Yacht Forum UK

Hi Rob! It was a bit of both really. The instructor showed me things when required, and not when not. And he continually assessed all people on the course. So long as we did 'OK' we got a 'course completion certificate'. Some people went on to then have an RYA examiner come and actually examine them...

Unfortunately our confidence wasn't up for sailing to Jersey and back for our sailing course, so we took the plane. But since doing the course, our perspectives have changed a little, and we're now seriously entertaining the idea of heading across to the Channel Islands before beginning to head east...

Pottered about in Plymouth Sound this weekend. Started with an overnight at Edgcombe - woke up realising we didn't have any oars, so, after a bit of a Dayskipper theory session, headed back to Plymouth for a quick trip to the chandlers, then back over to Edcombe for another night and a couple of wal...

Although we had to use the outboard the other day when our oars were stolen - it brought to my attention the fact that we haven't actually used it for almost a year until that point. We wait for the tide, and row everywhere. So, to help fund the purchase of a couple of sets of new oars, and to buy a...

Took a bit of a risk and headed to Fowey on thursday last week. Wind was forecast to be strong from the east for a few days, so would be difficult to return, but a window on Saturday looked possible. Turned out very well in fact. We had a bit of a slow sail over, taking over 5 hours, but got there w...

High wind and swell forecast curtailed any plans to go away this weekend, so I was left to potter about, finding and fixing things. A newish pastime for me, and one I enjoy very much :D (my previous experience with 'DIY' was not good, somehow on a boat it's different). -- When we bought Isabella, pa...

We've still not got our exploding battery charger sorted. They're still "hoping to replace it under warranty" but we've not had confirmation yet. Fingers are still crossed. As mentioned earlier, without it we are reliant on batteries for lighting and heating, so have to run the engine quit...

Eventful few days recently. My indecision about whether to buy a small suitcase generator or not may be concluded shortly as our "intelligent battery charger" stupidly blew up the other day - with smoke and popping sounds! It's back with the shop we bought it from, almost exactly 2 weeks a...

In my limited sailing experience, I've never heard of anyone doing this. Presumably such a thing would be quite expensive - and when you can just stick on a face-mask and swim under and have a look for free, perhaps not a lot of demand for such a service. BIG yachts though would be hard to swim unde...

We love going to the Yealm so much. Wonder how often we'd have to go before we got bored of it. Over a pint in the Swan on Saturday, we spoke about how it would be the perfect place to settle down and have kids in. Our sail over on friday evening looked like it was going to be one of our first night...

Fantastic - just had a brilliant 3 nights anchored off Cawsand! We headed across Plymouth Sound on friday afternoon at about 4pm. Took about an hour to make the approx 4nm journey. Not a lot of wind so we motored. Swell predictions and wind looked great for some peaceful waters to anchor in for a co...

The forecast for Sat/Sun was not fantastic, but I was itching to take the boat out for a trip. Saturday was set to be clear blue skies, but with chilly (sub zero) NE wind gusting to force 7. Sunday was set to be overcast with sleet/snow showers. I figured that if we sailed to the Yealm (about 7nm fr...

Hi John, welcome! Do you mean you're going to move onto a Westerly 33? What layout is it? As you're moving in at this time of year, heating and ventilation are the key issues you'll have to deal with apart from the general getting used to living in a small space. If you're planning to heat with heat...

Wow it's cold! We had -6C on deck the other night! It's now -4C with a clear sky, and it's 5PM - I think tonight might be the coldest yet! Fortunately, although the Vapalux pressure lamp is still out of action pending the arrival of spare parts, the Eberspacher is now working perfectly again, so we'...

I'm on a boat, but simultaneously "stuck in the office" as my boat is both home and office. You're not missing a great deal right now!