On to the boat at about 10'ish then and started prepping things for departure.. quick check on Cambermet confirmed my earlier suspicions that it was a little blowy - the weather beacon was reporting consistent F4's at the bottom of the harbour, so I decided based on local conditions that some reefs were the first order of the day, and rolled in four turns - just less than the first batten.
Winds were also just north of westerly, which is a damned unusual direction for round here, but still very welcome in light of the sheer quantities of easterly's we had at the beginning of the season - the westerly's are back..
Given that direction though I decided to try something new'ish, and having dropped the mooring at about 20 past, with the new engine purring away on minimum revs, I rolled out all the genoa just by the bridge cardinal and then ran down the ditch under just genoa - no main - even against tide we we were seeing 3.8's SOG.
It was blowy, but a downwind run allows more sail, so I stuck with it all the way to the end of the Sweare Deep channel, where, gybing the genoa, I then turned and got all the way down the harbour to NE Pilsey on one tack, and with just the genoa.. all remarkably stress free, with the tiller pilot gently whirring away...
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| Terror - one of the last of the old local oyster boats.. very fast and seaworthy, unusual to see her with reefs |
Just after NE Pilsey, with the wind building, decisions were required... a turn to the top of the harbour would require main as it was going to be a beat, I would also almost certainly have to roll in some genoa, and would I need the engine to help keeping her head to wind?
As it turned out, all went very well, first rolled in some genoa, then gybe round on to other tack, and while she was head to wind I shot the main up and tied off, and then bore away.. amazing when a plan comes together - one tack to get me some deeper water and off Pilsey Sands, another tack in Sweare Deep, and I eventually put the engine on just off the entrance to Northney - not often I get that close to home under sail!
Good sail, but definitely on the cool side, and we're now heading into a period of unsettled weather.. windy and showery..
Log:
Distance: 7.81(cumulative total in the mileage tab at the top)
Wind (Speed; Direction): F4 gusting F5 ; NWxW
Sail Plan: Reefed main and genoa
Speed (Max/average in knots): 4.4 / 3.3
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