Sailing around Britain and Ireland seemed like a worthy bit of sailing. Well......
The plan was to leave 5th June and start sailing round the UK. However while looking good on the grib files for a while, 4 days before it wasn't looking great. The dominant high pressure in Europe weakened allowing the Que of depressions to squeeze through and passage East. Monday 5th June saw some quire strong winds in the channel (severe gale 9) and after blowing through we were waiting for the next one. The outlook started to look favorable Friday 9th, Saturday 10th June.
So the week was profitable. I managed to do a host of small jobs on the boat... not essential but just needed doing, engine service, life jacket service, stage, diesel etc etc.
On inspection the trusty life jackets didn't look that trusty. My "offshore" jacket had disintegrated around the gas valve inlet... It was a total write off. The other onboard jackets all failed ... auto inflation cartridge failure, and corroded bottles. I serviced and replaced the items, but retired those jackets to stock, or Rib duty... Definitely inshore work, and have bought new jackets for the whole family.
nI worked on the sailing software. The on board system (in addition to more traditional systems) is that all instruments talk to the AIS transponder which broadcasts all data to a tablet . The Android tablet(and my phone) runs a great App called SailGrib which overlays all sorts of data onto charts and helps with visualizing the current situation and route planning. I wasexcited about the route planning functions and got to grips with that on my way round. Its was great to have all the data in one place and be able to see wind, current, other vessels etc etc at a glance. On Pegasus we sailed with a laptop, but Slamat is smaller and a monohull so wetter (not great for laptops) and has less battery availability, so a low consumption tablet worked well. It also carries the music, business files, e mail, and many other functions that i need while sailing.Technology making life easier!
Out 0400 10th June 2017, In 16.30 25th July 2017, 2458 miles sailed
Crossed tracks at Hurst narrows IOW.
So the trip around the uk went well. The weather was kind and the passage successful. In March 2018 Slamat was awarder the Founders Cup by the Royal Cruising Cup (RCC) and the log was printed in the club publication Roving Commissions 58
"The wind and waves are always on the side of the ablest navigators" EDWARD GIBBON .. Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
Below is a copy of the log which is available to download.
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