It's the Dilithium Crystals, Cap'n! (Chief Engineer Montgomery Scot, USS Enterprise)

Maunie is safely back in the water after a relatively early (24th March) relaunch. We stayed for a couple of nights at the lovely Bull Inn in Totnes to allow us to remove covers, put sails on and finish lots of relatively minor but nonetheless time-consuming pre-launch jobs. Thankfully we had warmish sunshine for it all.

Folding up one of three sections of winter cover

The day before launching and we were alongside another Vancouver 38 called Nimbus

Nimbus is a V38 Classic, rather than a Pilothouse, one of only three built. The hull is identical to Maunie's but the deck and cabin layout are very different

Nimbus launched immediately ahead of us and, as always, the team at Baltic Wharf Boatyard did an excellent job and had 3 boats launched in quick succession within an hour.

 

The spell of kind weather suddenly turned cold, wet and windy as we motored down to the mooring so we came home for a couple of days to let the gale blow through and then returned for a long weekend to celebrate Graham's birthday (with a lovely lunch at Andria in Dartmouth), finish off a few jobs and complete a shakedown sail to test all the systems.

The time aboard gave us the chance to test the new replacement for the old diesel generator that we removed earlier in the winter. Graham had spent a lot of time over the past few months researching some relatively new bits of kit, often known as portable power stations, that have become increasingly popular for boat, caravan and campervan users. They are small but powerful LiFePO4 lithium batteries with a built in inverter to deliver 230v AC. He eventually chose a Jackery Explorer 3000v2 unit as it seemed to offer the highest storage and output capacity in the smallest size. There were a number of 'January Sale' offers so we took advantage of a substantial discount and ordered a unit that came bundled with two, folding 100W solar panels.

The unit is smaller and about a third of the weight of the old diesel generator but will deliver up to 3600W of AC power (enough for electric kettle, induction hob, microwave and hairdryer) and holds up to 3070kWh of energy. We built a wooden frame to secure it in place and spent some happy(?) time sorting the electrical connections to supply power to the boat's 230v AC circuits and a 12v supply from the boat to allow us to recharge it when the engine is running.

The Jackery installed, with the folding solar panels strapped to the ceiling of the locker above it and new storage boxes in the void behind. The white plug and cable supplies AC power to the boat and the orange cable supplies 12v power to recharge the Jackery.

Sunshine over the (otherwise bitterly cold) weekend allowed us to set up the solar panels, pointed directly at the sun, and we were impressed with the power they supplied (all monitored by a phone app, of course). 

Peak output from the panels actually exceeded their stated capacity. They produced more than the boat's fixed solar panels (which have a theoretic combined capacity of 380W but can't be pointed directly at the sun).

With the experience of just a few days aboard, we think this is going to be a great addition to the boat - we'll certainly save on expensive bottled gas to heat water and make tea and the ability to run power tools and wet/dry vacuum cleaner will be very handy. 

Many people are going the whole hog and replacing their lead-acid batteries with Lithium ones but it's a substantial and pricey undertaking as this requires a new charger / inverter and a new controller for the engine alternator charging system so isn't really a viable DIY job. Having only replaced Maunie's main batteries relatively recently this wasn't something that appealed so the Jackery solution feels like a good one for us. There's a useful side benefit in that we'll bring the unit home during the winter so we'll have a emergency supply in case of power cuts.

Anyway, once we'd got over the novelty of all this, it was time for a cracking sail on Monday. A cold and gusty NW'ly made for some fast sailing in relatively flat water so it was perfect for checking that everything worked and that we could remember how to sail!

Here's hoping for a great sailing season ahead!

Winter works

We hauled Maunie out in November so she's happily sheltered from several winter storms (and January's seemingly relentless rain) under her winter covers at Baltic Wharf in Totnes. We took the decision to stay in a holiday cottage for 5 nights immediately following the lift-out so were able to get most of the routine maintenance jobs, plus a couple of one-offs, ticked off early.

Of course, we discovered a couple of unexpected issues but we're pretty happy with progress and will launch early, in late March, in the hope of better spring weather.

The routine jobs included:

• Engine service, with oil and filter changes
• Sails removed and cleaned at home
• Cockpit cover removed, cleaned and re-proofed (with a few minor repairs)
• Seat covers cleaned
• Seacocks serviced
• Lockers emptied and deep cleaned

Meanwhile the more serious one-off projects have taken more time and effort. First on the list was to remove the 28 year-old diesel generator; it was a handy piece of kit but, was being used for less than 10 hours per season now that we aren't doing long ocean passages, so it didn't really justify the annual maintenance costs. These machines need regular use and ours had become less keen to run when requested. The Farymann diesel engine at its heart is no longer in production and spare parts are getting hard to find, so we took the big decision and spent more than a few hours removing it, plus all the associated fuel lines, pumps and filters, plus a lot of electrical cables.

Stage 1 - the generator is man-handled out from its locker under the pilothouse seating

The yard crew and their huge crane were called in for the next bit!

 

We've gained a large and very handy storage space (now cleaned and repainted) and Maunie is about 100kg lighter and significantly less complicated

We were delighted to be able to sell the generator on a 'spares or repair' basis to a chap who intends to renovate it and install it into his canal boat.

Next on the list was to finish the upgrade of the cabin sole (floor) that we started about 3 years ago. We'd completed the addition of new laminate to all of the floors except in the pilothouse so its seven floor panels were brought home for treatment.

Gluing in progress

The completed panels, trimmed and ready to go back aboard

The finished result - our combined OCD traits made it imperative that the stripes are perfectly lined up from bow to stern

Having sorted the floor, we couldn't ignore the ceiling any longer. The headlining panels in the pilothouse were in dire need of an upgrade as the old upholstery material had badly degraded over its 28 year life. We found a local business who would fit new headlining material but we saved some substantial cost by removing the old stuff ourselves and then refitting the panels. It turned out to be a bigger job than we expected, naturally, but we are very happy with the results.

Of course, Graham has done a short video of the project - click HERE

Finally (we fervently hope!) the cause of the vibrations from the propeller that were becoming increasingly hard to ignore was identified. The cutless bearing in the p-bracket directly ahead of the prop was worn so this meant removing the prop, releasing the coupling at the back of the gearbox and sliding the prop shaft out. Thankfully the old bearing came out without too much of a battle and we brought the prop and shaft back home for servicing, polishing and, for the prop, the application of antifouling paint. We've yet to find a product that works perfectly on propellers and avoiding barnacle growth (which really reduces their efficiency) is vital - so we are now trying a product called Velox. Time will tell if it lives up to its reputation.

Anyway, the drivetrain is now all back in place, with new gland packing seals to keep the water out, so we are edging ever closer to being relaunch-ready.

Back to Devon

After a couple of days in Paimpol we decided that the weather forecast for the coming week necessitated a change of plan. We'd hoped to sail west along the Brittany coast but the wind had other ideas - Tuesday looked like a perfect 15 knot westerly to sail north back to home waters while the following days predicted adverse northerlies. 

Heading back across the Channel - Steve in off-watch snooze position!

We arrived into Salcombe, just as the light was fading, after an early start (in the dark) and an excellent crossing. The anchorage up at the Salt Stone, away from all of the busy visitor moorings gave us a peaceful night after the long day at sea.

The unplanned extra time on the Devon coast meant we could head west to the River Yealm to walk some of the South West Coast Path.

Busy dinghy pontoon on the Yealm

On the coast path

After a day of almost total calm and bright sunshine, we didn't expect much from the wind on the sail back to Dartmouth but were delighted when it blew hard enough to fill the Parasailor.

The foredeck crew

Barbara and Steve headed home on the Friday; we really enjoyed their company and loved the fact that Barbara was back in the helming 'groove' by the end of the trip. We stayed on board for a couple of extra days, so were able to attend the Britannia Royal Naval College open day on the Saturday - an excellent event.

Band of the Royal Marines

Di with the Merlin helicopter

On the Bridge Simulator, helming a destroyer

The images on the 'window' screens made us feel that the bridge was rolling - apparently some people get 'Simsick' 

It was a great end to a lovely cruise. Thanks go to Barbara and Steve for their company.

 

Guernsey to France

Sorry, this is a bit of a catch-up updater as we've had a busy and entertaining time since the last post.

We had a slightly uncertain, 'will-we, won't we?' departure from Guernsey after a couple of days exploring (and with Barbara and Steve taking the ferry to walk the coastal path of the neighbouring island of Herm); the fog rolled in.

Visibility decreasing

Five minutes later!

Thankfully it began to burn off just after lunch which was perfect for our planned departure to Lezardrieux in Brittany. As soon as we left the southern coast of the island astern, the fog lifted completely and we had warm sunshine, though precious little wind for the 50 mile passage.

We managed to fly the Irish Flag for a while and took a detour through a patch of water which we'd normally give a very wide berth.

The shallows and rocks of Plateau de Barnouic are marked by a stone beacon to the east and a cardinal mark to the west. In strong winds and currents this would be a dangerous place to drift into but we sailed through it.

The Barnouic beacon just visible beside the forestay

We arrived into the Trieux river just before dusk and with the rising tide pushing us nicely up river to the visitors' mooring pontoon opposite the marina. Having been here last year made it a less stressful arrival for the navigator and we enjoyed the rocky scenery as we approached Lezardrieux.

The bridge at Lezardrieux was  covered in scaffolding last year; now fully restored

A day here gave us the option for a good coastal hike, a restock of food and wine and a fantastic meal at the Auberge de Treiux, an excellent and popular restaurant where we were lucky to bag the last table.

Our next trip was around to Paimpol, another favourite haunt from last year. The coastline here on the Rose Granite Coast is imposing and a challenge for the navigator in the large tidal range. We managed to sail with a following wind to a lunch stop at the Ile de Brehat.

As the crow flies it's only 3 miles to Paimpol, but by boat it's closer to 10

Detail of the rocky channels of the Ile de Brehat

Barbara in photo mode

The drying harbour of Loguivy de la Mer

Local hazards to navigation

Our lunchtime anchorage, with rain squalls

Our lunch stop allowed us to take the rising tide up to the lock gates of Paimpol and the place was very busy with local and visiting boats - we'd happened to coincide with the last day of a Breton folk festival.

Waiting for the lock to open

A busy port. Maunie was rafted alongside a Jersey yacht.

Traditional Breton dancing, with bagpipes

Lunch of Breton Galetes at Les Alizes - the owner recognised us from last year and was very welcoming.

A sailing trawler from 1914

Steve and Barbara enjoying the 'harbour cinema' 

We all enjoyed the contrast of the two French ports and planned further coastal voyaging to the west over the next few days. The weather, however, had other ideas.....