Fjords and Rivers

This week has been a new experience in sailing in and around the Breton fjords (Abers) and the rivers that cut into the northern Breton coast.  The area is stunning, both in terms of beauty and capacity to stun... thousands of rocks just below the surface that play hide and seek with 30 foot tides and currents more powerful than our little 18 hp motor.

The Breton Fjord of Aber Wrac'h

Aber Wrac'h is the largest of the Breton fjords.  It's a paradise for small craft of all sorts (paddle boards, wind surfers, small catamarans) and, once nestled comfortably in the port after dodging the rocks, it's not so bad for us, either. 

Although Aber Wrac'h is a regular point of passage for sailboats in this area, I never expected to bump into my former post-doctoral research advisor from Paris in the marina showers !  We hadn't seen each other for over 4 years and almost didn't recognize each other.

Hood and Merlivat, 2013 (referenced like our scientific papers written together.)

The next stop was Roscoff.  With the recent weeks of exceptionally warm weather (yea !), the north wind brings fog.  Visibility was reduced to less than 200m.  I know this because the pass between the Ile de Batz and Roscoff is marked with many large channel buoys to help guide boats through this narrow passage and we barely saw any of them until we were right upon them.  When we entered the channel, visibility was good but a fog bank rolled in with startling rapidity and we were navigating virtually with MaxSea and the GPS plotter.  I was scanning the horizon with binoculars trying to see 15 meter channel markers that were 200 meters in front of us.  None of us had ever visited the new marina in Roscoff and even after tying up to the dock, we still hadn't seen it.  But the fog cleared later and we took a walk out to the coast to see the passage we hadn't seen while sailing through it.  This is, I hope, an experience not to be repeated.

Following friends through fog and rocks...

The passage between Batz Island and Roscoff seen at low tide.

The next stop was the bay of Morlaix and navigating down the river to the medieval town.  The river navigation was a bit harrowing as well, since the whole river area dries at low tide.  With 7 meters of tide, we had only 2 meters of clearance in some areas. 

Scenes from Morlaix Bay

Scenes from Morlaix Bay.

Motor-sailing in the river to Morlaix.

The town was charming and the local supermarket is managed by a retired merchant mariner who delivers groceries free of charge to boats in the marina.  We took full advantage of this kind service and loaded up for a few days.

The port is behind a loch that keeps the water levels constant.  On leaving Morlaix, we were following our large friend (Moody 38) through the river and noticed that he was stopped dead in the water with his motor churning up lots of water.  We slammed into reverse ourselves (although in retrospect we should have continued full throttle and gone around him).  He had been stuck in the mud but thanks to his 50 hp he managed to get out.  We were not so lucky.  Our little 18 hp motor coughed and putt-putted its best, but we were stuck.  We tried all the regular tricks...rocking the boat back and forth, etc., with no success.  Another boat (smaller than us) tried to help us and gave up, fearing that they would get stuck too.  Our friends went to a larger area further down the river, turned around, and came back to pull us out.  Quite a morning.  We lost about 40 minutes doing all this, which put is in a tight situation for reaching our next destination of Trebeurden before the tide got too low, so we decided to tuck back into Roscoff, where, as I have formerly noted, they have excellent internet connections.

Going through the Morlaix lochs.

Morlaix lochs.

Every day it's the same old thing:  learn, learn, learn.  Most recent lessons:  1.  It's important to have 2 computers on board, just in case.  And we don't.  Our computer had a little temper tantrum yesterday and left us a bit blind.  Our GPS tracer can be called on in a pinch, but it's much less precise and doesn't provide information about tides and currents.  Of course I can calculate all that by hand, but it takes much longer.  2.  As with many things in life, it's easier to get into something than out of it.  On several occassions we thought about ducking into a river port, but they are oriented in such a way that it would have been very difficult to get out the next day with winds and currents in the nose.

Today the winds are Beaufort 5-6 with gusts and possible thunderstorms later, so we're hanging out in Roscoff doing odd jobs on the boat, cleaning, and preparing for a big hop tomorrow to Guernesey in the Channel Islands.  It will be a very long day - we plan to leave at sunrise around 6:30 and hope to arrive before 9 pm.
  

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Postcard from Land's End

With temps in the 80s (27 C), winds Beaufort 3-4, and "insignificant swell" we decided to really head north this time, around the French Land's End point (Finisterre) up to the Channel Islands, and possibly to Cornwall and the Scilly Islands if time and weather permit.  We are sailing with another boat (Moody 38) and taking advantage of having an experienced skipper lead us up and around some of the most complicated sailing areas of Europe.

This is also a good thing in that it's pushing us to do longer passages than we normally do if left to our own devices.  Our first day was 60 nautical miles from the Morbihan Gulf to Concarneau, where we met up with our friends.  We managed this in just under 10 hours, averaging more than 6 knots, thanks to our poled-out Genoa.

Poled-out Genoa... worked like a charm !

After a day of repairing (or rather, replacing) the wind speed indicator and recuperating with some beach time and a big ice cream, our 2nd leg of the cruise was 65 miles from Concarneau to Camaret around the Raz de Sein.  The guide book calls this 12 mile passage through a plateau of rocks "delicate", with violent currents of up to 6 knots that can kick up dangerous swells in wind-over-current conditions.  Fortunately we had quite calm conditions and it went smoothly.  We kept with tradition and drank a small shot of rum as we lined up the two light houses, the Vielle and La Plate.

The "rum" line: lining up the Vielle and the Plate lighthouses to enter into the Iroise sea.

Patrick, however, refused to participate in protest of the fact that we had to use a bit of motor to round the point (directly into the wind, of course) and to keep up with our friends who have the advantage of a 50 hp motor to push their 12.5 tonnes of boat.

Today we are nestled in the little Breton fjord of Aber Wrac'h, a beautiful estuarty with free internet.  I even managed a skype home to Florida.

New wind speed indicator from the top of the mast overlooking Concarneau.

Spray as seen from the top of the mast at 13.4 meters.

Lessons learned:  1)  for longer destination-type voyages, it's important to leave earlier than you think you need to.  To make it through some of these "delicate" passages, you have to arrive at the right time.  You can always slow down but you can't always speed up.  (Especially if you have a whimpy little 18 hp motor with a folding 2 blade propellor pushing a 34 foot boat.)  2) Sometimes going against a weak current is preferable to wind-over-current conditions.  It takes some experience to know how much wind-over-current is acceptable in certain passages.  We are very thankful to be following experienced friends !

Following a more experienced skipper:  highly recommended for the first time around northern Brittany !

Some scenes from the road:

Rugged coastline of northern Brittany.

Arriving at Camaret.

Bastille Day fireworks over the port.

Four channel lighthouse.

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Week 3: Family Sailing

This week, Patrick’s daughter decided to take a break from her job as a nurse in a psychiatric clinic to babysit her crazy father on Spray.  It was her first time sailing and despite the initial anxiety when we informed her there was no hot water or shower on board, she had a great time.  She experienced cold rain, hot sun, the thrill of gliding over the water on an ever-so-slightly heeled-over boat, short-tacking through narrow channels, long smooth passages across the bay, and a wee bit of seasickness.

An enthusiastic beginning !

 

...that rapidly gave way to sea sickness.

 

Biking on Ile aux Moines

Hiking on Hoedic and Houat islands

Island colors

Even some water time ! (water temp: a bracing 16 C / 61 F)

And a bit of sailing between the islands.

For the weekend, we were joined by Solene's cousin and friend.  We've never had 5 people on the boat !

Summer sailing essentials:  the solar shower and the bimini (sun shade for cockpit).

As for Patrick and myself, this week has reminded us why we wanted a boat in the first place.  After a devastating winter and more than our share of problems with the boat, we’re finally enjoying it all.  Now when Patrick talks about selling the boat, it's not in the context of a nervous break-down but with the idea of buying a bigger one.  He even made some offhand comment earlier today about selling the house and moving on board permanently.  I suggested we wait to see how the summer goes…

 

It was a long week, but a fun one.

We’re home for 48 hours and a crew change before heading off to…we don’t know yet.  Our plans are to spend the summer sailing with another boat (Alizé, a Moody 38) and we haven’t yet decided if we’re heading to northern Brittany-the Channel Islands-England-The Scilly Islands or down the French coast to northern Spain.  We were all eager to head to Spain but since the weather has been excellent for the last week, we haven’t ruled out heading north.  Stay tuned !

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What a difference a week makes

SUN !  For 3 straight days !!  In BRITTANY !!!   And with enough wind to sail, too.  Tears of joy welling up... 

Sunny cockpit lunch on Dumet Island (the pole of the continental hemisphere !)

Unfortunately, by the time the weather changed, we had abandoned the idea of heading north to Groix Island and the Glenans archipelago and instead headed south to the Guerande region, known for its salt marshes and sardine fisheries.  This has never been my favourite region, but having bikes on board changes everything.  We stayed a couple of days in ports that I had always considered to be quite dull, but with the bikes, we were able to ride along some spectacular coastal trails and really enjoyed our visit.  (But in my excitement over a sunny day of biking, I forgot my camera.)  We met up with friends also sailing in the area and spent some fun evenings together.  The recent appearance of the sun has even persuaded us to perhaps head north to the Channel Islands in July, following in the reassuring wake of a more experienced friend who has proposed forming a small flotilla.  But he also says that if the weather isn’t to our liking, we’ll put on the left-hand turn signal and head south instead.  Time (and the weather) will tell…

Now it’s home for three days of repairs (pilot, anemometer, new foot pump for the inflatable annex) and a quick crew change.  Patrick’s daughter will make her sailing debut with us next week, so we’re hoping the good weather continues.  

Sun also means laundry and drying out boat cushions.

Traffic jam:  Two in front, one along side, and 3 perpendicular to the one along side !  Good natured chaos.

Manoeuvering around a regatta.

Ever wonder what the inside of a foot pump looks like ?  Wonder no further...

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One week later...

The first week of our "summer" cruise was spent island hopping between cold raindrops, and now we're hunkered down waiting for a gale to pass over.  It's supposed to clear out by tomorrow morning, leaving cool temperatures behind (it was cool already).  The wind is screeching through the masts here in Port Haliguen with gusts up to 35 knots and 3-4 meter seas on the exposed side of the isthmus.  But we've got a great boat slip close to the port office, good internet and radio reception, great bike paths, a charming town with lots of restaurants, DVDs, two fully loaded kindles, and piping hot showers close by.  As we say, it's better than being at home (but only just).  We're comforting each other with fantasies of selling the boat and moving to Morocco...

Houat Island with visitor.

Low tide on Hoedic Island

Queen of the Citadelle, Belle Isle

Solstice moon, 11pm, still light enough to read outside.

No swimming, indeed...

Lovely bike path along the wild coast (if you remember to head downwind...).

Scene seen along the bike path.

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Count-down to Summer (?) Cruising

With 7 days left before we head off for 3 months (albeit with pit stops back home from time to time), we still have to rescue the ailing anemometer on top of the mast (and then put it back up again if it can be fixed), replace an awol radar reflector, pick up our life raft from its revision and reinstall it, replace the wire boom vang with a new spectra textile one, replace the lower port-side lifeline and stanchion, and load the boat with provisions and gear.  No sweat. 

Because it’s too friggin cold to sweat here !  (Today’s high 15 C / 59 F). Sheesh.

We’ll be sailing French nautical map 6990, from the Pointe de Penmarc’h to La Gironde, which is essentially the Atlantic coast of France, baba cool.  

French nautical chart 6990: Atlantic coast of France from Penmarch point to the Gironde river.

We may spill over the edges of the map a bit if we have good weather and feel motivated, but good ole 6990 is definitely our comfort zone.  We’ll hit all the islands (nine of the ten anyway) and hope for calm weather so we can spend most of our time in quiet moorings at anchor (free !). 

Are we excited?  Nope.  We’re exhausted.  And we’ve sailed the Atlantic coast of France before so the  voyage of discovery will be testing our own seamanship skills, and as always, testing our boat-repairing skills  (Gee, that sounds relaxing, doesn’t it?)  My goal is simply to finish the summer with more things fixed than broken, including ourselves.  I’m sure we’ll see things differently once we’ve tucked Spray away behind one of the islands and had a sunny, calm, relaxing few days.  Okay… it was probably too much throwing the “sunny” bit in to the mix, but one can dream.  Next report from the islands !  (or rather, the next port with an internet connection).

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3s and 8s

Threes and eights look a lot alike, especially when there’s a hole-punch over the number on a sticker telling you when your life raft is due for a revision and inspection.  I thought it was an 8 (August) and decided we should go ahead and send it for its 3 year check up before we head out this summer - ya know… to be ahead of the game.  It was, in fact, a 3 (March) and we have been sailing offshore with a expired inspection sticker for 2 months.  It’s still not clear to me what the penalty for that might be for sailboats, but one article we read suggested that the fine could be around $1000.  Anyhoo… sent the life raft to the shop and they tell us it will be ready before we head on out 16 June.  No offshore sailing for us until then.

In the meantime, we also realized that somewhere along the way our radar reflector tube jumped overboard.  That’s not too expensive to replace but it means yet another trip up the pole.  The weather also finally got above 15 C (barely) so I put 2 coats of anti-condensation paint in the 2 cabins.  So far, so good – a noticeable difference with the areas not painted.  And we painted the anchor to prevent it from leaving rust stains all over the deck.  We need to add a 2^nd coat, but will have to wait for drier weather.

Downpours, but at least without sleet for the return leg.

 We just returned from a very wet and blustery trip to Crouesty to get the refrigerator repaired.  During a gale-force gust with sleet on the way there (well of course it wasn’t forecast… they issued a special weather bulletin 15 minutes before we pulled out of port, and we always think we’re protected in the gulf and never listen to these anyway), our anemometer decided it was time to have a meltdown (or freeze up?).  After it dried out a bit, it seemed to be giving more reasonable results, but another bout of rain on the way home today sent it right around the bend again.  We’ll check all the simple things we can do ourselves, but it’s going to be difficult to find an electrician who deals in that type of anemometer and can test a head unit with our cables to identify where the problem is.  I’m all for doing without, myself.  I know where the wind is coming from and if the boat is healed over more than 25 degrees, it’s time to reduce sail, right?… what more do I need ?

During the rain and gusts, we discovered a great little hideaway behind one of the islands in the Gulf (Long Island, it's pretentiously called).  The water there is too deep for us to anchor but there were some moorings that were available and we nabbed one, following the strong recommendations of a neighbouring sailor in Crouesty who heard of our plans to pick up a mooring ball in another part of the Gulf.  We’re buying that man a drink the next time we see him.  The mooring was dead calm … not even the slightest chop slapping up against the hull during the night, which was a pretty impressive feat given that the winds were still gusty and we are in the period of strong tidal coefficient. 

Tucked away behind Long Island while the gales pass north.

Did I mention that we were barrelling down the Gulf at 9 knots SIDEWAYS on the way to Crouesty ?  (Tidal coefficient 97 out of 120 in an area with some of the strongest currents in Europe.)  Short-tacking across such a conveyor belt is no fun (or, rather, it could be fun in a smaller boat where you are not the owner.)  At one point, to keep wind in the head sail, I realized I would have to turn the boat backwards, so we just rolled it up and managed with the main sail (with 2 reefs). 

Now we’re home for awhile getting some work done on the house (yes, things fall apart with a house, too). The weather forecasters are saying that it’s going to be a cool, wet summer here.  We have (jokingly?) discussed putting the boat in dry dock and heading off to Morocco instead…

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Spring Cruise Report

After a rough and delayed start, we sailed off for our first big cruise on Spray on 3 May.  It was a cruise of firsts and of confidence building, which was sorely needed after a crushing winter and an endless string of repairs. 

Cruise Map

Total distance: 200 nautical miles, longest leg: 40 nM.  (Yes, we took our time…).

Down (red) and Back (blue) ... not the actual route but you get the idea.  Port stops in Houat Island, Piriac, Pornichet, Pornic, Noirmoutier Island, Yeu Island, Crouesty, and Berder Island.

Accomplishments:

Spent 13 days at sea, alone together. Happily !

Escaped the protected confines of the Quiberon Bay, visited some beautiful cruising areas and made it to our target destination of Ile d’Yeu.

Sailed an offshore passage > 15 nautical miles from land / harbour and out of sight of land  (okay, that’s happened before because of fog, but that doesn’t count.) 

Crossed the Loire River Estuary cargo channel, twice.  We scanned the horizon like two nervous meerkats, looking for cargo ships ready to barrel down on us. Thankfully, they were all at anchor in the waiting zone.

Got the AIS working (although it’s still quite finicky.)

Passing behind the cargos: reality to the left, AIS screen to the right (note: Red =  Spray and Blue = Cargos at anchor.  Not to scale !)

Entered 5 ports we’ve never visited with Spray, including one with a somewhat confusing swing gate.

The Piriac swing gate (a barrier to keep the water in the port at low tide.)  You can see the top of the gate just appearing.

Perfected our reefing techniques (because we had to with changing weather conditions).  One day of squalls, one half-day of dead calm, two days of gales.

Managed food and cooking on boat for 2 weeks successfully (only 3 restaurant stops). 

Tested our new folding bikes.  They take up a lot of space on the boat but we appreciated having them for shore visits.

Bikes and laundry drying under the pareo ... boat vacation !

Things that broke:

The refrigerator is dead.  It was on its last legs but we had hoped to keep poking it along for awhile longer. 

The wire cable of the boom vang jumped off its roller in the pulley attached to the boom and got wedged down between the roller and the side of the pulley.  It was easily put back in place but a few wires are now broken and bent.  The ship chandler told us that no one uses these wire cables anymore and suggested we replace it with textile (spectra). 

Boom vang pulley and cable ... to be replaced with spectra.

And we still have to resolve the stanchion and life line problem.

Incivilities:

We were plagued this cruise by several mysterious “incivilities.”  Before we left home port, we filled the refrigerator and plugged into shore power for a couple of hours while we made our final trips back and forth between boat and house.  When we returned, someone had unplugged our shore power cable and thrown it in the water !  It’s hard to imagine how it could be an accident.  We rinsed the cable thoroughly with fresh water and dried it as best we could.

We noticed that a spinnaker pulley has been stolen sometime in the last few weeks. 

And the most bizarre:  in one of the ports we visited, someone unscrewed the metal cap to our heating system exhaust pipe and left the cap sitting on the deck.  ???  Did they think it was the gas tank ?  We’re just thankful the cap didn’t end up in the water. 

  

On the whole:

It was a great experience and we were in no hurry to get home.  The cruise also gave us confidence for heading off for 2-3 months this summer.  But Patrick has begun asking himself if the enjoyment he gets from the boat is enough to compensate the stress and costs.  (My answer is, of course, YES, but then again, I’m not paying the bills.)  Time will tell…

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Parting Gift

Surely you didn’t think we could just sail away without incident? 

The stanchion after being rammed by a visiting boat.

A visiting sailor was surprised by a strong gust of wind as he tried to pull into the slip next to Spray.  His bow snagged one of our port-side stanchions and evidently gave it a pretty good shove before getting free.  Fortunately for us, he was honest about it and left all his coordinates with the harbour master.  

Life line took a bit of a beating as well.

This, coupled with bad weather and bad health have delayed our departure for a few days.  We made all the declarations with the insurance company, but it will take quite awhile before the local boatyard is free to assess the repair costs.  In the meantime, it’s nothing that will keep us from sailing.  No real harm done, but not a great way to start a trip.

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