Travels and boat care
The BBC weather site was 100% wrong about the wind. We had twice the amount published! But the wind was still warm; so we put the first reef in and had a fast sail on the tide, followed by refreshments once back on our mooring.
We went to have a quick look at the ‘Lower Shoots’ buoy.
David and Sheila onboard. Many thanks to Tim for taking these pictures.
An early start and a very hot motor/sail to Cardiff and back.
0700 lock out of Portishead and breakfast onboard.
In Cardiff barrage lock by 1000
Will checking the dingy works – with oars.
Skipper’s turn at the oars.
And the ePropulsion electric motor still works this year as well.
A great sail on the tide up to the bridge and back with a family crew.
So only 2 things not working at all today. The skipper’s pre-departure checklist, and the anemometer at the masthead.
The first problem became evident a few metres from our berth when the engine stopped. Tim earned a second Molia mug by leaping for one of the new pontoons to hold us, only to be almost immediately informed by the skipper that the engine works just fine if you remember to turn the fuel on!
There was never enough wind to turn the anemometer cups – we hope they are just stuck and will come loose in the next gale.
Our new chartplotter works really well. The autopilot is working to steer the boat, but when it is put on standby it really doesn’t want to let go of the wheel! I think I need to adjust the belt tension. For some reason the crew did not want to try out the revamped deck shower.
The rest of the trip was very enjoyable, included coffee and Garibaldi biscuits – and it did not even rain on us!
Many thanks to today’s crew.
Our deck shower head sprang a leak from its handle – I guess it had been dropped once too often.
This shower head is not identical, but is a perfect fit.
TREM shower head with press-button valve and 1/2 inch BSP thread.
See also: New Deck Shower Covers
Supplier: Brit Boat Parts (at Bourne End on the river Thames).
The shower head cover was easy to replace. I removed the old cover, cleaned off the sealant and resealed the new unit in place. The tap had to be detached so that it could be threaded into the new unit.
The completed covers, looking much better.
Remember the old ones?
We also replaced the shower head.
Molia was lifted back into the water today. Many thanks to the Portishead Marina crew and Steve for your help today.
Finally – it is already light!
A rest day in Padstow.
In a fog!
Molia