Stonehaven to Peterhead

After the last posting here I spent an idle day recovering while double filtering the fuel out of and back into the petrol tank while waiting for there to be a little less North or East in the weather forecast. There was some really nasty gunk came out of the tank so in future I will always filter the fuel as I fill the tank. It is surprising what muck we must be filling our cars with these days.

Listening to the shipping forecast was the news I yearned for, the weather for tomorrow the 7^th would have more East in it and it was forecast to go South East or South West during the day. All sounded good for aiding my passage North East towards Peterhead, 35 miles distant up the coast.

As soon as I got out into the bay at Stonehaven I realised that this was going to be another long day. The sea was quite choppy with the wind slightly North of East, pah, the forecasters had it wrong again. Still I could make progress as long as the wind did not go any further North, it was forecast to go SE or SW soon.

Note the new salt stained 'up the nose' video technique.

I wonder if the BBC will take this on?

The waves were at times worse than featured here, 

I just didn't feel like videoing them at the time :-)

After 10 miles I saw the lighthouse off of Aberdeen, when I say I saw the lighthouse, I actually caught glimpses of it as it kept bobbing in an out of view as I rose and fell off of waves and into the holes between them. This was probably the roughest sea I have been out in Ruach and she performed excellently, looking after me in these challenging conditions (Thanks to Roger Dongray her designer and Cornish Crabbers her builders). I’m pleased to say I felt very safe wedged into the corner of the cockpit.

After passing Aberdeen there were another 25 miles of being soaked with spray and rain, the visibility dropped to a point that all I could see around me was my little patch of sea with the rain robbing me of any sight of the land about a mile and a bit to my left (port). The wind never did go South for me, so after spending the day on one tack, fighting a heavy helm I eventually headed into Peterhead harbour, then Peterhead marina where the assistant harbourmaster was waiting to take my lines on the pontoon. A very welcome sight as it had been a long day and I was very wet and tired. After tying up I headed for the shower block to get a little warmer and dryer by standing under the shower (think about it, it had been a very wet day), I realised that the whole shower block was swaying, or was that just me?

I cooked up, (well heated up) a tasty mushroom stroganoff from my supplies of Look what we found dishes before heading off for a well earned sleep.

The next day was earmarked to be a laundry day. Apparently the laundry equipment was purchased by the marina but is situated in a campsite. Now if I could walk on water this would have been a 200m stroll, however by pontoon and land this was about a mile away across the bay. So I set off with laundry bag in hand for the campsite. I had been told that if no one was available in the office to go to the green caravan where the manager resided. I arrived at the camp office to see a note in the window 'Manager off site, for attention see caravan nine or fourteen'. So off I strolled, bag in hand, to caravan number nine. Knock knock - No response. Then off to number fourteen knockerty knock knock - still no response. Tried the managers caravan - nothing. I loitered around for about an hour basking in the warm sunshine before heading back to the boat, still bag of dirty laundry in hand. Oh well, another day.



If anyone out there is having trouble donating at the justgiving sites (behind company firewalls, don't trust the internet with my card details or just don't want to give that way, etc) you can mail me a cheque direct. To do this just send me an email and I'll send you the details.

Don't forget to drop me a note at onpassage@dhippey.co.uk to sign up to be informed when blog updates appear.

Please share this site with your friends and family ( Especially the rich ones :-)  )

If you came to this blog from the main website www.eventoftheyear.co.uk you will hopefully have had a look around the site and be aware of what I'm up to, both the adventure itself and the fact that I'm aiming to raise awareness of dementia in our society and to raise money for the Alzheimer's charities.
I'm doing this trip for fun and funding the trip myself, but while I'm on this venture you can do your bit to by supporting the Alzheimer's charities through either www.justgiving.com/david-hippey or www.justgiving.com/david-hippey-scotland

Catch you next time.

Regards,
David H.

Arbroath to Stonehaven

Following an airless Friday of baking sunshine and not even a zepher of wind my guest for the next couple of days arrived. Steve is an ancient mariner of my acquaintance who has more sea miles under his belt than Jack Sparrow himself. He and Gerry his chauffeur came aboard to look over my tiny craft, they found it acceptable so we retired to the Cafe Kashmir, a fine quayside Indian resturant. But much to my guests chagrin the house was found to be a dry house. (This was not pre-planned guys, honest). A hearty meal was consumed by all before Gerry left for the drive back to Edinburgh.

Ruach sitting pretty in Arbroath harbour with the excellent Cafe kashmir in the background

The followng morning we woke all bright tailed and bushy eyed in good time for the opening of the harbour gates to let us proceed on with our trip North, 07.15 came and went, the gates remained closed. It was only supposed to be a short opening, from the time the staff came on duty to the time the tide had fallen to the point where they need to close the gates to keep a depth of water in the inner harbour. But on this occasion the high pressure weather system had depressed the tide to a point where we had already missed the critical depth at the gate, so the gates were to remain shut until the tide had risen sufficiently on the next tide about 7hrs later. So we spent a little time refining the boat systems before heading off for my first proper seaside fish & chips of the cruise. Now here's a thing; In Scotland fish & chips are referred to as 'a fish supper'. How come a fish supper? I don't know, but it seems very strange asking for a fish supper at lunchtime. I wonder if you just want a bag of chips do you ask for 'a supper' on it's own?

Following lunch we spent a little time in the recently refurbished signal tower museum learning more information about Bell Rock Light. We finaly set sail around 14.45 heading North East along the coast into a light wind from, you guessed it, the North East. Which means we had to sail along way back and forth (Tacking) to make any progress towards our goal. As dusk fell we were off Montrose, but decided we would press on as Montrose is quite commercial and not particularly yacht friendly. We turned on the engine and motored towards Johnshaven. We were just two miles off when the engine coughed, spluttered and died. At first I thought we had just run out of petrol, but in fact we had some dirt in the fuel. Johnshaven and the next harbour Gourdon both have rocky entrances so are not the places to approach in darkness with a dodgy engine, so on we sailed on doing two hour shifts in rain showers up the coast. At about 11am the following morning we were off the entrance to Stonehaven with the decision to make of do we press on another 35miles to Peterhead, or do we call it a day and head into harbour. With the slow progress we had made and the prospect that the weather was unlikley to improve we gave up the battle and headed into port.

Steve catching a few ZzzzZZzzz following our night of two tacks forward and one tack back up the Aberdeenshire coast

Following lunch Steve took this opportunity to jump ship because Stonehaven has an railway station within easy reach for heading back to the bright lights of Edinburgh. I'm very grateful for the company Steve brought to my journey. It's great having someone with you to discuss the merits of various tactics and strategies and most of all to share tasteless jokes with.

Stonehaven has a very quaint harbourside waterfront with many b&b and what looked like a few nice pubs and restaurants, but it also has what appears to be a harder town beyond.

Jim, the harbourmaster is a very knowledgable man who also seems to fill in as the local tourist information. He also is a sailor with a rather nice solid 12 ton Hillyard that I wouldn't have minded trying my hand at.

I must apologise for this posting being so late but finding a stable internet connection is proving quite a challenge. To find out where I actually am at any time it is best to go to the main website www.eventoftheyear.co.uk and click on the 'where am I' tab.

If anyone out there is having trouble donating at the justgiving sites (behind company firewalls, don't trust the internet with my card details or just don't want to give that way, etc) you can mail me a cheque direct. To do this just send me an email and I'll send you the details.

Don't forget to drop me a note at onpassage@dhippey.co.uk to sign up to be informed when blog updates appear.

Please share this site with your friends and family ( Especially the rich ones :-)  )

If you came to this blog from the main website www.eventoftheyear.co.uk you will hopefully have had a look around the site and be aware of what I'm up to, both the adventure itself and the fact that I'm aiming to raise awareness of dementia in our society and to raise money for the Alzheimer's charities.
I'm doing this trip for fun and funding the trip myself, but while I'm on this venture you can do your bit to by supporting the Alzheimer's charities through either www.justgiving.com/david-hippey-scotland or www.justgiving.com/david-hippey

Catch you next time.

Regards,
David H.

Elie to Arbroath

First a few pictures from before I set off.

You can't tell it from these pictures but it was blowing a right hoolie at the time. These pictures must have been taken between the gusts. 

I'm the one with the Orange top, Ruach is the one in cream.

 Just like hospital visiting, 'don't let Matron catch you with more than two visitors per boat'.

This is 'you'll never get me on a boat' Kirsteen

More members from the Church outing

I feel very privileged to be able to take this trip. It has been a dream of mine for many years to take a small boat around Scotland, not just as a sprint, calling at a few 'highlight' places, but to have the luxury of having time to stop and 'smell the flowers' every once in a while. For those of you who sail you will know what I mean, you go sailing for a week or maybe two, but almost from day one you are planning strategically where you need to be to be back at base for the end of the charter or back to your home port. Now imagine that same trip, but not having to sail to windward when the weather didn't want to play fair. Well that is the journey that I am on.

A big thanks must go to Lloyds Banking Group, my employer, for allowing me to take this time out, I realise not everyone gets the opportunity to take this sort of extended leave. A big thanks must also go to all you 'givers' out there, the two charities involved are very grateful for the money you have donated so far via my little project. But my biggest thanks must go to my lovely wife Penny who has not only let me 'escape' for the summer, but has actively encouraged me throughout the preparation of this project. To Penny I dedicate this paraphrase of the traditional sea song 'Leaving of Liverpool'

    "So fare you well my own true love, when I return united we will be.

     It's not the leaving of Livingston that grieves me, but my darling when I think of thee".

          (Now imagine that being sung and played badly on a Ukelele) :-)

Elie to Arbroath.

Ruach takes the ground beside Elie harbour wall

Had an early start from Elie, but slightly over slept, so was near the bottom of the tide before I departed and I really didn't want to be stuck on the beach for a second sandcastle here in Elie. The weather was again pleasant as I feasted on porridge oats in the morning light. With a wind Coming mainly from the West meant that with just the staysail and main I was able to make good progress along the Fife coast. St. Monans, Pittenweem, Anstruther and Crail flashed by accompanied by a number of small boats attending their pots. A couple of pleasure yachts came out of Anstruther to join me on my trip round Fife Ness, the most Easterly point of Fife, and my turning point North; one of the first major milestones on my trip.

On turning North we were going too fast so I had to fight to slow my progress as we were, at this rate, going to arrive at Arbroath before the tide would allow me to enter the inner harbour. Ruach was loving this beam reach and it was a shame to pull back on her leash, but it had to me done. I 'hove to' for some lunch off the entrance to the River Tay for about half an hour to let the tide catch up, then on to Arbroath in baking summer heat.

Todays Factoid

Bell rock lighthouse which stands sentinel on Inchcape Rock, or 'bell rock' some 10 mile offshore was on my horizon for much of today. It celebrated 200 years of watching over shipping early 2011. You may know of this rock from the famous poem 'the inchcape-rock'. It is also a fine tribute to the lighthouse Stevensons and the Northern Light Board. Build all that time ago with interlocking stonework. Such was it's elegant construction that it still survives to this day. 

My mate Steve was due to meet me the following day in Arbroath so I had another effort at rearranging the boat to make room for him, I still failed, but was able to squeeze him in later.

I spent the next day Friday, catching up on shakedown tasks. I fitted a roller furling gear to the jib to make stowing the sail a moments task rather than a momentous challenge on a bucking foredeck. I also went for a hair cut at a barbers near the fishing boat harbour. How come with these places they ask you what style you would like, but then give you the 'house' style? So I now support a high fashion haircut among the fishermen of Arbroath. 

If anyone out there is having trouble donating at the justgiving sites (behind company firewalls, don't trust the internet with my card details or just don't want to give that way, etc) you can mail me a cheque direct. To do this just send me an email and I'll send you the details.

Don't forget to drop me a note at onpassage@dhippey.co.uk to sign up to be informed when blog updates appear.

Please share this site with your friends and family ( Especially the rich ones :-)  )

If you came to this blog from the main website www.eventoftheyear.co.uk you will hopefully have had a look around the site and be aware of what I'm up to, both the adventure itself and the fact that I'm aiming to raise awareness of dementia in our society and to raise money for the Alzheimer's charities.

I'm doing this trip for fun and funding the trip myself, but while I'm on this venture you can do your bit to by supporting the Alzheimer's charities through either www.justgiving.com/david-hippey-scotland or www.justgiving.com/david-hippey

Catch you next time.

Regards,

David H.

We're off!

First an apology to everyone who wanted to see me depart. Initially the weekend weather put paid to the original start. It was so windy I couldn't even risk raising the mast. Seeing that I was not at Church Sunday, the congregation came to see me and we all went off for a fish & chip lunch in South Queensferry between the Forth Bridge and the Forth Road bridge overlooking the Forth.
....but back to the apology,  when the weather improved the original intention was to have a short shakedown cruise in the Forth before actually heading off. However the wind and the weather were so fantastic on Tuesday that the shakedown cruise actually started the cruise for real. The weather was really too good to miss. It all came round rather quickly.

So, we're off with a force 3/4, occasionally 5 wind straight up my exhaust pipe (Ooh Matron!). The sail was amazing on an almost flat calm sea. Being as this was part of the shakedown cruise things were a bit rusty, (mostly the skipper). Who forgot to tie stopper knots in the jib sheets? Who only remembered just as they disappeared up to the bows as I grasped hold of thin air? Doh!
Oh well, I practised going hove to with staysail and main while I retrieved the erant ropes from dancing a hornpipe off the end of the bowsprit, btw, the bowsprit is the wooden pointy bit at the front of the boat. You'll pick up these nautical terms as we go along, pay attention as I will test you later.

I arrived at Elie to find that last weeks storms had stolen the three visitors deep water mooring bouys from in front of the harbour pier, so I decided to ghost into the harbour on the last of the tide. With my shallow draft I thought I'd just manage to sneak in before the harbour turned back to being a beach with a wall. Think again, as I shuddered to a halt just outside! Oh well, the Cornish Crabber is just ideal for running onto a beach for a picnic, or to scrub the bottom (the boats, not mine). The retired harbour master walked down the beach to make sure I was okay. Such a nice chap. He offered me a vacant fishing boat berth once the tide had returned a little. As the tide started to return I hauled myself out into deeper water to await the depth to increase in the harbour. Then I thought 'I could just stay anchored here where the visitors buoys should be'. That was fine until at 3am when I awoke feeling a tad queasy (Mal-de-mer). So raised the anchor and moored where earlier I had been offered in the harbour. Still a bit bumpy from the swell, but good enough. Elie seems to be a nice picture postcard place to visit.
Slept late Wednesday due to the previous nights escapade so missed the tide. Decided to stay put and try to find better places to stow 'things'. the boat is absolutly full you understand, but it is mostly food, so can't complain. I have a mate from work coming to crew for a few days so need to find some room to stow him.

This internet connection is a bit poor here (but better than non) so I'll try to upload a few photos and today's log later.

Fantastic news on the giving front. Alzheimer Scotland are now eligble for the full £500 of matched giving due to your generosity. So we now stand at over £1500 raised between the two charities. On top of that I have another £100 pledged when I receive the cheque.
Let's see if we can even it out and give £1000 to both of the charities. It's up to you!

If anyone out there is having trouble donating at the justgiving sites (behind company firewalls, don't trust the internet with my card details or just don't want to give that way, etc) you can mail me a cheque direct. To do this just send me an email and I'll send you the details.

Don't forget to drop me a note at onpassage@dhippey.co.uk to sign up to be informed when blog updates appear.

Please share this site with your friends and family ( Especially the rich ones :-)  )

If you came to this blog from the main website www.eventoftheyear.co.uk you will hopefully have had a look around the site and be aware of what I'm up to, both the adventure itself and the fact that I'm aiming to raise awareness of dementia in our society and to raise money for the Alzheimer's charities.
I'm doing this trip for fun and funding the trip myself, but while I'm on this venture you can do your bit to by supporting the Alzheimer's charities through either www.justgiving.com/david-hippey-scotland or www.justgiving.com/david-hippey

Catch you next time.

Regards,
David H.

I've got a wet bottom!

.....Well Ruach has anyway. Over lunchtime yesterday Ruach was carefully lowered into the Forth by the team at Port Edgar Marina.
See the compilation video below of her leaving a very blustery Livingston Saturday morning, then flying through the air Wednesday in much calmer conditions. I really hope that mother nature is getting all these high winds out of her hair before I start my journey (but looking at the long range weather forecast somehow I don't think so).

From the storms I was amazed by the amount of debris that had accumulated in every nook and cranny of the cockpit in such a short time; from being relatively clean on Saturday to having enough organic matter to start growing potatoes on Wednesday. So first priority once afloat was to give her a good wash and brush up. Next, while I was tinkering away in the engine compartment I looked up to see four men looking back at me from the pontoon. I wondered what I had done wrong. but it turned out that they were the crew of a nearby boat who were just admiring Ruach. They were very complimentary about the look and lines of my fine vessel.

Only a couple of days now before I set off on my journey. I'll publish the actual day and time here once the preparations are complete, but at this time it is intended that I will set off during this bank holiday weekend. I'll probably spend a couple of days sailing around the Forth as a shakedown cruise before striking North. So if you see a tan sailed, gaff rigged Crabber pottering about in the Forth give me a wave 

Please watch this blog for final departure updates.

Great news on the giving front. As I type this update we are just £3.34 short of the £500 matched giving target on the Scottish justgiving site. 

Don't forget to drop me a note at onpassage@dhippey.co.uk to sign up to be informed when blog updates appear.

Please share this site with your friends and family ( Especially the rich ones :-)  )

If you came to this blog from the main website www.eventoftheyear.co.uk you will hopefully have had a look around the site and be aware of what I'm up to, both the adventure itself and the fact that I'm aiming to raise awareness of dementia in our society and to raise money for the Alzheimer's charities.

I'm doing this trip for fun and funding the trip myself, but while I'm on this venture you can do your bit to by supporting the Alzheimer's charities through either www.justgiving.com/david-hippey-scotland or www.justgiving.com/david-hippey

Catch you next time.

Regards,

David H.

Stormy Weather!

Just a quick update

       Delays, delays, delays. I think this audio clip sums up the preparations of late.
Then along with having the weather to contend with I have foolishly damaged a toe which subsequently got infected. So following a trip to the Doc. I have a dose of horse strength pills to try and get me sorted before I set off.

Still; this clip of Morecambe & Wise cheers me up. (Sorry for you guys behind the corporate firewall which block this kind of thing)

.

......I'm now hoping for a little more classic Morecambe and Wise, (All together now, sing along) "Bring Me Sunshine".
(Audio clips courtesy of Amazon. You can buy the full copies of the track from them)

Here's a snapshot of Ruach on my drive looking smart with the charity graphics applied.

Ruach relocated to Port Edgar on Saturday. The trip was mostly uneventful apart from one heart stopping moment when the gusty wind induced a snake in the trailer. Many thanks to our good friends Nicola & Derryk for delivering Ruach for me.

I originally had a slot booked to get Ruach craned into the water today, but the gales put paid to that. I have a new slot booked for during my lunch break tomorrow. However the forecast is still very iffy so this may not happen. Oh the joys of boat owning in Scotland!

Again a big THANKS to all you 'givers' out there. The charities, via the justgiving sites, have now received over £800 in donations from your giving. Plus as it stands there will be another £400 given direct to Alzheimer Scotland from my employer in their matched giving initiative. If we can raise another £100 on the Alzheimer Scotland just giving site they will benefit from the full additional £500 of matched giving.

Don't forget to drop me a note at onpassage@dhippey.co.uk to sign up to be informed when blog updates appear.


Please share this site with your friends and family ( Especially the rich ones :-)  )

If you came to this blog from the main website www.eventoftheyear.co.uk you will hopefully have had a look around the site and be aware of what I'm up to, both the adventure itself and the fact that I'm aiming to raise awareness of dementia in our society and to raise money for the Alzheimer's charities.
I'm doing this trip for fun and funding the trip myself, but while I'm on this venture you can do your bit to by supporting the Alzheimer's charities through either www.justgiving.com/david-hippey-scotland or www.justgiving.com/david-hippey

Catch you next time.

Regards,
David H.

T-minus 10 to blast off!

It's now just 10 short days until I cast off, weather permitting. But there is still much to do before the commencement of this adventure. Steady progress is being made assembling all the various bits of Ruach that were spread around the British Isles. I've introduced the GPS to the VHF radio and they are now in conversation and getting along famously (for which I breath a sigh of relief).
As planned the heads did get refurbished this past week, so another important milestone also gets crossed off the list. (At this time I can only hope that the operation has been a success as I am unable to fully test them on my house drive). Only time will tell!!!
Ruach is now resplendent with "Charity Sail for Alzheimer's" & "www.eventoftheyear.co.uk" graphics kindly supplied by the team at Anglia Graphic Signs to whom I am very grateful.

Ruach will shortly move from our home to Port Edgar Marina for a few days prior to setting off. Thanks go to Adam Cruttenden and the team for their assistance and generosity.

You may remember from previous posts my question on favourite recipes. Well Penny came home from Sainsburys brandishing a Chilli con Carne in a plastic pouch for me to try. The idea being that you can heat it either 'boil in the bag' style, or in a saucepan (or a microwave for those with posh yachts). Well I have to tell you that my expectation of this bag was low, mainly because I've tried instant 'packet meals' before. I find they tend to be either very bland or very salty. But I was amazed, paired with some rice this made a really tasty dish. I was so impressed I got in touch with the company, it seems they have a whole range of this type of meal. The company has the bizarre but apt name of Look what we found.  As an added bonus to me when they heard what I was up on my trip they offered me a healthy discount on their products, so I have purchased quite a selection which I look forward to trying. So my thanks also goes to Lauren and the team at Look what we found. I'll let you know what the other dishes are like as the trip progresses.

I'm still open to ideas for meals and snacks, so email me or leave a comment at the foot of this blog with your favourite ideas. 

Sorry for the lack of pictures this post, it's been a combination I've been too busy with preparations and again the weather not playing ball, (and I'm sure you don't want to see another picture of the loo) . 

A big THANKS to all you 'givers' out there. The charities, via the justgiving sites, have now received over £700 in donations from your giving. 

Don't forget to drop me a note at onpassage@dhippey.co.uk to sign up to be informed when blog updates appear.

Please share this site with your friends and family ( Especially the rich ones :-)  )

If you came to this blog from the main website www.eventoftheyear.co.uk you will hopefully have had a look around the site and be aware of what I'm up to, both the adventure itself and the fact that I'm aiming to raise awareness of dementia in our society and to raise money for the Alzheimer's charities.

I'm doing this trip for fun and funding the trip myself, but while I'm on this venture you can do your bit to by supporting the Alzheimer's charities through either www.justgiving.com/david-hippey-scotland or www.justgiving.com/david-hippey

Catch you next time.

Regards,

David H.