First the parcel, which was sent from the UK, its a replacement windlass and it was held up in customs. I knew I had to pay french vat and duty on arrival but didn’t know how this was supposed to happen. Apparently somebody on the French side should have contacted me to tell me. Nobody …
I have been at Chateaux Marina in Brest the last few days waiting for a new Windlass to arrive. DPD tracking says it should be with me today 🤞 In the mean time I have been doing some cleaning and maintenance and had a look around the Town and the Naval History museum I have …
Sailing along an unfamiliar coastline in fog is a bit daunting but with the right equipment and a bit of planning it’s perfectly OK. I had to do this today from Lannion to Roscoff with visibility rarely more than quarter of a mile. First the equipment I used.. Raymarine Axiom plotter Garmin GPSmap 551 Simrad …
The last few days have been tough on both me and the boat. I want to get on but the weather and strong currents around here mean slow progress. The sail from Guernsey to the French coast went well. It started with good winds which dwindled to nothing and ended in strong winds gusting to …
We have just crossed the English Channel so this is a good point to write about our experiences with beaurocrazy in doing this post Brexit. Pre Brexit, UK vets could issue an EU pet passport once all relevant jabs, including rabies, were up to date. The pet passport lasted the lifetime of the dog and …
My plan last night was to do a night sail back to Guernsey. It was the first opportunity to move for several days due to high winds and a sequence of storm fronts moving through the Channel. I got as far as the outer harbour entrance in bumpy seas and noticed a line flying around …
In this blog entry.. crashing the boat, crossing the English Channel, playing dodgem with big ships, storms, checking into France after Brexit and more changes in plans (why do I bother planning?). Let’s start with the embarrassing 😳 bit, hopefully you will have forgotten all about this by the time you reach the end of …
What a summer ☀️ 🙂 but today I will be travelling back from Wales to Lady Cindy in the river Hamble to resume my travels. I have spent the summer with Ffion and her family helping them to move and paint their new home. It’s not all been hard work though, I have spent a …
I spent the first part of this week finalising plans to sail across the Channel. As I had to wait a week to get Dotty’s animal health certificate, I decided to hire a car and go to see Ffions family doing their first live gig since before Covid. The hire cost per week was not …
I am at Town Quay marina in Southampton and will be here another week preparing and supplying to cross the Channel at the beginning of June. I am spending time with family, taking a road trip to see Ffion perform a gig with her family, and getting an animal health certificate for Dotty.