New Year's Resolutions - Boxing Day sail

One of my two New Year's resolutions is to keep this Blog on track and up to date. I had several great day sails last year and one over night trip, but none of them made it onto the blog. With my new-found motivation I will start to add them in retrospectively.


This first entry is from Boxing Day 2010. Having decided to leave the sails on and everything fairly ship-shape and Bristol fashion over the winter, I then looked at the tide tables and realised that a combination of short winter days and the position of my boat high up in the harbour meant that there was no way I could sail until 26th December. You can imagine my surprise when a few months later, the day in question dawned bright and still. Tides, weather, wind and wife all in one accord.


It was an early, frosty start, and my biggest worry initially was not slipping into the water from either the icy pontoon, the icy dinghy or Kamala's icy deck. The lock for the dinghy oars was also frozen (and a little corroded) so I nearly had a wasted trip. Luckily it gave after a sucked the key to warm it up and lubricate the lock all at the same time. Grim, I know.

The ice on Kamala's deck was reflecting the early morning sky in a way that photographs can't convey. it was beautiful. No one else was around and there was no wind, just a calming stillness, perfect after the busyness of the previous day.

I motored steadily out into the bay, with the full main optimistically raised. As I rounded the fort I could see a dark line far out beyond the mouth of the bay, indicating a rippled, wind-creased surface in contrast the the grey smoothness all around me now. I head out to see what was out there.


As fast I was heading south, the leading edge of the wind was travelling north towards me twice as fast, and it wasn't long before we met, the wind continuing past me and filling the bay.

The rest of the trip comprised happy, perfect sailing in ideal conditions. The sun quickly melted the ice from the boat and warmed the skipper. I had the water to myself for the majority of the trip, only as I headed for home meeting a rowing pair and later a tandem kayak.

The wind was so steady I was able to lash the rudder and relax at times, a rare event on Kamala. I eventually sailed close in by the gunsite, and not long after dropped and packed away the main, finally drifting back towards the harbour under jib.


Picking up the mooring in the harbour was eventful, being the first attempt since replacing the lazy line and releasing the bowlines from a marauding tender that had wrapped itself around them. On the first attempt the lines got tangled under the keels and the boat nearly turned through 180 degrees. The second attempt was little better but I was able to pull the various mo0ring lines to manouvre the boat into the right place in the end. What with that effort and the sun I was now quite warm.


All in all this was a memorable sail that, even if taken alone, more than justified the decision to leave the boat rigged and ready over the winter.