Back Aboard!

Greetings Family and Friends!

Here we are back in England, enjoying some adventures ashore as we prepare for our summer sail in the North Sea and the Baltic: we plan to visit Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Holland.

When we arrived in Woodbridge on Friday June 5 we found that Adventuress had weathered very well her winter rest in the Tide Mill Yacht Harbour. The car also had not done too badly: a flat battery and two flat tyres were soon fixed: then we had to have her insured, inspected and licensed.  

             An old but reliable good 'un  - no, not John, the car!

As soon as the car was ready to go we headed to Northampton to see Dad and celebrate his 90^th birthday.  A group of 60 family and friends celebrated in the community room at St. Crispen’s Village where Dad resides.  John arranged for a special surprise…a Scottish bag piper to celebrate Dad’s half Scottish heritage! 

We returned to Adventuress to begin the process of recomissioning….installing the sails, canvas and running rigging; and checking every system on the boat.  And of course we had to test some food and wines ahead of provisioning for our summer cruise.

Lamb chops seasoned with mint, sautéed in the griddle pan with peppers and mushrooms.

The Tide Mill Yacht Harbour is approximately 10 miles up the Deben River which is narrow and mostly dries out at low tide.  At low tide the marina is kept full of water by a dam called a “sill” across its narrow entrance.  The 10 foot tide range allows 6 feet clearance above the sill at high tide.  At low tide 4 feet of the sill is exposed on the river side and there is sufficient water remaining in the marina to float the boats (dredged to 8 feet).  It’s a perfect place to park Adventuress for the winter and the best advantage is that it’s in the heart of the scenic town of Woodbridge: so there are many amenities within walking distance of the marina.

                   View of the harbor at mid-tide




n                            And here's the Tide Mill....




                                 ...with the river Deben looking South





Admiral Nancy getting ready to go up this mast and put some varnish on it!




Here's a sail boat coming into the marina with the tide two thirds in: she must draw only about four feet as that white marker post is showing just 1.3 metres of water above the marina's dam.

When Adventuress was ready to leave the marina, John arranged  to satisfy the European Union red tape bureaucrats - to be tested by an instructor to see if he knew how to sail!  and be awarded the various certifications needed to sail in Europe and on the inland waterways (Europe does not recognize the US Coast Guard 6 Captain’s certificate).  The instructor was with us when we left the marina.  Within 10 minutes when we were at the narrowest bit of the channel, the hot engine alarm sounded, the engine was indeed overheated, and we were forced to turn off the engine.  Within minutes we were aground in mud on the ebbing tide and we spent the next 12 hours waiting for the tide to come back in. The good news was that John passed and received all three certificates! Even better news was that as the tide went out and we were left high and muddy in the middle of the river, our heavy full keel sank about 30 inches into the soft Deben mud: and so instead of falling over to maybe 40 degrees from vertical, we leaned over a very acceptable15 degrees.  Here are some interesting pictures:

      Well and truly sunk into the mud...note the cluster of mussels
       around the cutlass bearing

 

                                      Hard a Mud!

While we sat in the mud, John was able to troubleshoot the engine and solve the problem. 

So three days later we left the Deben River and sailed a short distance to the Orwell River to be hauled at Shotley Marina.  The bottom paint was in excellent shape after three years of sailing so only a short haul was necessary: thank you Trinadad SR. 

On July 4th we sailed down tide 45 miles to Lowestoft to shake down any problems: none found and a lovely downwind sail averaging 7+ knots.  We found a berth for Adventuress in the Royal Norfolk and Suffolk Yacht Club: we squeezed our 14 feet 3inches beam into a slip just 15 feet wide!

This week we should find a window to sail the 110 miles over the North Sea to Amsterdam and meet up with friends Willem and Annehei on S/V Meerlust: and in company with them cruise the Ijsselmeer and Waddenzee, with Willem as our splendid local Dutch tour guide!   Then we plan to cross the North Sea to Norway, staging at Den Helder, at the top of Holland.

            Basking in gentle evening sunshine in Woodbridge, and John smoking a Churchillian cigar.

                                                Posted 5th July 2015 from Lowestoft