Pearshaped again

Our wind generator has died. Again. It did not seem to be working properly from the start as it was not switching off when the battery was charged but instead winding up to 16+ volts. Battery frying stuff. Now it is in both Charge and Brake mode and doing neither. We've dismantled the 3 way switch and bypassed it but no go so it's internal somewhere. We are thinking of going into Gibraltar. G or I, could you possibly ring Keith or Nigel at Greenham Regis at Shamrock Quay Southampton and ask if they would be able to send us a new one to Gib plus a new 3 way switch and the wiring? Don't need blades. If they can, it seems to be the best option. We probably have enough diesel to charge, make water etc to Cape Town but not really sensible. Shades of the Falklands last time.

Or we could turn around and slog back into wind. 'orrible idea.

I'll try to get the satphone cranked up and call you in a couple of days but please also email to the sailmail address.

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A pretty red prawn net

An interesting 36 hours, in the Chinese sense. As some of you will know, Pete is taking things a bit easy for a few days - resting, one might say, on his rather colourful laurel and Muggins is the bod in charge of Doing Stuff. Three reefs and the pole more or less routine, though knackering but I've just spent the last couple of hours trying to get the new sail set up to twin pole. There are 6 bits of string coming out the front of Berri's mast and 4 from the back. Then there are sheets and downhauls to control the pole and each sail. All of these must be sorted so that when it goes up, the sail is not fouled around any of them and it flies free with its sheet, halyard, downhaul and topping lift correctly led. There is so much power in even a small sail like this that the consequences of one foul lead can be very messy. I started from scratch on a heaving deck with water washing across and trying to manage a harness and tether at the same time (for you lot at Crosshaven, as per promise!) Anyone who has tried it will know just how complicated, frustrating and difficult this can be.

Long story - so I got it all sorted which took about an hour of very intense endeavour and brought up the sail (modified, David C, as you suggested - how good is that!). Got it all connected to its bits of string and its pole, set up the boat to run downwind on the other poled out sail to cut down the apparent wind and - gulp - hoisted it. Foolishly, I hoisted from the mast because when, inevitably, it got away from me and unrolled itself, I had no control over it cos no turn on a winch. Boat doing 5 knots, sail pretending to be a thrashing prawn net in the water, Muggins cursing and pulling it in bit by bit and re-bagging it, but no longer neatly rolled so no chance of an immediate second go.

At this point, after clearing away pole and attendant clobber, engaged in Long Consultation with Wendy's Friend from the Liffey and reconsidered. First, the sail must be woolled just like a kite but second - why ever did I try to put it up with the pole and all the clobber already rigged? Upped the complication by a power of 10. Should have just thrown it up and got it properly tensioned and then set up the clobber and unfurled it.

A rest and another go and I'll get it right. Immensely useful but frustrating - you really learn when you have to do it yourself and get it right first time.

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4903N 00546W

About 70 miles down the track, just north of the separation zone. 2 reefs and poled out headsail and lumpy.

I got to Falmouth in early May and Gordy and other mates and I did huminomungous work on the old barge, startring with clearing the grass and dead leaves out of the cockpit and we launched her a week or so later to find all the other fixes that were needed - including the gearbox and the generator and the nav lights - all very expensive but essential. And Crosshaven and the Fastnet interspersed with weeks in Falmouth's rather grimy harbour gathering slime and grot.
which leads me to the surge of joy Berri and I and probably Pete feel now that we're actually off and the slime and grot is washing off and the old barge is alive again. About 2 tons heavier than for the Fastnet and every nook packed with stuff. My joy tempered with a bit of quease and some well polished apprehension - the more I do, the more polish it gets. Interesting. More on this later - seems it's quite common. But I need a GRIB

And I wish, oh I wish that I understood what regulators regulate and how they do it.

PS Already USB gadget is misbehaving. Just tried to send and Airmailk crashed. I shall have to resurrect all those Ps - patience, perseverance...

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Wide Blue Yonder

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Falmouth Farewell : Crew and Well Wishers Assemble

Falmouth Farewell: A Sister Inspects

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Past The Manacles

We left as intended at 0630 UTC with lovely send off. Out into lumpy wind against tide English channel with the new sail up for the first bit. Pics from Isabella in due course. Good NE breeze and we're heading west of the Ushant separation zone. Berri very heavy and sluggish but we're still making 7+ knots. Boat a bit of a mess while we get things sorted - I'll try to send this then big sort out.

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Caroline's photos

These images were sent to me (Alex's sister, Isabella) by Caroline G
who went down to Falmouth this week and took the photos. They show the
new sail made for Berrimilla in Falmouth.

Not today after all

Small hitch and we decided to postpone departure for a day. ETD now 0630 UTC  tomorrow, September 11th. Isabella and Graham are planning to be on Pendennis Point under Henry's castle so there will be some 'there they go' photos on these blogs shortly, just to prove it really happened. We will perhaps be able to fly the new red sail for the record. Sorry we couldn't get you to make it, Brian - just a bridge too far.

Pete says thanks for all the Gustbook birthday wishes

Happy Birthday Pete and other stuff

Tomorrow is Pete's burf. Happys, boyo!

And we are go for departure on Thursday morning barring the absolutely pearshaped. We've got a new experimental (for Berri anyway) downwind furling headsail - put it up today and it just might work. Photos when Caroline downloads - Thanks Carol and huge that you came all that way with a hot water bottle and your favourite plastic Dr G's bottle for us.

Thanks for  your messages all y'all. TellyKelly, good to have you in the mosh pit with the rest of the mob. K, L and the DD - watch for our red sail and madly waving old farts in imaginary dreamboat.

From tomorrow we'll be back to the idiosyncrasies of HF radio and sailmail so these posts will arrive whenever...

We love youse all.

How it used to be done

Couldn't resist this - don't know what it's called but a sort of coracle - wooden frame with leather or fabric skin, thole pins and rough oars and a shrimp net (made of nylon...) to feed the family.

Pot of gold?

Yesterday morning in Falmouth - looking East from Berri's cockpit and still raining and blowing about 25 kts. Lots of interesting detail - pick the 'man' overboard, complete with run for life medal, the square rigger, the old workboat, the Fosters logo and heaps more. Gerry, if you're out there, the Pilot boat, which is usually in the berth across the jetty, has a permanently rigged MOB system - a small crane with a winch and a scoop which looks like a very wide roll-up ladder with closely spaced rungs.  Hence the 'man'.

Berri now almost loaded - she's about 2 tons heavier than for the Fastnet judging by the new  waterline. We did a huge shopping trip this morning and that all needs to be packed into all the little odd shaped spaces and wedged in.  But the weather in Biscay is still iffy http://www.passageweather.com/ but is predicted to improve mightily next week so, unless things change we intend to leave on Sept 10, which happens to be the day after Pete's birthday and the 4th anniversary of a little swim in the Atlantic off the Cape Verdes.

We are looking seriously at the possibility of going home via South Georgia - a must-visit-once-in-a-lifetime place. Will depend on the weather patterns when we hit the southern hemisphere, but if we do get down that far, it also puts the Kerguelens more or less in range if the Examiner is sloppy.

Tomorrow I will be handing on all my NW/NE passage data, Admiralty Pilots etc to an old friend from way way back who is thinking of having a go. I'll get 'em back if we decide ever to try again with the Russians.

Sue, Z is cool - enjoy the cruise. Naramas - go well. STS 128 yay!

Test

Testing new blog address.

My favourite pub and a windy day near Hurst Castle.

Barnacle baffle

We lifted Berri in the slings for an hour this morning in the drizzle and bleah. 'Orrible! Stuck a venturi onto each of the cockpit drain outlets - the originals had all fallen off and they really do make a difference. And a clamp around the anode. And put some antifoul under the counter - whole new look, not noticeable when Berri launched again unless you look closely but obvious and a bit daunting - I hope - to the relatives of all the barnacles we took to Hobart from here last time. That's the top pic.

And it's all winding up. I'm off to Hamble tomoz to collect the (I hope) repaired wind generator and all the other stuff we left there to lighten Berri for the Fastnet and then we start sorting and loading all the gear in Jeremy's shed and Anne's lockup (150 cans of Murphys and a modicum of medicinal potion from a certain Cork distillery of Dry liquids).

And collect the Cape Town charts...

And buy lots of diesel and almost all of Tesco's and Asda...

And we'll go - perhaps 10 days or so to get it all done.

Some hair gel for Drake?

Seagull poo, for the biologically challenged, consists almost entirely of Araldite and cornflakes. Just try getting it off your decks. Sir Francis will need more than a haircut.

Back in Falmouth getting ready for the off. It was four years ago today that we set off last time, but then we had a pretty fierce deadline. This time, we are aiming to leave by September 7th at the latest. That should give us heaps of time. Berri is being lifted out of the water for a few hours on Saturday morning to attach a missing venturi to a cockpit drain and to apply copious antifoul under her counter to deter the Falmouth barnacles.

Then I have to drive back to Hamble to collect the repaired wind generator and some other stuff we left there in the interests of going fast and visit a few friends on the way who have helped us. Then lots of tedious loading, shopping, last minute fixes, goodbyes and we're away. The plan is Cape Town, but that's still in very wet concrete.

Sliding down the old picket fence

Pete noticed that we have achieved a remarkable coincidence of fencepost numbers by sailing in this Fastnet gig. In 2005 in Berri, we came 11th overall. This year we were 111th overall (What a backslide - should have retired when in front...) and 11th in the 2 handed division and 11th in class 3b. Is the examiner trying to tell us something?

We are still in Plymouth trying to get the nav light problem fixed. We think it is probably a defective circuit board in the LED light fitting at the masthead but it is an early version of the fitting and the later versions are not compatible so we have to wait until the local rigger can fit in a trip up the mast with the right tools to change the fitting. Should happen today. If so, back to Falmouth tomorrow. And some discussion with Aquasignal about their circuit boards.

Brian S - check your email - I'm getting non delivery messages...And thanks everyone for your messages - it's lovely to know that there are people out there still reading this guff.

An in-joke for the initiated but there's a new chapter for the HGTTG on the Survival of a subspecies of Pachycephalosaur in draft and ready for Proofreading and Due Process by the Consultant., the Surgeon, the Examiner and the Censor. A formidable team.

PS - nav light exchanged for new version and problem fixed. Now for the discussion with Aquasignal.

Finger trouble

This is Leopard. And one looking towards the Needles in the Solent.