarantee of export’ document and we were told to ‘come back tomorrow’.
We finally got all our (many) papers from Customs, including the ‘self guarantee’ and
headed to the Harbour Master who was, of course, out to lunch, but returned later to
give us our final papers. We then had to stop at a copy shop to make the essential copies
of all the documents. Before we got onto the longboat to go back to our boat we were
presented with a bill for 5 million rupiahs (US $500), which was a huge surprise as we
thought we had paid for everything with the application for the CAIT. We were told
it was for boat and car hire for two days, fuel, and marine police protection fees. We
objected strongly, and after phone calls to Raymond and some recalculations we paid
1∙8 million (US $180), plus a tip for Dewi and Rory. We were free to go!
Tarakan to North Sulawesi
We weighed anchor at 0500 to catch the tide as we had a long passage ahead. After
the good omen of seeing some dolphins, we made an overnight stop in Kurung Tigau,
a big open bay with many fishing platforms but not a soul in sight. The next day we
stayed outside the reef in deep water and were able to sail in a gentle breeze. We
* Pulau is the Indonesian word for an island.
68
reached Pulau Derawan in the early afternoon and tried to anchor on the south side
of the island, the accepted anchorage. It was a lee shore, however, with too many
coral heads so we backtracked to the north side and anchored in 15m on loose coral.
We went ashore and walked around the island, finding very friendly locals and several
dive resorts. The evening brought two big electric storms, each with 25+ knots of wind
but from opposite directions, but to our relief the anchor held. After a quiet day we
parted company with Kind of Blue, which went south between Borneo and Sulawesi,
and heading east in winds of 10–20 knots made good progress throughout the day and
night. We saw no fishing platforms or fishing boats at all.
North Sulawesi
Our first stop was at Teluk Belonligum on the north coast of Sulawesi, where we spent
one night deep in the lagoon. We tried to anchor off the village, as mentioned in This
way Up’s cruising notes, but found there was very little swinging room between the
reefs. From there an overnight sail took us to Manado.
Manado does not have an easy anchorage as the prevailing wind makes it a lee shore,
but we anchored in front of a small harbour. The shore was reached via a dinghy tow
from one the commercial boats, and once there we met Lucky, who appeared to be
the self-appointed yacht services man. He arranged checking-in, diesel, water, laundry
and rubbish disposal, as well as a tour of the Minahasa district. Manado is a big town
and there are good supermarkets and restaurants near the harbour. We left a few days
later well provisioned, and made our way around the northeastern tip and then down
Quarantine officers on board Sea Topaz at Tarakan
69
the east coast, making overnight stops in a number of lovely bays. Motor-sailing south
along the east coast was hard going as we were heading into wind, waves and tide most
of the way, but we managed to find safe anchorages to rest each night.
We wanted more diesel before reaching the Togean Islands, so decided to go into
Gorontalo – which turned out to be a real challenge. Gorontalo is a harbour and river
mouth on the south side of North Sulawesi, where depths go from 50m to 2m in some
50m. It was also covered in small local fishing boats, actively fishing! We managed to
anchor, go ashore and get some cash, but diesel was more difficult as we were refused
at four local fuel stations and only got some when a local lorry driver offered to siphon
80 litres from his tank. Buying diesel in jerrycans can be a real problem in Indonesia!
The tide was turning as we got back to the boat, and being worried about going aground
we beat a hasty retreat. From Gorontalo it was gentle sailing across the Gulf of Tomini
to the Togean Islands, the main destination of our trip.
The Togean Islands
We had opted for Kanari Bay on Pulau Walea Bahi in the northeast Togeans as our
first stop. It was a lovely deep bay with fringing reefs, but the clear water made them
easy to see. We saw some local houses, but only one at the head of the bay where we
anchored. A few friendly fishermen were curious enough to come close and talk to us,
and we gave our usual packages of food and clothes for the children which were always
well received. After two very peaceful days we moved on to Wakai, the main town in
the Togean Islands, where we had arranged to meet our contact, Anwar. We took the
deepwater route outside all the reefs to be on the safe side, and dropped anchor just
south of the ferry pier. Wakai is a small town with no ATM or restaurants, but it does
have the only mobile phone tower in the islands. There is quite a lot of boat and ferry
traffic (to both Ampana and Gorontalo), but the anchorage is good.
Kima Bajo, north of Manado on
North Sulawesi, complete
with noisy mosque
70
Karina Beach, good for
snorkelling but not for anchoring
The following day Anwar arrived with a whole array of dignitaries, and arranged diesel
and water as well as some limited provisioning. He was to spend a few days on board
with us and show us around some attractive places. Anwar is the Tourist Officer for the
Togean Islands and operates from Ampana, a town on the south coast of the gulf. He
is in charge of organising the Sail Indonesia visit to the Togean Islands in 2014, so we
hoped we would learn from him about the islands and he would learn from us about what
cruising yachts need in the way of safe anchorages etc. We had an interesting morning,
carefully motoring between islands and reefs under Anwar’s pilotage, and ended up
anchoring over white sand in a channel between Pulau Pangempang and the village of
A map of the Togean Islands in the Wakai Tourist Office
71
‘Hotel California’
lunch-stop on
a reef
Katupat. In the few days we were there we visited many places by local boat, swam with
stingless jellyfish in a saltwater lake, snorkelled on the huge and beautiful reef, explored
a Bajo (sea gypsy) village and had a drink at Lestari Resort. (There are a number of small
resorts in the area, frequented mainly by backpackers and scuba divers).
After four days Anwar left for Ampana and, after provisioning back in Wakai, we
headed for Bomba at the west end of the group. On the way we spent a night anchored
off the Bajo village of Siatu, and then anchored beyond Bomba, between Island Retreat
Resort and Poyalisa Resort. The first is run by an American lady and the other by local
people. There were no guests at the Island Retreat Resort, but the twelve guests at
Poyalisa made us very welcome and it was great fun joining them for the excellent and
very reasonable evening meals. Poyalisa is a real gem! Duncan went diving with the
Spanish dive-master from the Island Retreat Resort, and Ria went snorkelling on the
reef around the nearby island of Pulau Taupan. The coral was stunning, and the reefs
seem to be recovering quickly after years of fishing with cyanide and dynamite. The
rest of our time was spent exploring the bays by dinghy and snorkelling, but finally we
had to leave and sailed south and east to our
next destination, the Banggai Islands.
The Banggai Islands
We had an uneventful passage to Banggai
Town with a fair current. Although the
town lies in a big bay, it was not easy to find
a suitable place to anchor – either too deep,
on a lee shore or too close to reefs. We joined
the local fishing boats, but some way away
from the town. Next day we went ashore to
meet up with our Banggai contact – again
not easy, with lots of small boat activity
and a significant tidal range, but with some
help we found a place to land. We met
up with Jemi and his friend Alex, a local
A ‘bento’ taxi in Banggai Town
72
The Bajo village on Pulau Toalek
schoolteacher who spoke good English, and while Jemi sorted out diesel we went with
Alex to the ATM, topped up the phone, got water, and shopped at the local market.
The mode of transport here is by bento – three-wheel motorbike rickshaw with the
passengers sitting in the front – great fun.
We delayed leaving Banggai as Alex wanted us to visit the high school where he
taught English, hoping we could motivate his students. It was an interesting experience!
Later that day Jemi and Alex, plus six local dignitaries, visited us aboard Sea Topaz.
It was the first time any of them had ever seen a sailing boat, so they had a good look
around and took many photographs of both themselves and the boat.
Year 12 at the high school in Banggai Town
73
Goodbye and
thank you to
Jemi and Alex
Banggai was a
rather dirty town
and we were
keen to get away,
so we motored
about 30 miles
southwest to
Pulau Sidoela,
a small island
off Pulau
Bangkulu (or
Bangkurung). It
was wonderful
to be on our own again. We were anchored off a long white beach with crystal clear
water, where we could see the bottom in 20m and enjoyed some good snorkelling. The
next day, before breakfast, we had some visitors who arrived by boat from Bangkulu –
Suhardin, whom we had met in Banggai Town a few days before, with his brother and
the headman of the village. He runs a losmen (guesthouse) in one of the villages on the
island and had spotted our boat – the first yacht ever to visit these islands, he told us.
They took photographs, had a good look around the boat, and invited us to the village.
Then we moved three miles to the next island, Pulau Bundu, where we anchored in a
crescent-shaped bay with a nice beach and well marked reefs. The reefs provided good
snorkelling, but only small fish. Later we found out why, as in the late afternoon we saw
a large spout of water, followed by a bang – somebody was dynamiting the reef.
We wanted to make one more stop in the Banggai Islands, but were not sure where.
We ended up anchoring off Pulau Togong Bojoko in about 7m of beautiful blue water,
but about a mile from the shore. Most of the islands are fringed with mangroves, rather
than the long white beaches and palm trees we were used to. This was disappointing,
and we wished that we had visited Suhardin’s village.
Baubau
From there it was a few days’ sail to Baubau, one of the larger towns in southeast
Sulawesi. We did one overnight passage and spent one night each at Pulau Labuan
Blanda and Labuan Lebutan, the latter a small island with a large drying reef. We made
good speed to Baubau, and had the tide with us as we motored down the spectacular
narrow channel west of Pulau Butong. We anchored off the Kentucky Fried Chicken
(!) outlet, a prominent landmark on the waterfront, as suggested by our contact man Mr
Mukmum. There were many local boats anchored nearby and they left little swinging
room. Mukmum arranged for diesel and water, and one of his assistants, Ade, took us
around the town and the local market. During our second night we were woken by a
74
serious bump. A local boat, larger than Sea Topaz, had dragged her two anchors and
hit us. More worryingly, it looked as if they might lift our anchor as well. It took time,
but we resolved the problem and fortunately the only damage was a mark on our steel
hull. Once again we were the only yacht in the anchorage, but the Sail Morotai Rally
boats had been there a few weeks prior to us so we were no longer such a novelty.
Tanah Biru and Makassar
Leaving Baubau we saw hundreds of spinner dolphins, which put up quite a show
as we headed west to Tanah Biru. There we had an interesting time ashore looking
at all shapes and sizes of wooden boats in various stages of construction on the
beach. It was amazing to watch the locals at work using a mixture of old and new
technology on boats up to 35m.
From Tanah Biru we wanted an overnight stop on the way to Makassar and chose
Teluk Laikang. This turned out to be a bay full of seaweed farms characterised by
millions of small plastic bottles as floats, with a big new power station. We found a
spot well away from the power station but uncomfortably close to the lines of seaweed.
Locals passed by though, and all seemed well. Then at 2330 we were woken by men
shouting Malam (good evening). We got up to find five men climbing on board, three
in police uniform and one with an automatic rifle. Although they did not speak much
English they seemed friendly enough, and told us that we had anchored in a restricted
area. We wondered, however, why it had taken them six hours to find a boat to bring
them out to Sea Topaz. One of them noticed an empty rum bottle in the cockpit from
our sundowners and asked if we had any more, so we gave them a full bottle and they
took the empty one too. After taking several photographs, mainly of themselves, they
returned to the power station. We left the bay first thing in the morning.
We finally had 27 knots of wind from behind so we sailed! We met another sailing
yacht, a Swedish boat called Blue Dame, going in the opposite direction having just
75
Boat-building in Tanah Biru
Midnight
visitors
in Teluk
Laikang
left Makassar. This was the first yacht we had seen since saying goodbye to Kind of Blue
eight weeks previously. In Makassar we anchored off a small island inside the breakwater
amongst many local boats and were extremely well looked after by Arief, another of
Raymond’s contacts, and his boatman Sempa, who was our water-taxi for the duration
and looked after Sea Topaz for four days while we took a trip inland. Arief explained
things, got our laundry done, took our rubbish, and arranged for checking-in and our
visa-extension – all of which he had done within 24 hours. He also arranged for diesel
and water to be delivered to the boat, and for tickets for the bus to Tana Toraja.
Tana Toraja is a very interesting area in the highlands of Central Sulawesi, particularly
known for its traditional houses and burial ceremonies. We had a very comfortable tenhour bus ride to Rantepao and were dropped off at our guest house. Over the next two
days, with a local guide and driver, we visited a number of interesting places and saw many
of the traditional
buildings with
their boat-shaped
roofs. We attended
a relatively small
funeral ceremony
– only 10 bullocks
to be slaughtered
– and saw some
of the different
ways in which the
The distinctive
houses at Tana
Toraja
76
Graves and galleries carved into
the cliff at Lemo village, Tana
Toraja, with a hearse in front
people had buried their dead in the
rocks over hundreds of years.
Back on Sea Topaz in Makassar – a
large, very busy town with everything
you could possibly need – we stocked
up on provisions and were ready to
say goodbye to Sulawesi, heading west
for the Kumai River on Kalimantan.
Sulawesi had been a truly wonderful
adventure. We had visited many
fascinating and beautiful places
and met many helpful, kind and
interesting people. We did not have
any problems with officials and
authorities, though it would have
been more difficult to do this trip
without the help of the contacts Raymond arranged for us – they saved a lot of time
and frustration and we were always glad that he was just a phone call or e-mail away.
Finding anchorages was not as difficult as we had imagined – common sense, oldfashioned skills and a careful approach worked well for us, and we often anchored
where the local boats were. The weather in September/October was not ideal for
sailing as there was generally little wind, and we had to motor more than we would
have wished. However, we left with wonderful memories, lots of stunning photographs
and many new friends.
Co-ordinates of harbours and anchorages (for reference only – not to be used for
navigation): Pulau Bungyu – 03°35’∙067N 117°47’∙264E; Tarakan – 03°17’∙758N
117°34’∙436E; Kurung Tigau – 02°27’∙151N 117°58’∙500E; Pulau Derawan –
02°17’∙555N 118°14’∙745E; Teluk Belonligum – 01°19’∙095N 120°55’∙428E;
Manado – 01°29’∙239’N 124°49’∙899E; Gorontalo – 00°30’∙597N 123°03’∙714E;
Kanari Bay, Pulau Walea Bahi – 00°14’∙262S 122°15’∙857E; Wakai – 00°24’∙683S
115°14’∙348E; Pulau Pangembang – 00°19’∙283S 121°56’∙891E; Siatu, Pulau
Batudaka – 00°28’∙942S 121°41’∙048E; Bomba – 00°32’∙171S 121°39’∙373E; Banggai
Town – 01°35’∙951S 123°29’∙638E; Pulau Sidoela – 01°53’∙630S 123°01’∙931E;
Pulau Bundu – 01°55’∙376S 123°08’∙920E; Pulau Togong Bojoko – 02°07’∙034S
123°37’∙826E; Pulau Labuan Blanda – 04°26’∙267S 122°56’∙297E; Labuan Lebutan –
04°56’∙072S 122°47’∙686E; Baubau – 05°27’∙147S 122°36’∙352E; Tanah Biru
– 05°32’∙098S 120°21’∙504E; Teluk Laikang – 05°36’∙566S 119°32’∙728E;
Makassa (behind Pulau Lae-Lae Besarr) – 05°08’∙129S 119°23’∙667E.
77
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80
FORAGING UNDER SAIL
Sonja Brodie
(Sonja and Jim live aboard their Trintella 29 Fettler, and at the time of writing were wintering
in southwest France – see page 143).
What sailor doesn’t like to get things for free? One of the easiest ways to get food
for free is to go foraging, and cruisers are already well placed for this. We are often
anchored in unspoilt bays, near clean beaches and rock pools which harbour a
multitude of edible creatures and plants.
A sure sign that something is up for grub is people with buckets. A quick conversation
can establish what they are collecting, whether you need a permit
to do so in that area, and how you should process and cook the
collectables. This is the way we were introduced to the delights
of dulse (left) on the Northern Irish coast, where a local woman
and her small son showed us how to harvest and use this dark red
seaweed. Basically, you dry the dulse without rinsing it, and as it dries
the sea-salt forms a white crust. Then it can either be munched as
a salty seaweed ‘crisp’, or rinsed and rehydrated ready for cooking.
Because of the rubbery texture, stir-frying (or even deep-frying)
works best, but it is also good in soups and stews, and a lot of people
use it in salads, with soy sauce-based dressings.
Other tasty seaweeds recommended for the beginner are
sea lettuce, purple laver (right), known as nori in Japan,
and carrageen or Irish moss (left).
As the name suggests, sea lettuce
can be eaten raw as a salad leaf; it
is also good toasted (rubbed with
sesame oil and salt and crisped
in a pan). Other than in Asian
dishes, laver can be used to make laverbread, a traditional
Welsh breakfast food – laver purée rolled in oatmeal and
fried in bacon fat. Carrageen is a source of vegetable gelatine,
useful for thickening soups or making jellies. The Irish use it
in a variety of puddings, even in blancmange.
The best time to gather most seaweeds is at low tide in early summer. Leave a
generous portion of the seaweed’s stem (which is attached to rock by holdfasts) for it
to be able to regenerate. Of course, you have to use common sense when choosing a
foraging site, avoiding sewage outlets, dirty harbours etc.
If seaweed sounds too adventurous to begin with there is always the ubiquitous rock
samphire. Rock samphire has little yellow flowers and small, waxy, green, blade-like
leaves, and grows right on the rocks above the high water mark. It can be eaten raw and
has a fennel-like taste, which makes it particularly good in dishes where fennel would
81
normally be used such
as fish stews, ratatouille
or risotto. It keeps well
in a plastic container.
Shellfish
For something more
meaty, there is a host
of shellfish. To gather
some of them – clams
and cockles – you
have to dig at low
tide. Others – mussels,
limpets, winkles and
whelks
– can be prised
Grub’s up aboard Fettler – winkles from the Galician
off
rocks.
All of them
seashore, left to rinse overnight, then boiled in stock
benefit
from
standing
with garlic, onion and herbs. Winkle out with a bit
in
sea
water
overnight,
of stainless steel wire (or an unfolded paperclip)
ideally changing the
water a couple of times. This will get the filter feeders to expel any grit. It’s a good idea
to cover the rinsing bucket with a lid, as winkles have been known to attempt a getaway.
Before harvesting any shellfish, make sure there is no algal bloom – the dreaded red
tide – in the area. If the locals are gathering them that’s a good sign, though of course
they might only be for use as fish bait. Some areas have restrictions on collecting
certain, more prized, shellfish such as clams, but wherever you gather them, only take
what you can eat and gather from a wide area, not just one spot.
To prepare any of the shellfish, make a stock base by sautéing an onion and some
garlic, adding stock, herbs and white wine (optional) and bring to the boil. Drop in the
shellfish and simmer. Cooking times will depend on the variety of shellfish and their size
– usually it’s just a few minutes. Mussels and other bivalves, of course, obligingly open
their shells so that you can see when they’re done. You’ll have a hard time finding any
limpets on Portuguese shores, sought after as they are, but the Portuguese sure know how
to prepare their lapas – for example,
grilled with garlic oil. Limpets can
even be eaten live, like oysters.
Rose pepper collected on
Isla Graciosa – pepper
trees are common in the
Canaries. Not only does
this rose pepper look
pretty – it also has a
wonderful sweet flavour.
Photo Stefan Conrad
82
A sloe process. Fill a jar half with
sloes, a cup of sugar and top up with
the clear spirit of your choice. Then
turn regularly and leave to
mature for several
months
Herbs and spices, fruit and veg
A little further inland from the beach and rocks, there are more opportunities for free
food. A lot of herbs grow wild, and if you can identify a few standards such as rosemary,
thyme, dill and mint you can easily spice up your onboard cuisine. The prettiest condiment
we’ve harvested has to be rose pepper, which is a delicate, slightly sweet, pepper. Pepper
trees abound on the Canary Islands and, once another cruiser had pointed one out to us,
we saw them everywhere, even within a five minute walk of Las Palmas marina.
A lot of fruit grows wild, too (or is at least conveniently hanging over garden walls
onto public paths). On a Norwegian summer cruise we didn’t need to buy any fruit as we
could easily harvest a variety of berries. Similarly, on arriving in France in September,
our fruit needs were covered by wild figs and blackberries. In both Porto Santo and
La Palma we found wild cherry tomatoes, and in November the latter also yielded a
large harvest of sweet chestnuts. It’s all about keeping one’s eyes open, being in tune
with the seasons, and paying attention to what’s ripe.
If this is all sounding a bit too rabbit-foody it might be time to make some sloe
gin. Found in hedgerows in the UK and France, sloes are mouth-puckering if eaten
raw but make a delicious infusion for gin, vodka or any clear spirit. Just fill a large jar
half with pricked sloes, add a quarter of their weight in sugar and top up with your
chosen alcohol. Turn daily if you remember and leave for at least two months before
consuming. The soaked fruit then make good eating, too.
Good drinking water is always prized by cruisers, but on the Azorean island of São
Miguel one can fill up with sparkling mineral water straight from the source. An
abandoned bottling plant sits in the lonely valley of Lombadas, where a short walk
will lead to a pipe gushing out sparkling water. Definitely a detour worth making.
Have we had any bad experiences? Well, we had one bitter disappointment. On
La Palma we picked some nice almonds one day, so we got together with some other
cruisers to harvest some more. Unfortunately we didn’t sample one from each tree, and
83
A nut-cracking session aboard Roede Orm. A variety of tools came in handy, but
unfortunately some of the almonds were of the bitter variety. Photo Stefan Conrad
only after the almonds had been cracked and fried with some butter and sugar did it
transpire that some of them were of the bitter variety. Bitter almonds are a useful source
of cyanide, but not much good for anything else! However, this example illustrates
that you can usually taste when something is wrong.
So, next time you go ashore, why not take an empty plastic container, a knife, and
a spare plastic bag just in case there’s some free food waiting for you. Bon appétit!
Further reading
Food for free, Richard Mabey. (Collins, London, 2012; ISBN 978-0-0071-8303-6). A
very handy identification guide to edible plants, fungi, seaweeds and shellfish in the
UK, but also applicable to Europe in general. Contains recipes and preserving advice.
Sailing the farm, Ken Neumeyer. (Ten Speed Press, Berkeley, 1985; ISBN 978-0-89815051-3). Has a good section on seaweed identification and use. Also useful projects
for processing, such as building a solar food dryer.
Edible seashore: River Cottage handbook No 5, John Wright. (Bloomsbury, London, 2009;
ISBN 978-0-7475-9531-1). Everything from shellfish to plants, including ethics and safety.
Irish seaweed kitchen, Prannie Rhatigan. (Booklink, Holywood, 2009; ISBN 978-19068-8622-6). The things you can cook with seaweed...
Useful websites
http://www.wildmanwildfood.com.......http://www.wildcrafting.net.......http://freakinfucus.
co.uk.......http://www.lovefood.com/journal/features/11912/how-to-get-started-foraging
84
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85
THROUGH THE WHITE SEA CANAL
Jarlath Cunnane
(Northabout, a 15m Nadja cutter designed by Gilbert Carroff, was built in aluminium by
Jarlath in Co Mayo, Ireland in 2000/2001 specifically to traverse the Northwest Passage.
When she did so later that year she became only the twelfth vessel to have completed it since
the first transit by Roald Amundsen in 1903/06.
In 2004 the decision was made to attempt a transit of the Northeast Passage – or Northern Sea
Route, as Russians know it – a voyage which took two summers and saw her return home late
the following year. Both passages featured in Flying Fish, in 2002/1 and 2005/2 respectively.x
Jarlath’s book, entitled simply ‘Northabout’, was reviewed in Flying Fish 2007/1 and is
highly recommended, as is the yacht’s website at www.northabovut.com.)
The idea for this year’s voyage had its genesis in the course of Northabout’s Northeast
Passage in 2004-2005. Having successfully completed our polar circumnavigation, we
had intended to avoid the stormy northern coast of Norway in the month of October
by returning from the White Sea via the Belomorsk Canal, which runs from northern
Russia to St Petersburg in the Gulf of Finland. However, and not for the first time,
Russian bureaucracy intervened. We had the necessary permit to transit the Northeast
Passage, but it transpired that another permit would be required for the canal so the
plan was abandoned.
This year it was announced that Russia was opening its interior waterways to foreign
yachts and a Russian pilot would no longer be required. This seemed too good an
opportunity to miss, so I contacted all the regular crew to see who might be interested.
There was a sense that that this might be our last big adventure, so all were keen to
participate. Our vessel would again be Northabout, which was specifically designed for polar
expeditions. At 15m overall she can accommodate up to seven crew in frugal comfort.xx
The overall plan was to sail from Westport, our home port on the west coast of
Ireland, to Scotland and then across the North Sea to Trondheim. From there we would
take the inside passage to northern Norway and cross the White Sea to Archangelsk.
Following a visit to the Solvetsky islands we would transit the Belomorsk Canal to
St Petersburg, followed by visits to Estonia and Stockholm. Finally, a transit of the
Göta Canal across Sweden, a visit to Denmark, and on through Scotland’s Caledonian
Canal would see us almost home. While initially it looked like a two season trip, we
decided to try for completion in one.
My regular crew member Paddy Barry immediately swung into action with his usual
enthusiasm, applying for permits and visas. This is a slow and tedious procedure and
involves finding a Russian partner. We found the Russian adventure company Rusark
keen to help, and for a reasonable sum they organised the permit and recommended
an agent in Archangelsk to assist entry. Getting entry visas takes time and patience;
a good sense of humour helps.
Northabout was prepared and provisioned, and Paddy arrived with a huge portfolio
of charts which covered the entire route. Six crew changes were planned to take
86
87
An oil drilling platform
in the North Sea
place in the Shetlands,
Trondheim, Kirkenes,
Tallinn, Göteborg – and
Inverness, with a total of
16 crew participating at
different times.
Westport to Nordkapp
We departed on 23 June
but the first day’s progress
was poor – facing stormy headwinds, we sheltered in Inishlyre harbour. Distance travelled
one mile! But by the next afternoon the wind and rain had eased sufficiently to cast off,
and we made a quick passage to Tiree. Next stop was at Kyle Alsh near the bridge to Skye.
Orkney was misty and windy, as was Shetland. The Norwegian Sea crossing was rough,
and we were well reefed down as we made our way through the many oil platforms. Food
rations were hardly touched as nobody felt like eating, though the fish were well fed!
The sun appeared as we approached Trondheim just in time to welcome our new crew.
From Trondheim to Nordkapp is nearly 700 miles, most of it in the sheltered
waters of the Hurtigruten, the route inside the skjærgård (skerries) and islands lying
off the coast. En route we visited Rorvik, Yvingen, Roddoy, Bodø, Harlstad, Tromsø,
Hammerfest and Honningsvag. Paddy, Pat and Matt marked the crossing of the Arctic
Circle by diving overboard into the cold water, and pronounced it ‘very nice indeed’.
We were happy to take their word for it!
Matt with the Arctic Circle monument
in the background
88
Storm in Honningsvag
North Cape – or Nordkapp – is the most northerly point of Norway, if one ignores
some rocks further east, and is a mecca for Scandinavians who arrive in droves to see
the midnight sun. In 2005 Northabout rounded the Cape in brilliant sunshine. Not so
this time – we sheltered in the port of Honningsvag for six days as gales howled and
horizontal rain soaked the unfortunate tourists being transported ashore from cruise
ships. The midnight sun failed to put in an appearance during the entire six days.
Finally our new crew arrived, and with them came a change of weather, so with diesel
tanks filled we got under way for the 600 mile crossing of the Barents and White Seas
to Archangelsk. In the Barents Sea optical refraction caused mirages – distant ships
appeared to be floating in the air. Pat got the opportunity to practice his sun sights,
however, including shooting the midnight sun at its nadir. Time passed quickly on
the crossing and the musical entertainment was impressive; the on-board band now
comprised two guitars,
a fiddle and a flute.
Russia
As we approached
the channel leading
to Archangelsk a
Russian coastguard
vessel instructed us
to follow them to the
customs dock at Port
Pat shooting the
midnight sun
89
Music session: Gary on guitar, Michael on fiddle and Matt on flute
Economic. Our agent, Yuri, was a model of efficiency and dealt with all the paperwork
in a very short time. He also arranged a berth in a marina 12 miles further upriver
near the city centre. Waiting for us in the marina was Michael’s brother Colm, who
had travelled from his Moscow base to join us. Colm would soon play an important
role as our Russian speaker. Archangelsk was in festive mode for navy weekend, with
bands, concerts, an air display and general entertainment everywhere. The navy were
showing off their vessels, some quite old though heavily armed. Archangelsk is the
largest port on the White Sea and capital of the region. Part of the city is modern, with
Russian trawlers laid
up at Archangelsk
90
Archangelsk
a population of 30,000, the new buildings complementing the older wooden houses. A
long esplanade extends along the sandy beach on the river Dvina, where all manner
of watersports were taking place in the brilliant sunshine.
The port of Archangelsk is remembered as the destination for the convoys bringing
munitions to assist the Russian war effort against Hitler, and has long been a timberexporting centre. Like much of northern Russia, abandoned factories, sawmills,
warehouses and power stations line the shores of the delta, alongside new sawmills.
We wondered why the abandoned factories were not demolished.
We were now ready to start towards our real goal, the Belomorsk Canal. Northabout
stocked up with food and water and, assisted by the tide, we set sail downriver bound
towards the Solvetsky Islands. Nowadays the islands are a UNESCO world heritage site
– an outstanding example of a monastic settlement – and also a tourist attraction, and we
tied up to the wooden dock where cruise ships now disembark their spiritual travellers. The
Russian Orthodox
Monastery is an
impressive sight
with its massive
stone fortress
walls, currently
being restored,
and a place of
meditation and
prayer.
A monastery on
Solvetsky Island
91
The Gulag Archipelago, as Solzhenitsyn named it, became notorious throughout
Stalin’s time as the first gulag prison camp. Prisoners were incarcerated here, to be
‘re-forged through work’ as the propaganda of the time put it. The museum displays
photographs of the horrors they endured. This is the other, darker side of the island’s
history – the camps were set up to provide labour for the building of the White Sea
canal and other projects. Solzhenitsyn describes it as ‘a place so distant that the
screams of the prisoners could not be heard’.
The White Sea Canal
Our next destination was Belomorsk at the entrance to the White Sea or Belomorsk
Canal. We arrived on 2 August, a wet and very windy morning, glad to be in the shelter
of the lower chamber of the sea lock. From the wall many metres above we were berated
by the lock keeper, a Russian lady, whom Colm eventually persuaded to open the lock
gate and allow us into the lock. She instructed us to proceed, and to tie up to a dock
about a mile further along the canal and report to the authorities there. It turned out
to be a disintegrating concrete structure in the middle of nowhere. After some time an
official arrived, and instructed me to follow him along a muddy path which led to his
office. With Colm as interpreter we filled in many forms and paid the canal fees, and
were told to wait for the canal pilot. We had been led to believe that western boats
no longer needed a pilot, nor indeed a permit, but since it was clear that we were not
going to be allowed to proceed without one we duly paid up under protest. Northern
Russian government officials seldom meet western tourists, and generally regard visitors
with suspicion. After engaging in friendly discussion we found most officials helpful,
but their initial reaction is usually either:
 You have a big problem you shouldn’t be here, you must leave at once; or
 This is a restricted area, show me your permit; or
 This must be referred to Moscow for clarification.
Gulag buildings on Solvetsky Island
92
Gulag buildings on Solvetsky Island
Construction of the White Sea
Canal locks. Their walls were built
with logs, fitted and joined together
as cribs, then erected and filled
with dirt and stones
A manually-operated pile driving rig.
Primitive pile-drivers were operated by
sheer muscle power as prisoners walked
inside a wooden four-man wheel
Prisoners at work. The task was gruelling
and relentless. Many prisoners literally broke
down. Some were so exhausted at the end of
the day that they lost consciousness. Others
killed themselves or deliberately chopped off a
finger or broke a leg to avoid facing another day
The canal, constructed largely on
Stalin’s instigation, is 227km (141
miles) long. Its purpose was to connect
the White Sea to the commercial ports
of the Baltic, avoiding the long journey
through the Arctic Ocean for ships
carrying timber and minerals, and to
provide military access to the area in
event of war. The project included
building 19 locks, 15 dams and various
raised embankments, all constructed in
20 months from November 1931 until
July 1933. The work was done by more than 170,000 gulag prisoners – an endless supply
of slave labour – and the number who died will never be known. Stalin wanted it to be
a technological triumph, and be built quickly and cheaply. The project also diverted
attention away from the repressive nature of his regime, by demonstrating to his critics
that he was able to utilise anti-Soviet elements in the country to create something
that was useful and productive. It was also to be an example of how prisoners could be
rehabilitated through work. The workers were treated harshly, living in camps throughout
the Siberian winter, they were short of food, had to build their own camps in the forest,
and even make their own tools. To achieve Stalin’s completion date the excavated depth
was reduced to 12ft and consequently larger ships can’t be accommodated.
93
Our pilot, Igor, duly arrived that evening, all smiles and carrying a folio of charts,
but without a word of English. The first obstacle encountered was a rail bridge that
couldn’t be opened because of the high winds, so we had to wait a day for the wind
to abate. The following afternoon at 1600 we got underway at last, starting the climb
through 12 locks up to the summit level at Lake Vyg, 108m above sea, and then back
down through seven locks to Povenets on Lake Onega. It took us three days.
The scenery on the winding channels through the lakes, with their hundreds of
wooded islands, is magnificent. At other times we wound our way through man-made
embankments, built to raise the lake level. The channel is well defined, with floating
and fixed buoys and transit markers ashore. The massive locks were originally built of
wood, but have now been lined with concrete, and have hydraulically-operated metal
gates. They can accommodate ships up to 135m long and 14m beam. Armed guards
patrol the locks, and signs announce that photography is not permitted.
Our jolly pilot departed at the last lock near Povenets, a small, rundown town
located at the end of the staircase of locks that takes the canal down to Lake Onega.
Lake Onega
From Povenets we took a taxi to a wood a couple of miles outside the town to visit
a memorial to those who died near the canal. Here in the Sandermark forest we saw
the results of Stalin’s purges of the ‘enemies of the people’. The graves of more than
9000 people have been discovered; the memorial chapel records the names of those
who perished. But the dates on the memorials are mainly 1937 and 1938 – this did
not coincide with the canal building era, so whose were these graves? We found out
later. Victims from many nationalities are lovingly remembered here.
Glad to be away from this grim site, we set off across Lake Onega, the second largest
lake in Europe. Despite its size, some areas of the lake are quite shallow as we were to find
out. As we motor-sailed along in sunny conditions the engine alarm sounded, followed
quickly by smoke billowing from the engine compartment. With engine stopped, a quick
inspection revealed the v-belts to the alternator were smoking furiously. When the
engine had cooled down and the smoke dissipated, the cause was diagnosed as a seized
alternator, so I fitted the spare carried on board for such emergencies. We continued
sailing while I worked on the alternator, but through careless navigation strayed into
shallow water and soon found ourselves firmly aground on a gravel bank. Sails were
lowered, the dinghy launched and anchors laid out. After hours of winching, and finally
with the assistance of a coastguard RIB, we succeeded in re-floating without damage.xxxx
Back in the buoyed channel we resumed our journey to the modern industrial city
of Petrozavodsk, the capital of the Republic of Karelia. We entered the marina at
2100 and retired early, overcome with tiredness after the efforts of the past 30 hours.
The marina has good facilities, but is in an industrial area five miles outside town and
rather difficult to reach by bus.
Gary, who was making a film of the canal, had found the name of a historian who had
written a book in Russian on the Gulags and the building of the canal. By an amazing
piece of detective work, and with the help of Elena in the Petrozavodsk library, Gary
made phone contact with the author, Yuri Alexi Dmitriv, and we arranged to meet him.
94
Yuri was a mine of information and was happy to share his discoveries with us. Next
day, Gary recorded four hours of filmed interview, with Colm acting as translator. It was
Yuri who had unearthed the burials at Sandermark. Some 15 years earlier a Karelian
hunter had discovered human bones in a badger sett, and as Yuri was working nearby
on the canal he was called in. He excavated, and found the first of seven thousand
human remains. Russian authorities are good record keepers, as we know, and Yuri
was able to access the records in Moscow and establish that these were the victims of
Stalin’s purge of 1937/38. Poets, writers, musicians, dissidents and ‘threats to the state’
had been sent by train for execution – that Maxim Gorky and other ‘approved’ writers
colluded or were duped into praising this state barbarism shows how a totalitarian
regime will corrupt even the most high-minded individuals. Yuri presented us with a
signed copy of his book and a souvenir packet of Belomorsk cigarettes.
Time was moving on, and we still had a long way to go. For the trip to St Petersburg
we signed on a Russian sailor in Petrozavodsk named Vladimir, recommended by Rusark.
He had boatbuilding experience in Bristol and spoke good English, knew the route to
St Petersburg, and was a good all-round man to have on board. He proved his worth
later, dealing with lock keepers and bridge attendants.
The Svir River
A long day’s sail on Lake Onega brought us to the River Svir, which flows from
Lake Onega to Lake Ladoga. It meanders for 200 miles through very beautiful
countryside and deciduous forest, sometimes widening into lakes with villages on
their banks. The 2–3 knot favourable current carried us swiftly, and made up for
the delays caused by opening bridges and locks. There are rapids at Podporozhye,
95
Michael and Colm on the Svir River
bypassed by two locks which incorporate a hydroelectric plant, and as the river is
part of western Russia’s busy Volga Inland Waterway we encountered many cruise
ships, tankers and timber carriers.
Lake Ladoga
Lake Ladoga is the largest freshwater lake in Europe, measuring 219km from north to
south. We had intended detouring northwards to Valaam to visit another Orthodox
monastery island, but decided against it and set sail directly to the River Neva and
St Petersburg. The Old Ladoga Canal linking the Svir to the Neva is still visible – it
was constructed to bypass the sometimes stormy waters of lake Ladoga and is still
navigable by small craft.
Shipping on the Svir River
96
The Neva River
The Neva River flows from Lake Ladoga into the Gulf of Finland. As it is the only
river flowing out of the lake its current can be very swift, depending on recent rainfall.
The town of Schlisselburg is located at its head, guarded by the island fortress of
Oreshek, another UNESCO heritage site, its first fortification dating back to 1299.
As we progressed down the Neva we met more and more commercial shipping.
Approaching St Petersburg, modern industrial development was much in evidence
as well as the rather ostentatious mansions of the new wealthy.
St Petersburg
Peter the Great founded St Petersburg – known as Leningrad from 1924 to 1991 – in
1703. Nicknamed ‘The Venice of the North’ because of its 42 islands, canals and
many rivers, St Petersburg was the Imperial capital of Russia. Today it is Russia’s
second largest city with 5 million inhabitants.
We sailed under the huge Bol’shoy Obukhovskiy cable-stayed bridge, and anchored
as instructed to wait for that night’s bridge opening (they open after 0200 to minimise
delays to the city traffic). It is mandatory to have a pilot on board for the city transit,
so Alexander boarded at midnight together with a couple of Vladimir’s friends who
joined us for the night trip through the city.
We joined a convoy of seven ships going downstream through the illuminated city and
bridges, all a magnificent sight. Some ships’ lights were barely visible, and moored vessels
caused some confusion. Once clear of the last bridge, with some relief we secured to a
moored hydrofoil to await daylight and the celebration party began, with music provided
by Paddy, Michael and Gary. Everyone joined in, including Alexander, who turned out
to be a great character. As the hydrofoil crew arrived in the morning to start their day’s
work we set off down the channels to a designated marina, the Kretsysky Yacht Club, one
of the two approved marinas for visiting foreign yachts. The marina and its facilities were
fine, apart from incredibly noisy disco music ashore which blared until early morning.
St Petersburg’s Winter Palace
97
The next few days were spent visiting the sights of St Petersburg. I spent two days
in the Hermitage viewing the art collection – one could spend a week there and not
see everything. Molly’s Irish bar provided us with night entertainment, and in return,
Paddy, Mike and Gary again showed their musical talent to acclamation.
Before leaving we had a visit from Vladimir Ivankiv, the OCC Port Officer
Representative in St Petersburg. He was most helpful in assisting us with customs
clearance and we can recommend him to anyone visiting Russia. On leaving the
marina we motored 8 miles through the channels to the customs dock where, thanks
to Vladimir’s prior arrangement, all the paperwork was dealt with in a mere 2½ hours.
We were free to go – destination Tallinn, nearly 200 miles away.
When leaving Russian waters we had to report by VHF as we passed Kronstadt Island.
The dredged channel extends seaward for 22 miles to the No 1 buoy and is crowded
with shipping – the most menacing are the many hydrofoils which zoom past at 33
knots. The helmsman needs to keep a good watch ahead and, particularly, astern. The
pollution is horrific – we sailed for miles through green slime.
Estonia
Michael Brogan had visited Estonia in 2006 with his choir from Galway, Cois Cladaigh.
During this tour he made friends with Estonia’s most famous conductor, Tonu Kaljuste,
and composer Arvo Pärt. Tonu keeps a boat in the Old City Marina in the heart of
Tallinn so Michael, with the help of marina manager Kalle Kuus and Tonu, arranged a
free berth in return for a slideshow on Northabout’s adventures. Kalle presented us with
an Estonian flag and led us into customs and our berth. The following night, after the
slideshow, we were entertained by a magnificent ‘private’ concert in the Black Head
Guild, with the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra, the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
and renowned German cellist Anja Lechner, conducted by Tonu. This was followed
by pints all round in the local next door. What great memories we have of Tallinn!
Northabout waiting to enter the Göta Canal
98
Sadly – and entirely due to pressure of space – we must leave Northabout and her crew at
this point, as they headed westwards across the Baltic Sea towards Stockholm with a quick
diversion to the Åland Islands to see the impressive four-masted barque Pommern. Once
in Stockholm they were similarly impressed by the 64-gun ship Vasa, raised in 1961 after
more than 300 years on the seabed and now star of its own museum.
Northabout continued south through ‘the most beautiful cruising area in the world’ before
traversing the Göta and Trollhätte Canals to Göteborg, passing through the Limfjord in
northern Denmark, and heading on across the North Sea to Scotland. There she passed
through the Caledonian Canal and out into the Atlantic for the last leg to the west coast of
Ireland where, ‘after a very rough passage we arrived in our home port on Friday evening
28 September on the high tide’.
Northabout logged over 4500 miles in 14 weeks, much of it either motoring or motorsailing, including 790 hours under engine alone. In the course of her cruise she passed through
six canal and river systems: the White Sea or Belomorsk Canal – 227km (141 miles), 19
locks; the Svir River – 224km (139 miles), two locks; the Sodertalje Canal – 5∙2km (3
miles), one lock; the Göta Canal – 190km (118 miles), 58 locks; the Trollhätte canal
– 82km (50 miles), six locks; and the Caledonian Canal – 100km (62 miles), 29 locks.
John Rodriguez
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100
NEW CALEDONIA
Mike Bickell
(Mike and his Crealock 34 Alchemi need little introduction, this being his eleventh article
in the same number of years – with the twelfth already received for Flying Fish 2013/2!
This article follows on from Mike’s Fiji and Vanuatu which appeared in Flying Fish 2012/1
and, as then, summarises his experiences from visits in both 2004 and 2011. Google maps are
again used to show Mike’s route, with superimposed numbers tallying with those in the text.)
To set the scene, I’ve annotated a Google map of New Caledonia. (As a reminder, you
can access all my maps on the CIC website by opening the OCC homepage at www.
oceancruisingclub.org and then following these links: Publications > Members’ Pages
(click box acknowledging terms and conditions) > scroll down list of contributions
and click on ‘Mike Bickell’s 22 Google Map Reports’ > Click on map of interest.)
I suppose the first thing to say about New Caledonia is that it is far more developed
than Vanuatu and somewhat more so than Fiji. Whereas the Banks and Torres islands
are still much the same as I imagine they must have been in the late 18th century, and
Fiji in the 19th, most of New Caledonia is 20th century with surfaced roads nearly
everywhere and many more vehicles. It therefore provides a cruising experience more like
a ‘developed world in the tropics’ than the ‘go back in time’ feel of the other countries.
Lifou, Mare and approach to Noumea
Noumea is the only port of entry in the country, though those coming from the east
may register their arrival at We on Lifou in the Loyalty Islands. They used to be
101
given five days before having to appear at Noumea, but in 2001 the newly-appointed
manager threw Alchemi out of the marina after just two. Nor was the option of flying
to Noumea to clear in available, because the airline staff were on strike in a typical
developed-world dispute – the staff wanted higher pay, the passengers wanted lower
fares, and the airline wanted a profit.
Having visited both Ile Lifou (1) and Ile Mare (2) back in 2004 I would have
welcomed the opportunity to start my circumnavigation of the country – including Ile
Ouvea (6), the third of the Loyalty Islands – by leaving Alchemi in Lifou whilst flying
to Noumea. Instead, I had a rather tough time beating against the trades to get south
to the Havannah Passage (3), into a rolly anchorage in Port Boise (5), and through
Canal Woodin the following day, before getting the wind behind the beam up the
west coast to Port Moselle, Noumea (4).
New Caledonia has an almost continuous barrier reef and the largest or second largest
lagoon in the world. The lagoon contains many shoals, reefs and islands – some of
We marina on Lifou
102
The capitainerie and visitors’ pontoon at Port Moselle, Noumea
which have anchorages – mostly with navigable channels between or around them.
So, whilst strong trade winds can set up quite a chop, the lagoon is free from major
waves and swell with places of refuge never far away, except for a 120 mile stretch
on the west coast where the shoals are too continuous for a keelboat to find passage
inside the lagoon. Sailing is very popular, especially for a few miles north and south
of Noumea and the 50 miles out to the Ile des Pins (7) at the southern edge of the
barrier reef. The water is murky on the south and east coasts, but clear in the north
and south lagoons and in the Loyalty Islands.
I had resolved on making an anti-clockwise circuit of the country, so set off south
again after enjoying the sybaritic life in Noumea for a few days.
The South Coast and Ile des Pins
Just south of Noumea lies a small and very well protected mini-lagoon at Ile Uere (8)
which seemed ideally situated for an early afternoon departure from the marina and
a gentle passage before nightfall. So it was, except for the buzz of jet skis before they
went home for the evening.
Uere after the jet skis have gone home
103
Baie du Prony – Carenage East in the early evening
There are several other anchorages on the mainland coast before reaching the western
entrance to Canal Woodin. Later on Alchemi spent a calm and uneventful night in just
one of them at Baie Uie (9). Canal Woodin is a relatively narrow channel between
the mainland and Ile Ouen (10), with several anchorages along its length and many
more at its eastern end in a super-bay named Baie du Prony (11). The latter has many
subsidiary bays within it, including two carenage locations deep in the mountains. The
whole area is covered in red earth and rock resulting from early iron ore and nickel
mining. August is a great month for whale watching in the lagoon, and many boats
used for that purpose have moorings in one of the subsidiary bays of Baie du Prony.
It’s close to 50 miles from Baie du Prony to Ile des Pins (7) so a very early start is
recommended to get well on the way before the trades start really blowing in late
morning and early afternoon. There are several anchorages around the island, but
unfortunately separate approaches are needed to most of them since there are reefs and
shoals obstructing passage within the lagoon and near the island’s coast. Most cruisers
head for Kuto (12), which is the island’s main port and provides access to several other
places. One day I rented a car to drive right round the island.
In early French colonial days Ile des Pins was used, against the wishes of the
Melanesian population, for the incarceration of those communards at the end of the
Franco-Prussian war who opposed the peace terms but escaped the fate of the 25,000
or so executed in France on the same grounds. All the deportees were skilled artisans
of one sort or another, and created a thriving community replicating the lives and
amenities they had known in France. But when an amnesty was granted years later,
the survivors (about 100 died on the island) all voted with their feet and left for
Australia, New Zealand and other countries. Later the same colonial facilities were
The beach and anchorage at Kuto, Ile 104
des Pins
The nickel ore conveyor
and loader at Kouaoua
used to house common criminals. Things rapidly went downhill, and stayed that way
until the development of modern tourism. The way the island was partitioned in those
days is still apparent, with most of the Melanesian population still living in the south
and east and resorts being located mainly in the north and west.
Supplies are limited – there is only one boulangerie which opens at whimsical hours
and often runs out of stock, grocery provisions and vegetables are very basic, and alcohol
can only be bought at bar prices from one of the resorts. The beaches and waters are
very fine though, and the diving is said to be world class.
The east coast and Ile Ouvea
The east coast of the mainland has steep mountains rising from the water’s edge, with
rivers debouching into bays of the lagoon at frequent intervals. The southernmost,
at Yate(13), has a relatively narrow entrance between coral reefs which generated a
rather scary ride as Alchemi plunged and rolled in vigorous waves while a front with
35 knot winds and heavy rain swept through.
There are many mining scars every ten miles or so up this coast with quite a few mines
still being worked . The combination of these operations with river-borne silt results
in the water being mostly murky, and with sea-bed coral in many of the anchorages.
Fortunately this seems mostly to be of the very flat variety, so the anchor and chain
make ominous-sounding noises but Alchemi never dragged or suffered from serious
retrieval difficulty. There is often a small town for mine workers at the head of a bay,
and these have good supermarkets with a surprising product range at prices that are
reasonable for a French département d’outremer. At Touho (15) there is even a small
marina with no resident staff, so one can stay for a few days without charge though it
would be better to visit the local mairie if wanting to stay longer.
Between Kouaoua (14) and Touho Alchemi made an overnight passage out to Ile Ouvea
(6) and another one back again. Ouvea was especially interesting at this time, largely
because there were day-long ceremonies and celebrations at Ile Mouli (16) as a new
paramount chief was formally inaugurated. Proceedings were conducted on a large green
with four marquees having open sides facing inwards – the chief elect and his immediate
105
associates sat in one, with subjects and visitors (including the local gendarmerie, myself and
a couple of other yachties) in the others. Initially village chiefs presented gifts and made
speeches paying respects to the chief, but soon the speeches (in fast French, Melanesian
or Polynesian) changed tone and became far more political and impassioned. I learned
subsequently that this was all about the independence movement and, although many
said ‘we must move on’, about a continued yearning for self-government.
Back in the 1980s St Joseph on Ouvea had been a hotbed of activists, some of whom had
kidnapped and held hostage a number of gendarmes and French citizens. The authorities
had responded with overwhelming force and there had been a few fatalities, followed
by accusations of false promises when the ring-leaders were taken to Paris for trial and
sentencing instead of being dealt with in New Caledonia. Clearly many locals were still
seething over those events, and used the opportunity to let the chief elect know how they
felt. The Melanesians in Ile des Pins may have been coerced into submission or seduced
by tourist money, but the people on Ouvea still felt differently.
Touho marina
106
The ladies’ choir
The emotional
temperature was
lowered by a free
lunch (we yachties
had presented ‘gifts’
on first arriving at the
event), followed by
the wonderful ladies’
and children’s choirs
and troupes from each
village performing
traditional dances (for their own satisfaction and not to please tourists). Further
northeast on the island it was also interesting to visit the swimming sessions of the
Pacific Games at Fayaoue and the coconut oil and soap factory at Hwadrila.
Back on the main island, Hienghene (17) has a dramatic entrance with weather
beaten cliffs and pinnacles at the mouth of a large bay. The town itself is quite small
but has a boulangerie, a grocery store and even a small marina. But, though there are
good depths at the marina and sufficient to anchor in the river opposite the town,
the approach from the outer bay is shallow and winding – I visited by dinghy. There
are a number of local restaurants, a nautical centre where one can hire canoes, sailing
dinghies etc, and one very large educational college on the outskirts of the town. North
of Hienghene reasonable shelter can be found at Pouebo (18), though the shop and
fuel station described in the guidebook has now been abandoned with its replacement
being about five miles farther north along the coast road.
Balade (19) was the site of the first Catholic mission in the country, and nearby Ile
Poudioue was originally named Observatory Island by James Cook. This was his first
landfall in the territory, and he did well to set up his instruments here since it is little more
than a small sandbank perched on an extensive coral reef. There is also a small concrete
Traditional dances
107
pillar, awash at high tide, commemorating the French navigator Huon de Kermadec who
died here and after whom the islands northeast of New Zealand are named. He was a
keen botanist and several plants bear his name, including the Huon pine.
The Northern Lagoon
Baie de Pam (20) lies a day-sail further on and is well sheltered from all directions
with good holding. Beyond, there are extensive areas of flat coral breaking the surface
at low tide with narrow but deep channels winding their way to more open water. Ile
Balabio (21) is a large, hilly island surrounded by such coral, and can be passed on either
side. Alchemi went up Canal Napias on the east side – a somewhat strange experience,
though navigation was easier than expected because the edges of the channel were
clearly visible on either side; it would be more difficult at high tide. The winds are
pretty reliably from the south east or east and a comfortable anchorage can be found
in clear water just round the northern headland. Alchemi stayed here for three days,
meeting no locals nor other yachts. An expedition up the island’s hills showed that
others did come from time-to-time, but not very often – a machete would have been
useful, as the hardest part of the climb was forcing a way through the thickets and
trees near the water’s edge and just below the summit.
The Belep Isles lie some 40 miles northwest of Ile Balabio and can easily be reached
in a fast and comfortable downwind sail. These are the most northerly populated
islands in New Caledonia, with the town of Wala on Ile Art (22) being the largest
settlement and the administrative centre. There is a small airport on the island, but
most people travelling between it and the mainland – for supplies, for schooling, for
medical reasons etc – use the twice-weekly ferry. There is a quite large mairie and an
adjacent primary school and police station.
After I had presented a ‘gift’ to the chief he explained that he holds a meeting every
fortnight with the 31 chefs des familles and they resolve between them most disputes and
disagreements. It is very rare for the gendarmes to become involved or for matters to be
referred to other authorities. The people were very friendly and lived a very basic lifestyle.
There were some outboard-driven open boats used for fishing, but I also saw people
wading knee-deep in water by the beach carrying a net over their shoulders which they
cast into the sea as shoals of small fish swam nearby. A young girl pushed a wheelbarrow
of mackerel down the street one day, offering them for sale to the residents.
The grocery stores were very poorly stocked, but there was a boulangerie which baked
every day. It was not modern, and the dough was kneaded by hand and inserted on
long-handled wooden platters into a brick-built oven fired with wood. The result was
flat, round loaves weighing 1kg each that were mostly crust and extremely tasty.
Returning south from Wala was no fun, with a 20 knot trade wind right on the
nose kicking up steep 1½m waves. Even with the engine running at over 2000 rpm
and sails tightly trimmed Alchemi could make only 3 or 4 knots, and even then had
to tack at an angle to the rhumb line course. I did consider anchoring in the lee of
Neba Island and spending a few more days exploring the northern lagoon, but decided
instead to continue to the mainland, eventually coming to rest in Baie d’Ohope,
known to the French as ‘Baie du Croissant’. (23)
108
The baker’s oven at Wala
... and the bread
The West Coast
Another long day with headwinds
saw Alchemi reach Koumac
(24). The small marina looked
full, however, and there were a
number of yachts already at anchor near a short peninsula. Wind and waves were
sweeping along the peninsula so there was a lot of boat movement – mostly pitching,
thank goodness, as it would have been untenable had it been rolling.
Exploration ashore next day revealed there was one vacant berth opposite the fuel
dock – but I would have to move in by 0600 the following morning, before the wind
got up and made movement within the marina too dangerous. Apart from this berth
there was one other kept for passing yachts, but that was already occupied. So, the
following morning Alchemi did go into the marina, assisted by Jean Pierre and Nany
Piquet from their boat in the adjacent berth. Nany provided delicious coffee, then and
subsequently. She and JP also invited me onto their boat when they had other friends
on board, and took me in their car to the local supermarket when I had need of bulky
supplies. Since then, Nany and I have kept up an intermittent e-mail correspondence
– my only problem is that it has to be conducted in my 60-year-old schoolboy French,
since neither she nor JP have any English. She says she understands my messages, even
if they are a bit ungrammatical with Franglais words sometimes creeping in!
The marina people were also very friendly, and helped me subscribe to and install an
internet connection (one needs a local mobile number to activate the service). They
had cycles for hire, so I was able to make independent journeys to the supermarket and
through fortuitous timing to attend the agricultural fair held on a single day annually.
This provided an insight into one of the principal industries in the hinterland of the east
coast – the countryside is very fertile and supports both arable farming and stock raising.
Despite the widespread use of power-driven equipment, this is still cowboy country
so there were many equestrian events at the show and even an exciting rodeo.xxx
It’s possible to continue inside the lagoon for some distance south of Koumac, but
doing so doesn’t avoid the need to traverse the 100 mile stretch where that can’t be
done. Similarly, one can visit Bourail and other towns and villages if one is prepared
109
to go in and out through
the same reef entrance,
day sailing from one
to the next. Given the
direction and strength of
the trade winds it would
be easier to do this when
sailing north up the coast
rather than going south,
so Alchemi went outside
Yee-haw!
the lagoon through Passe
de Koumac and in again
through Passe Isie. (25)
The wind was very light
from the southeast for
the latter, but the waves
in the entrance would have pleased a surf-boarder – I guess this would be a very hairy
place indeed in a strong westerly. Once inside it is easy to reach Ilot Tenia (26) with
its clear water and good snorkelling. Don’t go too far in though – the water is not much
more than 2m deep for quite a long way, and there are coral heads near the island.
Now one is again in waters with great sailing conditions and plenty of anchorages as
far south as the deservedly popular Baie Maa (27) just north of Noumea.
At Noumea (4) I was in time to watch the semi-finals and finals of the Rugby World
Cup in the Au Bout du Monde Brasserie, together with cruisers from Russell in New
Zealand whose friendly company led me to return there for the cyclone season. I was
delighted to arrive in time to enjoy Nina Kiff’s annual welcoming party and, amongst
others, to meet again with Malcolm – last seen in Los Roques in 2001!
Koumac marina and anchorage
110
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112
COMING OUT
Rosemarie Smart-Alecio
(Another salutary tale from Rosemarie, cruising with husband Alfred aboard Ironhorse in
Thailand and Malaysia...)
“We’re ‘out’ with cockroaches,” announced Reuben, whilst we were aboard his yacht
in the Caribbean many years ago. He grinned, and recounted the story of when he,
with his wife and toddler son, were sailing out of one island and had not yet stowed all
their shopping. This had included two loads of beer in their cardboard trays, the last
things to be sorted. He had been opening their shopping bags and passing things from
the cockpit to Carolyn below. Having ripped open both boxes, one after the other, he
quickly flipped up the lids. From each, on exposure to the light, ran a myriad of adult
roaches. “A variety pack!” he declared, as individuals of several species raced around
the cockpit and into the companionway, seeking the nearest dark hole.
They had only been cruising for a few months, during a couple of years’ break after
the birth of their first baby. Finding out how to tackle this problem was just one part of
a very steep learning curve, and he was hoping for advice from us. He clearly recognised
that few yachties were prepared to admit to having, or having had, cockroaches (a
reflection on their lack of cleanliness?). But roaches are no respecters of persons, clean
or not, and we believe that any cruiser in the tropics who denies having had some on
board at some time is probably not being honest! We’ve had our share, and fought
them off a number of times, so volunteered what help we could.
My first encounter with cockroaches had been several years earlier, as we were waiting
to leave Gibraltar, when Alfred and I were invited to a birthday evening aboard a large
motor yacht. Unbelievably, until that time I had never seen a cockroach in reality, so
could only observe that there were a number of ‘creepy crawlies’ running along the
back of the settee where the owner was sitting (his wife still changing for her party). My
reaction was to cry out for him to look out, at which he turned around, flicked a couple
of the bodies, and said “Oh, those things. Can’t get rid of them, so live with them!”.
I was horrified. What were they? Where did they come from?
I soon learned what they were, but continue to be baffled by that second question –
except to be aware that, to try to avoid having them, EVERYTHING which came on
board had to be checked for both creatures and eggs, although only a paragon could
claim never to have a slip-up.
Before we took off cruising more than 19 years ago we had avidly read many books written
by those with cruising experience. The Hiscocks were our heroes, and I remember noting
Susan’s response to cockroaches on board. She would mix a paste of boric acid and
sweetened condensed milk, then place tiny dollops on card or tiny containers around
the galley. The sweetness attracted any roaches, and after ingestion the acid reacted on
their insides and they died. We made sure we had this ammunition with us when we
left (there was little else on the market), although it was a tedious process.
113
A dying cockroach with
laid eggs on the glue-trap
I was – and still am – paranoid about
avoiding this problem but, although we
were pretty careful, by the time we’d
spent time in West Africa and Brazil we’d
already had minor challenges. Susan’s
method seemed to work quite efficiently,
however. The test of how I was doing, I
had found, was to tiptoe to the galley in
the dark of night and flick the light on. If
nothing scurried off, I was winning. I was
prepared with my swatter to have a go at
anything which did, each successful killing a ‘notch-up’, and a week’s nightly checks
free of sightings was encouraging. I believe we only ever had the odd few, which we
dispensed with promptly. Naively, I thought we had them sussed.
That was until we hauled out in Trinidad, where we could actually see them, even in
the daytime, running around beneath where the yachts were standing. We had applied
a most useful tip for yard time, when a yacht is vulnerable to any crawling thing getting
aboard by simply climbing the power cables, water hose and messenger lines used for
lifting and lowering. This was to keep the messenger line off the ground, and apply
grease – lanolin is most efficient for staying power – for about 12 inches to any electric
cable or water hose, a few feet from the ground. It seemed to work.
Alfred had done some serious research on the habits and life-cycle of the cockroach, in
order to be prepared when (not IF!) we were affected. But the whole thing is complicated.
The various species do not conform to the same behaviour. Their respective cycles are
different and, for all our efforts at prevention, we discovered that many are capable of
flying, and some fly as their main means of travel! What chance did we have?
Add to this that eggs are laid within a protective sticky substance and cannot be easily
washed off. They are placed strategically if time permits, so that the infants (nymphs)
have the best chance for survival at hatching, but may be laid anywhere should death
threaten the pregnant female. Dunking a hand of bananas in the ocean from the dinghy
before taking it aboard is futile! I remember the first time I discovered a bundle of eggs
well hidden between banana stems. It took me minutes of careful, deliberate, wiping
to clear the very tenacious gunge, which then remained on my fingers. It was worse
to get rid of than chewing gum – but I knew what to look for next time.
Most cockroaches reproduce regularly – a two-week cycle from conception to
hatching. Although it seems not to have been confirmed absolutely, many, if not all,
can convert from male to female when survival is threatened, making getting rid of
them tedious and frustrating. None to be seen for several days could simply mean that
the most recent eggs have still to hatch.
As all yachties are aware, all one needs is one pregnant female on board and, unless
the problem is addressed, it simply increases. And for those who leave their yacht
114
closed up for several months, proudly declaring that there is no food on board so they
couldn’t survive, forget it. Cockroaches, like many creatures, can survive for years on
almost anything – leather, wood, natural fabrics. Their one necessity is water. Deny
them this and they cannot survive for ever. But how one could achieve denial, when
the tiniest outlet from inboard would allow a cockroach success in finding a drink?
Our worst experience started on the hard in Trinidad. A young couple at anchor
needed to charge their batteries and, since they were working on the meanest budget,
we offered our electricity supply in the yard. Delighted, they produced their batteries
one afternoon for a night’s-worth of power. Alfred and I were very busy fixing something
requiring both of us, so we shouted to them to get on with it, and before we finished for
the day we were aware that two large batteries were connected up beneath Ironhorse.
We duly showered and dined, then returned to Ironhorse for the night.
It wasn’t until I needed to get to the toilet in the early hours that it hit me – or
I hit IT. One knows one’s own yacht so well that moving around in the dark is no
problem at all, but on reaching to step onto the companionway I kicked something
‘foreign’. As I realised what it was – they had set the inverter they were using INSIDE
the boat – I suddenly recalled reading some of the material Alfred had acquired in his
research, which reported that roaches seem to favour electrical things and will rest in
‘fridge motors and the like.
I panicked and woke
Alfred. We wanted to toss
the thing over the side, but
it wasn’t ours – and not even
our friends’! So, together, still
in the dark, we unplugged
the thing and heaved it into
the cockpit as quickly as
we could. I reached for the
cockroach spray and Alfred
began unscrewing a panel.
An egg sac laid by a chemically-sprayed cockroach
As he opened it, I turned on
the flashlight and held the spray ready – as about a dozen cockroaches escaped their
home and ran into our cockpit. I could not cope with hitting all of them, and admit
to a flood of tears as I realised what the two or three escapees meant. Plus, of course,
we had to consider the probability that some had already taken advantage of ‘fresh
pastures’ whilst the contraption was in our galley. In those days (1998) the antidotes
were not as sophisticated as they are now, when a hit with chemical spray will down
the thing immediately – though heaven knows what the spray does to us! – so we had
a good few weeks of diligence and frustration before we could relax again.
We were congratulating ourselves recently on not having seen a cockroach on board
for most of our time in Malaysia and Thailand ... too soon. Shortly after arriving in the
Malaysian marina from Thailand, Alfred noticed (and killed) a small cockroach as he
115
The opened
glue-trap,
showing the
attractant in the
centre plus an
adult cockroach
and five nymphs
caught on the
glue base
struggled, horizontally, into the engine compartment. We had not relaxed our vigilant
habits – had we? How did this happen? ‘One’ almost always means ‘many more’, so we
became ultra vigilant. I set out the Hiscocks’ boric acid ‘sandwiches’, a chemical spray
was placed near the galley, and I made it my business to do nightly raids. At war again, for
the next three nights I hit at least one adult per night – including at least one pregnant
female (see photo on previous page, taken on the companionway step).
The following day I spotted – and sprayed – a nymph (an immature) below the teak
grid in the cockpit. We needed to investigate. That afternoon found us taking the
cockpit apart and offloading all the teak onto the finger berth. We sprayed no fewer
than five adults! And while scrubbing the boards thoroughly I discovered three jellycovered egg-sacks well hidden in the corners of joints, each almost impossible to spot
and very difficult to remove completely. It was as I worked that I remembered two
possible causes of the invasion. We had had carpenters on board just prior to leaving
Thailand and their bags could easily have secreted a pregnant female or two. The other
was that, on arrival in Langkawi, we had exchanged our empty propane bottle for the
full one now fitted in its place aft of the cockpit and above the engine compartment.
In a hurry, neither of us thought to check it – especially the band around the curved
bottom of the bottle. Now we had another battle.
Happily there have been some improved developments. Besides the more efficient
sprays, the modern glue-trap is my top choice. Currently we are able to purchase cardboard
glue-traps that are neat and clean to set up and work wonderfully. The roaches are
attracted by the strong smelling ‘food pile’ in the centre of a very sticky card floor – the
poor things simply follow their noses and cannot move again. With a dozen of these
placed around Ironhorse we had several trapped adults after the first night, some of which
had off-loaded their eggs. It was no surprise that all of these were in the galley area.
From the third night onwards there were no more adults, but over the next few nights
a number of tiny nymphs were trapped – suddenly the chore was rewarding because we
could see the fruits of our labour. Although the traps are supposed to last for four
weeks we opt to replace them after two. As I write we have had twelve clear
days in succession, but we will only rest when we can count a whole month free!
...until the next time.
116
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117
The Arran Single Malt
A SUMMER CRUISE FROM TURKEY
TO ROMANIA AND BULGARIA
WITH SAFARI OF HOWTH
Ken and Carmel Kavanagh
(Following an Atlantic circuit in 2007/8 aboard their Hallberg Rassy 42 Enderlein Safari of
Howth, Irish members Ken and Carmel headed east into the Mediterranean, laying up in
Turkey at the end of 2011. Read all Ken and Carmel’s cruising notes at http://www.hyc.ie/
cruising/kavanaghs/SafariCruisesIndex.asp.)
On 28 April 2012 we returned to Safari of Howth in Kuşadasi marina, and after three
weeks’ preparation set off for Istanbul. During the eleven-day passage north we stopped in
Sığacık, Çeşme, Ayvalık, Bozcaada, Çanakkale, Avşa Adasi, and lastly Ataköy marina west
of Istanbul. The weather varied
from 20–25 knot winds from the
south, ideal sailing weather for
Safari, to a gale which we sat out
in Ayvalık, and a thunderstorm
with torrential rain and 30 knot
winds in the Sea of Marmara.
Safari of Howth in her winter overcoat
Our first two days in Istanbul were spent
visiting the main tourist attractions – the
Blue Mosque, the Topkapi Palace, Hagia
Sofia – while the whole of the third day was
devoted to checking out of the country. We
had to visit four different, widely spread,
offices which involved travelling by bus,
tram, train and, of course, shanks’ mare!
118
Ken and
Carmel
sightseeing
in Istanbul
UNCORRECTED
119
Hagia Sofia and the Blue Mosque at the southern entrance to the Bosphorus...
There was no option, however, as Istanbul is the last port where one can check out en
route to Bulgaria. With the procedure completed we were ready to undertake the first
challenge in getting to the Black Sea – transiting the Bosphorus.
We left Ataköy marina at 0615 and entered the Bosphorus an hour later. Our intention
was to clear the area around the Golden Horn before the heavy tourist traffic got
underway, and proceed under engine up the Asian side keeping just outside the northbound shipping lane. There was a very strong current at the entrance and our speed
over the ground was reduced to 2∙5 knots, but as we approached the Atatürk Bridge the
current eased and our speed increased by a knot. Extra vigilance was required at the
headlands, where the currents became stronger and tended to sweep the boat towards
the shore, and at Kandilli Point we encountered swirling eddies which caused a moment
or two of tension. Just before the second bridge, the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge, our
speed went up to 6∙6 knots for a few minutes and then settled to a steady 5∙5 knots. At
1045, having crossed over to the European side, we passed the fishing port of Türkeli
Feneri at the northernmost point of the Bosphorus and exited into the Black Sea.
Our Bosphorus experience had lasted 3½ hours and was far from being the daunting
challenge we had expected. We set course for an overnight sail to our first port of call
in the Black Sea – Varna in Bulgaria.
... and the lighthouse at Turkeli Feneri at its northern end
120
Berths at Varna Yacht Club, with
Safari at the far end of the pier
Varna, Bulgaria
We reached Varna on the morning of 4 June after an uneventful night passage, tied up
to the end of the Varna Yacht Club quay, and went with the officials to complete the
entry procedure*. A quick look round revealed that the toilets and showers downstairs
were basic but adequate, and that there was a very attractive bar and lounge upstairs.
It was a twenty minute walk to the road, and a further twenty minutes either left to
the bus terminus or right to the town centre.
Varna is the third largest city in Bulgaria but lacks any sophisticated tourist
infrastructure. We ended up staying there a week due to bad weather, and discovered
that the city has a great deal to offer if one takes the time to seek it out. We even
found two excellent shopping malls
Queen Marie’s Summer Palace
on the outskirts of the city – City
Mall and Varna Mall – where all the
big European outlets were represented.
When conditions improved, we
moved on to Balchik just 15 miles
across the bay. This is a small holiday
town, beloved by Bulgarians and
Romanians because of its picturesque
location. A major tourist attraction is
the palace of Queen Marie of Romania
(1857–1938) with its magnificent
botanical gardens. There is also a
good marina with finger pontoons
and plenty of water under the keel,
but lacking both toilets and showers.
* See page 128 for details of Bulgarian and Romanian entry and exit procedures.
121
On to Romania
On 17 June we checked out of Bulgaria at Balchik to head out around Cape Kaliakra
towards Mangalia in Romania, 55 miles further north. Mangalia has a vast harbour with
extensive facilities for ship-repair and conversion, and a newly-developed marina and
promenade in a separate section to starboard as one enters. The marina has excellent
finger pontoons and lots of room for expansion. A major draw-back was the absence
of toilets, showers and laundry facilities, but the manager, Claudiu, assured us that
these were to be built during 2013. There were several good supermarkets within
walking/cycling distance which more than catered for our needs, but there was no
tourist information available and neither was it possible to buy postcards. And when
we enquired about nearby places of interest, we were told there were none!
On Wednesday 20 June we left for Port Tomis (Constanţa) 25 miles up the coast.
The port of Constanţa is the largest in Romania but it does not welcome pleasure
craft, which are directed to Port Tomis about two miles further north. Mooring here
is alongside the quay, with electricity and water supplied and space for about half a
dozen visiting yachts. There is 4m alongside, but some shallow patches in the middle
of the harbour mean that you have to keep close to the bows of the boats moored
stern-to at the end of the quay when entering or leaving. Toilets and showers are a
15 minute walk past the many cafés along the quay, but there was no laundry either
at the marina or in the town.
The harbour is protected by a high wall, which gives a great sense of security but
also traps the heat. It was very hot while we were there, the wall creating a sauna-like
effect which boosted temperatures into the high 30°s. During the previous winter –
one of the worst in living memory – it had failed to protect the boats in cradles on the
quays, however. Instead of breaking against the wall, the waves came over it and broke
over the boats below. The water quickly turned to ice in the sub-zero temperatures,
Port Tomis
122
The casino on the
promenade at Port Tomis
and eventually the boats
became so iced-up that some
of them toppled over and
were seriously damaged.
There is a fine promenade
running along the shore from
the marina up to the casino,
one of the finest buildings
in the area though sadly
neglected. This promenade is
very popular with visitors and locals alike. Constanţa is a 15 minute bus ride away, and
gives a choice of three ultra-modern malls. All have the major European and American
chains represented, but most important for us was the wonderful air-conditioning! The
biggest holiday resort in Romania, Mamaia, is located just north of Constanţa and
attracts huge international crowds to its beaches and beachside hotels.
One pleasant aspect of staying in Port Tomis was the steady flow of yachts which
arrived having completed the trip down the Danube. Some had come from as far
away as the Baltic. After hearing so much about the natural beauty of the Danube
delta from these and other visiting yachts we felt we had to see it for ourselves. So
early one Saturday morning we took the bus to Tulcea, which is about 120 km north
of Constanţa and located in the heart of the delta. From there we took a four-hour
boat trip through part of this unspoilt wildlife wonderland.
On Thursday 5 July we decided the time had come to head back south towards the
less intense heat of the marina in Mangalia, taking in Eforie Nord, about 10 miles
south of Port Tomis, on the way. This marina is privately owned and is contactable by
VHF on Channels 16 and 73, and a RIB came out to escort us in through the winding,
dredged, approach channel. Yachts should not attempt entry without the assistance of
The dredger at work in Eforie Nord
123
this RIB – there is a serious problem with silting at the entrance and a small dredger is
in constant use. Once inside there is a minimum depth of 3∙5m. With clean showers
and toilets, it is an attractive stop-over for yachts.
The following day we arrived back in Mangalia to a warm welcome from the marina
manager and security staff. The town was buzzing with a large influx of visitors who
had arrived for an outdoor folk festival. The stage had been erected on the deck of an
old barge moored about 20m out from the promenade, and crowds sat and watched
the free entertainment.
Bucharest, Braşov and Transylvania
Because of the excellent security at the marina and along the promenade, we decided
to leave Safari in Mangalia for a few days, hire a car, and do a little exploring. First we
headed for the capital, Bucharest, a splendid city with magnificent buildings, and next
day drove through the Carpathian mountains to the town of Braşov in Transylvania.
During our two-night stay we visited three of the major castles in the region –
Râşnov, Bran and Peleş. Bran is marketed as the castle which most closely resembles
that described by Bram Stoker in his novel Dracula. The Carpathian mountains are
magnificent and we would have liked more time to explore the region.
Our five weeks in Romania were some of our most enjoyable for a long time. We
loved the country and its friendly, good-humoured people and even the language,
which closely resembles Italian, was very manageable – a far cry from the mysteries
of the Cyrillic script in Bulgaria!
Back in Bulgaria
On 18 July we left Mangalia to return to Bulgaria, again opting to check in at Varna.
Progress south was slow due to adverse current and light winds, and when we reached the
Varna Yacht Club we found it very crowded as the entire fleet of local tourist ‘pirate ships’
was moored to the quay normally reserved for visiting yachts. We were nevertheless made
Open-air concert on the promenade in Mangalia,
with the marina in the background
124
Bran Castle in
Transylvania –
‘home’ of Count
Dracula
very welcome by
the yacht club
m a n a g e r, w h o
kindly allowed us
to raft up to one
of the pirate ships
(free of charge)
on condition we
moved on by 0800
the next morning.
We headed next for Burgas Bay. Again we struggled against the current over the
28 mile stretch from Galata Head to Emenie Head, making good an average speed of
only 4∙3 knots. Our first port of call in the bay was the marina at Sveti Vlas, which is
considered to be an elite holiday resort. We called them on Channel 73 and, for the
first time in Bulgaria, received an answer. When we arrived we were met by their RIB,
as depths are very tight here. On the way in we passed over a 2∙1m spot – nail-bitingly
close to touching the bottom. (Safari of Howth has a designed draught of 2∙07m!)
After one night we fled! Although the resort has an excellent beach nearby and
good restaurants, the disco at the marina started up at 2200 and continued unabated
until 0515 the following morning. When we went to the office to settle the account,
the manager explained – unapologetically but kindly – that this was a ‘party marina’
and that things would not be changing! He didn’t charge us for the night, which was
decent of him, and advised us to head for Sozopol on the other side of the bay which
might be more suited to our needs and our age-profile!
We decided, however, to head first for the historic town of Nessebar, a major tourist
resort just six miles away, hoping to spend at least a week in the new marina there. Our
VHF calls went unanswered, and on arrival we had to tie up to an outer wall. Then,
when we went ashore, we were informed rather brusquely that there was no room
and we would have to leave immediately. So we headed across the bay, by-passing
the dreary industrial city of Burgas.
Sozopol, on the southernmost corner of Burgas Bay, was our last hope and it turned
out to be a real gem. We called up the marina on Channel 88 as we approached, as we
had been instructed by the border police, but there was no answer. We subsequently
discovered that they can hear you but cannot reply! When approaching from the north
it is advisable, though not essential, to pass to the east of the island of Sveti Ivan to avoid
the extensive mussel farm and fishing nets that stretch out southwest of the island. x
Sozopol has, without doubt, the best marina in either Romania or Bulgaria. The facilities
are excellent, with a laundry just outside the entrance and workshops where repairs can
be carried out. There is a fuel dock served by a tanker which parks there every day from
125
Sozopol, old and new
approximately
0900 to 1800 –
the only marina in
either Romania or
Bulgaria offering
such a service.
The monthly
charge of €250,
including water
and electricity,
was excellent
value.
In addition to
its exceptional
marina, Sozopol is
a most attractive
town with its old and new areas offering a wide variety of entertainment and attractions.
During our month-long stay we visited many other places by bus, car and boat, including
Burgas (its dreariness was not exaggerated!), Nessebar (lots of old-world charm but
overrun by tacky souvenir shops) and Veliko Tŭrnovo (a magnificent medieval town in
the Balkan mountains). We also took a trip through the Stranzhja mountain range to the
Bulgaria/Turkish border town of Malko Tarnovo, and a boat trip across to Sveti Ivan.xxx
At 1100 on 20 August we departed Sozopol marina and two hours later checked
into Tsarevo, the last official port of entry/exit before crossing the border into Turkey.
It’s possible to spend a few nights in Tsarevo, either alongside the harbour wall, on a
mooring, or at anchor in the harbour. There is an excellent, newly-built block with
toilets, showers and laundry on the quayside – in fact the harbour master was very
disappointed we wouldn’t stay long enough to use the showers and the washing machine!
Sozopol harbour and marina
126
The quay at Tsarevo
The checking-out procedure was quick and uncomplicated, and by 1645, after a walk
around the attractive town, we left for Turkey and the Bosphorus. Our delayed departure
was to ensure that we did not arrive at the mouth of the Bosphorus before daylight.
From the Black Sea to Didim
The overnight sail to the Bosphorus was not particularly pleasant. We rolled a lot in
a lumpy sea caused by the infamous Black Sea swell and both wind and current were
against us. For most of the night our average speed was little more than 4 knots, so it
was quite a relief when we finally rounded the headland at Türkeli Feneri at 0800 next
morning and pushed on down the European side of the strait under engine. We exited
it 2½ hours later, and headed for Fenerbahçe marina on the Asian side of Istanbul.
The whole of the next day, 22 August, was spent checking back into Turkey and
acquiring a new transit log. After spending four nights in Istanbul, two in Fenerbahçe
marina and two in the new West Istanbul marina, we headed back across the Sea of
Marmara. Again we called in at Avşa Adasi in the Sea of Marmara and Çanakkale in
the Dardanelles, followed by stopovers at Ayvalık, Çeşme and Kuşadasi before reaching
Didim on Thursday 6 September.
Although at 1200 miles it had not been a particularly long cruise it was extremely
varied, covering as it did three very different and ancient cultures – those of Turkey,
Bulgaria and Romania – and sailing in the historic waters of the Aegean, the Sea of
Marmara and the Black Sea, linked as they are by two of the world’s most famous
waterways, the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus.
Information and impressions
We spent a total of ten weeks exploring Bulgaria and Romania, and visited most of their
marinas. We heard many promises of showers and toilets to be built over the next year or
two, but there was little mention of improving fuelling facilities in the near future, making
it advisable to carry extra fuel in cans and to top-up whenever and wherever possible.
127
Unfortunately the southwest margins of the Black Sea offer little in terms of overnight
anchorages, as there are few suitable bays and only a couple of very small islands, and
the prevailing wind creates an almost permanent lee shore. But marina fees are very low
compared to Turkey, at €10 to €20 per night, and there are excellent weekly or monthly
rates. Distances are short – Romania has 150 miles of coastline and Bulgaria only 120
miles – so it is possible to day-sail from marina to marina and avoid overnight passages.
The winds are largely constant and are much more predictable than in the
Mediterranean, Aegean or Ionian Seas, and there are few gales during the summer
months. We experienced only two near-gales during our time there. Although VHF
weather forecasts in English were difficult to understand, there was no problem accessing
online forecasts using a dongle purchased in each country.
The passages through the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus should not deter others
from venturing into this new and, as yet, very inexpensive cruising ground. As with
so many other places with fearsome reputations, a combination of patience and the
right weather is the key. We followed the advice given in the cruising guides and went
north in May with the help of the southerly winds, returning in late August by which
time the winds had switched into the north (wintering a boat in the Black Sea ports
is not advisable due to the extremely cold weather).
At present Turkish bureaucracy is a greater deterrent than either the winds or the
currents, given that a full day in Istanbul is needed for checking out and another for
checking back in. The country’s new visa regulations, which limit visitors’ stays to 90
days out of 180, should also encourage more sailors to consider spending a summer
cruising in the Black Sea. It seems that even the Ukraine is opening up to pleasure
craft. We heard, rather too late for our plans, that the entry formalities at Odessa have
been greatly simplified and that it is no longer necessary to pay extortionate fees to
agents to check into the country.
Bulgaria and Romania – entry and exit procedures
Ports of entry in Bulgaria: Tsarevo, Burgas, Varna, Balchik
Marinas in Bulgaria: Sozopol, Nessebar, Sveti Vlas, Balchik
Ports of entry in Romania: Sulina, Port Tomis, Mangalia
Marinas in Romania: Port Tomis, Eforie Nord, Mangalia
First call the border police on Channel 16 when about an hour from the port of entry
and request permission to enter – they generally reply (in English) within ten minutes
of the call. You are advised to call the harbour master when about a mile out from the
harbour. The border police inform the marina personnel of your impending arrival, as
municipal marinas do not have VHF. In our experience, only the two privately-owned
marinas – Sveti Vlas in Bulgaria and Eforie Nord in Romania – answered on VHF.
A welcoming committee awaits on the quay, generally consisting of the border police,
customs officers and marina personnel. In Romania the border police come aboard to do
the paperwork, but in Bulgaria the skipper accompanies them to their office. They check
passports, ship’s registration papers, crew list and insurance documents. All documents
are then signed and stamped, and in Romania a boat’s stamp will also be needed. You
128
are then issued with a document permitting you to sail in Bulgarian or Romanian waters.
This procedure is followed by a visit to the harbour master’s office when checking in and
out of both countries. Although the process sounds cumbersome, it is all done quickly
and with a smile and at no time were we asked for any payments.
When moving from port to port within the country you are expected to inform
the border police of your next destination by VHF – we were told that all vessels,
including pleasure craft, are monitored by cameras as they ply their way up and down
the Romanian and Bulgarian coasts.
Useful sources
Nicky Allardice’s Cruising Bulgaria and Romania (Imray Laurie Norie & Wilson, ISBN
978-0-8528-8910-7) was a great help (be sure to download the latest supplement though,
as it was published in 2006), as was the newly-published The Black Sea by OCC members
David Read Barker and Lisa Borre (RCCPF / Imray, ISBN 978-1-8462-3412-5). An article
in Yachting World May 2012, Beyond the Bosphorus to the Black Sea, by Soo and Dave Young
was particularly useful as it was based on more recent experience. Up-to-date charts
are hard to come by, and much information on the electronic charts is also fairly old.
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130
A VOYAGE TO THE WEST INDIES
Notes from the Log of the Auxiliary Schooner
Mollihawk, September 1948 to January 1949
Commander Vernon Nicholson
(First a little background. In early January I received the following e-mail:
I have something to offer which I hope may be of interest to you and the OCC.
In the late 1920s and early 1930s my father, an ‘axed’ naval commander,
was a emp ng to farm at Rolvenden in Kent. Perhaps his best friend, also a
commander RN, was a emp ng to make a living rearing chickens and rabbits
about four miles down the road towards Rye. Our two families each had two
sons, my brother Antony and me and, for the Nicholsons, Desmond and Rodney. I
am now the only survivor.
Both commanders were called back to the navy in 1938 and we saw li le of them
un l the end of the War and un l all four sons had been demobbed. Vernon
Nicholson, the father, then decided to emigrate to the New World. He bought an
ancient schooner, Mollihawk, and proceeded with his family across the Atlan c,
fetching up in a ‘hurricane hole’ in An gua called English Harbour.
I inherited from my father a sort of log, more an account, of their voyage from
Ireland to An gua and it is this that I thought might be of interest to the OCC.
It is as originally typed by Vernon Nicholson. The thought had crossed my mind
many mes as I read and reread it, but the copyright obviously rests with the
Nicholson family. I have just received a card from Desmond’s widow Lisa, the
only survivor of my genera on and hence the senior member of the Nicholson
family, giving wholehearted permission to publish!
Yours sincerely
Myles Bowen
I instantly discarded my rule that only members and their spouses or partners should be
published in Flying Fish – after all, the OCC didn’t even exist back in 1948! – and having
thanked Dr Bowen started transcribing the scanned copy which he had attached.)
The Mollihawk is an old timer, having been built in 1903, but for ocean cruising is as
fine a vessel as one could wish to have, her dimensions being 52 Tons TM, 70ft LOA,
15ft beam and 9ft draught. She is all teak construction, with coppered bottom, white
pine decks and varnished teak upperworks, a very yachty Yacht, and consequently a
considerable amount of hard work is necessary to maintain the high class appearance,
but to make up for this she is very easily handled, partly on account of the electric
winches, one amidships for working sheets and hoisting sails, and one for the anchor,
and partly on account of her rig, which is bermudian mainsail and gaff foresail. We
never have to reef in the ordinary sense of the term, but always have the trysail ready for
131
hoisting on a second mast
track, and when under the
trysail rig, it has to blow
very hard indeed before
it becomes necessary to
further reduce sail.
We had long planned a
voyage to the West Indies,
and during the summer of
1948 whilst cruising the
Irish coast with various
friends, detailed plans in
respect of new sails, food
storage and spare parts,
sufficient for a long period
The schooner Mollihawk
away from the sterling area
and civilised parts, were quietly being made and completed. Early in August 1948 the
crew assembled at Queenstown on the south Irish coast, and consisted of the owner
and his two sons, just de-mobbed, the owner’s wife and uncle, and one professional
cook, six all told.
Queenstown, 5th September: For some days we had been ready with all stores aboard,
but the weather reports had been so bad that we had not ventured forth. On this
particular day, however, the sky was
overcast with drizzle all the morning,
but shortly after noon it cleared and
the sun came out. The wind which had
been from the southwest became more
northerly, and somebody said, “let’s go,
let’s start for the West Indies”, so at
1400 we weighed anchor near the Royal
Cork Yacht Club, who gave us a royal
send off with a salute from their starting
guns. It was regatta day, so we sailed
out of harbour with good company, all
wishing us good luck. Outside we found
the wind west-by-north, enabling us to
steer a southwesterly course, force 3–4,
moderate sea. At 1725 we passed the
Daunt Rock light vessel, streamed the
patent log, and took our departure.
Commander Nicholson
taking a sextant sight
132
For 24 hours the weather was kind, with a good slant in the wind, but at 0200 on
the 7th the fun began. The wind freshened from the southwest with rain and a bleak
overcast dawn. We set the trysail, and from then on had to beat across the Bay of
Biscay. At times we were hove-to, but generally kept plugging into it. As usual some
members of the crew suffered from sea sickness and Uncle and the cook were the only
two who, during these first few days, could face their meals below.
Thursday 9th September, 4th day out: Had salt pork for dinner and all hands partook
of this meal. The seasick members appeared to be over the malady, for they all ate a
hearty meal. A dirty night set in, with squalls and driving rain. Ship making slow
progress close-hauled and partially hove-to.
Friday 10th September: At last a free wind
from the northwest; Course southwestby-south. Fine sailing all day until the
evening when it clouded over and the
wind dropped. Horrible night of rough seas
and little wind, interspersed with violent
squalls, much rolling and slatting about.
A wave-top flopped into the cockpit for
the only time on the voyage.
Heavy weather
Saturday 11th September, 6th day out:
Lovely sunny day, very blue sea, much warmer. Noon position by observation 44°53’N
9°22’W, logged 540 miles. Saw many French tunny fishing vessels. Easy sailing during
the night, slept in pyjamas and between sheets for the first time for a week.
Sunday 12th September: 0800, gale warning for the North Finisterre area, and
according to our reckoning we should be about 30 miles northwest of Cape Finisterre.
Changed to No 3 jib. 0900, wind increased very quickly to gale force, lowered foresail
and hove to on the port tack, with staysail aback and trysail sheeted well home. Blew
very hard for a short time, ship riding very easily and heading four to six points off the
wind. 1230, wind easing, and not enough to keep head on with very reduced canvas,
rough uneasy motion. 1600, hoisted foresail and let draw, proceeding on our way.
Becalmed completely during the night, with frightful sail slatting.
Monday 13th September: 0600, sighted Cape Villano Light bearing 125° magnetic.
Swell died down considerably. Fine dawn, sunny day, wind increasing from the north,
probably the beginning of the Portuguese Trades. Rigged tunny fishing line, no luck.
Wind on the quarter, hoisted squaresail, raffee topsail and fisherman’s topsail*, and trysail.
Grand sailing, calm sea, the best day we have had so far, summer at last. Noon position
by observation 42°50’N 9°38’W – or in other words Cape Finisterre is 17 miles on our
port beam, and this we sighted during the day. Logged 696 miles. Speed now 6 knots.
* A raffee topsail is triangular and is set above a squaresail; a fisherman’s topsail is
square and is set between the fore and mainmasts. Neither is set on a boom or yard.
133
Tuesday 14th September, 9th day out:
Crew coming to life, cleaned cockpit and
all brass work. Marvellous trade wind
sailing at steady 6 knots. Amber the cat
came on deck this morning and smelt
land. Started the main engine to warm
through and dry out, opened all hatches
and skylights, the ship generally very damp
below after being battened down so much
in the Biscay area. 1400, Altered course
south-southwest, ie. parallel with the coast
of Portugal, about 14 miles from shore.
Oporto abeam to port.
Thursday 16th September, 11th day
out: Approaching Lisbon, where we had
decided to make our first stop, but on
reference to the charts we thought that
the anchorage off Cascais and Estoril at
the mouth of the river Tagus would be the
best place to go, and this turned out to be
a very happy choice.
Looking aft from the bowsprit
We were now about ten miles from our
selected anchorage, just ghosting along the coast, expecting to make the anchorage
during the forenoon, but I suppose some would say that the beauty of yachting is that
anything might happen at any time, and little did we know what a horrible day we
were in for. At 0300 thick fog settled down, we handed the squaresail and topsail,
and hove to on the outboard tack to await dawn. At 0730 the fog was thicker than
ever, and not liking the proximity of land, we let draw on the offshore tack. This
however took us into a densely populated steamer track, and we could hear many
sirens all round. Brought our yachty fog horn on deck, which gave feeble squeaks
at regular intervals but was about as much use as a snowball in hell, as Uncle was
heard to remark.
At 1100 a ship loomed up close to, gave three blasts, and just cleared us by a very
small margin. From that moment we were all of us on deck all the time, and with
grease pot and screwdriver overhauled the foghorn with much success. We also
rigged an electric horn, and with bells, kettles and frying pans kept up a more or less
continuous noise. At 1420 we suddenly saw what looked like a rock close to with
a huge breaking sea. It was of course the bow wave of a ship moving fast. We never
saw the ship but the wave passed close ahead, a very near shave and one which left
us all slightly shaken.
We kept on the offshore tack, and at about 1800 emerged from the coastal fog belt
into a fine clear night where we lay becalmed all that night, listening to the sirens
inshore. By morning we were about 20 miles offshore.
134
Friday 17th September, 12th day out: Fine clear dawn with inshore fog apparently
cleared, as ships’ sirens no longer heard. Hoisted all sail including topsails, and had
a fine gentle sail to Cascais anchorage, arriving at 1620. Our navigation turned out
to be reasonably accurate. We had no chronometer but relied entirely on the GMT
time signals and a good watch, which proved very satisfactory during the whole of the
voyage to the West Indies. As regards watch-keeping, we kept standing watches – the
cook from 2200 until midnight; Rodney from midnight until 0300; Desmond from
0300 until 0600; and myself from 0600 until relieved by someone after breakfast. Day
watches were not kept by any special person, as there was always someone on deck
and ready to steer. This arrangement worked very well all the voyage, as we got into
what might be described as a sleeping routine.
We stayed in Cascais about a fortnight – it was grand. Sunny and hot, friendly and
yachty, and here we met the owners of the Jolie Brise. Twelve days from Queenstown, a
distance of some 900 miles, not a fast run but the headwinds in the Bay accounted for
this. Our next hop was to be to Gibraltar, 300 miles, which we reckoned to accomplish
in 3 to 4 days but in fact it took us 9 days, and not a comfortable run either.
Monday 27th September: Weighed anchor at 1400 and motored out of the Tagus, then
lay becalmed for 24 hours with patches of fog. Made good 12 miles in the 24 hours.
Tuesday 28th September: 1400, a fair wind at last, set squaresail and raffee. Speed
about 5 knots.
Thursday 30th September: 1500, position by observation 36°25’N 9°05’W. This
puts us 15 miles further south than our
DR position – we must now be some
30 miles to the southwest of Cape St
Vincent. Hoisted fore and aft canvas and
altered course towards Gibraltar.
Saturday 2nd October: Midnight, came
on to blow very quickly from the east.
Called all hands, down mainsail and jib,
hoisted trysail, and hove to on the port
tack to await moderation. 0400, Amber
the cat gave birth to a litter of six kittens,
the result of her indiscretions in Dublin,
all doing nicely. 0700, dawn nasty and
grey-looking, overcast sky, wind and sea
increasing, easterly Levanter. For the
next two days this continued, beating
close-hauled, first on one tack, and then
on the other, sometimes partially hove-to
Before the days of echo-sounders...
135
in the worst squalls,
sometimes becalmed
for a few hours, then
another pounding, rain
and spray in plenty.
Monday 4th October:
1030, wind taking off,
sun coming out. 1730,
sighted Cape Trafalgar,
very little wind but
drifted at about 4 knots
through the Strait, in a
strong current and dead
calm, heading in all
directions and often being twirled right round in great eddies. Many steamships gave way
and some circled us, no doubt wondering why our navigation lights so often alternated.
Tuesday 5th October: 1100, arrived at Gibraltar, where we enjoyed our stay very much.
The first few days our berth was outside the Admiralty harbour in the commercial
anchorage, but this is too far away from the shore to be really comfortable so we arranged
with the King’s Harbour Master for a berth in the Torpedo camber, alongside a floating
stage, an excellent and most convenient billet, clean and comfortable but expensive,
in this case the charge being £6 for three weeks, including the services of a pilot, which
for yachts is compulsory. A most excessive figure, I thought.
Police regulations and other formalities are very annoying on account of their
apparent futility. It does seem stupid to have to give one’s wife written authority to
be allowed ashore. Apart from this, however, our stay was delightful, a round of social
activities, the Yacht Club being the highlight, very hospitable and extending a genuine
welcome to visiting yachts.
We carried out a small refit of our varnish work, motor boat and sailing dinghy, then
re-provisioned – most foodstuffs, tinned and otherwise, being plentiful and reasonably
priced. Unfortunately, however, we did not realise this at the time and planned to take
in final stores at Santa Cruz de Tenerife, expecting the Canary islands to be cheaper.
It was a bad mistake as will be seen.
On 28th October we had a pleasant day sail in the bay and visited Algeciras for
the night, and on the next day made an early start for Tangier at the entrance to the
Strait, a distance of some 30 miles. This was a beat to windward, with a strong westerly
stream necessitating the use of the engine most of the way. Tangier, with its Arab
influence and cosmopolitan atmosphere, is a fascinating place. We were delayed here
on account of the owner getting ear trouble. Nothing serious, but a boil in the ear is
painful and hospital treatment was necessary.
Thursday 11th November: 1140, weighed anchor and proceeded out of harbour
under power. It was blowing a Levanter of gale force, but fine when running before it,
136
so on reaching the open sea we hoisted the squaresail and raffee and fled before the
wind and waves, hoping for a quick passage to our next port, which was to be Santa
Cruz de Tenerife in the Canary Islands, a distance of approximately 600 miles from
Tangier. At 1400 that day we were close to Cape Spartel and the sea smoothed out
under its lee, but still with a good wind, perfect sailing. That evening, however, the
wind gradually eased, we were evidently sailing out of the Levanter influence, and
before morning it became very light from the east-northeast. For the next three days
the wind remained very light, speed about 3 knots.
Sunday 14th November: Noon position by observation 34°02’N 9°13’W, logged 190
miles. We had been practically becalmed since 2100 the previous evening, and our day’s
run on this day was only 20 miles, but the weather was beautiful – blue blue sea, sunny
and hot, and not a cloud in the sky. I suppose we were entering the region of the Horse
latitudes, for about I500 a light breeze ruffled the surface of the water from west-by-north
direction. We handed the square canvas and hoisted all possible fine weather fore and
aft sails, including the fisherman’s topsail and spinnaker jib. Made good 3 knots, course
southwest. I wish we had a good photograph of the ship under this full spread of canvas.
Monday 15th November, 4th day out: 0625, clear dawn. 0710, sun up. Windy sky, and
mares’ tails aplenty in upper strata. Wind from the northeast, we hope the beginning
of the Northeast Trades, still very light, creeping along at 2 knots. Flat calm sea and
a gentle swell from the north. 1800, wind increased slightly.
Tuesday 16th November: Our course must now be southwest. Wind very light
northeasterly, dead aft, so lowered fore and aft canvas and hoisted squaresail and
raffee. Noon observed position 33°20’N 12°02’W, logged 327 miles. And so the calm
weather continued, just light gentle sailing, calm sea and little rolling, absolutely
perfect if one is in no hurry.
Thursday 18th November: Sea like glass, but a gentle breeze. Logged 486 at noon.
Saw shoal of flying fish for the first time. Amber the cat was blissfully happy gambolling
on deck with her kitten, one of the six born off Cape St Vincent and now six
weeks old. It is evident
that very soon special
precautions will have to
be taken to prevent this
small animal from taking
hcapers over the side. We
are wondering what kind
of lifelines to rig, but at
present the mother cat is
the most active, and she
can take care of herself.
Mollihawk shows off
her fisherman’s topsail
137
Friday 19th November: 1755, sighted
the Peak of Tenerife fine on the starboard
bow, bearing 223° true, distance off about
110 miles. Noon position by observation
29°46’N 14°52’W, logged 558 miles. The
next day the peak was not visible owing to
haze, and in fact we did not see it again until
we had left the island, as during our stay at
Santa Cruz it was always obscured by cloud.
Saturday 20th November: This day was
marked by catching our first fish. At 0800
a school of dolphin fish suddenly appeared
all round the ship and we dangled a spinner
over the side. Half a dozen or so made a dash
for this tasty morsel and the unlucky one we
hauled aboard, our only fish of the voyage.
Sunday 21st November, 10th day out:
Arrived at Santa Cruz at 0900, and lay to
one anchor with stern to harbour buoy.
Pilotage compulsory. I would not recommend this port to any yachtsman, as being a
very active fuelling station the surface of the water is inches thick with oil, and makes
everything filthy. In addition, the local youth element are thieves.
We were welcomed by another British yacht, the Panda, a schooner of about 200
tons, a lovely vessel, first met in Lisbon and again at Gibraltar and Tangier. She had
sailed from the latter place on the same day as ourselves and had arrived several days
previously. We were now berthed close to her, and were warned about the thieving
element, as they had had a visitation on their first night in harbour and had lost some
valuables. We therefore kept our usual night sea watches for the duration of our stay,
a fact that did not add to our comfort. Sure enough, at 0530 the next morning we
caught a potential thief just in the act of lowering himself down the fo’c’s’le hatch. A
scuffle and he was pinned to the deck, but what to do with him was a problem. The
watchkeeper had been reading a book in the chart house and the thief had ascended
up the anchor chain over the bow.
It was a comic situation. We had all been sleeping in the nude and were now in a similar
state on deck, except Uncle who was only showing head and shoulders. We all wanted to
treat the culprit rough, but the female of our party implored and finally demanded gentle
treatment. In sign language we told the boy to get ashore as best he could, or the police
would be called, then all crept below to hide their nakedness from the many curious
eyes that had been aroused by the commotion. After about half an hour of shouting by
the boy a rowboat hove alongside, and relieved us of our unwelcome visitor.
A word here about ship chandlers. We had tried to do without their services, but
had come to the conclusion that the employment of an agent is a necessity, as by so
doing all difficulties in dealing with officialdom are automatically smoothed away,
138
especially in a foreign port. Here in Santa
Cruz, however, we came across the most
blatant case of overcharging. The firm
in question demanded a sum of £10,
presumably for the privilege of supplying
stores, and dealing with harbour dues and
other formalities. I would have nothing to
do with them, and paid the harbour dues
myself, a comparatively small sum but a
job which, owing to language difficulties,
occupied three days.
I soon discovered that all the usual
provisions could be got only on the black
market at prohibitive prices. Bread 3/6
per loaf; butter 9/6 lb; potatoes 35/– per
cwt; flour 60/– per cwt, and most other
foods were equally expensive, except local
produce such as tomatoes and bananas. We,
of course, only had £35 worth of Spanish
currency* which did not promise to go very
far, especially as we had neglected to properly provision the ship at Gibraltar.
We had intended to call at the Cape Verde Islands to shorten the longest passage, but
after our experiences here we thought that probably provisions, and especially water,
would be difficult to obtain there. Consequently we had almost decided to proceed direct
to Barbados, a distance of some 2800 miles. It was necessary, therefore, to provision well.
Water was our only real anxiety when considering the longer passage, our capacity
being one ton, or approximately 200 gallons. The problem was whether this quantity
would be enough for six persons for about one month. As it turned out we arrived with
50 odd gallons to spare. We solved the food problem by visiting British merchant ships,
found them all most helpful, and were able to purchase the quantities we required at
normal prices. We also embarked two 50 gallon druhms of petrol as deck cargo, to
enable us to motor a reasonable distance to look for wind in the event of prolonged
calms. It was an unnecessary precaution.
We had been 18 days in Santa Cruz, much longer than we intended. The Panda had
sailed a fortnight previously, also bound for Barbados, and had promised to broadcast
every day at 2000 and give her position and weather news. She had been having very
light winds, hence some of our precautions.
The account of Mollihawk’s passage from Santa Cruz to Barbados and on to Antigua
will appear in Flying Fish 2013/2. Photographs courtesy of Mrs Lisa Nicholson and the
Desmond Nicholson archive at http://www.nicholsonyachts.com/history2/pix1A.htm.
* Post-war restrictions on the amount of currency which could be taken out of the
UK remained tight for some years.
139
FROM THE GALLEY OF ... Nina Kiff, aboard Wetherley
Easy Fruit Cake
Ingredients
• 1 kg dried mixed fruit
• 2½ cups fruit juice (or part juice, part alcohol!)
• 2½ cups self raising flour, or 2½ cups plain flour + 2½ tsp
baking powder
• mixed spice (optional)
Soak the fruit overnight in the fruit juice (or juice + alcohol). Next morning add the
flour, and mixed spice if desired, and mix well. Put in a tin and cook at 145°C / 300°F
(Gas Mk 2) for approximately 1½ hours. Alternatively make two smaller cakes, which
will take less time to cook.
This cake keeps for quite a while wrapped in cling film and definitely improves with age.

FROM THE GALLEY OF ... Misty McIntosh,
aboard Tamoure
‘Oh not that dip again!’ dip
This is a favourite with everyone and I am asked for the recipe each time I serve it. It’s
quick, simple and tasty, but unfortunately The Skipper has grown tired of its success!
Ingredients • 1 packet/tub of Philadelphia cream cheese (light or otherwise,
but plain not flavoured)
• 1 tin crabmeat
• 1 tbs parmesan cheese (real or ‘boxed’)
• 1 tbs horseradish
• a few drops of Fire/Tabasco-type sauce (to taste)
• 1 tbs white wine
• salt and pepper
Drain the crabmeat and go over it thoroughly to remove nasty cartilage bits. Soften
the cream cheese and combine with the crab. Add the parmesan, horseradish, sauce
and wine, and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Quantities are not too crucial
– it can be hot or less hot; dry or a bit sloppy (but see below).
Bake for about 30 minutes in a fairly hot oven, until brown on top. (Don’t worry if
seems a little wet – it firms up slightly as it cools.) It will be very hot at this stage, so
resist ... wait 5 minutes or so before digging in.
NB: I once made this with a brand other than Philadelphia, and while there was no
hint of trouble at the preparation stage it practically ran out of the oven to meet me
and remained too liquid to serve.
140
FROM THE GALLEY OF ... Linda Lane Thornton,
aboard Coromandel
Andy’s Chilli and Ginger Chutney
Ingredients •
•
•
•
•
•
•
1 large, sharp onion, finely chopped
1 bulb garlic, crushed *
1 piece ginger, about 5cm x 2cm, grated and chopped
1 tbs chopped fresh chillies
1 tbs brown sugar
200 ml apple cider vinegar
salt to taste
Put all the ingredients into a heavy-based saucepan and bring to the boil, then reduce
the heat and simmer gently for about 30 minutes until the mixture is soft. If necessary
add more liquid to prevent it drying out. Allow to cool. Crush until the mixture forms
a soft pulp – a mortar and pestle is best for this – and seal in a sterile glass jar.
I have no idea what the shelf life of this chutney is. I make only one jar at a time,
which Andy manages to eat within a week!
* When I queried this seemingly generous amount of garlic with Linda, she replied, “Yes,
I put in a whole bulb, about 2 inches (5cm) in diameter – Andy does like his garlic!”.

FROM THE GALLEY OF ... Sonja Brodie, aboard Fettler
Chorizo Bean Stew
Ingredients •
•
•
•
•
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 chorizo picante, sliced
2 tbs olive oil
1 tin baked beans or 1 tin kidney beans + 1 carton passata
(tomato purée)
• 1 red pepper, sliced
• 1 carrot, sliced
• salt and pepper to taste
Briefly fry the onion, garlic and chorizo in the oil, stir in the pepper and carrot, add
the baked beans, salt and pepper and cook under pressure for 8-10 minutes.
Serve with bread or crackers.


141
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142
A EUROPEAN ATLANTIC CONTRA-FLOW
Jim and Sonja Brodie
Our 16-month trip – so far – highlights how nothing is ever written in stone when
cruising, how the experience broadens self-awareness and what is important to you,
and that you shouldn’t be afraid to change your plans.
When we set out from our home port of Granton, Edinburgh in late June 2011 aboard
our Trintella 29 Fettler, we thought we were headed for South America. After a few
good stops in England (Whitby, Rivers Ore and Orwell, Dartmouth), we pulled out of
Salcombe bound for the Isles of Scilly. It was cold, grey, wet and rough though, and we
decided we’d had enough of it so shaped our course for the Azores instead. We arrived on
1 August, four years to the day after our first visit there. There were a surprising number
of changes to be seen in Ponta Delgada – the convivial atmosphere in the old marina
where locals and bluewater cruisers mixed on crowded pontoons sadly gone, but the
island of São Miguel was just as beguiling to us. Before we knew it a month had passed,
hiking, soaking in hot springs, eating homemade cozido cooked in the volcanic ground,
fishing for barracuda and squid, and finding sparkling mineral water sources.
We cruised around the islands of the central group in September, taking in São
Jorge, Faial and Pico. São Jorge was the clear favourite, and not just because of its
fantastic cheeses. The pace is still slower there and we had no problems getting lifts
from locals, on one occasion ending up in someone’s house for a glass of wine, a bean
stew and homemade aguardiente, on another drinking milk fresh from the cow when
the farmer picked us up on his way out milking.
Prior to setting out we lived aboard for a month in our home port of Granton,
during what turned out to be Scotland’s coldest June on record
143
144
Our Azorean friend Marco
retrieves the cozido pot after six
hours in the hot volcanic ground.
Inside, various meats and sausages
are layered with cabbage, potato,
sweet potato and yam
Every day of the two weeks we
spent in Velas and Horta the peak
of Pico tantalised us from across the
water, and when we arrived in Lajes it
was bathed in the gentle light of the
evening sun. That was the last time
we saw it until six days later, when
we were 20 miles offshore on our way
back to São Miguel, but lingering
wasn’t an option with fierce weather
forecast. Still, we enjoyed walking up
to the lonely highlands and visiting
the excellent whaling museum.
We reached Ponta Delgada in good time to snug everything down for the first of
the autumn gales, an impressive force 9-er which swept containers off the quay and,
unfortunately, the waste oil drum into the harbour. Otherwise, São Miguel in October
was a delight. There were even fewer tourists than in high summer, the air and sea
temperatures were still warm, and we had the fine beaches at Praia Amoura and Praia
dos Moinhos and the hot springs at Ferraria to ourselves.
Already we were finding we wanted to stay longer in most places, and suffered from
the goodbyes to new and old friends. We wanted to see places in depth, meet people
and get a feel for how they live, rather than keep moving on all the time. A lot of the
cruisers we met seemed to be rushing, only staying one or two days in amazing places.
You have to do this on a month-long summer holiday cruise, or if you’re in a region
with harsh seasonal constraints, but surely things could be different?
These thoughts deepened during and after the tough passage from Ponta Delgada to
Santa Cruz de La Palma. It was early November, and the forecast low tracked further
south than predicted, with stronger winds. For three days we ran south before a gale which
peaked at force 10 – in the pitch-black middle of the night with torrential rain, of course.
We could do little but lie in our bunks, and Jim read a Jeeves and Wooster story aloud to
keep up our spirits. The one consolation was that we were making rapid progress – one
day of 155 miles in our 29-footer! – as otherwise we’d almost certainly have hove-to.
In the Canaries almost every cruising boat was busily preparing for an Atlantic
crossing, but our minds turned homewards. Maybe we didn’t need to go so far, always
moving on because of hurricane threat or changing seasons. Maybe what we liked about
cruising could be found right here in Europe – uncrowded, well-sheltered anchorages
in cruising grounds with ample scope for pottering, gorgeous scenery for hiking,
145
Almond blossom in La Palma,
which we would have missed
had we stuck to our original plan
historic towns and villages,
friendly locals, and good food and
drink. Maybe the tropics were
just a wee bit too hot, anyway.
We had not yet cruised Galicia
or Brittany, and imagined having
a whole summer to sail the west
coast of Scotland rather than just
four weeks.
A new plan began to take shape. We would spend the winter in the Canaries, with
plenty of time to explore the islands, before heading north to Madeira and Porto
Santo in early spring, heading next for Galicia, probably via the Azores. We would
toodle around the rías for the summer and along the north coast of Spain, then find
somewhere in the Basque country or France to spend the winter before returning to
Scotland via Brittany and Ireland.
We had committed ourselves to headwinds for much of our route, but with enough
time to wait for the good weather windows this did not turn out to be so bad after all
and there were a lot of advantages. We never had any problem finding a marina berth
or space in an anchorage, and cruisers who were sailing the conventional route would
give us advice and their secret tips, not just for the next Canary island, but also for
Madeira and mainland Spain.
The Canaries turned out to be a pleasant surprise. We hadn’t really expected much
beyond beaches so the wild, mountainous interiors were a very welcome find, as were
the caves, lava formations and pretty traditional towns. Rather than a beach holiday,
we had more of a hiking holiday, at least in La Palma, Gomera and Gran Canaria. Even
tiny Isla Graciosa had five volcanoes to climb. Mass tourism largely passed us by but
for brief glimpses en route to
the impressive Maspalomas
dunes on Gran Canaria and
in the Timanfaya National
Park on Lanzarote.
The winter climate in
the Canaries is pretty much
ideal, dry and warm but not
One of the tips given to us
by cruisers going the other
way: a solitary and free
lava tube on Lanzarote
146
Landfall on Islas Desertas, south of Madeira. This unusual angle was
achieved by attaching a GoPro HD camera to the boat hook and holding it aloft
too hot to go walking. We also really enjoyed the social scene, especially in San Sebastian
de la Gomera and Las Palmas. Lots of boats with interesting stories, all sorts of different
cruisers – a real meeting place. We teamed up with the handful of boats heading north,
always happy to find one of them already waiting at the next port. Our record for meeting
up with another boat is with fellow OCC members Andy and Lesley Scott in Kodiak – a
grand total of seven times between La Gomera and the Ría de Ares.
The one thing that wasn’t so good in the Canaries, ironically, was the sailing, with large
lumpy seas much of the time and the dreaded acceleration zones. The sailing definitely
improved as we headed north again! In April, after three relaxing weeks in Isla Graciosa,
we got a reasonable forecast for Madeira with only one day of beating necessary. We found
only three other visiting yachts in Funchal, so space was not an issue – quite a different
scene to that found by southbound boats in the autumn. Despite its undoubted beauty,
Madeira was not for us. One or two cruise ships daily dump thousands of passengers on
the island – more than its size can comfortably absorb. This meant queuing for levada
walks, and most of the beauty spots were blocked with coaches ... not to mention that
there seem to be two different price tiers for locals and visitors.
The neighbouring island of Porto Santo, on the other hand, was a haven of
tranquillity where we hardly met a soul on the lovely walking trails – we enjoyed it
very much. Fettler and our friends Roede Orm (a Shipman 28 with a German family of
four on board) were the only visiting boats. We could have easily stayed longer than
eight days, but up came a forecast for a week of southwesterly winds – and it held
true. Off we went (along with Kodiak, which had arrived hours earlier) – directly to
Bayona and the first of the Galician rías.
147
The charms of Galicia as
a cruising destination are
much discussed. The scenery
is like a softer, warmer,
more populous Scotland,
with green hills, lots of
pristine sandy beaches and
historic towns. Sheltered
anchorages abound and
absolutely delicious (and
cheap) food and drink. Other
than pilgrims en route to
the spectacularly beautiful
Santiago de Compostela,
there are not many tourists.
We wondered why, but long
may it remain so.
We spent four months
slowly cruising through
almost every ría. The sailing,
especially in the lower rías,
was delightful and distances
The cathedral at Santiago de Compostela,
between harbours short. We
at the end of the Camino de Santiago
often chose to tack towards
our destination in force 3 winds on totally flat waters because it was so much fun. Highlights
were many, including wild nights with the locals in the wonderful university town of
Pontevedra (masts of less than 12m only, but otherwise no problem even at low water), the
anchorage at Muros with its dolphin visits and the Nueva Escocia café on shore, walking
the Coast of
Death with
the heather in
bloom, tapas in
La Coruña with
a local friend,
the Celtic
folk festival
at Ortigueira,
pulpo (octopus)
in Ribadeo ...
At anchor in
Ría Ribadeo,
our last stop
in Galicia
148
The Galician anchorages weren’t exactly crowded, with at most six boats in
Camariñas and Muros, but as we continued along the northern coast of Spain, into
Asturias, Cantabria and the Basque country, numbers dwindled even further. Often
it was just us and one passing French yacht. We didn’t see any British boats until
Santander. Some harbours in Asturias offered free pontoon berthing to visiting yachts;
at Luanco this even included electricity.
Our absolute favourite along this stretch of coast was San Esteban de Pravia, a former
coal port now nicely restored, with a large sheltered, dredged basin, a cute village, good
bus and rail links to beautiful historic towns nearby, and a scenic coastal path. The
other great thing about San Esteban was its peacefulness, as by now we were beginning
to suffer from fiesta fatigue. Spaniards love noise and a good party and they’ll seize
any excuse – any saint’s day will do. Unfortunately for cruisers anchored off the fiesta
village, the preferred party time is midnight until at least six in the morning so a truly
tranquil Spanish anchorage is a real find.
The dolphins, which had been plentiful in Galicia, seemed to prefer deeper waters
near the continental shelf in Biscay so we didn’t see any while we were coastal hopping
in northern Spain. We did spot plenty of sunfish, however, and on one passage saw
hundreds of crabs swimming by. The wind and weather patterns were strongly influenced
by the Picos de Europa mountain chain, which meant that the forecast and GRIB files
were not reliable inshore, but once we were clear of the mountains the forecast quality
and sailing improved again. And the weather? For the most part it was very, very good.
Most of August we had temperatures of between 25°C and 30°C and there was little
rain. We were told several times that this was unusual – not that we minded.
The delightful former coal port of San Esteban de Pravia is dredged to 7m and
has room for at least 100 yachts to anchor, but there was just us
149
We saw lots of sunfish
on the Biscay coast.
This one came right into
Ribadesella harbour
East of the Basque city of
Bilbao there aren’t many
anchoring possibilities, at
least not in the kind of allround shelter which we like,
and there’s the danger of
getting stuck in the corner.
We therefore made Getxo, a suburb of Bilbao, our last stop in the Iberian peninsula
before a short two-day hop across Biscay to the entrance of the Gironde, the estuary
that leads to Bordeaux.
For months we’d been wondering where we’d winter – quite unnecessarily as it
turned out. A combination of fog and suitable tide times forced us to stop at a couple
of small ports on the northeastern side of the Gironde. We immediately fell in love
with the second one, Mortagne-sur-Gironde, a snug harbour basin reached through a
partially drying channel and a lock gate, with a backdrop of limestone cliffs. We are
in these peaceful surroundings as I write, enjoying some French country living and
working our way through a few boxes of Bordeaux superior. Ah, the slow-cruising life!
Fettler will continue her journey north in the spring – at least, that’s what we intend
at the moment. You can follow our progress at sailfettler.blogspot.com.
Our winter quarters: peaceful Mortagne-sur-Gironde
150
151
FROM PALM TREES TO PENGUINS ~
Mina2’s Antarctic Cruise, Part 2
Tim Barker
(Flying Fish 2012/2 followed Mina2 and her crew as they sailed from the River Plate to Ushuaia
via the Falkland Islands. We rejoin them now as they continue south towards Antarctica.
Mina2 is an Oyster 485, and her crew on this occasion comprised Tim and his son Peter,
Richard Close-Smith, Venetia Kenney-Herbert and Ewan Edwards.)
Antarctica must be the dream of all sailors, but one of the reasons why so few amateur
yachts go there (about half a dozen a year) is because it is quite difficult to get to. The
conditions in Antarctica can be challenging enough, but arguably the most dangerous
part of the trip is passing Cape Horn and crossing the infamous 500 mile Drake Passage
– the windiest and roughest passage of water in the world. As Charles Darwin wrote in
1834, ‘One sight of such a coast is enough to make a landsman dream for a week about
shipwrecks, peril and death’. Landsmen and amateur yachtsmen alike.
But things are made easier these days with much more reliable weather forecasts and
the ability to pick them up at sea, so weather windows can be identified and exploited.
Nevertheless it is inevitable that you will get a slapping either going out or, more likely,
coming back. So it is not without some trepidation that such an adventure starts. By
the standards of Drake crossings, ours was good – ie. uneventful. The strongest winds
we experienced were 45 knots for a few hours just south of Cape Horn, and the rest of
the time it was 20–25 knots mainly from the southwest.
Strong winds and big seas in the Drake Passage
152
153
Celebrating
our arrival in
Antarctica
After 3½ days we were passing Smith Island to our starboard, rising out of the Southern
Ocean like a cathedral 2000m high, the sentinel to the South Shetland Islands and,
on our port side, an enormous tabular iceberg that looked almost as large as Smith
Island itself. The following morning we passed through Neptune’s Bellows, the narrow
entrance to Deception Island, and dropped our anchor in Whalers Bay. We had arrived
in Antarctica and it was a moment to celebrate. I took a bottle of champagne from its
storage space in the bilge, but found we had to put it into the fridge to bring it up to a
drinkable temperature.
Peter and Ewan swim in the geothermal pools
154
Deception Island is the rim of a still active volcano which last erupted in 1969, the
anchorage being inside the flooded caldera. Once the base for much of the Antarctic
whaling fleet, the remains of the old whaling station made for some fascinating
exploration, whilst chinstrap penguins (Pygoscelis antarcticus) patrolled the beach
alongside sleeping seals.
Before we left Deception Island we motored the 10 miles round the perimeter of the
bay, stopping off at Pendulum Cove where we saw steam rising from geothermal springs
on the beach. Time for a bath, and Peter and Ewan ‘volunteered’ to strip off for a swim.
They said that whilst they were floating in the top few inches of water it was luxurious,
but the moment they put their legs down, it was a heart stopping 2°C.
We still had a further 100 miles to sail across the Bransfield Strait to the peninsula,
a stretch of water that can be as treacherous as the Drake itself, and the following
evening after a lively crossing and our first sightings of humpback whales (Megaptera
novaeangliae) we arrived at Enterprise Island. This is the closest you get in Antarctica
to a marina, insofar as you get to tie alongside something, in this case the hulk of the
Governoren, an old whaling supply ship in whose hold at low water you can still see
piles of harpoon heads.
After a day exploring the island by dinghy and in our recently acquired (and
utterly brilliant) Sea Eagle FastTrack inflatable kayak, we motored most of the
way to Cuverville Island, 28 miles further south. One of the misconceptions of the
Antarctic peninsula is that there is a constant gale blowing. Whilst the high plains of
the Antarctic continent may be one of the windiest places on earth, and the Drake
Passage may be the windiest stretch of water, the peninsula itself is not. You can get
terrific storms there with 60 or 70 knots of wind, but much of the time there is no
wind at all and most of the time you are under power.
Inflatable kayak – the ideal way to get up close
155
Poling off a growler
on ice watch
Cuverville Island was the first place where we had to stand 24-hour ice watches to
shove clear the large bergy bits that wandered around with wind and tide, threatening
the boat. Cuverville is home to the largest gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua) colony
on the peninsula. The crew went ashore to visit the colony, and whilst I remained
on the boat on ice watch I saw four men in orange dayglo suits appear from behind
a headland and wander along the beach towards me. It was completely surreal and
I wouldn’t have been more surprised if I had seen four Martians – and they were as
surprised to see me as I was to see them. They were Chileans who had come in their
RIB from their base at Waterboat Point 12 miles further south, and we were invited
to come and visit them when we were passing.
A magical
encounter with minke whales
156
We departed Cuverville after a couple of days and, as we left the bay, were approached
by a pair of minke whales (Balaenoptera bonaerensis) which escorted us for about 1½
hours as we meandered our way slowly through the ice. They slipped past the boat
time and time again and led the way for us at the bow, occasionally rolling onto their
sides, waving their flippers and taking a close look at us through their beady eyes. It
was one of the most magical moments of our time in Antarctica.
We arrived at Waterboat Point
and secured Mina2 in a small bay
alongside the Chilean base. The
peninsula is an archipelago of
A gentoo
islands running alongside the steeppenguin
sided mountains of the Antarctic
mainland, and Waterboat Point
was one of only two places where
we were able to step onto the
mainland of the white continent.
When we went to visit the Chileans
we were rather hoping to be offered
luxuriating hot showers, but that
hope was dashed when they told us
that they were rationed to no more
than eight litres of water a day for
washing and showering. Outside,
the base is surrounded by a colony
of nesting gentoo penguins which
included three very rare leucistic
(pale coloured) birds.
Our next stop was to be Port Lockroy, but we planned to visit the Argentine ‘Base
Brown’ in Paradise Harbour. Mina2 stood off whilst the crew went ashore and up the
steep hill behind the base which affords sensational views over the harbour, one of
the most spectacular bays in Antarctica. We were disappointed to find Base Brown
unmanned, so with Argentinian hospitality off the agenda we made our way out of the
bay to Port Lockroy. This large, well-sheltered bay is the only place on the peninsula
where it is possible to lie to one’s anchor without having to take lines ashore. On
Goudier Island in the entrance to the bay is the old British scientific station ‘Base A’,
restored and now run as a museum by the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust. There we were
warmly welcomed as the only private British yacht visiting Antarctica that season.
There was more ice on the peninsula in January 2012 than there had been for over 40
years. We had been hoping to get as far south as the Argentine Islands, but to get there
we had to pass through the Lemaire Channel, known as ‘Kodak Valley’ for its astounding
beauty. No vessel, not even the heavily built Antarctic cruise ships, had managed to
penetrate the ice so far that season – but the ice can come and go very quickly, depending
on wind and tide conditions. We were here, and we wouldn’t be coming back any time
soon, so we had to give it a try. We set off, motoring in a very light wind.
157
Tim negotiating ice
in fog and snow
As we approached the
entrance to the Lemaire
Channel, a bank of fog rolled
in and, at the same time,
we suddenly found ourselves
surrounded by a sea of large
growlers – they seemed to
appear from nowhere. To
add to the drama a 1m swell
started rolling in from the
Southern Ocean through a
gap in the islands, so that the
large growlers were all sliding
around and crashing into
each other. It was all getting
extremely dodgy. We decided
to abort the expedition, but
we still had to get out of the
threatening ice – if we got
caught between two sliding
growlers we could be in serious
trouble. To add to the misery
it was now snowing heavily
and I found it increasingly
difficult to see through my
glasses. Visibility was down to
less than 100m as we peered through the veil of fog trying to see a lead wide enough
to get through. It took about 20 minutes to extricate ourselves from the ice, one of
the most tense 20 minutes of my sailing career.
During this last push south we passed through 65°S which, combined with my trip to
the Lofoten Islands in Arctic Norway in 2004, meant that Mina2 and I had sailed through
135°s of latitude, by no means a record but satisfying nevertheless. There is one record
we might be able to claim, however. Having returned to Port Lockroy, the following day
we awoke to find clear blue skies and a light but steady breeze. Doumer Island, effectively
a 5 mile by 2½ mile mountain range, lies just to the southwest of Port Lockroy, nestling
in the jaws of Wiencke Island – so we decided to attempt a circumnavigation under sail
alone. It was a glorious, gentle sail, passing the enormous Thunder Glacier on Wiencke
Island and then tacking slowly back and forth up the Peltier Channel, surrounded by a
spectacular range of mountain peaks. As nobody sails in Antarctica (either the wind is
far too strong or, most of the time, there is no wind at all), I like to think that we were
the first boat ever to sail round Doumier Island. It was bliss.
158
We had been in e-mail contact with the US scientific base at Palmer Station on Anvers
Island, 20 miles to the west of Port Lockroy, and they had invited us to visit them at
1400 the following day. As we were on our way, we received an e-mail from the station
head advising us that the creek where we had hoped to tie up had an iceberg sitting in it
and there was ‘quite a lot’ of brash ice in the bay. We arrived to find that, for half a mile
off the base, the brash ice was so thick we could have walked across it. I was paranoid
about damaging our propeller on big blocks of ice so we lowered the dinghy (I had had
an ice cage built for the outboard motor) which went ahead of Mina2 as we ploughed
our way through the pack. In the event we decided not to tuck ourselves in the creek
behind the iceberg as, should the conditions change, we might never be able to get out.
Instead we anchored in a shallow bay about a mile away, tied the boat in with a couple
of long lines and then, leaving Venetia on board on ice watch, the rest of us went to
the base by dinghy. We were flattered to see that on the base’s flagpole, alongside the
US and Antarctic flags, they had put up a British union flag in honour of our visit. We
spent a fascinating couple of hours being shown around their facility.
After several days of very light winds, that night a 45 knot wind kicked in from the
northwest. We had an anchor down and two lines from the stern tied to large rocks,
but the windward of the two lines managed to pull itself right under the large rock to
which it was attached and became free. We now had the full force of the gale on our
beam, being held by just one rope. We scrambled the A-team (Ewan and Peter), who
screamed off in the dinghy in extremely windy and choppy conditions, re-secured the
loose line and laid another as a precaution ... but that wasn’t the end of the drama.
The dinghy leads the way through heavy brash
159
A whole line of very large bergy bits were now heading towards us at speed. The
first one grounded itself before it reached us and the second passed in front, but the
third, the largest of them all, about 2½m high and probably weighing over 100 tons,
passed between us and the shore – straight onto our already bar-taut lines. Again the
A-team shot into action. On deck, just as the berg was reaching the first line, we freed
sufficient slack to enable the boys to flick the rope over and along the berg. One down
and two to go. The second line was also freed, flicked, and re-secured, but there was
insufficient time to free the third and the berg caught the line, which I had to cut.
It whiplashed free across the water, but was retrieved by the boys in the dinghy and
then made fast again to the boat. It was not a relaxed night, and the wind continued
to blow hard throughout the following day.
With the passing of this weather system, a window appeared which gave us a good
opportunity to get back across the Drake Channel, so the moment the wind abated
we set sail, passing through the beautiful Melchior Islands and, with a tear in my eye,
headed north-northwest out into the Southern Ocean. Our time in Antarctica had
been unforgettable. No matter how many books you read, photographs you see or
Attenborough documentaries you watch, this unique environment defies description.
It is a place you have to
visit yourself, preferably
on a small boat and,
ideally, on one’s own
small boat. It is a place
you have to see, to
hear and to feel – the
roars of avalanches
thundering down the
steep mountains, the
groans of the glaciers
as they grind their
way millimetre by
millimetre down to
the sea, and the cracks
like artillery fire as
enormous slabs calve
off the ice walls to
create new icebergs.
Our intimavte contact
with the extraordinary
wildlife was an aweinspiring and humbling
experience that we will
Antarctic ice for
the evening drinks
160
Mina2 under
sail in Antarctica
never forget. And there is no doubt that the difficulties of getting there and the
consequent isolation of the place added to the sense of adventure. But to retain these
memories, first we had to get back...
The first two days of our return across the Drake were good, the force 7 wind coming
from the west-southwest and enabling us to put in a bit of westing – to the point
where we were technically in the Pacific Ocean. There, the wind died, veered to the
northwest and filled in again, blowing force 8–9 with us heading north-northeast
towards Cape Horn. We rounded the Horn in the sort of conditions that Cape Horn
should be rounded – in a screaming force 10, 50 knot wind and big seas. But as it
was in the middle of the night we saw nothing of the iconic rock apart from its light
blinking through the driving rain and spray. It wasn’t a place you wanted to hang
around to wait until dawn, however.
Having passed the Horn we then had to head up west of north into the stillstrengthening wind, and make our way through the channels. Progress was murderously
slow, motor-sailing into the wind which by now had increased to 55 knots (force 10–11),
and making less than 3 knots over the ground. We decided to dive into one of the very
few anchorages in the area, about 10 miles north of the Horn. It was still pitch dark
and, even using a mega-torch, visibility was nil in the driving rain. We nervously edged
into the bay under radar and depth sounder alone. We judged as best we could when we
were in the middle of the bay and in 7m of water let out almost all of our 100m chain.
I stood anchor watch for what remained of the night, and at daybreak was relieved to
find ourselves out of the kelp and away from the rocks. The storm continued to blow
for another 24 hours and, once abated, we weighed anchor and made our way 100 miles
back to Puerto Williams before heading up the Beagle Channel to our final destination
161
of Ushuaia. We had made it safely back and were greeted on the dockside by my much
relieved wife, Maria, who had been convinced that during this expedition she was going
to lose not only her husband but her son as well.
Before our passage back up the coast of South America to over-winter Mina2 in
Brazil, we concluded our cruise with six weeks exploring the channels of Tierra Del
A warm welcome in Ushuaia
Fuego. With its mountainous ranges and deeply-indented fjords complete with the
most stunning glaciers, it really must be one of the best – if not the best – cruising
grounds in the world. Perhaps more about that on another occasion!
Our Southern Cruise was the culmination of many years dreaming, and had taken
three years of planning and preparation. It was to push the boundaries of skipper, crew
and Mina2 to the limits in some of the most remote and extreme cruising grounds in
the world. But, in so doing, we experienced rewards that we never dreamed possible.
This was truly the greatest adventure of my lifetime.
It is skill that enables a helmsman to keep a straight course over
the wine-dark sea when his good ship is yawing in the wind.
Homer The Iliad, Book 23. Translation EV Rieu
162
163
SEPTENNIAL PASSAGE
Iain Simpson
(Flying Fish 2012/1 followed Iain and Jan as they took delivery of their new Najad 570,
Song of the Ocean, and sailed her down to the Canaries and onwards to Antigua, arriving
just in time for Christmas 2011. We rejoin them there...)
Our winter season proved sociable and invigorating. Swedish friends joined us in
Antigua for some boisterous sailing down to Guadaloupe, Iles des Saintes, Dominica
and St Lucia. Apart from a few docks having been swept away since we were last in
the Caribbean in 2009, not much had changed ashore. The exception was Rodney Bay
Marina, which must now rate as one of the best in the Caribbean since Island Global
Yachting (IGY) took command. Concrete docks may be fine for the superyachts, but
for the rest of us nothing compares to floating finger pontoons.
Jan and I continued down the well-trodden path to Grenada, taking in the
fleshpots of the Grenadines. Unfortunately some imbeciles had upset Mick Jagger by
invading his privacy, which resulted in yacht crews being prohibited from walking
around Mustique. This was a major disappointment for Jan and me, as the peace and
tranquillity of the island has no equal in the Caribbean. On a brighter note, Petit
St Vincent had undergone a major renovation under new management and still
remained hospitable to visiting yachts. We sailed down the east coast of Grenada to
Le Phare Bleu Marina and back up to Rodney Bay, where we left Song of the Ocean for
a couple of months to go ski-ing in Aspen followed by a month’s serious upcountry
hiking in the Southern Alps of New Zealand.
Song of the Ocean
transiting the
Bequia Passage
164
Iain celebrates his ‘septennial’ birthday in Chatham Bay, Union Island
On our return to Rodney Bay in April, our daughter Lorna joined us for another
loop down to Grenada, before we headed north to Antigua to prepare for our passage
to Europe in mid May. For this, Jan and I were joined by George Malony and Bob
Williams from the UK. We always travel three up for watch-keeping across the Atlantic,
but four ... what luxury ... a veritable cruise liner! As is common for the time of year,
unsettled weather bringing a continuous succession of line squalls with heavy rain
lashed Antigua making the decision to slip our lines challenging.
We sailed up the west coasts of Antigua and Barbuda to gain some shelter from
the 30–35 knot winds and 4m seas. At the height of all this our generator impeller
disintegrated, leaving Jan with the awkward task of replacing it in the less than convivial
confines of the engine room! Conditions below decks were not inviting, what with
the lack of fresh air, the high humidity and the heat. However, first the pain and then
the gain – after three days of sleepless conditions the wind and sea slowly subsided
to allow us to relax on our northerly passage. We made good progress on a starboard
reach, but there was little chance of making any worthwhile easting for a week. The
ship settled into the three men doing four-hour day watches, with Jan catering for the
meals. After the daily ritual at sundown ‘... and the Queen, God bless her’, the watch
broke down into the four of us working two-hourly watches. This enabled the watch
system to rotate forward to give everybody a fair share of the days.
One week into the passage, at 26°N, we were able to shape a northeasterly course. This
had an uplifting effect, making us feel that we had completed the first lap. We came across
a few transatlantic sailors, all with the Azores in their sights. We had some reservations
as to our destination, however. U-GRIB had been showing a continuous succession of
deep Atlantic lows hitting the islands throughout May, with no sign of abatement. As
165
In the trades under
Simbo Rig
many will know, it isn’t just the strong weather that is of concern but the fact that yachts
pour into Horta without anyone moving on, making mooring space an issue.
On reaching 32°N we kept on the southern edge of a train of lows, flying along
under Simbo Rig – see www.rhbell.com/Simbo – on an easterly course. This kept our
options open until 500 miles south of Flores, when the decision was struck to make for
Portugal. The depression that was then bringing 50 knot winds into the Azores went
on to wreak havoc in the British Isles a week later. Although we remained comfortably
south of the archipelago, the effects of the weather system were still very much in
evidence with confused high seas.
One night, whilst running under a westerly force 6 with a 4m northwesterly swell,
we were hit by a rogue southwesterly wave which skewed our stern through the
wind and caused a spectacular crash gybe, breaking the preventer and bending the
boom. We continued under reefed main and jibs, feeling somewhat bruised. Slowly
realisation began to dawn that our plan to continue to Turkey had been cast into doubt.
Interestingly, the reefed mainsail didn’t have much detrimental effect on progress, and
we made Lagos on the Algarve in a couple of hours short of three weeks, having covered
3292 miles. The damaged boom wasn’t our only concern though, as the connection
between the rudder drag link and reduction gearbox arm had been sounding alarmingly
unhealthy, and the time required to source a new boom with Selden gave Lewmar the
opportunity to resolve the wayward connection.
I am pleased to report that both companies acted admirably in resolving our problems,
although the boom took two months to replace due to its hydraulic complexities. It
should also be mentioned that the Navigators & General Insurance Company handled
our claim in the most efficient and expedient manner, and were a delight to deal with.
We decided to use the time to return to Devon to enable Jan to visit her father for
two separate weeks, and as we were about to return from the second he had a heart
166
Iain, Bob and George
mid Atlantic
attack and died. This was a terrible shock for her, of course, but on later reflection we
realised how fortunate we had been to have bent the boom. If it hadn’t been for that
we would have continued on to Turkey with the intention of visiting him after the
winter lay up in September. God moves in mysterious ways!
On previous visits to Lagos I had been unable to get gas cylinders refilled unless
I carried Camping Gaz or Spanish gas bottles, and neither the Marina de Lagos nor
Sopramar Boatyard had been able to help me. On this visit, however, I discovered a
propane gas refilling station some 200m north of the N125 between Albufeira and
Vilamoura, near Boliquieme (37°07’∙78N 8°09’∙6W). Called CM Pedro, its large GPL
Off with
the old
and on
with
the
new
167
sign can be seen from the main road. We have Swedish cylinders made out of GRP,
which presented no problems whatsoever to Carlos Pedro – they were refilled while
we waited, in the same way that they were refilling LPG-driven cars. Their phone
number is (+351) 289 360 767, or visit www.cmpedro.com.
We slipped our lines for Gibraltar on the 10 August and enjoyed a broad reach
down to the Straits followed by a breezy run to La Linea de la Concepçion marina.
Next day we set off around the Rock, before making our way up the Costa del Sol for
Puerto Banús. The wind held fair, enabling us to fly our Simbo Rig, and this set the
pattern for most of our passages along the Costas del Sol and Blanca. How fortunate
we were, as many a sailor has been obliged to motor most of the 450 miles along this
coast to the Costa Dorada.
We made overnight stops at Marina Benalmádena, Marina del Med Este at Punto
de la Mona, Marina Salinas Torrevieja, Marina Greenwich at Altea, Marina de Dénia
and the America’s Cup Marina de Valencia en route to Sant Carles. Of course, most
of the venues are given over to the Spanish tourist industry and, as a spin off, the
yachtsman has been provided with conveniently spaced marinas and facilities for
which I am grateful. Of the aforementioned, I would say that Marinas del Med Este
and Greenwich struck us as the most tranquil, with Valencia deserving a more indepth exploration on our return next season. Dénia proved the most challenging, as
a 25 knot wind blew down the marina fairway making mooring stern-to on a concrete
pontoon more than a little difficult for the two of us, not helped by droves of typically
inconsiderate fishing boats powering in with excessive wash.
Laid up at Sant Carles Marina on the Costa Dorada
168
Sant Carles marina on the Costa Dorada proved an absolute gem. It has proper
finger pontoons and excellent facilities, and is run by MDL whose staff are exceedingly
helpful. On our way north we had been horrified to find laid-up yachts propped up
with what can only be described as old orange-box crates. Sant Carles, I am pleased
to say, not only provides linked steel props but also straps yachts down to their clean
concrete hard with webbing at the fore, midship and aft cleats. Proper job! As for
the town – well, how refreshing to find a traditional Spanish town devoid of foreign
tourists, providing instead for local Spaniards. I was almost caught offguard by the
lack of ‘bling’, so conditioned had I become during our travels from Gibraltar. If I was
keeping my boat in Spain I would definitely base her in Sant Carles Marina.
Since entering Falmouth Harbour, Antigua on the 22 December 2011 we have logged
exactly 5000 miles. Our brand new boat, commissioned in Sweden on the 1 July 2011,
logged 11,225 miles in her first season, and we look forward to re-commissioning her
in May 2013 to make for the Balearics, Corsica, Sicily, the Greek islands and on to
Turkey, with time to enjoy it all.
169
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170
SILVER SURFER RIDES NEW WAVE
Avril Johnson
(Graham and Avril left the UK in 2002 aboard their 44ft cutter Dream Away, and have
written for Flying Fish on numerous occasions since – on most of which I’ve described her
as either a ketch or a sloop ... apologies!
Avril stresses that Graham hadn’t fallen overboard by the time this piece was written and
that it represents the usual collaboration between the two of them. She adds, however, that
there’s only room for one whimsical silver-haired tortoise aboard Dream Away!)
I’ve always been the tortoise, but never won the race. Probably because there are so
many interesting things to see and do that I wander off the track and never reach the
finish line. The last six months of 2012 were a bit of a catch-up for me, while we were
sailing around Niue, Tonga and Fiji. The ‘breakthrough’ has already been written up
in the March Newsletter. Now we are trying to make sense of it all.
In 2011, when we crossed the Pacific using our usual navigation tools (GPS and
paper charts of questionable age) I first went to Google Earth to pinpoint the actual
whereabouts of the islands we might visit, and the hazards we hoped NOT to encounter.
I marked waypoints at the north, south, east and west extremities of each island, and at
entrances to reefs. I copied the coordinates into a spreadsheet, which we printed, and
saved .jpg screen-shots of each of my efforts. It was sufficient to give us greater peace
of mind, but was rather a time-consuming exercise with much redundant information.
Spreadsheet of lat/longs gleaned from Google Earth
Screen-print of waypoints
Since we converted
to using electronic
charts we have
discovered various
quirks and foibles,
not least of which
is the fact that in
our current cruising
ground close-quarter
positioning is still inaccurate. We find it very disconcerting when our little brightlycoloured boat appears to float across the screen on land, rather than in the water.
171
A quick look at Matuku, in
Fiji’s Lau Group, is the perfect
illustration:
Our actual track
in OpenCPN ...
... and on Google Earth
You might think that it is only
close to land that one might have
a problem, but on our electronic
charts vast tracts of ocean appear
devoid of features, whereas in
reality there are still reefs to avoid.
A classic example is the Minerva
Reefs, marked on our paper charts
but not acknowledged on our
charting software unless you put the
cursor in exactly the right place and
zoom right in. Suddenly a detailed
chart pops up on screen.
One solution is to make chartlets from Google Earth (.kap files), which can be used
in the charting program to aid navigation. We now can overlay satellite image chartlets
onscreen, and use this as part of our initial route planning. Here I must once again thank
Sherry on Soggy Paws for introducing us to the concept and the software (GE2KAP),
and for her patient long-distance mentoring.
Where the vector charts don’t show hazards until you
zoom right in, as in Minerva Reefs, a .kap file layer will
at least remind you where to look. With North Minerva
reef it is possible to zoom in and get a good image (right).
However, the technique isn’t perfect – the Google Earth
images aren’t always 100% helpful. When in small scale,
Google have considerately put a reminder blob where
North
Minerva
should
be, but
South
Minerva does not show at all – even
when you zoom right in!
I’ve marked the entrance
to South Minerva Reef
172
A similar problem exists in various parts of the Lau Group. For instance, Ongea Ndriti
and Fulanga are only 20 miles apart, but only the Ongea Ndriti chartlet is clear enough
to be useful.
Fulanga and
Ongea Ndriti
Sometimes the latest Google imagery is not the best for our purposes. Where images
are unclear or particularly cloudy, you can click VIEW > HISTORICAL IMAGERY,
and use the slider to see if a previous image is actually clearer, as it was between
Taveuni and Qamea.
In 2010 – A cloud just where you don’t want it ...
... but in 2005 it was cloud free
Don’t forget to turn the historical imagery off again after you have done your GE2KAP
screen-capture, or you may get old images of everything you look at!
173
You can, to a certain extent, alter how your chartlet will display by
turning off the ‘look around’, ‘move around’, ‘street view’ and ‘zoom’
features. We prefer to check first that we are looking at a ‘north up’
view, then keep the transparent small compass rose visible to prove
it [VIEW > SHOW NAVIGATION > COMPASS ONLY].
If anyone finds a way to similarly tone down the copyright and credits info
at the bottom of each page, please let me know!
We have used the Google Earth chartlets to help us wend our way through reefstrewn channels with more confidence, a boon when it isn’t one of those perfect
‘flat sea – sun high behind’ sort of days:
Our track through Fanautapu
Pass on the chart...
... and on Google Earth
And our arrival at
Kenutu, Vava’u
So much easier to plan
the route in Google Earth
But a word of warning from
Sherry – there are often clouds
obscuring parts of the image,
which create a shadow on the
water. Look closely; look at the
174
real chart; make an educated guess; or just avoid that area – some of those pretty little
puffy white clouds are sitting above reefs, much as you expect clouds above islands.
Finally we have also used the chartlets to pinpoint good likely anchor spots, away
from bommies (coral heads):
In Lifuka, Ha’apai, the
chart was pretty good ...
... but the GE
view also shows the
location of each bommie
So, that’s what I’ve
picked up so far. I know
Mike Richey will be
turning in his grave*,
and many more of the
OCC membership will
be saying “what is the
world coming to? Paper
charts and the sextant
were all WE had when WE went there”, but I’m having fun. I find it interesting, and
I believe we plan and study our route beforehand more carefully, have a better idea of
the terrain of the terra firma (since the UKHO stopped using those nice pen and ink
drawings on their charts), and even if all this electronic wizardry goes down just when
you need it most, the brain has retained much from the planning stages. And ... we still
write down and plot every waypoint on our paper charts – and post a set of eyes on the
bow in uncertain and reef-strewn waters.
I know this tortoise hasn’t won the race – a further possibility in GE2KAP is to
actually manoeuvre the chart to line up with a transparent overlay of a Google Earth
chartlet, and I haven’t even looked at that yet!
* Actually I don’t think he would be ... turning is his grave, that is. Mike once
remarked to me that, despite all his good intentions, once he had a GPS aboard
Jester his sextant rarely came out of its box. Ed.
175
If you want to play, this should get you underway:
The instructions in the GE2KAP help file are actually quite straightforward, if a little
convoluted. They are only available once you are running the program, however ...
so, to get you started:
1. I have assumed a reasonable basic knowledge level. If you are at the ‘dummies’
stage you may need someone looking over your shoulder.
 Note that GE2KAP only runs on Windows – XP, Vista or 7. I have used
XP throughout this example.
Google Earth
2. You will need version 5.1 or higher of Google Earth. If you haven’t already got
this, download the latest version from http://www.google.com/earth/
3. You will need to make sure that Google Earth has various parameters set correctly:
a) To configure these, open Google Earth
b) Click on TOOLS in the menus, then choose OPTIONS
c) Click on 3-D VIEW on the tabs
d) Under TERRAIN QUALITY, make sure there is NO tick on
‘Show Terrain’. If you are in Google Earth version 7, this will be
slightly different – make sure there is NO tick on ‘Use 3D Imagery
(disable to use legacy 3D Buildings)’
e) On this same dialog box, in the TEXTURE COLOURS section,
make sure there is NO tick on ‘Compress’
f) Over at the top right-hand side, choose ‘DirectX’
as the Graphics Mode
g) And finally, in the Show Lat/Long section, choose
DEGREES, DECIMAL MINUTES
Before you load GE2KAP
4. GE2KAP should NOT reside in your PROGRAM FILES folder as the operating
system will not recognise it as an executable file. It needs interpreting and this
function is performed by the program OOREXX, so the next step is to download
OOREXX into the PROGRAM FILES folder:
a) Get the latest version of OOREXX from http://www.oorexx.org
b) Click on downloads on the left.
 Make sure you choose the latest 32-bit version for your operating system,
even if you are running on 64-bit.
c) You will probably get taken to http://Sourceforge.net to do the actual download,
and may have to jump through more hoops before the download starts (eg. your
176
computer may automatically block it, and you will need to tell it to continue).
d) Go for Save or Run, whatever is your usual method.
 If you choose Run, then accept all default settings as you install.
 If you Save the .exe file, then find where you saved it, and double-click on
it to start the installation process. As you install, accept all default settings.
GE2KAP – the program which makes it all happen
5. Go to the GE2KAP website at http://gdayii.ca and click on downloads. Click on
GE2KAP to download the file.
a) Choose the SAVE option and save the ZIP folder to your computer.
 You should find that if you right-click on GE2KAP.ZIP you will have
Extract All ... which you can use to unzip the folder and save it.
 If this is not available, 7-ZIP (a free program) can be downloaded from
http://7-zip.org
b) UNZIP the GE2KAP ZIP folder to a suitable location. I prefer to save direct
to C:\ drive. I suggest you do the same, as it is much simpler. Possibly you
might like to make a new folder on C:\ called NAV or something similar, but
if you save in My Documents, or make your new folders in My Documents, the
pathways you need to keep track of everything get very complicated. So...
i)
Extract the files, creating the pathway C: \NAV\GE2KAP
 During the unzip operation you will be asked for a password. It is phiggins
c) The GE2KAP.ZIP folder you originally downloaded can now be deleted.
6) You can open GE2KAP by opening your GE2KAP folder, then double-click on
..But – if opened in this way, two boxes will open – the GE to KAP
dialog box, and a black box associated with the oorex program, which can be
minimised but must NOT be closed down. It is simpler in the long run to create
a desktop shortcut for the program, which will also stop the black oorex box from
opening each time:
a) Right-click on
in your GE2KAP folder. (If you followed my
suggestion this should reside at C:\NAV\GE2KAP )
i) Choose
ii) Choose
b) Switch to the desktop
icon
i) Right-click on the new
ii) Choose
at the bottom of the list
iii) On the tabs
choose SHORTCUT
177
iv) In TARGET, type in rexxhide then a space, then add the full filename
and pathway to the file. For example, if your GE2KAP file is residing at
C:\NAV\GE2KAP, you would type:
rexxhide C:\NAV\GE2KAP\GE2KAP.rex
v) In START IN, type in just the path to the GE2KAP folder. For example:
C:\NAV\GE2KAP
vi) Click OK to finish.
Tidying up loose ends
7. So ... at last you are all set! Well, nearly. It is a good idea at this point to decide
where you are going to save your newly created .kap files.
a) Make a folder to house your chartlets. I suggest you might like them to reside
in C:\NAV as C:\NAV\KAPCHARTS
 Once you get into making your chartlets, you will need to further refine
this by making new folders within your KAPCHARTS folder for each
cruising area.
Ready to roll...
8. Open GE2KAP by using your Desktop Icon
 In theory Google Earth should also automatically be opened, but on one
of my computers it doesn’t happen. If you get that experience too, simply
open Google Earth manually.
9. In Google Earth, zoom to the exact location you wish to capture
10. Without disturbing this, switch back to seeing the GE2KAP dialog box
a) In the CHART LOCATION\NAME: section, type in the
location in which you wish to save the chart,
b) then add a backslash and a file name which will remind
you of the actual location/content of your new chartlet
to the right to browse for your folder,
 Alternatively, click on the
double-clicking on each part of the pathway to choose it (below):
 Add a name for this particular chartlet in the Filename box, and click Save.
178
11. Finally, having specified the pathway
and filename for saving the chart,
click on
, then WAIT
until the computer beeps at you, and
the screen tells you that you have
successfully created your chart (right).
12. This .kap file can then be loaded into your BSB-compatible chart plotting
program (ie. one that can read .kap files), and be used for navigation.
 If your plotting program won’t accept .kap files, download OpenCPN from
http://sourceforge.net/projects/opencpn/ so that you can play.
Now, wasn’t that FUN!!
I’ve always been a tortoise, I’ll never be a hare
You’ll always find me plodding, I never ‘do or dare’
I might wish I were a porpoise, but that is not my fate
I lose my sense of purpose, and my dithering makes me late
I’m happy in my little world, I doesn’t have a care
I’m happy as a tortoise, I don’t want to be a hare
G & A Johnson
(As the technology is likely to change and develop, and members may suggest improvements,
these instructions may be revised and updated from time to time. Refer to the online copy of
this article via http://cic.oceancruisingclub.org/publications to check whether this is the case.)
179
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180
W W W. H Y D R O VA N E . C O M
WHAT IF...
BACK TO THE ATLANTIC
Almuth Otterstedt and Edi Keck
(In October 2012 Almuth Otterstedt and Edi Keck completed a 14-year circumnavigation
aboard their 39ft Amel ketch Single Malt, having left Kuşadasi, Turkey in May 1998.
Relatively new members, the story of their final two years’ cruising proved too long for a single
article and will be concluded in Flying Fish 2013/2. The line drawings are all by Almuth.)
On 12 January 2011 we were ready to set sail from Richards Bay, but due to a new
coastal low we had to find shelter in Durban for a few days. As soon as the wind turned
we left for another two-day jump to East London. Again we watched the weather, and
reached Port Elizabeth in another two days – but a most uncomfortable night was
waiting for us. The storm caused waves of 1∙5m inside the harbour, the pontoons were
jumping up and down, and mooring lines broke and had to be replaced, so no sleep!
One boat broke loose and was lost on the rocks of the harbour wall.
One day we noticed an L-39 jet-trainer, and could not believe that the South African
Air Force was still using these trainers. Then we got to know the representative of TransOcean (a German club very similar to the OCC) and his charming wife, and when
they realised that we were glider pilots they asked us if we had time for an excursion.
Together we drove south for a while before turning inland, and shortly after saw a
runway of at least 1∙7km length. Minutes later we stopped in front of a large villa. The
owner greeted us cordially, and led us to the first of his three (!) hangars. Our eyes nearly
popped out of our heads at what we saw – they were full of planes from the 1930s (Tiger
Moth etc), World War 2 and later days. There were planes from the Soviet Union and
Port Elizabeth
181
the United States; a P-52 Mustang stood there. There was also a massive US fighter
with a 3000hp rotary engine – and then we noticed the L-39! A small two-engined
passenger plane and two very modern planes purely for aerobatics were also to be seen
... and all of them fully operational. Before returning to the boat we enjoyed a few cool
beers beside the large open-air swimming pool in the centre of the villa...
Less pleasant was the fact that, not more than 200m away from Single Malt, ore-carriers
were being loaded with manganese ore. Due to lack of water they could not spray the
powdery ore on the conveyor belts, so everything on the boat – even inside – was soon
totally black. We were eager to leave, and after about a week we cast off and had a good
sail until the wind dropped totally and soon after we found ourselves in dense fog. The
forecast predicted bad weather before we would reach False Bay, and on an amateur
radio operator net we were asked to come to Knysna, a place we had not considered at
all as, in the South African Nautical Almanac one reads: ‘... one of the most unpredictable
entrances on the South African coast ... several experienced people have lost their lives
in this entrance ...’. In the very early hours of the following day, and in thickest fog, we
managed this entrance with the help of this local sailor and ham operator.
Once inside we found the most peaceful bay (called ‘Featherbed Bay’) and marina,
and it was the only place we visited in South Africa where the authorities did not
warn us not to be on the roads during darkness. On Sunday the president of the local
yacht club invited us to have breakfast together with members of the club, so that
they would be able to talk to ‘real cruisers’. One day the ham operator and his wife
* South African Nautical Almanac by Tom Morgan. On Board Publications [www.
onboardpublications.co.za/]
Single Malt
182
The narrow
entrance to Knysna
drove us to a ‘bird sanctuary’, a fairly deep and densely wooded valley covered with
steel netting so the birds can’t fly away. A path leading down into the valley allows
the visitor to observe the thousands of birds from ground level to the tree tops. The
walk took us about 2½ hours – a wonderful experience.
We timed our departure carefully, allowing for a short but decent weather window –
as well as for swell and tide at the entrance to Knysna – to get us safely to Cape Town.
On 21 February Single Malt rounded the Cape and after more than 12 years she found
herself back in Atlantic waters; a day later we made fast in the marina of the Royal Cape
Town Yacht Club. There we got to know a number of wonderful and helpful people who
showed us around the extraordinary surrounding countryside. We would especially like to
mention Adrienne and Alan (a passionate ocean sailor, now bound to his wheelchair),
the local representatives of the Cruising Association, who made us feel at home.
As a long and not very easy passage lay ahead of us, we spent a lot of time getting
Single Malt ready for the challenge. Almuth was busy buying and stowing away food
and drink, while Edi saw to the more technical aspects as well as getting charts for the
unknown waters
ahead of us. Finally,
on 2 April, we
were ready to cast
off. Adrienne and
Alan called us to
bid farewell, and
Scarlet ibis in the
bird sanctuary at
Knysna
183
a number of our new
acquaintances came down
to say goodbye – one small
yacht even accompanied
us for a while. It was heart
touching, and none of us
knew what would be lying
ahead of us. Fortunately,
many dolphins started to play
around us and this took our
minds off our worries. Slowly
the distinct silhouette of
Table Mountain disappeared
below the horizon and we got
back to our routine at sea.
Soon the wind started to
increase and the sea became
uncomfortable. Then we
noticed that our windvane
self-steering wasn’t working
properly – something must
have hit the servo rudder.
Lifting out in Cape Town
Even a temporary repair
didn’t help. We switched on the autopilot – what a relief! – but after about 15 minutes
we got the signal ‘Drive Stopped’. We didn’t need that message as we knew it already.
Hand steering, and many thousands of miles ahead of us! We decided to divert to Lüderitz
in Namibia. The authorities there were friendly, and the customs officer showed us
around the town himself – no warnings here, as in South Africa. We fixed the problems
and found time for some memorable excursions in the vicinity, but after eight days in
this picturesque and friendly place we had to depart, and set sail for St Helena.
Twelve days later we anchored in the open, very rolly, bay northwest of Jamestown.
What a remote place this island is, discovered more than 500 years ago by the Portuguese
and having had such a changeable history until it became a British colony. The only way
South African farewell
184
Lüderitz, Namibia
to get there – other than by yacht – is on the one remaining Royal Mail Ship, RMS St
Helena, which carries supplies and a few passengers. Very rarely a cruise ship visits, but
often the passengers can’t be landed as it is a bit tricky. To get ashore we had to call
the taxi boat which normally
serves the fishermen. This boat
RMS St Helena
would take us to the landing
at anchor off
place, which consists of four
Jamestown
small platforms beside each
other and at different levels.
Over these platforms is a sort of
steel ‘gallows’, with thick ropes
with knots in them hanging
down from it. The boat would
approach the most suitable
platform, the constant swell
heaving it up and down. At
the right moment one had to
grab the corresponding
rope and swing oneself
ashore – where
somebody was usually
ready to take one’s
hand. We wondered
how Napoleon had been
landed here?
Getting ashore
at St Helena
185
The quayside
at Jamestown
Jamestown
reminds one of
a small town
in southwest
England, with
small, colourful
houses. The landscape changes
dramatically
– high rocky
cliffs, soft rolling
hills, and small
meadows. Often
a lush green dominates, in other areas it is barren. It is essential to visit the places where
Napoleon lived from 1815 until his death. He was treated not as an Emperor but as
a General, with all his entourage. He may have reflected sometimes on a certain Sir
Arthur Wellesley, Commander-in-Chief of the British forces in India, who had spent
some time on the island when returning to England ten years earlier. And if so, he
may have come to the conclusion that it would have been much better if Sir Arthur,
later known as Duke of Wellington, had remained in India...
A giant tortoise in the
gardens of the
Governor
On 6 May, after having spent all of our St Helena currency,
we cleared out with the authorities and returned to Single
Malt. In the meantime a local steel boat had drifted down on
us, smashing our starboard rail and destroying our starboard
navigation light. Nothing could be done about it, and early
next morning we weighed anchor and set sail. On 3 June we
crossed our 1998 course line from the Cape Verdes to Antigua
– a good reason for a ‘wee dram’ of single malt.
186
Napoleon, perhaps
meditating about a certain
Sir Arthur Wellesley...
On our fortieth day at sea we
reached Horta, on the island of Faial
in the Azores, a bit tired but content.
Here we were able not only to fix our
rail, but to do many other jobs after
the long passage from South Africa.
Even so, we found time to do some
hiking and to visit the island of Pico,
before continuing via São Jorge and
Terceira to São Miguel. On each of
these islands we went hiking and
sight seeing – they all look different,
have great landscapes and are just
wonderful. On São Miguel we waited
briefly for a friend from Cape Town
to arrive (with spare parts for us), and
then another ten days or so for friends
from home (also with spare parts...).x
For our final leg, of somewhat more
than 800 miles, we let go our lines
on 27 August. During this passage
we often wondered sadly whether if would be our last blue water passage. We reached
mainland Portugal on 3 September, but it was too late for us to continue to Lagos
before dark so we anchored just east of Cabo de São Vicente and entered the modern
Marina de Lagos the
following day. It was
the first time since
September 1998 that
Single Malt had made
fast on the European
continent.
Repairing a sail
in the Doldrums
As stated previously,
the final leg of Single
M a l t ’s c i r c u m navigation will appear
in Flying Fish 2013/2.
187
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188
A SUMMER IN THE BALEARIC ISLANDS
Bill Salvo
(Bill and Nancy, who come originally from Pensacola, Florida, are long-term cruisers aboard
their Jeanneau Sun Legend 41, Cascade II.)
We spent the summer of 2012 in the Balearic Islands of Formentera, Ibiza and Mallorca.
We didn’t make it to Menorca because whenever we intended to go there the wind
was on the nose. Mallorca was our favourite, and where we spent most of our time. We
circumnavigated Ibiza, Mallorca and got half way around Formentera. The summer
of 2012 was exceptionally hot all over Europe and may have reached record levels in
the Balearics – the water temperature reached 27∙5° Celsius. There was precious little
breeze to cool off, so jumping in the water or spraying oneself with the on-deck shower
were the only options for staying cool.
The islands are very beautiful, and the northwest coast of Mallorca especially
spectacular with the mountains seeming to rise right out of the sea. While transiting
the coast from Sóller to Pollença the views are constantly changing. You don’t want
to miss the beautiful Cala de la Calobra about 18 miles northeast of Sóller, and we
also spent some time anchored off the pine tree-backed beaches between Punta Negra
and La Rápita on the island’s south coast.
Every anchorage, with the exception of Pollença, Santa Ponça and Sant Elm, was
horribly crowded and generally very rolly. We constantly had to be giving the ‘hairy
eyeball’ to boats that came too close, and often had to politely hail, “Excuse me, but I am
uncomfortable with how close to me you are anchoring”. To make matters worse, some of
the anchoring techniques we saw were shocking and at times dangerous. One nationality
(which had best remain nameless) favours a technique in which the helmsman stops
the boat where he wants to drop the anchor, signals to the person with the windlass
control to drop, and the chain pours out of the anchor locker in a pile on the sea
Cala Portinax, Ibiza, before the hordes arrive
189
Spectacular mountain
scenery in northern Mallorca
bed seemingly without
consideration of how
much chain is let out
or the type of bottom.
Then the helmsman
and usually one other
person goes to the
bow, and all three look
over the side for a few
minutes. Then they
return to the cockpit,
jump in the dinghy
and go ashore! The
Brits are the best, and
the Spanish are good
too. We always tried
to anchor behind a
British-flag vessel,
because after watching
all nationalities anchor
we concluded the Brits
‘do it right’. For certain
other nationalities
Beautiful Cala
de la Calobra
190
we recommend:
‘anchor only in
sand, reverse
slowly to stretch
out the chain, set
a snubber with a
chain hook, then
reverse at 2000
rpm with a chain/
depth ratio of 5:1’.
We always check
our anchor with a
snorkel.
Marinas in
the Balearic
Islands are VERY
expensive for
those cruising on a
budget. We spent
only three nights
in a marina in the
entire summer
and two nights
on paying buoys.
The San Antonio
marina southeast
of Palma is very
convenient for
provisioning
and meeting
guests due to its
Nancy and Bill at Porto Sant Elm, Mallorca,
proximity to the
with Cascade II in the background
airport, but the
charge for our 12m yacht was €120 per night! We spent two nights on a buoy in
Andraitx (in what used to be the anchorage area) for which we paid €25 per night,
which included trash collection but of course no water or electricity. It seemed that
most of the good anchorages in our 2011 pilot were now taken up with mooring or
swimming buoys. The authorities do have some free buoys which can be reserved
at a day’s notice – see www.balearslifeposidonia.eu – or picked up, if available, after
1830. By last summer some of these areas had been eliminated, however, and there
were only three remaining on Formentera, three on Mallorca and two on Menorca.
We found the cruising in theh Balearics quite challenging. It is difficult to find sand
in which to drop your anchor, the bays are open and the weather is changeable. The
islands lie in the path of the Tramontana wind, which originates in France and, because
191
A typical Mallorcin motorboat
of the Balearics’ mountain ranges, the weather is often unpredictable. The wind can
increase very quickly and suddenly change direction. For example, on a bright, sunny,
calm day late in August we had a forecast for 30 knots to arrive from the northeast at
about 1800. So we headed to Santa Ponça, which is pretty secure from that direction,
and anchored at the head of the bay in 3∙5m over sand just outside the swimming buoys.
Our daughter and her friend who were visiting went ashore at around 1500, and at
1730 the skies blacked and then all hell broke loose! Rain came in sheets so heavy the
visibility went to zero – a face-mask was of no use, and eventually we discovered that
regular glasses were better at shielding ones eyes from the pelting rain. We weren’t too
near other boats by design, but those that were around us couldn’t be seen. The wind
increased to 55 knots and backed from northeast to northwest to southwest to south,
then veered back to southwest and eventually returned to the northeast. Thankfully we
and all our neighbours held, but it was really tense. When it began to blow we started
the motor and tried to keep the bow into the wind as it changed direction, watching
the wind indicator as it was all we could see. This ‘squall’ lasted about 30 minutes.
Interestingly, it had been in Santa Ponça about two months previously, also on
a bright, sunny, Sunday afternoon, that a tornado with 58 knots of wind had come
through the anchorage at about the same time of day. Despite it being an anchorage
containing areas of sand with good holding, many boats dragged, a couple went on the
rocks, and a man and a boy were lost overboard from a power yacht. Unfortunately it
was full of daytime only, Sunday ‘sun bakers’, many of whom were poorly anchored.
Miraculously, we were able to extricate ourselves from the area and escape the
pandemonium before getting nailed, but it was not fun.
The question is: would we return to the Balearic Islands by yacht in the summer,
or recommend others to go there? We’d heard so much about the Balearics that we’d
wanted to experience them, but our feelings by the end of the summer were mixed.
The islands are lovely and interesting, but the anchoring is disappointing and
the prices high and sometimes exorbitant – €6.80 for a dozen eggs in Ibiza, for
instance. Overall we are glad we went, but we would not go back.
192
FROM THE GALLEY OF ... Bill Salvo, aboard Cascade II
Polenta with artichokes
Ingredients •
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
2 medium leeks sliced and quartered
½ medium onion, chopped
1-3 cloves garlic, chopped
½ teaspoonful Italian seasoning, crushed
9 oz package of frozen artichokes hearts, thawed, or bottled/
canned hearts
6-8 sun dried tomatoes, chopped
olive oil
polenta (coarsely ground yellow or white maize, known as
cornmeal in the US)
salt
½ cup each, Romano and Mozzarella cheese, both grated
½ cup each, Emmental and Fontina cheese, both chopped
Sauté all the vegetables together in the olive oil. Prepare the polenta with 150g to 500ml
water plus one or two big pinches of salt. Increase the heat to just below boiling, then
reduce it so the polenta just ‘plops’. Add the cheeses and stir gently.
Serve when the polenta and cheese mixture falls away from the sides of the pan
when stirred, with the sautéed vegetables on top. If the recommended cheeses are not
available, I sometimes use a mixture of mozzarella, Cheddar and Edam.

And hereby hangs a tale, as outlined in the following e-mails:
From: Bill Salvo
To: Terry O’Brien
Subject: Greetings from Cartagena, Spain
Hola Terry
Anne Hammick suggested I write you with a VERY unusual request of a Port Officer.
As you probably know from my recipes in Flying Fish I am into cooking. I have many
recipes using polenta, and when we were in Portugal last year I bought several kilos of
it but regrettably I have run out.
I was wondering if perhaps you might give me the name of a smallish grocery store which
I might contact to ask them to ship me a couple of kilos of polenta here in Cartagena.
Thanks for your help. I’ll bet you have never had a request like this before!!
Bill Salvo
sv Cascade II, Cartagena, Spain
193
From: Terry O’Brien
To: Bill Salvo
Subject: Re Greetings from Cartagena, Spain
Hi Bill
Good to hear from you! Even with such an odd request – and I’ll bet you’ve never had
a response like this! Here goes ...
My wife Barbara knows we can get polenta in Intermarché, but doubts they will do
postal deliveries to Spain (amazing they don’t have it there!). However ... the good news
is that I’m delivering a yacht from here to Cartagena next weekend(ish – depending
on the weather, of course!) and I can bring as much as you want – within reason, she’s
only a 38ft Nicholson!
Barbara tells me there are two types:
a) granular – you make it up yourself as needed so it never goes off
b) block – ready-made and does have a shelf life
Just tell me what quantity of which (or of each – it’s no problem to bring two sorts)
and we should have it with you by the end of the month. Tell me which berth you
are on in Cartagena and I’ll drop it off. The skipper is planning to spend an evening
there, before getting a hire car to return to Lagos, via Malaga as it happens.
Looking forward to meeting you – and to reading your next article about the polenta
delivery service!! (HEY! I’ve just checked – there was no polenta in your last recipe!
You’re a fraud – an impostor, even!!!)
Best wishes and bye for now,
Terry O’Brien
OCC Port Officer Lagos, Portugal
~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~
From: Bill Salvo
To: Anne Hammick, Flying Fish
Subject: Mission accomplished!
Hi Anne
Great suggestion! In true OCC Port Officer fashion, Terry hand-delivered 2∙5kg of
coarse ground polenta from Lagos to Cartagena – what a guy! This should get us through
the winter until we reach Italy in early summer.
Bill Salvo
sv Cascade II, Cartagena, Spain


194
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196
NOME FROM HOME
Rev Bob Shepton
(Bob and his 33ft Westerly Discus Dodo’s Delight need no introduction to most OCC
members, though if you’d like one please refer to Flying Fish 2012/1, Flying Fish 2011/1 –
or any of more than a dozen other issues, all of which can be found on the website.
Against stiff opposition – some of it to be found elsewhere in this issue – Bob was awarded
the Vasey Vase ‘for a voyage of an unusual or exploratory nature’ for the transit described
below, much of which can be followed on the plan on page 26 of Flying Fish 2012/2.
Bob’s crew on this occasion comprised Steve Bradshaw, Dave Glass, Clinton Martinengo
and Andy Porter, and all the photos come from their combined collections.)
‘Of course, the Northwest Passage is easy nowadays’. I hoped he was right because we
were planning to attempt it in a GRP boat, my 33ft Westerly Dodo’s Delight. But first
another Tilman-type expedition was planned, sailing and climbing in Greenland on
the way. And we had to get there.
The Atlantic, usually stormy in these northern latitudes, proved positively benign on
this occasion. We left Barcaldine on the west coast of Scotland on 8 June, and on the
evening of the next day took our offing into the Atlantic through the Sound of Pabbay.
For several days we enjoyed steady north and northeast winds and bowled along at a
great rate. When these began to fluctuate we motored or sailed depending on the wind
strength and direction, until finally a southwesterly slant drove us northwestwards. At
0200 one morning we came up to a huge band of concentrated pack ice stretching 60
miles out from Nanortalik and Cape Farewell, the southernmost point of Greenland. We
hastily turned round and motored for several hours to work south, before a favourable
wind allowed us to sail west with only a little north in it to round Kap Desolation,
Pleasant sailing in the Atlantic – for a change
197
Training for climbing must
go on, even in the Atlantic
giving it a good offing in case
there was ice there, and so
towards Paamiut. By this time
our calculations implied we
were getting short of diesel
and there was virtually no
wind, but when we laid the
metal measuring rod on some
kitchen roll it showed there
was more in the tank than we
had thought. By motoring at
low revs we managed to eke it
out, and reached Paamiut on
the evening of that last day.
1722 miles in thirteen days
from the Western Isles – it had
been a varied but good passage.
The crew this year were
South African climbers, the
‘Nerdy Bunch’, so dubbed
because I have never had a
crew who spent so long at
their computers – as opposed
to the ‘Wild Bunch’ of 2010, so named because of their high fives and dancing at the
top of their incredible climbs (see Flying Fish 2011/1). The Nerdy Bunch certainly had
it good in Paamiut, because the Dane in charge of the diesel station lent us a house
The Nerdy Bunch at work aboard
198
South
African
climbers’
madness
The national flag
is planted on the
summit ridge of an
iceberg (why?)
where we could shower, wash
our clothes, and spend hours
at our computers – for those so
inclined. Four of us had sailed
the Atlantic, and we were due
now to pick up another South
African climber at Aasiaat.
After we had renewed stores, diesel and water at Paamiut I was reminded of just
how long that west coast of Greenland is. Perhaps it was exacerbated by having to
motor almost the whole way – in Greenland there is either too much wind or too little.
Highlights of this passage must include putting into the superbly protected Irkens Havn
off the fjord towards Fiskenaesset, the ‘Tinkers Hole’ of the west coast of Greenland, and
taking the inner passage round Hamborgeland which revealed a whole new climbing
area waiting to be developed. ‘It’s like a child viewing through the window of a locked
candy store’, said one of the climbers as we motored past.
We duly picked up our fourth South African, Dave, and made our way towards
Upernavik. There were some strange happenings with an iceberg on passage, but
why this had to be climbed in the nude escaped me. With no crampons and only
one ice axe each this proved difficult, but finally the South African flag was raised
on the summit ridge. Then they swam back to the boat. Madness? Or shock tactics
to acclimatise for those used to warmer climes? But finally we reached the Sortehul
fjord near Upernavik and set about investigating the climbing.
Here the team made three extreme new rock climbs, one a major 850m undertaking
which took nine days. After suitable rest and recuperation at Upernavik, where we met
Roger Wallis (OCC) in Philos waiting to go through the Northwest Passage, we sailed
199
Qorniq kangigleq, a favourite anchorage off
the Sortehul that we ‘discovered’ some years ago
with a north and east wind over to the Pond Inlet area on Baffin in Arctic Canada,
and the team made another pioneering route on a completely unclimbed cliff.
We returned to Pond Inlet, again for renewals and restocking – for which it is not ideal.
Being an open roadstead and shallow, everything has to be ferried out some distance
in the rubber dinghy, including all stores and fuel in containers. But we were seriously
delayed in any case. Navy Board Inlet, one of the possible entrances to Lancaster Sound,
was full of ice, whilst a curious long tongue of concentrated ice stretched miles out into
Baffin Bay from the northeastern corner of Bylot Island, and the wind was from the
east. We were effectively blocked in from starting the Northwest Passage.
After five days the ice charts showed that the ice in Navy Board Inlet might be lessening
at last. We immediately in Pond Inlet and set off for Navy Board Inlet, and were able to
thread our way through 1–2/10ths ice right through to Tay Bay at the far end. Here we
anchored precariously off the big glacial estuary fan to ferry water across to the boat in
our 15 litre containers, taking ashore the rifle we had obtained in Greenland in case of
polar bears. It was laborious, but it worked. We stayed the ‘night’ in Tay Bay and next
day made our way right across Lancaster Sound (seeing no ice in spite of the predictions
of the ice charts) to Dundas Harbour where we anchored again for the night.
It was a long and somewhat unpleasant haul on engine along the length of Lancaster
Sound against a continuous west wind. We put in one night for a break in one of the
many inlets on the northern shore here and invented an anchorage in spite of the steep-to
shores. The next evening we were surprised to see, and then be radioed by, a Canadian
coastguard vessel to port: ‘Would we kindly move outside them as they were surveying
the seabed and had to keep a steady course?’ We duly complied, and then both made
our way into Erebus and Terror Bay by Beechey Island later that evening, we to look
for the three graves from the Franklin expedition and they to continue their survey.
200
Starting the big wall climb
from the boat. Only 800m
to go! (The reciprocal of
the photograph chosen
for the cover of the 2013
Members Handbook)
Next morning we went first
to the wrong site. It seemed
puzzling, but it still took us
some time to realise our mistake.
When we eventually found
the three graves from the time
when Franklin’s two ships had
wintered here – the deaths were
probably largely due to lead
poisoning from the food tins of
the time – there was a French
expedition camped at the site.
They were following up on
Lieutenant Bellot, a Frenchman
on a British ship who had given
his name to the Bellot Strait
further south. They had gained
Clearing up in Upernavik
after the big wall climb
201
permission to dedicate the fourth unmarked grave here to his memory – maybe
everybody wants a slice of the Arctic these days!
The passage from Beechey Island proved taxing. A strong southwesterly drove us
northwestwards, well reefed down, so we couldn’t make the corner and south coast
of Cornwallis Island for Resolute. We had to turn on the engine when close in and
get the best slant we could from the headwind to get round, and again to approach
the shallow waters of Resolute.
Resolute was interesting. Rumour had it that the town was run by one ‘Ozzy’ – at
least, he owns the main hotel and the fuel delivery system. For this it was necessary
to take the boat as close inshore as possible, the lorry came down to the beach, and
we ferried the hose across in the dinghy. Even the superyacht Billy Budd with her 4m
draught had had to do this – in windy conditions – to take on their 7000 litres of fuel,
but the hose had to be extended especially for them.
We left Resolute next morning in a snow storm, but with a strong north wind which
sped us down towards Peel Sound. Here we were fortunate, as there had been ice across
the entrance but by the time we got there it had receded. We were able to sail into
and down the Sound in clear water all the way to False Strait, just north of the famous
Bellot Strait, over a two-day period. Bellot Strait cuts off Somerset Island from Boothia
peninsula, the most northerly point of mainland America. Here we were particularly
pleased to discover an unrecorded but pleasant and well-protected anchorage in Leask
Cove. That evening the lads went off to look for musk oxen, successfully, and polar
bear, unsuccessfully, and during the night our friends in Nordwind, whom we had first
met at Resolute, passed by the cove and anchored at the far end of False Strait.
As there were heavy concentrations of ice depicted on the ice charts further
south between King William Island and Boothia peninsula, both boats decided next
morning to traverse the Bellot Strait ‘for fun’ and interest. Both got the tides wrong
and struggled in the narrows by Magpie Rock at the far end, only just getting through
Dodo’s Delight by the Beechey
Island graves of men from
Franklin’s expedition
202
With the crew of Nordwind (on the right) at the old Hudson Bay post
at Fort Ross on the east side of Bellot Strait
to Fort Ross, a former outpost of the Hudson Bay Company. We anchored in the wide
bay where several ships had wintered in the past, and went ashore to inspect the
buildings, one of which was still in good repair and stocked with some provisions. We
looked around generally but saw none of the expected polar bears. Next day we both
got the tides wrong again (it is complicated). We turned back at Magpie Rock, but
Nordwind with their more powerful engine just made it through. We followed a few
hours later, but to the chagrin of my crew missed the two polar bears Nordwind had
seen close inshore, then passed a short but concentrated band of pack-ice blocking
the far western end of Bellot Strait by going close to the shore. We continued south
in clear water for a couple of days until we were approaching the beginning of the
heavy concentration of ice, and so turned back. Nordwind had told us by e-mail via
the satellite phone (which worked well) that they were anchored in the Tasmanian
Islands, and eventually we found them and anchored nearby.
It was as well that we did, because that night there was a strong gale from the east. We
were close inshore, with plenty of chain out and a retaining strop, but Nordwind, more
exposed, lost their bower anchor and 90m of chain. Then, motoring around during the
night with strong forward and reverse, the bolts holding their prop shaft got damaged, They
– and particularly the owner who was on board for the leg – were not happy. The owner
set about systematically searching the seabed for the anchor and chain, the original on this
classic yacht which he had lovingly restored over the years at huge expense. We considered
that we should stand by them in their extremity, and the lads offered to help with the
search. This involved dragging our kedge anchor along the seabed, and also trying to get
the prop shaft back and some makeshift bolts in place to hold it in. At this stage a friend,
Richard Haworth of High Latitudes*, arrived as the Ice Pilot on the smart motor cruiser
Boethuk and also offered his help, even to diving to look for the anchor in the kelp below.
203
Dodo’s Delight,
Jonathan and
Nordwind
refuelling
together at
Cambridge Bay
– one lorry, but
three fees!
Unfortunately he
had to abandon
this when the
regulator from
Nordwind that he
was using froze in
the Arctic waters.
In the afternoon of the last day we were released – that is to say the search for the
anchor and chain was necessarily abandoned, and the prop shaft was sufficiently
repaired, temporarily, for the engine to be run slowly at 1000 revs. Both boats left
and continued south, meeting another sailing boat coming the other way whose
skipper told us he had just come through the Victoria Strait, and gave us advice as to
how to do it. It was very unusual for this to be open for small boats and we seized the
opportunity, as not having to go via Gjoa Haven with its difficult, shallow channels
to the north and south would save us several days.
So we made our way across to Cape Felix on the northwest corner of King William
Island, and along the island’s shallow west coast passing a Russian cruise ship at anchor
in the mist, and so over towards Jenny Lind Island. Here we saw ice in Icebreaker
Channel to the north, so went the extra miles round to the south in the dark night,
and on to Cambridge Bay. Nordwind arrived just before us, as they had passed through
the channel – and the ice – in the misty night, with difficulty. We were now half way
through the North West Passage, at least in terms of difficulty.
We met up with a Dutch boat, Jonathan, at the town quay and all three of us
refuelled together. It was a weekend, but in spite of it being a single call-out during
which three boats could conveniently be refuelled at the same time, each boat was
charged a separate $157 call-out charge. Apart from this, Cambridge Bay was a
welcoming and interesting place – and a small expedition went to survey the wreck
of the Maud, one of Amundsen’s old boats, in the harbour.
We left on Monday, the main difficulty now the sheer distances involved to reach
Point Barrow and sail down the Chukchi Sea to the Bering Strait – nearly 2000 miles
as it turned out. We enjoyed fair winds and made good progress down the Dease Strait,
* High Latitudes [http://www.highlatitudes.com/index.html] is ‘a yacht consultancy,
training and management service, specialising in sailing in Antarctica, the Arctic
and other remote destinations’. (See previous page.)
204
anchoring in shallow water off Lady Franklin Point the second night. Next morning a
crew member managed to drive us hard into a rock in shallow water. This was something
of a crisis. We pulled up the floorboards and inspected as best we could whilst still
underway, and could see no damage. We motored on into the Dolphin and Union
Strait, but towards evening the skipper ordered a diversion into Bernard Harbour,
the site of an old DEW station*. Here we lifted the floorboards again, and being now
stationary and quiet at anchor mopped out the bilge completely and inspected it all
very carefully. Fortunately we still could see no water ingress or damage, and concluded
that at least we were safe to proceed.
That Dolphin and Union Strait and Amundsen Gulf do go on a long way. We were
not helped by a continual west wind, and when this grew strong we had to tack under
sail to save slamming into the waves. One fault of Westerly cruisers is they don’t go well
to windward, and we made little progress. When eventually we came abreast of Point
Pearce the wind veered more into the north west and we could sail towards the Bathurst
promontory, but it still took us too far south. When close to the shore we had to turn,
now motoring, into the strong wind to make our way northwest. We had intended to
go through the shallow Snowgoose Pass by the smoking hills, but there was no way we
could do it in those seas. Instead we continued to bash against wind and sea, until at last
we could round the Bernie Islands and turn southwestwards to sail further off the wind
towards Cape Dalhousie and Tuktoyaktuk and make rapid progress through the night.xx
* The Distant Early Warning Line, also known as the DEW Line or Early Warning Line,
was a system of radar stations in the far northern Arctic region of Canada ... (and
elsewhere). It was set up to detect incoming Soviet bombers during the Cold War,
and provide early warning of any sea-and-land invasion. Thank you, Wikipedia!
With Best Explorer
and Marguerite
at the town quay,
Tuktoyaktuk –
the calm before
the storm
205
The author in
the community
deep freeze,
underground in
the permafrost,
Tuktoyaktuk
The waters in this area are incredibly shallow due to the proximity of the huge
Mackenzie River, and sailing with 2m or less under the keel for miles on end is a
somewhat alarming experience. The channel into ‘Tuk’ is buoyed, but at no greater
depth, and it was surprising to pass a big tugboat on our approach, obviously designed
specially for these waters. On entering Tuk, and not knowing any better, we continued
straight ahead to the industrial dock where the tugboat Kelly-O kindly signalled that
we could moor alongside. After a long and difficult passage it was so good to be allowed
showers and to be given meals aboard. We were very grateful, especially as it turned
out that we should not have been in that part of the harbour at all.
We spent nine days in Tuk, most of it at the Town Quay. The delay was caused by
the GRIB charts being received aboard our neighbour Marguerite predicting gales in
the Beaufort Sea to the north, and as they passed they took a good swipe at Tuk as
Nome is still a frontier town
206
Safely ashore in Nome, at last
well. Finally we put out to sea, however, starting early to give maximum daylight to
help us avoid any logs from the Mackenzie River in the shallow waters. After a long
haul northwestwards to pass Hooper Island we could turn westwards in deeper water,
and having a favourable wind we gave up plans to visit the scenic Herschel Island and
the possible anchorages of Demarcation Point and Brownlow Island. Unfortunately the
wind then went back into the west and left us struggling, particularly when it became
strong, but we finally entered the shallow lagoon by Barrow Point to anchor at the
top end with 1∙1m of water under the keel!
We waited at anchor for an extra day and night as an east wind was forecast, and
early next morning made our way out and past Point Barrow. Officially, or so some say,
we had then completed the Northwest Passage, but there was a sting in the tail – there
are virtually no viable anchorages on the northwest coast of Alaska and a strong gale
was forecast. It was from the north, however, and we made the decision not to use
the only possible anchorage, behind Seagull Islands, but to keep going. It was very
unpleasant – a day and a night of gale force winds in comparatively shallow seas – but
we did make rapid progress running under bare poles. It moderated on the second day,
but there was another period of strong wind some 50 miles north of the Bering Strait
with difficult seas over a shallow patch. The helmsman made an involuntary gybe,
and when the boom was brought up short by the preventer the mainsail ripped across.
Fortunately it was just below the second reef, so we could still use it.
The Bering Strait itself was benign by comparison, and then we enjoyed a pleasant day’s
sail in a northerly, beam and broad reaching in sunshine to enter Nome that evening, 20
September. Since leaving Barcaldine, Scotland on 8 June we had covered 6059 miles.
After some delay caused by the north wind driving a lot of the water out of the small boat
harbour, Dodo’s Delight was eventually hauled out to spend the winter ashore in Nome.
We are very grateful to the Gino Watkins Memorial Fund, Goretex USA (ShiptonTilman Award), and Lindon Lewis Marine for their support of this expedition.
207
OBITUARIES & APPRECIATIONS
Clive King
Clive passed away in December 2012 at the Churchill Hospital in Oxford, UK. He
was initially diagnosed with lymphoma in 2010 and, after six months of difficult
treatment including a two week episode in intensive care, regained his strength and
had a wonderful year-and-a-half doing what he loved ... sailing, skiing and playing
polo. Unfortunately, the disease returned in August 2012 in the form of a virulent
leukaemia, which did not respond to chemotherapy.
Clive was a one-of-a-kind character – strong, irrepressible and positive, always with
a smile and a joke. He never tolerated obstacles – he only saw ‘minor challenges’! He
believed he would recover until the end, and refused requests to visit saying he “wasn’t
quite himself yet and would call soon – when he was sure he’d be feeling better!”.
Born in 1943, Clive bought his first boat, the 35ft Spur of the Moment, in the UK
and, with his first wife Frances, sailed her across the Atlantic to the Caribbean where
he worked as a charter skipper before making his way to the California coast. In the
redwoods north of San Francisco, in his spare time from his real estate appraisal practice,
he built a 56ft Roberts-designed steel hull ketch, Sonoma of the Isles.
Clive joined the OCC in 1975, shortly after completing the 2700 mile passage
from Tenerife to Barbados. He served as Rear Commodore USA West from 1991 to
1997 and was, for several years, OCC Port Officer in San Francisco, where he met
and married Bonnie. From San Francisco
he and Bonnie sailed to the South Pacific
islands, which he dearly loved.
In 2000 Clive and Bonnie said farewell
to Sonoma and returned to England,
settling in Oxfordshire. In subsequent
years Clive sailed with several OCC
members including myself in Cheeky
Monkey, Michael Landis in Beach Music
and the Rev Bob Shepton on Dodo’s
Delight. He was a fine artist who illustrated
my logbook with beautiful colour sketches
whilst delivering Cheeky Monkey back to
the UK after the 2004 OCC Azores Jubilee
Rally. Clive was excellent company afloat
and ashore for both adults and children
– my 9 and 14-year-old daughters loved
having him on board.
Clive King
208
Clive taught art at various adult education colleges
and was also an accomplished polo player – a sport
that he took up with Bonnie’s encouragement after his
60th year. He held a private pilot’s licence (which he
earned prior to receiving a driving licence!), and was a
successful entrepreneur and real estate developer.
Clive regularly attended OCC socials in and
around London – I remember driving with him for
miles through the Essex countryside to attend the
send-off dinner for the OCC Baltic Rally in 2007.
He was proud of his OCC membership, and when in
port always hoisted the Flying Fish burgee. I even noticed the latest copy of Flying
Fish on the living room table of his home when I attended his memorial gathering.
We shall miss him greatly.
Erik Vischer with Bonnie King
Jocelyn Beard-Hellstrom
Jocelyn was born on 5 April 1942 in Stanley Bay, Auckland Northshore in New Zealand
and grew up around boats and the sea. In her early teens she was in the pioneer female
team in competition rowing in New Zealand, and was often a happy crew member on
racing and cruising yachts in Auckland Harbour.
She moved to Australia in 1960, where she met and married David ‘Skaffie’ Beard.
Together they ran a cruise business on the Gippsland
Lakes in Victoria, Australia, conducting five-day cruises
followed by one-day cruises on a weekly programme
during the summer season. A few years later they
moved to Brisbane, Queensland, where they ran a
supermarket before taking on the project of building
their own ferro-cement yacht in their backyard. It was
a family project that took three years. Their maiden
voyage was a three-year circumnavigation with their
two children, Shane aged 12 and Nerida aged 10. It
was a big education for the whole family and they had
many adventures, one of which was being in the first
flotilla to get through the Suez Canal when it reopened
after the Six Day War.
As well as a sailing wife and mother, Jocelyn was
an outstanding potter and arranged workshops with
Jocelyn Beard-Hellstrom
209
Jocelyn and one-year-old grandson Lachlan aboard Havsvind in August 2009
the locals wherever she could, time and weather permitting. She was also a clever
businesswoman, and in NZ on their way back home she got a job managing the country’s
souvenir industry for six months before returning to Brisbane. Back in Australia they
bought a souvenir shop, which she ran while Skaffie went back to work at sea. Jocelyn
took up fabric painting as a hobby, and soon became famous for her vibrant colours in
silk painting – she had to mix the dyes herself to get the colours she wanted. The business
grew fast, to become the second largest hand-painted fabric business in Australia. In the
early 90s she and Skaffie separated, and later divorced. They both married again in 1995.
Jocelyn closed her business and moved to Sweden with her new husband, Erik. For
their first couple of years they spent the Nordic summer cruising the Baltic, Denmark
and Norway, and the southern summers in Australia. In 1999 they joined the OCC
Millennium Rally in Falmouth, UK with their yacht Havsvind, remaining with the rally
all the way to Nova Scotia. Having fallen in love with the people and cruising grounds
of the East Coast of the USA, they kept Havsvind there and returned as often as possible
to cruise extensively between Cuba and Nova Scotia. They finally sold her in 2010, and
after they no longer had their own boat travelled by ship to Antarctica and did extensive
land cruising by local bus in Chile/Argentina and RV-ing in USA and Australia.
Jocelyn was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2001 and had a lung removed, but against
all odds she recovered and soon became the doctors’ ‘miracle lady’. She claimed that
she lived on borrowed time, and decided to make the most of it. Even with increasing
health problems she kept coming back to the sea and the cruising life, and was the
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proud recipient of the OCC Endurance Award for 2007. (A short article about this
unusual and little-known award is scheduled for Flying Fish 2013/2).
In the end the cancer won the fight, however, and after a spinal operation and
long hospitalisation with complications after the surgery, she had no more strength
to bounce back to full life. She finally closed her eyes on 22 January 2013, at home in
Birkdale, Brisbane with her family at her side.
Jocelyn was always a very committed wife, mother and grandmother, the priorities
in her life even though she had many and varied interests that otherwise filled her
time. Wherever she travelled in the world she was easygoing, life-loving, made lots of
friends and was always looking forward to the next adventure with great excitement.
She is deeply missed by husband Erik, daughter Nerida and son Shane and their
families, as well as many friends from the art and yachting communities around the
whole world.
Erik Hellstrom
Captain Burke D (Joe) Lucas, USN (ret)
Joe Lucas died peacefully in a Stuart, FL hospital on 4 November 2012 after a protracted
period of declining health. Born in 1924 and a native of Guthrie, Oklahoma, Joe had a
successful career in the US Navy before he and his beloved wife Linda embarked on a
‘second’ career of sailing and cruising. He was a dedicated member of the Ocean Cruising
Club and a frequent attendee at OCC events in Maine and the Chesapeake. He and
Linda organized the very first OCC event
in south Florida in 2011 at their home in
Stuart.
Shortly before the end of World War
Two, Joe left the University of Oklahoma
to become a navy combat pilot. He earned
his wings in 1944, eventually flying
combat missions in North Korea. His
flying career almost ended when his fully
loaded AD Skyraider’s engine failed as
he was being catapulted from an aircraft
carrier, but despite serious injuries he was
eventually able to return to flight status.
He later completed college and graduated
from the Naval War College. His very
successful naval career continued as an
air group commander, culminating with
Captain Joe Lucas
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command of the aircraft carrier USS Hornet (CV-12). He retired from the navy in
1972 as a highly decorated captain and went on to work as a senior executive for
Grumman and Raytheon.
In 1971 Joe married Linda Youngs, a lifelong sailor and career government employee
who rose to the exclusive Senior Executive Service while working for the Secretary
of the Air Force. She and Joe lived in Edgewater, Maryland where they sailed and
raced their Pearson 30 Capari extensively. They eventually transitioned to cruising
exclusively when they commissioned Silhouette, a Bermuda 40. They cruised extensively
along the East Coast of the US in Silhouette, as well as the Bahamas and Bermuda. Joe
was a member of the Annapolis Yacht Club, a former commodore of the Sailing Club
of the Chesapeake, and a longtime member of the Cruising Club of America. He and
Linda also were SSCA commodores.
In 1987 Joe and Linda purchased Covenant, a Bristol 47, and spent the next few years
cruising from the Canadian Maritimes to the Caribbean. In 1993 they sailed Covenant
transatlantic and spent three years exploring the British Isles, Holland, Germany, Norway,
Sweden and Finland, reaching as far as St Petersburg, Russia with family and friends aboard.
In 1996 they returned to the East Coast via Spain, the Canary Islands and the Caribbean.
After their return Stateside they purchased a waterfront home in Mariner Cay, Stuart
where their 60ft dock and unlimited hospitality drew many OCC members. Although not
officially designated as Port Officers, they fulfilled that role without the title.
Joe and Linda thoroughly enjoyed their lives in Florida, becoming very involved in
civic activities and their church, the Lutheran Redeemer Church. They were known
for constantly helping others and regularly took shifts in the church’s soup kitchen.
After selling Covenant in 2006 they moved across the river to Palm City, where they
overlooked the St Lucie River. They later purchased a summer home overlooking the
St George’s River in Maine where they enjoyed their final summers together, and even
without a boat were always present at the Maine OCC rallies.
Joe was predeceased by Linda who passed away in 2011. He is survived by his son
Burke and daughter-in-law Patty, three grandchildren and several great-grandchildren,
also his nephew Jay and his wife Julie and several great nephews and nieces, and a very
wide circle of friends. To those of us who were close to Joe he will always be the model
of compassion, understanding and principle. He will be greatly missed by everyone who
had the privilege of knowing him. Joe was very proud of his service to his country, a
hero to many of us, and truly ‘blue and gold’ to his core.
George Marvin
Lt Col Donald MacLean
Donald MacLean, my late husband, who died last September after a short illness,
loved the sea. Although he spent all of his working life in the army, he was able to
combine sailing with soldiering – always managing to find a boat. In fact he said on
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several occasions that he ‘joined the army to learn
how to sail!’. When in Germany he sailed in the
Baltic from Kiel, and his two-year secondment to
the Royal Canadian School of Military Engineering,
Chilliwack, meant he could explore the waters of
British Columbia and teach sailing as an extra. He
was navigator in a crew that took part in the 1977
Fastnet Race.
Donald spent his last thirteen working years as
Army Recruiting Officer, West Scotland, and was able
to settle in North Ayrshire. He and a sailing friend
bought a Trapper 500, Corrie, which they raced every
week and cruised with their families. He and his coowner, as keen sailors, wanted to do more ambitious
trips when they retired in 1996 and in 1994 they
bought a 43ft ketch called Corrie of Clyde and spent
Donald Maclean
two years fitting her out. She was set up for two, with
additional help on the longer legs, and the idea was to sail slowly around the world. In
preparation for the trip, Donald obtained his Yachtmaster Ocean Certificate and joined
the OCC following an 1815 mile
passage from Bermuda to the
Azores aboard the Nicholson 55
Lord Portal in 1995.
They finally set sail from Largs
Marina in August 1996 bound
for the Canaries via Falmouth,
Benodet, La Coruña and
Gibraltar, arriving at Radazul near
Santa Cruz de Tenerife. From
there they crossed the Atlantic
to Antigua, and then cruised
the Windward Islands, reaching
St Lucia in December 1996.
However, the circumnavigation
was not to be. Donald’s partner
was called back to Scotland so
the decision was made to sail the
boat back when the time was
right, returning to Largs Marina
in May 1997 via the Azores and
Southern Ireland.
Donald and grandson James
sailing Trompette on the Clyde
213
Two years later, Donald sold his share of Corrie of Clyde and with me, his second
wife, bought a Nicholson 32 Mk XI, Trompette. We had nearly thirteen years of great
sailing on Scotland’s west coast, with friends or by ourselves, socialising and exchanging
sailing tales over drinks. Three bareboat charter cruises with daughter Sara, son-in-law
Bob and two grand-daughters in the warm seas off Croatia gave us a chance to sail in
T-shirt and shorts instead of eight layers of clothing topped by oilies.
Bon voyage Donald from your children Hamish, Sandy and Sara, your sister Lizzy,
your three grandchildren, and especially from me, Vera, your very willing crew.
Vera MacLean
Roger Swanson
Roger passed away on 25 December in Minneapolis with his family near by. He was 81.
He was born in Saint Paul, MN, and graduated from St Paul Central High School in 1948
and from the University of Minnesota in 1953 with a degree in electrical engineering
with high distinction. Commissioned as an ensign into the Navy in 1953, he served
three years in both the Atlantic and the Pacific aboard the destroyer USS Henley. Upon
discharge from the navy, Roger chose to take over operations of the southern Minnesota
farm that had been established by his Swedish immigrant family more than a generation
earlier. Throughout his adventurous life, the original family farm remained his home.
Roger and Gaynelle aboard Cloud Nine in Lancaster Sound, August 2007
214
Sipping
champagne
from the
Barton
Cup, April
2009
Roger’s energy and ambition led him into manufacturing as a principal owner of
Eskine Manufacturing, a maker of snow blowers and farm equipment and later he
founded RC Industries, which built tractor cabs and other agricultural accessories.
He was president of the First National Bank of Dunnell and owner of the Dunnell
Insurance Agency. In 1971 he founded Innovar Industries, makers of the Sno-Coupe,
a short-lived adventure in the snowmobile industry. Expertise in the making of
snowmobile parts in GRP led to the formation of Glasstite, a maker of GRP pick-up
tops and utility bodies, in Dunnell, MN. Glasstite soon distributed to all fifty states
and Canada, employing over 150 people in a town of approximately the same number.
Throughout Roger’s professional career his business partners and all those who worked
with him were among his most trusted friends.
All the while he was growing the farm and his business ventures, Roger was compelled
to cultivate another passion, sailing. Inspired by the sea during his time in the navy
he began to sail on the inland lakes of southern Minnesota and northern Iowa. Soon
to follow were trips with chartered boats in the Caribbean. Having learned celestial
navigation in the navy, his skills were called upon to lead a sailing vessel and its crew
of new owners across the Atlantic in 1971. The scope of adventures rapidly grew until,
in 1982, Roger and sons Steven and Philip (agedh 24 and 13 at the time) and four
other friends set out from Miami, Florida aboard their boat Cloud Nine to sail westward
around the world. Twenty-eight months later, maintaining that same westward course,
Cloud Nine arrived back in Miami after visiting 180 ports of call in 50 countries and
sailing almost 40,000 miles. Thirty-three crew members participated.
For Roger, this was just a warm up. He subsequently completed two more
circumnavigations, one of which was from west to east, a much more difficult route. He
rounded the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Horn – nominating the 6000 mile passage
from Cape Town to Ushuaia in Argentina as his OCC qualifying passage – sailed twice
215
to the Antarctic, and three times to the Arctic where he attempted transits of the
fabled Northwest Passage in 1994 and again in 2005. On both occasions Cloud Nine, a
Bowman 57, was turned back by the closing ice. A third attempt in 2007 was successful
in making it through the Arctic ice from the Atlantic to the Pacific, an achievement
that landed Roger on the front page of the Wall Street Journal. It was the first time
any American sailing vessel had ever traversed the Northwest Passage from east to
west. Roger was awarded the Barton Cup for his achievement, and wrote about the
passage in Flying Fish 2008/1 (downloadable from the website archive).
In 1996 Roger married Gaynelle Templin, who shared his love of sailing and
adventure, and since then Gaynelle and Roger have gone on to circle the world
together and visit the ends of the earth aboard Cloud Nine. Many awards followed. In
addition to the OCC’s Barton Cup, Roger received the Blue Water Medal from the
Cruising Club of America, the Tilman Medal from the Royal Cruising Club, and the
Cruising World Medal from Cruising World magazine which referred to Roger as ‘the
pre-eminent American offshore voyager of the last three decades’. In 2004 Roger was
inducted into the St Paul Central High School Hall of Fame.
In all, 310 people had the rare opportunity to see the world from a sailing boat under
the vigilant captainship of Roger Swanson. The only requirement expected of them
in return was to be a willing and helpful member of the crew. For forty years and over
217,000 nautical miles this simple pact served and rewarded all.
Preceded in death by his first wife, June, Roger is survived by his children Steven,
Lynne and Philip, his three grandchildren, his sister Esther, his second wife Gaynelle
and her son and two grandchildren.
Steven Swanson
Janet Erken
Janet was born in 1946 in Seattle, Washington. It is a boating-oriented city, and while
she did not have direct boating experience, she grew up overlooking Puget Sound with
its significant commercial and recreational traffic.
She knew at an early age that she wanted to work with her hands and use tools, but
that just was not done in those days. Women were supposed to be housewives, and
if they absolutely must deviate, they could be school teachers, secretaries or nurses –
but that was about all. She really enjoyed languages and took all the Spanish classes
offered in elementary and high school, with the aim of becoming a high school Spanish
teacher. She graduated as an honour student from Ballard High School in 1964, and
then attended the University of Washington. She took a break part-way through to go
to Spain and study at the University of Granada – all in Spanish – before returning to
Seattle to finish her teaching degree with honours at the University of Washington.
While it was not unknown at the time, it certainly was unusual for such a young woman
to go off on her own to live in Europe for two years.
216
Janet was
teaching
at a school
just north of
Seattle when
I first met her,
and together
Janet, our
good friend
Mike and I
bought a 38ft
(12m) GRP
hull and, in
the backyard,
began the
process of
turning it
Dave and Janet aboard Alegría
into the SV
Alegría. We launched her in July 1976, and after a bit of sailing that year decided to
sell most of our stuff, quit our jobs and take off for the South Pacific. So in 1977 Mike,
Mike’s son Brad, and a Canadian friend, Olga, joined us on a two-year voyage, harbour
hopping to Acapulco in Mexico, then out to Tahiti, onwards to Hawaii, and finally
up to Vancouver Island, Canada and back to Seattle in 1979. When Janet joined the
OCC in 2005, it was the 2939 miles from Acapulco to Hiva Oa in the Marquesas that
she chose as her qualifying passage.
Following our return, Mike, Brad and Olga went off to lead normal lives, but Janet
and I were hooked on ocean cruising. However we needed more money if we were
going to do it for very long, so Janet decided to fulfil her dream of working with her
hands, on ships, and got a job with NOAA, the United States government mapping
and research agency. She travelled to Alaska on the NOAA Research Vessel Malcolm
Baldridge, where she undertook a variety of jobs, ending up in the engine room. She
really enjoyed her work and, using her excellent mind, quickly passed all the tests to
advance to the highest ranks that one could without going to marine college.
We spent about a year getting ready for another voyage, and left for Mexico in the fall
of 1981. Again we harbour hopped down the coast, stopping at many of the harbours
we had skipped on the previous trip, and ended up spending 5½ years in the Sea of
Cortez – we even owned our own massive hurricane season mooring in San Carlos.
Then we moved on south, passed through the Panama Canal, and continued up the
coast towards Texas, which we reached late in 1989. There we trucked the boat 30 miles
inland to my parents’ ranch south of Houston. This was planned to be for six months
or so to do some repairs, but time passed and it was 8½ years before we re-launched.
In 1999 and 2000 we cruised slowly east and north to reach Baltimore, MD, in
December 2000. We intended just to stay for the hurricane season but again got stuck,
mostly coping with family problems. However in June of 2005 we finally left for Europe
217
via the Azores,
spending our first
European winter in
Portugal’s excellent
Marina de Lagos.
The mix of cruising
people there for
the winter was
especially good
t h a t y e a r, a n d
Port Officer Terry
O’Brien and his
wife Barbara really
outdid themselves
In Alegría’s dinghy
welcoming and
helping us all.
The following
summer we worked our way east, visiting Gibraltar and Morocco, before wintering at
Almerimar in Spain. The summer of 2007 we spent cruising the Balearics, then sailed
south to Tabarka in Tunisia and back to Cagliari in Sardinia to re-enter the EU. We
chose Ostia Marina, near Rome for the winter of 2007/8 – Rome is outstanding and
easy to reach from Ostia. The following summer we worked our way east through the
Greek islands and spent the winter at Netsel Marina in Marmaris, on the south coast
of Turkey. The summer of 2009 was spent in a boatyard doing a major repaint of the
whole outside of Alegría, and since the fall of 2009 she has been at Finike, also in Turkey.
In April 2010 we flew to Houston to help my mother, but since early that year Janet
had not been feeling quite right, and after months of tests her ‘digestive problem’ was
diagnosed as ovarian cancer. She had chemotherapy and major surgery, which appeared
to be successful, and officially joined the ‘in remission’ group in March 2011. After
spending the summer in the US we were about to head back to Turkey and Alegría in
late 2011 when we learned that the cancer had returned.
Janet went through more chemotherapy and several major surgeries, but in August
2012 the doctors said there was nothing more they could do. We then tried alternative
therapies, and for months thought that they might be winning, but on 1 January 2013
Janet went into a hospice and passed away on 17 January.
All ib all, I would say that Janet had a pretty good life. She may have only lived for
66 years, but she did pretty much whatever she wanted to do for the last 36 of them.
It doesn’t get too much better than that.
Dave Heath
218
ADVERTISERS IN FLYING FISH
Adlard Coles Nautical (nautical almanacs, books and guides) ................................ 54
Admiral (yacht insurance) ............................................................... inside front cover
Ampair (wind and water generators) ....................................................................... 22
Astilleros Lagos (full service boatyard in NW Spain)............................................ 151
Berthon International (international yacht brokers) ............................................ 195
Beta Marine Ltd (marine diesel engines and generators) ...................................... 188
Bruntons Propellers (feathering propellers for sailing yachts) ............................... 170
Coppercoat (Aquarius Coatings – 10 year lifespan antifouling).............................. 85
Fuel Cell Systems (supliers of fuel cell technology for yachts) ................................ 80
Furneaux Riddall (Spectra Watermakers – desalinators for cruising yachts)......... 100
Greenham Regis (marine electronics – sales, installation and service) ................ 163
Hydrovane Self Steering Inc (wind vane self-steering systems) ............................ 180
Imray Laurie Norie & Wilson Ltd (charts and cruising guides) .............................. 65
Integro (yacht insurance) ................................................................. inside front cover
LeeSan (world class marine sanitation specialists) ................................................ 129
MailASail (satellite communications) ..................................................................... 79
Mid Atlantic Yacht Services (services & chandlery for yachts in the Azores) ..... 169
Multihull World (specialist multihull broker) ....................................................... 112
Noonsite (World Cruising Club – blue water cruisers’ information site) .............. 196
Parasailor (innovative downwind sail for long distance cruisers) ............................ 36
Rodriguez Yacht Brokerage (yacht brokers) ............................................................. 99
Sailfish Marine (watermakers and marine generators) .......................................... 142
Sanders Sails (sailmakers) ........................................................................................ 21
Scanmar International (wind vane self-steering systems) ......................................... 6
Sevenstar Yacht Transport (yacht transport by sea) ........................inside back cover
Ship to Shore (mail holding service for cruisers while away) .................................... 5
Sillette Sonic Ltd (marine propulsion specialists) ................................................. 111
The Arran Malt (malt whisky distillers) ............................................................... 117
Tilley Endurables (hats – keep the sun at bay) ........................................................ 53
Topsail Insurance (yacht and travel insurance specialist) ............. outside back cover
Wayfarer Marine Corporation (refit and repair boatyard in Maine) ..................... 130
Yellowbrick Tracking (yacht position reporting and recording) ............................. 42
Please support advertisers by giving consideration to their products or services,
and mention the OCC and Flying Fish when replying to advertisements. Details of
advertising rates and deadlines will be found overleaf.
219
ADVERTISEMENTS
RATES:
Advertising is sold on a two consecutive issues basis
Inside pages
Full page colour ...................£280 (for two issues)
Half page colour...................£170 (for two issues)
Cover pages
Inside front cover colour ................ £525 (for two issues)
Inside back cover colour ................ £525 (for two issues)
Outside back cover colour.............. £840 (for two issues)
A 10% discount is available to OCC members
COPY:
Copy should be supplied as a high res PDF, JPEG or EPS file, at a resolution
of 300 dpi (118 dpcm) at finished size. If at all possible please accompany
this large file with a low res PDF which can be used for tracking purposes.
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Alternatively, copy can be typeset by our printers,
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DEADLINES:
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Space may not permit all advertisements to be accepted, but please try!
Latest dates by which orders must be received are:
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ENQUIRIES AND ORDERS TO:
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24 Albany Mansions, Albert Bridge Road, London SW11 4PG
Tel: 020 7801 0599 Mobile: 07887 512312
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Tel: (01986) 892913, Fax: (01986) 896600, e-mail [email protected]
220
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Phone +31 204488590
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221
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222