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Lady H blogs
April 2012
April really started on the 6th in Alghero when Susannah and Edward Joined us. Susannah had sailed with me before but since then Edward has made a respectable woman of her and she is now a Mrs rather than a Miss. Edward wanted to do a long passage so within an hour of them joining us we set sail for Propriano in Corsica. A 100 mile passage we did in 25 hours exactly. Not exactly record breaking, but we did sail for all but an hour rather than motor.
In Propriano we were joined by John and Bernard, although Bernard was only on board for 24 hours. Well, that was the theory. We were supposed to take him round to Ajaccio but the weather was such that some of the crew cried enough within an hour of sailing
On the morning of the 8th, with Susannah, Edward and John on board we left Propriano for an enjoyable sail down to Santa Teresa in Sardinia arriving just before midnight. The following morning after a quick lift out of the water to finalise measurements for a new propeller we had a good sail down to La Maddalena.
The 11th was windy, so our sailing for the day consisted of sailing in a Wly 6/8 amongst the islands returning to La Maddalena for the night. The following day was an easy sail down to Porto Rotundo. Then came Friday 13th!
Unlike the Italian skipper of Costa Concordia, I take full responsibility for what happens to the 'Lady H', and I should have reminded the helmsman, no matter how often, to keep a good look out. Unfortunately I didn't and whilst sailing to windward in a very strong easterly we fouled a fishing float with such dramatic effect that the propeller and shaft were pulled aftwards to a point that not only would the prop not turn but the shaft was no longer connected to the gearbox. Fortunately, with an easterly we were able to sail up the Olbia channel and into the marina.
Unfortunately, the weekend and strong winds were such that it was Monday before I could get a diver to free the propeller and hammer the shaft back so it could be reconnected with the gearbox. By this time, my three crew had left and were replaced by Samata and Cath. Samata had sailed with me before and Cath had her day skipper. Both turned out to be excellent crew and company.
On the 16th we left Olbia and had a good but rather cool sail up to La Maddalena. For some reason the weather has turned cold and instead of temperatures in the 20's, as was the case at the start of the month, temperatures were in the mid teens and it felt cold!
One night in La Maddalena was followed by a very good sail up to Bonifacio but on entering the harbour the main sail decided to rip, so while Samata and Cath had a look at the sights, I spent the afternoon repairing a sail. In addition to this, I had received an email with a cancellation. It was time to make a decision! So, on the morning of the 18th, with the deepest regrets, I decided to cancel my summer visit to the UK. I really had thought that people would be interested in the French canals but with no firm bookings and the risk of unforseen additional expense, plus the cost of a diver and a new mainsail I simply had to cut my loses before they became unbearable. Sad, because I don't like to let people down and I really was looking forward to the French Canals. Next year?
The 18th brought an expected strong westerley but by mid afternoon it had eased sufficiently for us to head round the southern end of Corsica to Rondinara and our first anchorage of the year, and we even launched the kayak for an explore ashore much to Jack's delight. The following morning we sailed off the anchor, just for the fun of it. But the fun turned out to be a little damp as we were soaking wet from thunderstorms by the time we reached Porto Vecchio. I was later told that it was the first rain they had had in P.V. this year!
The idea on the 20th was to sail down to La Maddalena but the winds were so strong we prudently tucked ourselves into the totally deserted anchorage of Porto Nouvo where Cath was brave enough to be the first to swim off Lady H this year. She claimed the water wasn't cold but considering that Jack only stayed in with her for a few seconds implies she was lying!
The following morning, with three reefs in the main we had an enjoyable sail back to La Maddalena. And the next day saw us arrive in Olbia marina.
On the 23rd, Cath left and was replaced by Samuli from Finland who had done quite a lot of sailing and was a brilliant crew, and Sandy from the UK who has his own Wayfarer on the Norfolk Broads. The 24th saw us remaining in Olbia because of a promised strong westerley which didn't arrive, then on the 25th we set sail with a light easterley wind. The 26th saw us having a cracking sail from La Maddalena to Ajaccio mainly with just a headsail and a wind aft of the beam. A good swell, as well, meant that we regularly surfed at up to 9 knots and at one point touched the magic 10. Of course it didn't last and we had to motor the last 10 miles out of the 62 we covered in the day.
After an early morning arrival we had a day off and the highlight of the day was paddling and swimming in glorious sunshine Calvi (I did the paddling, Jack did the swimming) in temps around 30 C but with snow on the mountains behind the town
. Then on the 29th we set sail for Nice so that Sandy and Samuli could fly home. Now the French Riviera is supposed to be permanent sunshine but our arrival found it was permanent rain!
Miles for the month 702.
PICTURES FROM TOP
The cliffs of Bonifacio. New port, new sights, new smells. Cath and Samata. Cath acting as spinnaker pole. Cath grooming the Captain. Expedition ashore in the kayak. First swim of the year. Porto Nouvo anchorage.
WHAT THEY SAID!
Many thanks to our mutual friend Ros who first told me about your yacht. Perhaps it was the picture of Jack Sparrow that first clinched it but after a week sailing with you it was a good decision. Your laid back cool approach, years of experience and fond of sailing (and other) knowledge suited me well. I like to think I learnt a lot.
The week did not start well when I saw one large wave too many and left a stain on your deck forcing is to abandon the trip to Ajaccio. Fortunately, I did not repeat the event. On my day of navigation I was a little over zealous and the plotter became two half plotters! My limited Italian caused me to buy many loitres of fizzy wine - we drank it. We did see a few other sailing boats but there were also some uncharted moving white lighthouses that had to be taken into consideratioin.
Our last day of sailing was a challenge. Strong headwinds and a motor out of action required some good sailing skills but we made it, and an entrance into a port under sail is more elegant than with a motor.
Tim, many thanks for a very enjoyable week and many experiences. The Germans say 'keep a hand's width under your keel'. Happy sailing and hopefully we'll sail together again. - John McCready
Well I came back with a newly acquired husband in tow (albeit one who has been kicking around for a while) We requested a long passage, some sun, some wind and big waves. Lady H, under the careful watch of one Captain Jack Sparrow duly obliged.
We learnt lots as I expected we would. Not least that red fizzy wine is more drinkable than perhaps we anticipated. We provided entertainment for Jack's sidekick Tim by pretending that yachts on the horizon were actually uncharted lighthouses. - Or maybe my pilotage required a little finesse.
However, the most important thing I learned was the game of Take Two. Following my successful debut against Tim, I launched the Lady H League of solo Take Two. My time was 15 minutes and 2 seconds. I await a challenger!
Happy and safe travels. I won't tell my dad about the prop if you don't. - Susannah (and Edward)
Thanks, Tim, Cpn Jack Sparrow and the lovely Lady H for a super week of 'serious' sailing. Not so serious (except for the ripped mainsail, fender rescue in the Bonifacio Straits and escape from the storm off Corsica) Rather less serious than RYA and so much more conducive to learning the ropes. Above all, great fun.I'm sure I will be back for more tea and further adventures. In the meantime could you teach Jack to say 'let's get this show on the road'. - My favourite phrase of the week. Happy sailing with Samata to France and beyond. - Cath X
Before this sailing trip I was quite excited to see what was going to happen. All I knew beforehand was the name of the skipper, the name of the dog and the name of the boat. After the week I can say that everything was just great, better thanj what I could have imagined. I really enjoyed the company of Tim, Jack Sparrow and the the other crew membersm Sandy and Samata, We had a variety of different weathers ranging from no wind to too much wind (with wind from the wrong direction in between) from hot and sunny to not so hot and raining.
The dolphins were great. I will forever remember sitting in the bow and watching dolphins swimming a few feet below and jumping all over. My night watch from Calvi to Nice was magical! Moderate wind from the beam, black sky with stars, splashes and sounds of dolphins all around, and once in a while the silhouette of a jumping dolphin against the moon!
Besides the sailing, I really enjoyed the discussions we had during the week. Topics were numerous, ranging from aircraft brakes to the Euro-crisis. The atmosphere during the week was very relaxed and that really helped to get into vacation mood in no time.
Thank you Tim and Jack Sparrow. I will miss you and I hope we will meet again. Why not come up to Finland one summer? The archipelago is very beautiful in summer time and I'm sure you would enjoy it. (In winter you better bring an ice breaker with you.)