Sailing between the storms, from Exmouth to Dartmouth
Unseasonably stormy weather meant Amneris spent almost a week in Exmouth after being towed in by the RNLI. Aleksandra had to return home, but Anthony decided to stay on a little and try to get the boat a little closer to Falmouth.
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RNLI to the rescue during English Channel Crossing
We decided to return directly to Falmouth from Cherbourg, but deteriorating weather combined with sail malfunctions to push us into dangerous waters on a lee shore, a detour, and a rescue…
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Sailing across the English Channel from the Isle of Wight to Cherbourg
Our first English Channel crossing takes us from Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight to Cherbourg in France.
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Heaven and Hell: Contrasting Views of Sailing the Solent
We’ve only spent a few days in the Solent – and only the western half at that. But it was enough to persuade us that, with the exception of Yarmouth, it’s no place for us.
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Sailing from Portland to the Isle of Wight via the Needles
Sailing from Portland to the Isle of Wight, our first passage through the Needles Channel, and mixed impressions of the Solent.
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Sailing Portland blind: A foggy passage across Lyme Bay from Torquay
We were nervous and excited to be on passage via Portland Bill, and when thick fog descended we found reserves of seamanship we didn’t know we had.
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Boom! Caught main up and pants down in squalls off Plymouth
Our longest passage to date without experts on board, and we made a big mistake…
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Further sail training, with the RYA Yachtmaster theory course
What to do as a sailor on dry land? In my case, turn back to the books and brush up on the skills required on Amneris – so this month I did the RYA Yachtmaster theory course.
Fixing Amneris: diesel engine repairs, battery replacement, and a new ignition
On the last day of March we left Amneris to be towed back to her home berth, in need of some tender loving care after a fuel pipe rupture and the knock-on problems that this created. Now, it was time for me to head to Falmouth to deal with the repairs.
Sailing Cornwall: engine failure between Newlyn and Falmouth
After spending a few days sailing east to Fowey, Plymouth and back, the wind turns and so do we – pointing Amneris’ bow west, towards Newlyn
Sailing Devon and Cornwall: Falmouth, Fowey and Plymouth
We’ve been waiting since autumn to really put Amneris through her paces, and I head out to Falmouth a couple of days ahead of Aleksandra and her brother Michał to prepare the boat for some south coast sailing.
Sailing Amneris for the first time
As the new owners of Amneris, we were keen to take her out on her maiden voyage in our hands. Our friends Jonathan and Josh came along, to help us learn the ropes and guide us around the rivers Penryn and Fal.
We bought a boat!
We bought a boat, we bought a boat, we bought a boat, we bought a boat, we bought a boat!
Sailing Biscay: Wales to Spain via Ireland
We did our RYA Day Skipper courses with Trafalgar sailing school in Gibraltar, so kept up with them on Facebook. When one of the instructors was looking for crew to take his own boat from Wales to Spain, Aleksandra couldn’t get time off work – but I jumped at the chance.
Watch out, there are skippers about!
We’ve got the weekend to settle in before the really hard work starts with sailing school Junga on Monday, so we’re delighted to join former Polish sailing champion Paweł Gostkowski for a Saturday afternoon/evening motor sail to Sopot and back.
Sailing the Med: Mallorca to Sardinia
Our first big passage takes us from Mallorca to Sardinia on board Saaristo, a 15-metre Bavaria, with skipper Jarek from Polish sailing school Junga and crewmember Jola. It’s an eventful passage on a boat that’s arguably under-crewed – and one of us gets their first taste of sea-sickness.
A long weekend sail in Gdańsk
It’s the Corpus Christi long weekend in Poland, so we’ve decided to charter a sailboat at the seaside and put our skills to the test. Turns out there’s a lot still to learn, and having no experienced sailors on board makes a huge difference…
Day Skipper and Competent Crew in Gibraltar
There are first times for everything. For Aleksandra, the stopover in London en route from Kraków to Gibraltar for our RYA Competent Crew/Day Skipper course was her first visit to the English capital; fish and chips, Buckingham Palace, the Tube, Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square, Baker Street – amazing how much can be packed into a single day. Early next morning, we’re on a plane to Gibraltar for another first time – the first time either of us will have been on board a sailboat.
Sailing theory work for winter
We’ve found a sailing school willing to take on two complete newbies for a combined RYA Competent Crew and Day Skipper practical course. That’s booked for next April, but there’s plenty to do before then.
Powerboat certificates in Gdynia
We both like being on the water, but reckon we’re too old to get into sailing, and the whole mess of ropes and sails looked far too complicated for us anyway. So, we’re in Gdynia, northern Poland, in the middle of October, to train with Easyboat for our powerboat certificates of competence instead.
