Sainte Marine sits in the estuary of the River Odet which winds its way to Quimper.   Once a commercial highway connecting the sea to the European canal system, it has been reduced to the occasional tourist boat and visiting yachtie, but this has allowed nature to thrive on its banks.   Along its entire length the READ MORE

It was time for a change of scenery and so we did a short hop to Camaret-Sur-Mer for a few days to escape the hustle of Brest.  Camaret is one of the favoured launch points to transit the Raz do Sein which is the last headland barrier to Atlantic France and Biscay.  Whilst waiting for the READ MORE

The storm that had engulfed the Isles of Scilly had passed but another one was on its way across the Atlantic.   It was forecast to split up over Biscay with half of it hitting Cornwall and southern Ireland the other hitting Brittany with predicted winds of 40 knots plus. Our choice was to either head READ MORE

All hopes of visiting the Isles of Scilly were abandoned due to a continuous westerly wind and two storms hitting the UK from the Atlantic and so we agreed, let’s head straight to France … We set off from Plymouth at midday and headed out through the Sound. Four hours later the last sight of READ MORE

As described in a previous post, jobs on this vessel have a clear and unarguable division of labour and simply labelled ‘Blue jobs and Pink Jobs”.  In summary ‘Blue Jobs’ often involve a whiff of some description and are instantly allocated to me whilst ‘Pink jobs’ are Nina’s department. Let us all agree that sometimes, READ MORE

Chichester Marina lock gates opened letting saltwater flow past the hull for the first time in months.   On departure the lock keepers always enquire when you will be returning in order to avoid overcrowding when the tide changes and everyone wants to come back.   He stood confidently, armed with his clipboard and pen poised. I READ MORE

In order to preserve the fragility of a boat owner’s sanity, it’s important to work hard at reducing your ‘To do’ list so it resembles something manageable. The key word being ‘reduce’.    I have often used the phrase that boats are ‘on going projects’ and so I’m under no illusion that the list will ever READ MORE

Covid and Brexit regulations require that all arrivals by sea are reported immediately to Her Majesties Border Force to ensure that no illegal persons or goods are entering the UK.   It is therefore now the duty of all skippers to contact this highly professional and pro-active 24hr organisation whom I had been informed were likely READ MORE

The morning of the 7th July saw us through the Barrage Lock at Arzal which marked LJ’s return to sea water.  We waved goodbye to Nina, who was driving our car home via Caen, whilst Richard and I sat waiting for sufficient tide to exit the river. With no Radar, very little in the way READ MORE

She lives. Although the key turned in the lock with some confidence, the hatch doors remained firmly stuck until yielding following a good shove which presented access to the gloom of the saloon. Having left the blinds down and the hatches covered we peered into the dark, not knowing if we were to be faced READ MORE