Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2019 i Yachting Monthly

Cruising sailors are a fiercely independent lot on the whole. Setting sail is our chance to get away from the strictures of shoreside bureaucracy and the demands of anyone but the sea itself. So how does the idea of sharing your boat strike you? I’ve always dreamed of owning my own boat. I’m not quite sure why, but even sailing my parents’ boat didn’t quite hit the spot. Being solely responsible for my vessel and free to tinker as I wish is an oddly satisfying sensation now that there’s a boat registered in my name. Questions of whether I’m using the boat enough to justify the cost, or keeping up with the maintenance do crop up, however. While I love the boat being mine, the idea of splitting the maintenance…

UK boatbuilders are reporting a rise in profits due to increased demand from overseas customers. Trade organisation British Marine has announced that year-on-year revenue increased by 21.3% in 2018 to a turnover of £777 million, with 65% of new boats going overseas. This comes as British Marine reports that business confidence in the UK’s marine industry is declining due to economic uncertainty. Just 10% of British Marine members responded to its Marine Industry Trends November 2018-June 2019 survey. Findings suggest that domestically focused UK businesses continue to experience flat markets. New and used boat sales domestically have ‘struggled’, with reduced stock partly due to increased overseas sales. Prices in the charter market have ‘dropped significantly’ to attract customers, although firms are reporting revenue increases. The managing director of flotilla and…

Never miss another issue of Yachting Monthly by taking out a subscription to Britain’s top cruising magazine. Published 13 times a year, each issue features the latest boats, new gear, expert knowledge, including practical sailing skills, cruising destinations and inspiring stories from sailors in the UK and around the world. Yachting Monthly editor, Theo Stocker, said, ‘Yachting Monthly is packed full of amazing stories, gear and skills every month, and a subscription means you don’t miss anything, as well as saving you money.’ Save 35% with a six-month rolling subscription for just £22.49. iPad and iPhone subscriptions are also available. Find out more at: www.yachtingmonthly.com/subscriptions/yachting-monthly-subscriptions…

The early morning sunshine was already warm enough for short sleeves and as I waited for the kettle to boil I climbed out into the cockpit of my 25ft gaffer Betty II to witness an RNLI inshore RIB passing by. I didn’t envy the two lifeboatmen trussed up in full foulies, welly boots and crash helmets as they motored into the landing stage. They must have been sweltering. There was a third figure aboard wearing just a polo shirt and jockey cap. After tea my crew, Nigel Manning, and I rowed ashore to indulge in a hotel breakfast. The lifeboat was now coming away from the pontoon minus its passenger. ‘Morning,’ I said cheerfully. ‘Have you got lifejackets on board?’ came the businesslike response. Irritated, I said: ‘No’ perhaps foolishly,…

We needed to get into Horta in the Azores as soon as possible. The message on our Garmin InReach read: ‘There’s a low forming north of you, and if you don’t get in by Sunday morning, you could experience gale-force winds of 50-60 knots.’ We were 300 miles from Faial and had less than 48 hours before the low was predicted to arrive. From our calculations, we’d have to make at least 6.5-7 knots the entire way to make it on time. Crossing the Atlantic from west to east is considered a testing route, especially as the weather can be varied. It proved challenging for us, with gear problems including a jammed headsail, which we had to cut away, and a failed generator, which saw us enforce water rationing –…

Q I’ve got a 1979 Jaguar 25 which had a fairly old Dacron mainsail when I bought her seven years ago. I’m not sure of the age of the sail but I think it might be quite tired now. I’m aware that sails stretch over time and that will have an adverse effect on my sailing. I’m now considering buying a new sail but will it really make a big difference? I only do short coastal cruising and am not looking to set the world alight. Is a new sail really the best option or will re-cutting hold off the inevitable? Martin Thorpe A This is always a difficult call to make and I’m aware that a new mainsail will be a massive cost in comparison to boat price. In…

The yellow skins of the papayas caught my eye as a dugout canoe moved alongside us. Three Guna Indians, returning from harvesting papayas, coconuts and pineapples from their fields on the mainland, had clearly been curious about who had anchored next to their home island of Mamitupu, with its golden sand and palm-tree shade. They nodded to us as they inspected Eastern Stream’s hull and deck, and we decided it was time to go ashore. After beaching the dinghy, we were met by a villager who asked us to follow him to a small house. Inside were the chiefs of the village, the Sahilas, who officially welcomed us to Mamitupu and explained the rules. We were more then welcome to visit the island and look around, but the coconuts were…

It’s said that gentlemen don’t sail to windward, but what if that gentleman has already agreed to the voyage? The wind forecast for the South China Sea had arrows pointing towards me from Bawah Reserve in the Anambas Islands, 150 miles to the northeast of Singapore. Downwind, the passage would have been manageable, but upwind fair descriptions would be ‘not possible’ or ‘foolhardy’, but I’d sold my boat and agreed to deliver her. At only 28ft, Roo2 looked tiny in the marina, but the Esse 850 is a day boat well suited to the short distances, calm waters and light airs of Singapore. The first leg from Singapore had been perfect, a five-hour reach through the shipping lanes in a brisk wind to Nongsa in Indonesia. Leaving Singapore waters for…

1 Loosen the locking screw and then remove the propeller cone and bushings. Slide the propeller off and remove the drive rings and bushing behind it, making sure to clean out any mess behind. Use a rag to remove all the old oil so you just have clean metal. 2 Check raw water intakes are free of fouling as these help cool the leg. Carefully remove any debris stuck in the holes. 3 It’s now time to drain the oil from the leg. Inside the boat, remove the sail drive dipstick to prevent suction, then unscrew the drain plug. If this has been painted over, it may require some force – a screwdriver on which you can use a spanner will help give you that leverage if needed. 4 Boatyards…

With Italian styling, the Oceanis 37 offered improved comfort and better performance over its predecessor, the Clipper 373. Her freeboard is not excessive and her low coachroof melds neatly into her foredeck, giving her a sleek, contemporary look. Offered with a shoal or deep fin keel, her redesigned hull made her faster and more stable, while a high-aspect rudder improved grip on the water. Much thought went into the design of her spacious cockpit, which provides a combined gas locker and dedicated life raft stowage under the quarter seat. There are two shallow seat lockers and one quarter locker in the three-cabin model, but an additional deep locker in the two-cabin boat. A stout cockpit table provides bodily support when heeled, especially its integral foot bar, and access around the…

The owners of Holyhead Marina have unveiled plans to build a permanent sea wall to protect the marina from northeasterly storms. The proposal comes 18 months after Storm Emma hit the north Wales marina in March 2018 causing widespread destruction. Around 80 boats were sunk and pontoons and the floating breakwater were also damaged. Pollution from the wreckage affected miles of Anglesey’s coastline, with tonnes of polystyrene from the pontoons cleaned from nearby beaches, along with 2,750 litres of oil. The marina is still not operating at full capacity. The Welsh Government pledged £100,000 towards the cost of the clean up. Holyhead’s owners said it had ‘looked at the lessons’ of Storm Emma, adding that a 50m sea wall would provide 24-hour access to the marina in all weathers. The…

Thanks to our determined push to Chesapeake from the Bahamas we made our daughter’s wonderful wedding on time. Cornwall, as ever, embraced us with fun, friendship and family. I was also able to nail a tonne of work to top up the cruising cash sack. A fantastic but brutal schedule returned us to America exhausted and in need of what turned out to be an elusive rest. We wanted to get on the move and try to catch up some cruising time poached by our extended visit home. We landed at 2100 and as the sun rose the next morning, we found ourselves under the good ship Pearl as we prepared for launch. Pearl was floating by 1030 that morning, a record. It was at this point that we crashed…

Send your questions to our experts at yachtingmonthly@ti-media.com for the chance to win a bottle of Chilgrove gin Keep watch It might seem overkill to be considering a watch system plan on a relatively short trip but it is worth considering even if it is only a backup. Something we see happen quite a bit is people will set out on a short trip, miss a tidal gate or not get the weather they were expecting or was forecast and that suddenly becomes a much longer journey. It doesn’t take much for a simple four- or five-hour trip to become much longer than planned. We’ve all taken on a bit too much or stayed at the helm a little too long and before you realise it you can become seriously exhausted.…

Many yacht owners would like to keep their boat somewhere where the sailing season is longer and the climate more agreeable, and the most popular choice for UK owners is the Mediterranean. The problem is it’s timeconsuming to get the boat down there and expensive to keep her there. This is where a boat partnership can come into its own. Splitting the ownership of a yacht into shares will enable you to buy a bigger boat, share the delivery trip to get her there and allow you to keep her in a mutually convenient marina berth all year round. Maintenance costs are also divided up and dramatically reduced. FORMING A SYNDICATE There are several ways to achieve a boat share syndicate. If you have a friend or two interested in…

There are no marinas on the rivers Ore and Alde. If your getaway happiness depends on shore power plug-ins, laundry facilities and step-aboard access, these Suffolk rivers are not for you. Their beauty stems, in part, from a sense of secretiveness – you’re never quite sure what’s over the seawall or round the next withy; is it a breeding site for avocets or a world famous concert hall? The soon-to-be-demolished Orfordness Lighthouse pops up on the horizon from disconcertingly unexpected angles. ‘Still here!’ it insists, having been decommissioned by Trinity House in 2013. That’s worth a visit and, when one begins to list the Ore and Alde attractions – extraordinary scenery, fine food, history, culture, nature, intricate navigation, exhilarating sailing – a five-star tourist brochure begins to write itself. The…

Abandoned wreck to Cowes Week success Students at London’s Greig City Academy first saw the E-boat 22, Eros, rotting in a car park. Having bought the yacht for £100, they spent six months restoring her before refining their racing techniques aboard Eros. Their first race was the Round the Island Race, and now, they’ve won the IRC trophy for Classes 5,6 and 7 in the Saturday Town race at Cowes Week. Unlike Greig’s other crews on the academy’s German Frers 45, Scaramouche, and the X55, Lutine, the crew of Eros didn’t have a coach, and were skippered by 18-year-olds Azat Ulutas and Seun Williams, who have both progressed through the state school’s sailing programme. They had also just completed the 2019 Rolex Fastnet Race on Scaramouche, which didn’t give them…

No shaft seal can work trouble-free if the engine is out of alignment. Alignment should be checked any time rope, netting or a plastic bag binds hard on the propeller, and after any work on the drive train. Alignment is best done with the vessel at rest in the water. Alignment is not difficult, but does require careful work and patience. Small changes to engine height on each engine mount, and notes, helps avoid making alignment worse. If in doubt, this is one procedure that is probably better tackled by a marine mechanic. TRADITIONAL STUFFING BOXES These need regular inspection and adjustment. Check the condition of the heavy rubber hose and the hose clamps. The hose is subject to rotational stress (caused by the friction of the packing on the…

The Legend 36 is a family cruiser with similar interior volume to many 40-footers. She is solid GRP below the waterline with Kevlar around the keel and bows, while the topsides and deck are balsa-cored. She was available with shoal/deep fin or twin keels. The Legends’ wide cockpit and unusual Bergstrom & Ridder (B&R) backstay-less rigs were initially treated with suspicion in Europe but were soon proved to be reliable. Despite having high topsides, clever coachroof styling enables generous headroom without her looking top-heavy. Despite having only two double cabins, generous beam and high topsides provide an airy saloon. The galley boasts a wide worktop, fridge, and pressurised hot water. The aft cabin transverse berth measures 2.0m x 1.5m (6ft 7in x 5ft) with standing space, lockers and a hatch,…

The Bavaria 37 Cruiser has been around for many years now in various guises and has proved a very popular boat for the Med, both for chartering and private use. Its timeless styling, with low coachroof, beamy hull and retroussé stern still looks good today and many have withstood serious charter mistreatment, proving the standard of build is high. She has a deep fin keel, high aspect balanced spade rudder and shallow underwater lines, making her a swift and precise performer under sail and power. Below the layout is open, light and airy. The joinery is neat and plenty of solid wood gives her a warm feel. She came with two or three cabins, the former having a larger aft cabin, a full-depth cockpit locker and a large heads aft.…

Around 135 jobs are to be axed by the RNLI due to a funding shortfall. Most of the job losses will be at its Poole Headquarters. A period of consultation with staff is underway. The RNLI’s chief executive, Mark Dowie, said the charity had to become ‘more efficient’ and it would be focusing on its ‘frontline services’. ‘We have a shortfall in funds, but more people than ever need our help. It’s a perfect storm,’ he said. In 2018, the RNLI saw a £28.6 million drop in its financial resources including an £8.5 million fall in its legacy income and a £10.1 million drop in its investments. At the same time the RNLI spent an extra £4.5 million on crew equipment, training and support. There was also an increase in…

The triumphant return of Jeanne Socrates after her solo circumnavigation provoked all the usual marvelling exclamations – wasn’t she lonely? frightened, ever? how did she carry enough stores? and how amazing that she set out for the third time aged 76 after recovering from several broken bones… It was marvel upon marvel, especially for non-sailors who don’t meet as many doughty cruising women as we do, and imagine all solo yachtswomen are bronzed young professionals with trimarans and satellite links to sleep-coaches. But for me, as usual with such voyages, the marvel was admiring her at-sea maintenance. Read the blog (www.svnereida.com) and like all such accounts it tells – alongside cheerful stuff about whales and frightening stuff about storms – a catalogue of mending, carpentering, wiring, contrapting and sewing. Three…

Sailing yachts are designed to sail and motorboats to motor, right? And never the twain shall interbreed – at least not successfully? This hasn’t stopped people trying. Motor-sailers have always been around. More recently we have also seen the planing power-sailer, as epitomised by the phenomenally successful MacGregor 26. Some might argue that power-sailers, like motorsailers, have been compromises that neither motor nor sail particularly well. But whatever your views, the fact is that now, nearly 25 years after the power-sailing version of the MacGregor (the MacGregor 26X) appeared, we have a British-built boat of similar size that will motor efficiently and comfortably at 15 knots without compromise to its sailing ability. So how has this been achieved, and what lessons have been learned from the attempts of earlier builders?…

A dream boat, whatever shape yours takes, is by definition just out of reach. Even if you are lucky enough to own your fantasy boat, the chances are the cost-benefit balance is always under review as the practicalities of life, work and family limit time on the water. Besides traditional syndicates, numerous options are springing up to help owners share the burden, reduce the cost, and still get out on the water. In acknowledgment of the growing appetite for shared ownership yachts, British yacht broker Ancasta has launched what it says is a new concept of shared-ownership yacht buying. In essence, it facilitates and manages the whole process, from the creation of syndicates with up to four owners and the purchase of the new yacht, to administering its use and…

The Out Skerries lie to the east of the main Shetland archipelago; an isolated cluster of rocks with only two inhabited islands. The name stems from the Norse for the Eastern Isles, and indeed, with Norway just 200 miles away, Bergen is closer than Inverness. Think north; and then go north again, and veer a bit east, and you’ll find this sparsely inhabited, 2 square mile of rock and pasture. So why visit? Apart from the obvious and trite ‘because it’s there’, Skerries’ dramatic scenery is steeped in history, offers sightings of rare plants and birds, and is a sea life paradise. For skippers, Skerries proffers a secure haven and several anchorages. It is both a convenient stopover for those heading north from Lerwick to round Muckle Flugga, as well…

For as long as I can remember I have wanted to sail around Ireland, headland by headland. The ambition soon became a reality when John McQuaid and I joint-purchased our Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 349, Scoundrel, in early 2017. A shake down cruise to West Cork later, and we were ready to sail clockwise around Ireland. We decided to split the voyage into two parts. The first passage was a non-stop 275-mile voyage from our home port, Dún Laoghaire, south of Dublin to Dingle during the last weekend of June. We would then rejoin the boat in Dingle a few weeks later to continue with daily passages up the Atlantic coast, around the top of Ireland into the North Channel and then back down the Irish Sea to home. John’s son,…

The season draws to an end, and whether laying up for winter or not, thoughts turn to the annual engine service and getting the boat ready for a period of reduced activity. For most of us this will include an engine service, whether you do it yourself or pay someone to do it for you, changing the oil, impeller and filters is all part of the annual cycle. But how much attention do you really pay to your stern gear? This all-important connection between your engine and the world outside of the hull is crucial, not only for ensuring your engine can provide smooth, reliable thrust for when motoring, but it also provides a critical watertight seal for one of the largest holes in the hull. Saildrives and shaft drives…

The 370 was Hanse’s most popular cruising yacht, updated and restyled to the 375 incorporating a different deck and twin helms. Both have high freeboard, offset by a sleek coachroof. A long waterline, shallow underwater sections and ample beam make her an impressive performer under sail. Weight is minimised by balsa-core above the waterline and hull stiffness ensured by encapsulated foam stringers and beams. The two-cabin layout has a larger aft berth, leaving the remainder as stowage. The alternative was two identically sized aft cabins. The forecabin has a roomy vee-berth, ample floor space and two large lockers. Opposite the U-shaped saloon dinette is a chart/coffee table between two seats. She has a large galley with ample worktop and stowage, twin sinks, fridge and a fullsize gimballed cooker/oven. Her moulded…