PREPARATIONS, PREPARATIONS

PREPARATIONS, PREPARATIONS

Well when we got here the weather was fantastic and the winds good for Spain. BUT it takes a while to get sorted out for sailing - all more time-consuming than we ever think it will be! We are moored just past the bend in the harbour and on the outside of 2 boats that look as though they haven’t been anywhere for a while - moss and mould growing on the poor old things. So everything has to be brought down a ramp or a ladder and carried across and onto Snork Maiden. Not much compared with a hard sail in strong winds, of course. There’s also the stocking up on food, camping gaz, diesel, petrol and all the things we seem to need for a 3 week cruise. We’ve evicted as much as we can from the boat and it still feels like we’re carrying excess baggage.

The weather for the next couple of days is fairly breezy with heavy rain showers. The wind has turned more West and South, and according to the forecast there will be more fine weather ahead after that. The direction means that our plan to go to some of the islands further North looks feasible. We might not make it to Spain this year, but we’ll keep you posted.

Marans is what you might call quiet. It’s Saturday night and there’s no one about, not even the ducks or mullet doing mad time. (They swim about at sunset with their heads out of the water, really weird.)

Another neighbouring boat set out for the Scilly Isles a couple of days ago. Otherwise there are not too many people going in and out. The lock times go with the tides and have been late afternoon the last few days. If we are ready to go tomorrow, our time will be 1700, making us get to La Rochelle around 2030. It’s light until 2200 so it’s possible.


Tuesday, June 9, 2009

This is not going too well from a sailing point of view - there are at least 3 lows lurking around and controlling our weather and the toilet flush pump linkage finally parted this morning. The latter we are getting fixed, the former is busy generating choppy seas, swell, storms, squalls and strong winds. Too expensive to eat out these days so we read and fix things!
This from the Capitanerie in La Rochelle. Still hoping to bring Snork Maiden round here soon, weather permitting. Not our most successful cruise so far bu enjoying following the weather forecasts and general boat pottering. Debating the merits of the Mediterranean vs the Pacific as future long-distance destinations.

Meanwhile - here are pix of where we are, and Al checking out the weather forecast in the local paper.

Fair winds - may we all have them.