So.....

A member of Blue Star's crew was sitting on a bench near the marina when a young man walked up and sat down. The young man had spiked hair and each spike was a different color.... green, red, orange, blue, and yellow.
After a while the young man noticed that the Blue Star crew member was staring at him.
"What's the matter old timer, never done anything wild in your life?
 Blue Star's crew replied, "Got drunk once and married a parrot. I was just wondering if you were my son!"

:-0\

Blue Star is safely tucked up in her berth at Grimsby, for the next 4 weeks. After that, with new crew joining the challenge, we will attempt to venture further north!

Highlights of the trip so far?
* the generosity of so many marina's who have offered us free accommodation; it has kept on-board costs down and enables crew to donate more to the cause. Thank you to all understanding marinas!
* the 'sail away party' was brilliant! it was just great to see so many friends there to support us! Thank you!
* Exploring new (to us) sailing grounds along the east coast
* the company of the lovely people who have sailed with us so far, and who have supported the cause with a donation! Thank you! We do hope you will sail with us again!
* 'creaming it' up the east coast out of Lowestoft
* Wells was a fantastic place to visit by yacht! So good to see Pat and Sarah there too!

..... and the not so good bits?
* the weather has been very disappointing
* being ill in Brighton
* there have been one or two times when the sea has not been very flat!
* it is surprising how tired you get - sailing the boat can be demanding, and everyone's sleep gets disturbed to some degree during a sailing week, and I find myself returning home with aching limbs

....but I'm still really looking forward to the next stage!

On to Grimsby

We left Wells harbour this morning, as planned at 1 hour before high water. We were very pleased to see Sarah and Pat at the quayside to wave us off and wish us bon voyage! Imagine that game where you guide a metal eye along a twisted piece of wire and mustn't let the two touch; the same feeling came over me as we twisted our way down the contorted narrow river channel that leads to Wells as the strong incoming tide tried to push us off course. Just when we were pleased with our success however we were confronted by large breaking waves at the river bar. The boat reared and fell, this way and that, as we gradually clawed our way further to sea. It was wild, and we were all wondering whether we had let ourselves in for another 10 hours of it! Slowly however, the sea became smoother and tolerable. We had to continue motoring however, as the wind was from directly where we wanted to go ( we could have sailed and tacked of course, but we wanted to get in to Grimsby today!).

After a while we ate our sandwiches that Margaret and Geoff had prepared beforehand. We worked our way around a wind farm, slowly working past it. At one point the engine made a strange noise. We checked in the engine bay - all seemed well. We throttled back, then increased the revs again, and eventually normal service resumed. Perhaps we had something around our propeller for a while?

After being on watch for some time I took an hour off and went below, just as Roger came back on watch following a rest. Afterwards I made more bacon butties! Yum yum! Just then we started our entry into the Humber, and since we had made good time we throttled back - we would have been too early for the free flow through the lock gates at the marina. As we entered the lock gates the tide was rushing through into the marina in No 2 Fish Dock, effectively flushing us through like a piece of cork! We had to increase engine revs suddenley to regain some steerage in order to avoid being thrown against the lock walls. Eventually we got through and found a visitors berth at the marina. There were no staff around, but there were a few friendly people in the clubhouse.

We plan to leave the boat here for a while, instead of Hull, before we start the next leg of our voyage, although we must negotiate that with the berth master tomorrow.

Spurn Head at the mouth of the Humber is in the background as Roger pretends to be too hot!

Blue Star berthed at Grimsby, the clubhouse in the background

Geoff helps to prepare dinner

All well in Wells

Yesterday we took a breather and stayed in wells. We walked along the dyke alongside the river towards the sea and chatted to the volunteers in the National Coastwatch Institute lookout post. We walked into the town and had coffee, and lunch on board the Albatross Dutch barge (savoury Dutch pancake); then we visited the co-op to replenish the ship's supplies and ate dinner out with Pat and Sarah from Stafford CCC. We also did a few jobs on board the boat - swabbed the decks, vacuumed below, checked the engine, planned today's passage...etc. We also noted how different things looked at low water!

We spoke to Ross and his dad, who were on the boat further down the pontoon. We had spotted them taking water out of their boat with a bucket. They had attempted to leave earlier but their engine had cut out just as they approached the bar. They had quickly anchored and a change of fuel filter was needed before they could re-start the engine. Ross's dad later came to chat with Geoff when Geoff was swabbing our decks. Unfortunately Geoff forgot that he was holding a hosepipe as he turned to talk to dad and gave him a further soaking! HHmmm!

Today we are bound for Grimsby 55 miles away, straight into a cold wind from the north west. Great (not)! We have to a) get out of Wells, down the narrow winding channel, b) endure cold winds from ahead c) find Grimsby and our planned marina. We will need to radio Humber VTS to have our passage plan approved as we approach the Humber too.

P.S. The staff at Wells were brilliant! They stayed late to guide and welcome us into the harbour, and took our lines! They gave excellent advice on navigation too. And the charge for our stay? Zero, as a show of support for our charity fund raising! Thank you so much Wells harbour staff!

Standing on top of the flood defence - the river on one side, agriculture on the other

The river at low water - the channel out is to the right

.....and on to Wells-Next-The-Sea

OMG! I have sailed up a few ditches, but this one takes the biscuit! At some points the entry channel was only a few boat lengths wide, and we had to take several 90 degree changes in direction about 5m away from land. We could almost have jumped ashore! An amazing experience! When you finally get to the end of the channel Wells town and quay is delightful! Two men from the marina were waiting by the pontoon to take our lines; they knew we were arriving and had stayed behind especially to welcome and guide us in! Very helpful and thoughtful! Thank you Wells harbour! Also waiting were Sarah and Pat from Stafford CCC to welcome us! That was much appreciated too!

The sail from Lowestoft was almost perfect. Initially the wind was 15-20 knots from the port quarter and we absolutely creamed along! We had prepared a sandwich lunch before we left. After passing Cromer however we had to alter course towards the West and started to meet some large waves head on, and it slowed us down considerably. Rain came along too just to tease us some more. We finally managed to make it into Wells harbour just as another downpour started.

We finished the day with a fish and chip supper by a quay-side restaurant. Very tasty!

We decided to take a day off tomorrow to re-charge our energy levels before the next long daysail to Grimsby.

Roger and Chris help me to look out for fishing pot markers

 

Fish and chips at the quayside restaurant

Blue Star berthed at Wells harbour, late evening

On to Lowestoft

Yesterday we left Shotley marina and sailed to Lowestoft. Shotley marina were absolutely brilliant in their support for the Blue Star project! Blue Star was there for over 2 weeks but they charged us nothing for our stay! Thank you Shotley marina! We so appreciate your support!

There was little wind when we left at 0930, and we motored most of the way; I made bacon sandwiches for lunch, but there was a bit of swell building up; by the time I had finished cooking I had just about done with life below decks! The sandwiches met with much approval though! We arrived at Lowestoft at about 1700 and the waves and wind had built up sonewhat. The entrance to Lowestoft was a little difficult to find. Eventually we sighted it and radioed for permission to enter. The boat was being jostled by the waves as we approached what turned out to be quite a narrow entrance. What could possibly go wrong? Nothing did, fortunately. Once inside the harbour all was sweetness and light, although we found it to be quite a small harbour with not a lot of room to manoeuvre inside. We soon found a berth at the Royal Norfolk and Suffolk Yacht Club, and then Margaret cooked another splendid meal (a cooked ham dinner), and we had a visit from Roger's friend, John, who plans to sail with us on our next leg from Hull.

But what of today? It is 50 miles to Wells-next-the-Sea. The entrance is to Wells is tricky and should only be attempted in the right conditions with no wind from the north. We cannot enter before 2 hours from high water as it isn't deep enough. If we run aground on entry it will be very difficult to get off. Should we go.... should we not?

Anway, we have decided to leave and find out! Our ETA Wells is around 1900 hrs. More then (hopefully)!

The Yacht Club at Lowestoft

Dinner on Blue Star

John gets into practice for a week on Blue Star

Starting the next leg - Harwich to Hull

Today we started the next week of our voyage, but we couldn't miss out on the opportunity to explore the rivers Orwell and Stour. We were jojned by Margaret, Geoff and Chris. There was still a cold wind blowing, but it was mostly from behind as we wound our way up the river Orwell towards Ipswich. We passed the Royal Harwich Yacht Club close to Wolverstone marina, passing under the Orwell road bridge and finally managed to reach Ipswich with a bit of help from the engine. The wind died as we approached Ipswich docks and we turned on the engine to complete our journey before turning around and heading back towards Felixstowe at the mouth of the Orwell. We had a picnic lunch on deck, prepared by Margaret and Geoff. Then we headed up the river Stour under sail; the river meets up with the Orwell as they both enter the sea at Felixstowe and Harwich. After an hour we were running out of depth and turned around to return to Shotley marina; we turned on the engine once more to punch our way through the wind and the waves. Generally a very good start to the next leg of our trip.

It was also very gratifying that so many kind people have donated to our cause, including Jane, Paula and Adrian, and several others. A number of these people I have never met, but thank you so much!

PS. Margaret prepared another wonderful dinner for us all - pasta bolognese, followed by stawberries, cream and shortbread biscuits! Yum yum!

Passing the Royal Harwich Yacht Club on the river Orwell

Geoff, Margaret and Chris on deck

Ipswich docks

Dinner on Blue Star, courtesy of Margaret

Looking after Ace while Dan is unwell.....

Ace gets into the nautical spirit by catching a whale!

Ace and the whale

The Blue Star quilt raffle .....an update:

The Blue Star quilt is raising lots of admiring comments and the tickets are selling well, helping to raise the target of £12000 for the CF Trust.

If you still haven't seen the First Prize in our draw it is now on display at Angie's Patchwork and Quilting Shop, 3 Queen Street, Cheadle, Staffordshire ST10 1BQ, where you can also purchase tickets - see www.angiequilts.blogspot.co.uk

Tickets are also available from Jane at The Corner Patch Quilt Shop, 12 High Street, Eccleshall, ST21 6BZ, telephone no. 01785 859360 or email jane@thecornerpatch.co.uk

Many thanks to Angie and Jane for their help and support!

Harwich....and other things....

....well, I say Harwich. In fact the boat is currently in Shotley marina, on the other side of the river Stour to Harwich. We can see the cruise ships and ferries going into Harwich, but for us to walk there would be a very long detour indeed! Shotley is also across the river Orwell from Felixstowe. It is at the junction of the two rivers before they flow into the sea.

Anyway, all of that is a detail. Whilst we haven't sailed for nearly 2 weeks, Diane and I did visit the boat and use it as a base from which to tour the area for a few days. A 'classic car' rally is held at the marina regularly, and we were fortunate to be able to see it during our visit. We also visited Constable country - Flatford Mill and Dedham - and also Aldeburgh, Orford, and Woodbridge. We bought some freshly caught and smoked mackerel on the sea front at Aldeburgh and ate them with our dinner. Very scrumptious! I also took the opportunity to deal with a few boat engine issues - checked the water-fuel separator, found the source of a water leak from the engine, and arranged for the water pump to be serviced (new seals and bearings). All sorted now and no more leaks according to the onsite marine services.

The next leg of our voyage should take us to Hull, hopefully via several interesting staging posts along the way! We are all hoping for some decent weather too! That would make a nice change!

an old Anglia at the car rally

a 'Capri Ghia' Rodney!

the classic car rally at Shotley marina

checking the water/fuel separator

Hhmm. Now where is that little drip coming from?

the town hall at Aldeburgh

the sea front at Aldeburgh, from where we bought our mackerel

walking along the river at Orford

a wreck in the river at Orford

Flatford Mill

an old dry dock at Flatford