After my day sail on Tuesday 1st of October Vicki and I decided to spend the last few days of good weather aboard until Friday. We didn’t get away until late and after dropping the mooring with a forecast of northeastly force 3-4 we found there wasn’t any wind to sail by, so just motored on NNE across Falmouth Bay and into the Precuil River, dropping anchor at 1630hrs having logged 6.5nm. The wind did pick up over night but we were very sheltered.
Thursday was like a nice summers day and after brunch while Vicki did a little more cross stitch in the cockpit, I got busy cleaning the decks and freeboard. After which I relaxed in the cockpit sunshine. We retired down below as the sun went down and played Scrabble and opened a bottle of red. The evening being on the chilly side because of the time of year, I started up the cabin heater and we got cosy.
By Friday the forecast had changed and it suggested a wet and windy Saturday (south-southeast gale) followed by a dry Sunday with more rain set to come in on Monday and Tuesday. We decided to stay aboard over the weekend, but we would move down river to Place and better shelter from the gale. We needed to move early due to the tide, so motored Elektra to Place around 0900hrs and dropped anchor in close to the south and west bank. Here Elektra would be dry 2hrs either side and aground 3hrs either side of low water (you can’t drag anchor if aground). We put up her cockpit encloser and after she took ground and before the water had gone, we went via our tender to St Mawes for shopping and a pub lunch. When we returned some hours later we were both ready for a rest. The wind picked up around dark and it started to rain, I ran the cabin heater to warm us up the wind howled but Elektra was very sheltered and we had a good night.
When I got out on Saturday, it was very windy and tipping it down with rain, but we were snug aboard Elektra. What was interesting, was Ekektra was facing down wind because she was so sheltered under the tree line that the wind was eddying back on her from the north. We had brunch and washed up, by which time it had stopped raining and I went ashore in the dinghy for a walk before the tide went out. After my walk Elektra grounded and dried out again, the wind continued to blow, because of the time of year the sun never came up over the tree line until after midday. The forecast had changed again for Sunday, now they were saying rain, with dry for about 3hrs in the afternoon before more rain. But also with a calmer morning the wind was set to increase from the southwest in the afternoon. It was looking like now we would get wet going home on Sunday.
On Sunday morning it was still raining, I pulled on my waterproofs and rowed the dinghy ashore to empty the rainwater, then lifted it onto its davits. Then together Vicki and I took down the cockpit encloser (it was wet so left it rolled up in the cockpit), I pulled up the anchor at 0920hrs and Vicki motored Elektra north out of Place as I stowed the anchor, when I got back to the cockpit I took the helm and Vicki went back down below. I countinued to motor Elektra west-southwest out of St Mawes and then south-southwest across Falmouth Bay. The visiblity was 1-2nm and the wind was south force 3-4 and Elektra was punching into lumpy southerly swell of 4-5ft, I fitted her tiller pilot so I could leave the helm and wipe my specks and keep a lookout for pot markers. It wasn,t the best day to be out in a boat! The more south we went the less lumpy the swell become as we closed on the weather shore, until it was almost nothing in the entrance to Gillan Harbour. But still too lumpy to lower the dinghy from its davits, so we motored in and I lowered the dinghy and detached lines in more shelter of the harbour. Once done I took the helm and motored Elektra back out onto her mooring. It was still raining and as I sorted stuff out in the cockpit, Vicki started making brunch. Once I was back into the cabin we had brunch and the heavens oppened and it tipped down with rain and it rained and rained! We were OK in the cabin, eating, then washing up and packing up gear but would this rain ever stop? In the end it did and I pulled on my waterproofs again and fitted the outboard on the dinghy, the sea had turned brown with mud run off from the land.
We loaded up the gear and headed into St Anthony, before we reached the beach it started raining again! With the tide being out, I got as close as I could and the pulled the dinghy to the shore via its painter and Vicki got out and started walking slowly across the levels and up the beach as I grabbed a few bags to carry across the level and up the beach to get the dinghy trolly. Back down the beach and across the levels, I pulled the dinghy onto the trolly and pulled as far as I could but had to stop to drain the rainwater out as it was very heavy! So opened the dinghy bung and I grabbed more bags to carry up the beach. Then I got the pick-up and lowed the gear and Vicki got in. Back down the beach to pull the dinghy across the flats until I had to rest. I carried the remaining bags and cockpit encloser up the beach and into the pick up before going back down the beach to pull the dinghy to the top of the beach, I ask you who needs to go to a gym!
We were glad to get home, what an end to the sailing season!
Love Sailing 