In search of sunset..

In habited

2011-08-06T18:52:00.001+02:00

Another windy day... and we head south to Rödlöga skärgård on a short leg looking for a sheltered spot for the night. And find it we did - but suprisingly, for being so far out, our little haven had a house at the inneer end of the bay so we swapped boaty neighbours for the fastland type that play music and rush about in motorboats.

But, by evening things quietened down and we were able to enjoy the by now traditional sunset grill. Even the deckchair came out for an airing. (It's not on my list for next season ;-)

Norrpada

2011-08-05T18:43:00.001+02:00

The morning bus brought a double crew and we were all set to put to sea again to see what the northern archipelago had to offer. What we found was Norrpada - perhaps the nicest island we visited all summer. Not that big, but not too many boats either - a superbly tranquil spot in the warm summer sun. And given a clamber the views were just great. :-)

Time stopped at Kapellskär

2011-08-03T18:31:00.001+02:00

From Rödlöga it was an easy leg north again to the little gueast harbour at Kapellskär. This turned out to be a gem. The facilities are basic - although there are showers about a kilomter away at the campsite - but the location was super - sat in the midst of a nature reserve and sheltered from most that the weather could do.

We had a leisurely afternoon - walking up to the ferry terminal to check the bus times and then taking a rummage in the secondhand shop and café by the beach across the road. Bargain of the day - a wheelie shopping trolley that will come in handy next time we have to hike to get groceries.

Evening time saw us grilling on the shore.. and the following day I was at my leisure as the crew took the morning bus back to Stockholm to catch up with real life...

Sun bathing at the beach, a walk in the woods, sitting in the cockpit reading. What holidays are all about really.

Offshore

2011-08-02T18:31:00.001+02:00

The plan was to head out again, northwards into the archipelago. Not a bad plan, but the weather was fresh winds from the north as we set out from Möja.

Tacking out into the channel we struggled at first with the main not being fully set, but finally settled down to beat our way windward with plenty of spray coming over us as we met the chop. To be honest we weren't pointing that great, although it got better as the day progressed and I got the trim sorted. And as the day wore on the winds lightened which made things easier.

We set Rödlöga as our goal, which I thought would be about four hours, but headwinds, and the lighter winds in the afternoon made it longer... When we arrived we sailed around to the northside to look for a mooring - but it was a bit like Picadilly Circus, so we back-tracked around the island to find a quieter spot... which we did - a quiet headland with just enough water to get in to shore.

By that time though it was seven hours on the water and I was tired and bad tempered and not good company for the crew, more's the pity.

Lesson learned - be better prepared with food and drink for the trip - and plan ahead better.. ;-)

Möja and dinner

2011-08-01T18:04:00.002+02:00

The weather finally cleared and we were back sailing, but after a few days at sea it was time to stock up the larder. We headed back inshore to the nearest and best - stopping off in Lånviken on Möja for water and food. But, we were tied up with a strong tail wind so we upped sticks and sailed around to the lee side and tied up in the small fishing harbour at Ramsmora (or more properly just in the entrance to).

It was getting late by the time we tied up so we rang ahead to the fish restaurant up the hill to see that they were able to seat us.... and got the answer - if you come at once! So we quickly threw everything below and pulled out some clean clothes for our first sit down dinner since Vindalsö. And very nice it was too.

Playing tag

2011-07-31T07:30:00.001+02:00

From Björkskär we head off in company in fresh northerlies beating towards Stora Nassa. Sunny and blowy... that's what we like.

We have a bit of trouble with the halyard when we hoisted sail so we end up playing catch up, but they have a quicker boat so we are forcrd to work on our pointing to keep up.

When we get there there are boats all over and we motor round... checking out a sheltered lagoon we'd picked out on the chart. Taken.

So finally we settle on nice sheltered cobb just west of the main sound. High cliffs and deep close in.

It proved not to be quite as good as we had hoped. As the wind got up it came round the bluff not giving as much lee as it promised. But enough at least.

The following day is still blowy and we set springs to offload the mooring lines. A quiet day with a book before a quiet night in in good company.

High cliff

2011-07-31T07:05:00.001+02:00

Breakfast and away for a short reach over open water heading for Björkskär. The forecast is strong northerlies and we want a place with good shelter.
We arrive in good time and pick a spot in Hemsundet, close under a high cliff in time for a late lunch and a swim as we while away a sunny afternoon waiting for friends to join us... Explaining to the stream of boats coming in that that space is taken....
Still. All's well that ends well and it's not too long before we are sharing sundowners with the neighbours

Stocking up

2011-07-31T06:45:00.000+02:00

Our first stop for the day is Möja Långvik, to stock up the larder. But first we have some light wind sailing to do... close haulee and beating into light easterlies.
Långvik i small, but has all the necessities. Just make sure you are out the way when the Cinderella boats come in.

From there we set off for the outer islands but it was soon apparent that the wind had gone.... So we motored instead to Tistonskär. After some chugging around we settled on a small skär.. Our own island :-) Just us and the mosquitos! Great views and a lovely sunset.

Vivo

2011-07-31T06:24:00.001+02:00

We sailed on to Träsköstorön on a fine sunny morning. Not a long trip and not hard one either. We anchored to a small headland, alongside another IF... a yellow boat called Vivo. We had just time to exchange pleasantries though before they were on teir way
It was anyway a pleasant spot and it wasn't long before we had new neighbours, including three Italians on holiday in a hire boat still learning how coming ashore works in Sweden...

In the Säck

2011-07-25T19:35:00.001+02:00

From Stavsnäs we went in search of an anchorage... reaching over Kanholmsfjärden and turning in to weave among the islands... One by one we passed and crossed spots off the list. Too near to buildings. Too shallow, already taken....
In the end we settled.on a safe bet and motored in to Säck.. It was past seven already and well settled so we ended up squeezed in in the shallows. Still it was a safe spot on a blowy night..
We stayed on another night too as it continued to blow, rewarded by a fine sunny evening... perfect for the grill

Just passing through

2011-07-24T18:42:00.000+02:00

After a pleasant run from.Vindalsö we stopped in Stavsnäs to restock the larder. It seemed like rush hour when we got there with boats coming and going from the jetty and the fuel station.
Once we did get alongside it was out with the rubbish and off to the shops... And then lunch from the grill.. Tasty if not so nutritious... ;-)

Head winds

2011-07-24T07:02:00.000+02:00

Our next stop is Vindalsö, to dine and dance with friends.
Discrrtion is the better part of valour, so with strong headwinds we chose the simpler route up Nämdöfjärden rather than pick our pay through the isles to get there. Even so we had three and a half hours with 16knot winds on the nose. On on the last hour did beats turn to reaches..
A really tiring leg.. but not so tiring that we weren't still dancing at 2 and relaxing in the sauna at first light...

Lazy days

2011-07-20T16:37:00.000+02:00

We set off after a lazy breakfast on an easy reach in bright sunshine. This time we really do expect strong winds in the night so when we passed a sheltered bay on Böteskobb it was too good to miss. Lunch, a swim, blög a little, and put the meat in to marinade.....

First night out

2011-07-20T16:25:00.001+02:00

After a lazy lunch at the marina we set out late in the afternoon for a couple of hours aiming for Mortö Bunsön... But as we got near I checked the forecast on the mobile. Two completely different stories from two differebt sites. So we sailed on to Grönskär to find a spot that covered all eventualities. A good fast sail averaging over 5knots
And then we rounded off the evening with a grill and a sunset. What else?

Picture to follow...

A step forward

2011-07-14T19:02:00.000+02:00

One of the winter jobs was fitting a removable step on the bow. Coming ashore is normally OK-but once in a while it's tricky for the crew to come ashore without a great leap of faith.

The IF-båt is not that well suited for a step though - the bow is quite swept under which means that the strut from the step doesn't transfer all that much of the load to the hull... Most of the weight seems to be on the deck fittings. The strut length makes a difference and the strut is adjustable - but not to any degree of finesse. I tried drilling it but cutting a large hole in a curved tube without a pillar drill didn't really work. So as a last resort I've added packing to the end, both to protect the hull and to lengthen it just a little.

Back on the boat it all seems to work in the marina - although the packing tends to move a bit under load so it is only partly doing it's job. We''ll see how it goes when we get out to sea.....

Under a cloud

2011-07-14T18:10:00.002+02:00

The homeward trip had the luxury of a following wind - at least to start with and we made reasonable pace in modest winds under blue skies.

Too good to last you might think - and it was. By half way home the weather over the land was threatening with trains of dark clouds skirting along just inshore of us.. getting closer and closer as rumbles of thunder echoed over the water. We'd edge away towards the sunshine, only to lose the wind and fall back into the shadow.

After an hour of playing tag the clouds rolled overhead and the rain started...

...but by then the thunder had moved on and we just got a shower for ten minutes or so. More annoying was that the wind died and to get us home we had to fire up the outboard.

I've not been chased by a cloud before.....

....................
25 June 2011
Sittuviken - Kalrslunds
Paul, Kia

Midsommar by sea

2011-07-14T17:53:00.004+02:00

This year midsummer saw what's getting to be our traditional trip south to celebrate with friends out in the country.
The weather for the trip down was good - breezy, and maybe a bit too much on the nose for a quick sail but we set off with full sail and were soon close hauled and well heeled over on the leg out from Karlslunds. To keep us pointing we took the winch to the jibsheet to tighten it in - which proved not to be the best of plans. Not long after I noticed the leech was fluttering a lot - and a look behind the mainsail showed the genoa had split a seam. So down it came and the rest of the trip was beating with just the main...

....................
24 June 2011
Karlslunds - Sittuviken
Paul, Kia

All systems go...

2011-05-15T18:13:00.029+02:00

Sjösättning. The boat is back in the water... and thanks to an early Saturday morning slot we had time and the chance to get the mast up the same day. All of which meant the chance of an evening out on the water over across to Ornö.

The bay was perhaps unsurprisingly pretty deserted, and we anchored up on our favourite spot - a big rock about halfway along the northshore - and headed off to catch the sunset and grill supper.

Back in the cabin later it was time to try out the new heater - which worked fine. Even with the hatch ajar to ventilate we could work up a good fug - and a lot easier to handle than the Wallas. At breakfast time we even tried it for making the tea. A bit slower than the normal spirit stove but it got there...

In fact the only downside on the trip was finding that the leech is coming unstitched - I restitched a length during last season where the old stitching is falling apart. Several seasons on the roller reefing is taking it's toll. Now another section is giving up which meant an hour on the foredeck on Sunday morning to put it right.

....................

14/15 May 2011
Karlslunds - Kolnäsviken (& back)
Paul, Pål, Kia

Thermal trials

2011-05-13T18:47:00.000+02:00

Mata Hari came with a Wallas parafin heater installed.... .but over the years it has had very little use. To be sure to get it going at the start of the season you need to clean the points and that doesn't happen that often.
So this year we are trying something new - or rather, secondhand. An Origo HeatPal. Basically a meths burner in a tin. You can also use it as a stove if needed.
Today I set it going on the balcony - both to check it works and to see how safe it is to be around.
It was a bit slow to light but then burnt well and seems to push out plenty of heat. The case stays cool but the lid gets uncomfortably hot - except on the low setting. And turning it down to 0 doesn't extinguish it...
So... It could be just the thing to keep up cosy - with some care in positioning and remembering to keep the boat ventilated.
We will soon see....

In the cellar

2011-05-10T22:38:00.001+02:00

The great day approaches... just a little too quickly as it happens, so there is frantic activity in the cellar to catch up with
the winter job list.
Maybe I
should have bought quick drying varnish?!

Galley trigonometry

2010-11-14T22:18:00.001+01:00

We were out to the boat today to collect the last of the things on the boat before the winter. At the same time I took the chance to measure up inside.

At some time the stove has been moved from by the door to a new location just aft of the forepeak on the port side. Cooking in the boat is a pain - no headroom and nowhere particular for the steam to go. So, we plan to put the stove back in the locker by the door to be able to stand in the entrance when cooking.

The stove is an old Origo twin burner spirit stove. In principle we could just have it stood straight on the drop down flap on the locker - but right now it's gimballed so I'm looking to build a frame to hold it that can be slid in and out.

The locker is not as tall as the existing suspension points so we need some re-engineering for the stove to fit... so I'm sat down this evening with notebook and laptop to look at the geometry. It's a long time since I needed to play with sines and cosines!

The first thing I find is that the existing solution is designed to just clear the surface below - it will work in principle with any heel angle. Nice! With less height to work with we don't have that luxury, unless I make it height adjustable. But - we never run the stove with the boat on the move - so that's unlikely to be a big problem. Gimballing is to keep supper safe when we get waves coming in when we're anchored up. How much is enough is hard to say, but 20 degrees maybe?

Like most things the solution is going to be a compromise: for a given pivot height, as you move the stove up to get more clearance (to tolerate more heel) but the result gets less stable.

And you need to think about the pots as well. Within the height available, more clearance quickly means the pots will be above the pivot. Weight high up reduces the effective length of the pendulum - making it quicker -and too much weight too high is simply unstable..

So... a quick spreadsheet later, and the answer is....

Well not 42!

The pivot moves down from 210mm today to circa 170mm. Then losing 5mm from the clearance should give me those 20 degrees of tilt and still keep stable operation.

Feasibility study: Check. Done

Autumn sunshine

2010-10-09T15:09:00.000+02:00

Last trip of the season... Nothing ambitious but lovely to be out on the water... Or sat in the cockpit with a beer :)

Sailing away...

2010-08-09T18:02:00.000+02:00

At the end of a fantastic week, with plenty of rain, good food, good company, and not least dance it was time to set sail and head off south again. We were three boats travelling together (well almost), heading round the south side of Runmarö weaving our way amongst the skerries and islands heading for Nämdö.

It was a super sail. Light southerly winds, the sea was calm and the sun warm, sinking slowly down towards the horizon. It wasn't quick, but what's the hurry when the scenery is so great?

The clip below is us reaching down towards Nämdö and Långviken; Karin at the helm.

Great - and a great evening grilling on the cliffs, admiring the stars and enjoying a last night in good company.

Fjärdlång

2010-07-07T22:02:00.002+02:00

It was one of those days... Hot... light winds, and just enough lee from the islands to leave us windless and sun-fried.

Not completely without wind, but slow enough that we dropped sail and motored in to a bay on Ängsholmen somewhat short of our destination. ..which sadly proved to have no decent spot to come to shore, so we ended up hoisting sail and continuing on to anchor at the north east side of Fjärdlång. Well sheltered with plenty of different spots to choose from.

If it was better placed from Karlslunds we'd be here more often for sure...

Dawn...

2010-07-06T06:31:00.002+02:00

Another beautiful morning...

Långviken

2010-07-05T18:09:00.001+02:00

Inspecting the forest on Nämdö

The wind changed.. and a bit like Mary Poppins it was time for us to go. With a forecast for strong westerlies by nightfall we wanted a spot with good shelter in the west - so we plumped for Nämdö. Not such a long sail but a pleasant one, a broad reach most of the way, with a beat up to come in to the bay.

We found a spot all to ourselves... taking our time to find good depth close in. And then of course as soon as we were settled three more boats turned up.

We arrived quite early and had plenty of time for a look around - at least this end of Nämdö. About ten minutes walk north along the coast is a sopmajor - composting toilet and rubbish room. It's not so easy to see from a distance, and not well signed on the trail, but persevere round to the small headland and it's easy to find.

Walk the other way, out of the woods and through the meadows and you eventually come to a pump for water - and soon after a sauna. Wood-fired it's open to the public. Just book a time, and remember to cross in if you are happy to share.....

Sunrise

2010-07-04T21:02:00.000+02:00

We have reached Trollkobb - as the name suggests, a magical place tucked in among islands on the eastern edge of the archipelago.
If you are awake you also get a really fine sunrise..

Gone with the wind

2010-07-03T20:58:00.000+02:00

Holiday, and fairly unambitious plans to potter round the local area going where the wind takes us...
After a brisk afternoon 6-7 knot sail we arrived in Mörtö Bunsö in good time to grill.
I looked out this morning and was surprised to see a neighbour boat slowly dragging by. What do you do at 7am in a busy anchorage? Fortunately heads appeared not so long after...

Midsummer by sea

2010-06-27T10:00:00.003+02:00

Midsummer, as every good Swede knows is a time to disappear off to the country to be among good friends and celebrate the year's longest day - which I can tell you is loooong. But if you are going to the country why not sail???

So three of us set off bright and early for a five hour sail - and much against tradition we had sunshine all the way , and not bad winds withall.

And, having arrived and slung the hook off the end of the jetty... Lunch onboard - silltårta (herring tart), what else - and a little nubba, a swim to cool down and freshen up, a quick change and then it's off to the party....

Cliffhangar

2010-06-20T14:44:00.001+02:00

Grill lunch on Ornö. One of those bays we've been past lots of times, but perfect today when its blowing 9m/s and you want a bit of lee...

New wave

2010-06-19T09:47:00.000+02:00

Sailing it may not be, but a canoeing course was still a perfect way to get out in the archipelago. :)

Widget wanted

2010-06-02T22:59:00.001+02:00

It's a fine evening, and with great foresight I left a few things on board I need at home. So, after work, I caught the bus out to the marina to sit and enjoy a bite to eat at the bar on the waterside.
To while away the time before the bus back I set to on one of those small jobs that didn't make the winter jobs list Some time ago one of the handles on the floorboards broke. No big problem. I'll just swap the broken one for the one on the board with the spare anchor under.
As it happens it was not just a case off screwing it loose and screwing it back again. Strange but true, on the back they are not the same. So now, before I take a chisel to the floor I might as well see if I can get a new one.
Any tips?

In the fog

2010-05-14T19:19:00.000+02:00

Five knots... To somewhere...
Listen to that foghorn blow..

Back in the briny

2010-05-14T13:09:00.001+02:00

... or not so briny! The Baltic is not that salty.
Work over and the lady slips lithely back into the water. And, unusually we got the mast up the same day. Of course the windex got blatted by the crane... Are we the only one's in the marina with a wonky windex ?

Ready for the off

2010-05-10T00:26:00.001+02:00

Not the sunniest of weekends. We got rained off yesterday, but managed today to get the last of the 'must do before we launch' jobs done... touching up the white waterline on the starboard side.

Somehow it's always the starboard side. Think it's because with the engine on that side the boat is never fully even and the paint ends up underwater at the bottom. Toplac is for above the waterline....

Apart from that the cockpit got a clean, the cupboards got sorted, the cabin woodwork got oiled, and some of the deckhouse got polished.. plus I made a quick and not so very tidy job of renewing the silicone on the hull/deck join in a couple of places. And then to finish off... a last coat of 'nanopolish' - in the hope that it will keep her looking good for ALL of the summer.

Wash and brush up

2010-04-11T19:28:00.000+02:00

After cold and clammy yesterday it was nice to be working in shirt-sleeves today. The messy past is done, sanding the bottom, and the rest of the day went on washing down the deck and top-sides. Out with the scrubbing brush to get rid of all the grime fast after the winter...

On a grey day

2010-04-10T14:07:00.000+02:00

The covers are off and the door and frame are back in place.. It's just a shame that there are big stripes of glue on the boat from the tape that I used to fix a binbag over the entrance. Duck tape don't like the cold it seems...

Square

2010-04-04T22:39:00.001+02:00

The snowy winter has delayed the start of this season's work programme out in the boatyard. At home in the cellar though things are starting to look more like they should.
Is three coats going to be enough?

Getting an early start

2010-01-24T20:52:00.001+01:00

It's still january, but the sander is out stripping back the varnish on the frame from the entry. Plan ahead.. .

It's a wrap

2009-11-29T19:49:00.001+01:00

Covers up and the last few things taken off. Ready för winter...

Hauling out

2009-10-16T18:14:00.001+02:00

A grey and wet Friday- and Mata Hari is back in the boatpark. ...with the guys from the boatyard as efficient as ever :)

Night shift

2009-10-09T23:06:00.000+02:00

It's that time of year when the mast has to come down... And this year it was an evening job. It was somewhat dark by the time we motored back to the berth...

Panel Games

2009-09-07T20:37:00.002+02:00

One of the things that's always been a bit hit and miss on the boat is the lighting. More specifically the Nav lights. The lack of a sternlight we solved a few years back, but the white navlight on the mast was more troublesome.

Eventually we diagnosed a dodgy contact on the switch panel and decided it was a good time to update the full panel rather than find a switch to fit. So we bought one... And there it has sat for the last year or more waiting to be fitted. Until now...

We were back early after lunch on Sunday so I took the chance to pull it all apart and make the change. The panel is the same dimensions which made life easy even if the screw holes were not.

I was able to simplify the wiring a little along the way, but most of the rat's nest behind the panel stayed as it was . It's sound, and it works.. And it is at least a little neater than it was.

A quick shuffle of the fuses then to suite what's connected and bob's your uncle.

The surprising thing is it all works too... :-D
...excpt maybe the Wallas heater but that's another project...

Night watch

2009-09-05T21:12:00.001+02:00

Just desserts...

Yet another sunset

2009-09-05T19:49:00.001+02:00

Yet another sunset

Double vision

2009-08-08T16:04:00.004+02:00

The trip homeward took us as far as Mörtö-Bunsön. There were lots of boats but there's plenty of space and deep water close in... a little too much deep water in fact! It's ten meters deep not far off the cliffs. I added extra line to the anchor and dropped the hook a bit further out than normal to get a good lie - and then ran out of line before I got to the shore!

It was super weather, and once the heat started to ease in the afternoon we went off for a walk and picked a few blueberries to have with breakfast (picking up a good few mosquito bites along the way). Coming back through the trees I wondered who it was standing washing down my boat?!?! ... until I got closer and saw that it wasn't Mata Hari at all, but a very near twin that had arrived while we'd been gone. Kul!

Boskapsön

2009-08-06T22:29:00.001+02:00

We sailed in light winds to Stavsnäs, dropped off Pål and took on new supplies. It was a lumpy trip with lots of motorboat traffic.
From there it was a couple of hours pleasant sailing to the south side of Nämdö...
Despite a number of other boats already being there we got a quiet spot and a great sunset. :)

Lost in space

2009-08-05T20:15:00.002+02:00

We left Stora Nassa on a cloudy morning, and more or less got out of the islands before mist set in... Sometimes a boat would appear, or a skerry, but mostly we sailed in a circle of grey keeping track on the GPS.
As luck would have it though, the mist broke as we reached the shipping lane past Sandhamn, and we completed the trip in bright sunshine on the last of the day's breeze..

Night life

2009-08-04T13:43:00.001+02:00

Once the sun has dipped, and dinner gone the way of all things it's time to cosy up in the cabin with coffee and some good chocolate...and maybe a little whisky :)
The oil lamp was this year's investment - scoring highly on cosiness factor, and saving on the battery.

Kallskär...

2009-08-02T20:30:00.003+02:00

We have arrived... A fine fast reach past Möja and on across open water liberally scattered with rocks and lighthouses to Kallskär.
Now we are here in the outer Archipelago... With the grill on and salmon sizzling :)

Mirror Finish

2009-08-01T19:51:00.002+02:00

We started the day on Vindalsö under grey cloud with a fresh westerly, and ended up here at Grisselholm after motoring across Kanholmsfjarden.
The sun is setting, and the water is like a mirror...

Simple sailing

2009-07-30T13:51:00.001+02:00

A day trip in the archipelago... but today I've swapped Mata Hari for Nörve, a rowing boat with spritsail... but no rudder! if you don't count a steering oar
- though it steers quite nicely just heeling the right way :)

Midsommar by sea

2009-07-10T18:31:00.000+02:00

Six hours by boat; sun, showers, squalls, hailstones and becalmed. Interesting sailing...
This entry a test for mobile blogging :)

Back to civilisation

2009-05-18T22:33:00.000+02:00

The nights are still kind of chilly, and the sleeping bag was pecularily inviting so breakfast didn't get a look in until after ten. ..and by the time the second round of coffee had been brewed and we got bored of watching the wee fish under the boat it was almost midday. Staying longer was tempting.. but it was sadly time to lift the hook.

We lay head to what little wind there was in the bay and so hauled out without the motor. We were a little nearer the shallows than I'd planned by the time we has the genoa unfurled and then had a second go at hoisting the main after snagging a baton in the shrouds - but isn't that why they call it a shake-down cruise?

Happily we had tail winds again as we tracked back - this time plotting a course around the shoals instead of taking the main channel back into Mysingen. This turned out much easier than the last (and only time) we'd tried it before when, close hauled, we met twelve kayaks crossing our course....

On Mysingen

We had a good five knots heading north but then dropped into a wind hole when we came past Lindholmsgrund - watching the windex gyrate in all directions as we tried vainly to catch a steady breeze. In the end it came back in the east and we had a good close reach all the way back to Gålö - and good winds all the way in to Karlslunds. A very pleasant home stretch to finish the weekend. Toppen!

Consider the season well and truly started!

......................

15 May 2009
St. Notholmen to Karlslunds: 11,9nm
Paul, Pål, Kia

Slumming it

2009-05-18T21:58:00.000+02:00

Ship's victuals...
Starters: fishroe with dill & a squeeze of lemon ...
Main course: grilled salmon filé with grilled vegetables and home made thyme & potato salad...
..and last but not least
Our famous grilled pineapple desert

:-D

Birds on the wing..

2009-05-18T21:31:00.002+02:00

Rafts of eider gaggling on the open sea, grey geese honking as they fly loudly over the treetops, terns swooping and diving, fishing in the still evening air. A pair of cormorants, black arrows heading for some distant rock - a sea eagle flapping lazily overhead.

Swallows dipping low over the water ... oystercatchers smartly turned out in black and white, wheeling to attention. A laughing gull*, checking out what leftovers the barbecue might bring, and a lone swan sailing sedately by .

Back in town you notice spring has arrived with the chatter of chaffinches and the twittering tits in the linden trees over the road...

Out here in the archipelago there's a whole new range and variety of bird life to enjoy....

*translated from the swedish..

The Lake Isle of Innisfree

2009-05-18T20:59:00.000+02:00

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made:
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee;
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet's wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart's core.
W.B Yeats

It was a fine and sunny day for a sail... upping anchor after a lazy breakfast and heading off with the wind at our tail - at least for the first stretch.
Past Björkö we turned south into Mysingen while the wind had veered, leaving us close hauled down towards Utö - and tacking to come up towards the gap at Kulbäling. Another couple of tacks through the entrance saw us lined up for the narrow channel and an easy close reach through. (One of the starboard pins has gone... I should check the shipping notices and see if it's permanent?).

Through into what for me is the start of the outer archipelago, and a short reach to our destination - though there are so few boats out we could pick any one of a hundred places to creep in to.

On the water. against the wind, it was a bit chilly to be honest, but once ashore in the lee of the island it was , put simply, idyllic..... unspoilt nature - and us.

....................

14 May 2009
Kolnäsvik to St. Notholmen: 11,6nm
Paul, Pål, Kia

Shipshape

2009-05-10T09:14:00.000+02:00

It was planned to be the first tour of the season - a short trip out for a bit of lunch. We got to the boat on friday night, ready for an early start, and made dinner on the spirit stove and settled in for the night... to the sound of raindrops hammering on the deck.

Breakfast time was not much better. A long lie in was rewarded with looming clouds and a forecast for 10m/s winds. So, after a pleasant breakfast of croissants and muesli (not in the same bowl you understand) we drew up a jobs list. Some were things that needed doing before sailing - and some were good to get done anyway: re-installing the freshly varnished board with all the cleats for the control lines, cleaning the anchor locker, sorting out the chart collection, freeing the spinnaker halyard (which was round the jib halyard on the roller reefing), polishing the topsides where the crib had been, sorting out the lockers down below, and taping up the bottlescrews on the shrouds.. no snags and no untimely surprises.

Between all that and a leasurely lunch in the cockpit, and the odd cup of coffee, we never did quite make it to sea... but by the time we were ready at the bus-stop for the trip home it was looking like it would be a really nice evening for those that made it out.

Back in the briny

2009-05-02T10:45:00.001+02:00

Ok... This is the Baltic. Back in the not so briny.

Which way up was it?
On Monday I took time out from a hectic week at work to get the boat back in the water - which actually isn't that strenuous as the marina takes care of all the hard work... And then yesterday was the day for putting the mast back up.

This is our ninth season and it is still a job which we start with a certain trepidation. That said, this year it went quite well - we got the boat and crane positioned so the windex survived the lift.. but did have an interesting exercise to get the topping lift back the right side of the spreaders.

One of my pet hates is the boats that moor up under the crane and then go away to see where the mast is. Thankfully it was quiet this year and we had just one boat ahead of us on the crane. Once the mast was up and secure we motored back to the berth to finish trimming the stays.. ..and to re-install the spaghetti. Halyards, downhauls, cunningham, kicker, outhaul...
.. and then of course, fit the sails - with the usual conundrum of which are the right battens (We have a bit of a mix since one popped out in a blow a few years back and disappeared to Davy Jones'...)

All in all it took most of the day - with the odd coffee break thrown in - but now we have a sail-ready boat again... Barring one small job...

Now where are the charts?!

Beauty is skin deep

2009-04-20T21:28:00.001+02:00

Doing the hull this year has been the least work it's eveer been and it is looking pretty much as good as it's ever done.

Last year iit got a good going over that has lasted welll. Before waxing it this year the was some matting of the surface - on the port side that has been the sunny side all summer for the last five seasons - but not that much. It got a wash over with yacht cleaner and then a good going over with TCnano Gelcoat Protection (loosely translated). - The 'wonder wax' we bought last year. Wipe it on.. Allow to dry and polish off... Standard stuff.

But - the results are good. After one coat there was still some sign of the matting but the rest of the hulll looked great. Two coats for an all over shine you can see your face in, and a third for good measure to hopefully last through to next year.

So hull sorted, and onto the deck - which missed out on a good clean last year. The pale colour is more forgiving but the surface was flat and dead looking with plenty of small dark sooty flecks - not to mention lots of grubby marks around the cockpit.

A rummage round the car and the cockpit lockers failed to find
any polish so it was another trip to the marina chandlers to see what'd do the job. After a few minutes reading the various jars, my horoscope, and the dregs in the coffee cup I plumped for something by Turtle Wax.

It turned out to be a thick pink liquid with a smell not unlike 'Windowlene'. Another rub on, wait, rub off product. And this too seems to really do what it says on the tin - well, plastic bottle. Some of the marks in the cockpit needed elbow grease to fix but the rest rubbed up easily.

Of course - it is just a polish, so once the hull had it's sheen back it was out wiith the TCnano to seal and protect the surface.

The only thing now is we need to watch out on the deckhouse roof. It's slippery!

(The photo shows where the control lines come though the coaming to a plate forward of the hatch - currently demounted for varnishing)

All in one

2009-04-18T22:11:00.001+02:00

This is it... The weekend where we do everything needed to get Mata Hari spruced up for the season - or failing that, at least ready to launch.

Last night we were here after work and managed to tape up and put on a coat of anti-fouling. Today, despite being bright sunshine one minute and lonely snowflakes the next, turned out to be good day too. Antifouling finished, the hull washed and waxed (twice) and cleaning and polishing on deck and in the cockpit well underway.

Seeing the boat get back it's lustre - and a bit of sunshine makes the new season seem just that bit nearer. Great!

Men At Work

2009-03-21T17:13:00.000+01:00

The covers are off... and the work has begun. There's still snow on the ground - but it turned out to be a mild day and we got done pretty much everything we planned. Sorting through last year's paint, polish and brushes to see what's usable - rubbing down the hull below the waterline (Thanks Pål!) - and cleaning out the lockers.

In doing the latter it looked at first like we'd got a leak - in spite of having the covers on. It turned out to be a bottle of 'lättöl' - low alcohol beer (!) - which had burst open in the cold weather. That and a locker full of empties says we didn't do such a great job preparing for the winter.

On the other hand the hull is still looking great - just what we wanted to see. It's going to need a wash off and a repolish but the rubbing stays in the cupboard this year. Finally!

Ancient or Modern

2009-03-11T22:42:00.001+01:00

Well, right now the outboard is in the wokshop. Typically, it's not a case of "It's shot you need a new one" - but nor is it a case of "We can fix that no problems...". The impeller looks OK but the pump housing is worn. ...or it might be crud in the cooling channels in the block.
So maybe it's fixable... And maybe we will be shopping for a new engine.
Shiny and new would be nice- reliable and clean, for a price. But the old heap has character and a fair amount of TLC invested. I'm hoping we get it back in working order!

What goes round comes around...

2009-03-02T22:03:00.000+01:00

With a flourish of pre-season enthusiasm Pål has shipped off the outboard to the workshop at the marina to see if they can fix last seasons problems with cooling water. Their prognosis matches mine.. most probably the impeller... and if they can get it apart they will fix it. But if after 25 years it's not going to give in to a little TLC we'll be faced with buying a new one.

So today we have been at the boatshow checking out the alternatives (I didn't know Johnson had disappeared!). The going rate for a 5hp 4-stroke seems to be about 12 000 kronor... somewhat more for a 6hp like we have today... so I have my fingers crossed that the old faithful will see reason and submit to treatment.

Back on the dock

2008-10-26T22:40:00.000+01:00

Seasons end...

On Friday she came out the water for the winter and now is snugly parked up waiting on another trip to set up the covers. A bit sad really, seeing her back on land, out of her element - but there's a season for everything.

On the bright side, the hull still looks really good - some streaking from run-off from the scuppers but very little sign of the usual summer matting and fading. In fact it looks so good I'm keen to give her a wash and polish before the winter.. We'll see how the weather is when we come to do that job!

The Ultimate Sailing Trip....

2008-10-19T20:53:00.000+02:00

Which is to say, our last outing of the season... but for all that a nice trip too. A weekend outing out beyond Utö - which somehow always feels like the spot where the Outer Skärgård begins.

Friday night was Kolnäsviken, and after a somewhat slow day in light winds we made it out to Notholmen in good time for sunset. We'd not been here before but we'll definitely have it on the list of possibles in the future - a fine small island with a sheltered bay on the southern side. The north shore is steep and not too easy to come in to - and the eastern side is a bit shallow close in. We managed though to find a spot on this side with shelter from the easterlies predicted to come up in the night.

And indeed they did - though not to any worrying degree - but plenty enough for a quick trip home running or reaching all the way - and with that curious coastal phenomenon - cloud all round but somehow rarely overhead. Just the way it should be ....

But please... remind to get the outboard seen to - losing the cooling in reverse is starting to be more than a small inconvenience....

Details of the trip this time courtesy of Pål and Easytrail - let's see if this works....

Segling Notholmen

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Swabbing the deck

2008-08-18T02:52:00.001+02:00

.. Back in port, and just the tidying up to do. Two nights under a tree and the decks and cockpit are sorely in need if a wash over. On the other hand the hull is looking great. None of the usual matting off as the season progresses. It's lovely to see her look so good!

But oh how I hate putting the sail away in the rain...

Flying low

2008-08-18T02:43:00.001+02:00

Even before we set out they were forecasting strong winds, so it was no surprise to waken on Sunday to leaden skies and the sound of the wind surging through the treetops. In the bay all is still calm, but walk over the headland and the wind is not to be ignored. The water has that brushed look as gusts flatten the surface & white horses ice the wavetops.
Slowly the bay empties, most going out with the boom covers on, clearly intending to motor. The forecast though is for lighter winds towards evening so we opt to wait.
It's not the finest of days... grey and damp, but it has it's compensations. The stiller airs in the bay are just right to bring swallows and house martins swooping to feed. Lots of them...
The darting black shapes are all around, flying just over the water and then flicking away after some tasty morsel. Nature's air display on our doorstep :-)

Midafternoon and a light rain sets in.. but the wind has eased a little so we can pack up and head for home - on mainsail and a wedge of jib. Less wind would be more comfortable, as would less of that fine mizzle, but it's quite Ok - just keep a weather eye open for the gusts.

And that was that for the first trip of the season.. A little lazy there and back...

Lazy days

2008-08-16T13:20:00.001+02:00

"I'm busy going nowhere, working the whole day through, trying to find lots of things not to do..."

If it works for the Wizard of Oz it works for me. It's finally the first trip of the season and we've come over the sound to Kolnäsviken as a Friday night jumping off point. But now it's saturday lunch and we're quiet happy where we are thank you. Lazy I know but that's the point of getting away from it all.

The bay here is a well sheltered natural harbour, with a steady turn over of boats coming and going... Some like us still here from last night, some just dropping anchor for lunch, and some starting to arrive for tonight.
The strange thing here is that no matter how busy it is in the bay you can walk the hundred metres across the headland and find solitude on the other shore - strange because it's here you get to see the sun sinking over the horizon in a magic swathe of colour.

Still, I don't mind if we get it to ourselves...

...Enough of that.. I have things not to do. :-)

Sitting on the dock of the bay..

2008-07-24T17:55:00.000+02:00

Well... summer's here, the boat is in the water and the archipelago promises sunshine, and quiet anchorages, swimming, and grilling on the shore. Whatever happened to long runs under a ballooning spinnaker, and splashy beats up a wind whipped Mysingen?

Sadly, after all that work on boat maintainance the skipper's now in dry dock for some maintenance of his own. Right now I can do a good impersonation of Nelson's "I see no ships!"*

Hopefully I'll pass muster before the season is completely done for...

* ..or was it "I really do not see the signal"?

Back on the water

2008-04-27T08:00:00.001+02:00

It's that time again. The outboard is on, the tiller back where it should be and we are waiting for the crane. Time to get back on the water.

Here they slip the boat from a trailer with hydraulic arms that cradle her on the move, but let her free once she's in. But first the crane to lift her onto the trailer bed.
The guys here are expert, lifting her out from between the neighbours like picking a parcel from a shelf, and launching is just as smooth.
Clean plugs and the outboard is thrummimg into life, and free of the mast she heads eagerly out from the quay for the cruise round to the berth.
Friday's sunny potter is repeated twice on Saturday for a date with the mast crane. With utmost care the shiny new Windex goes on, and we winch the mast into place - and just for once the job is done with the Windex still in one piece. Miracles will never cease.
So, there she is... Boom on, sails clad and all ready to go!

?? How is it that some people think it OK to tie up on the quay by the crane and then go off to start preparing the mast. Guys... YOU ARE IN THE WAY!

Finishing Touches

2008-04-23T00:51:00.001+02:00

The weekend saw us back at the marina taking advantage of the sunny weather to finish all that needs to be done before sjösättning. That meant painting the waterline, making repairs to the caulking on the deck edge, prepping & mounting the outboard, scrubbing out the cockpit, oiling the teak facias and generally making things shipshape.

It doesn't empty the joblist... the tiller is at home getting a lick of varnish, the sprayhood needs time with a needle & thread, there's a window that needs sealing, charge the battery and a final polish to last the season. Plenty still that can be done!
But on Friday she goes back in the water... and looking her best we hope!

Namesake

2008-04-14T07:55:00.000+02:00

After talking about it for seven years it has finally happened.... we have put the name on the the boat. ..and it looks great if I do say so myself!

Also after seven years I've fixed the seacock on the port side cockpit scupper... so now we are properly seaworthy :-) That was a job that used a tip from the IF discussion forum: We plugged the scupper and then it sat for a week and a half with cooking oil in to penetrate and lubricate. It still took a while to get that critical first small movement, and a while longer to free up the last couple of millimetres to et proper closure. But now it's done. No more wet feet when we have guests onboard!

True blue?

2008-04-06T20:25:00.000+02:00

That nice blue hull looks really nice when it's given a rub down and a lick of polish.. but somehow it never lasts the season loooking that way. It quickly matts off and looks patchy and streaky... The gelcoat has had too many summers in the sun.
But maybe this year it will be different?

We spent the weekend with sander and polisher, cutting back with wet and dry and going over again with rubbing paste to bring up the shine - a compromise between wanting to get rid of the oxidation and not wanting to cut back too deep... Time consuming but hopefully worth it - the bit that's finished looks really good.

All in a days work...

2008-03-30T23:10:00.000+02:00

It's that time of year again... the countdown to launch, and the clock has started!

Last weekend, amid the easter snow showers we were out to Karlslunds to take off the covers and give her the once over- which might have been more of a twice over if we'd remembered to bring the boat keys!

This weekend in the warmth of the spring sunshine it was time to start the work in earnest... and this time with a some new technical tricks to help things along (no not the brush!).

First, simplest and best was a long handle... usable with sanding block or roller for both sanding and painting the hull. .. and a very good job it did too. Much easier on the back and you don't end up looking like an extra from 'The Martians Have Landed'.

Next was the electric 'detail' sander - perfect for rubbing down the waterline... usually we rub it down by hand - but always in a hurry and it soon needs doing again. This year it was just as quick, but oh so much better!

And last... a natty new polishing machine for rubbing down the gelcoat. According to the plan we are going to do a 'really good job' this year. So far it looks much like it usually does after rubbing. Good - but still with room for improvement. We'll see how it looks next week after phase two...

All of which made for a busy days work - which is why it was a bonus to fit in one of those 'really ought to do' jobs: sanding down and glassing over the crack in the aft hatch cover.
I wonder if we have some deck paint left to tidy up with after???

Green Onions

2008-01-12T10:47:00.001+01:00

Sailsalsa is about two things... and salsa is one of them. Mostly, sailing is dinghy sailing - which for me is an annual chance to get out and have a blast -but this year we took a day trip to Lökholmen - 'Onion Island'.

Well.. it wasn't going to be Lökholmen. When we slipped the mooring and headed off to follow the other boats (3 cruisers + two hobies) we had a different plan. I was crewless till the last minute when Karin hopped on board and so we set off after the others in a really fresh breeze. Mata Hari sails like a dinghy.. in a blow you just haul everything in - kicker, outhaul, backstay (cunningham if you like) - until it's all as flat as you like and then point her where you want to go... upwind.

Closehauled, but not all that level we were soon abreast and heading in what we thought was the right direction as the others seemed to hesitate between the islands.. until eventually the tender caught us up to say 'Lökholmen'. And where is that... We hove to to check out the chart until my brain woke up and I realised that it's the island off Sandhamn where we stayed a couple of years ago. But that's quite close?! So let's go the long way...

And so we set off after Håkan and Johan to round Sandhamn and come in from the southeast instead. A beat to start with but once we dropped off a point or two a really nice reach.

Still, it wasn't too long before we were dropping sail off the Archipelago's premier sailing venue and pottering in to the (other) guest harbour. The Cats and the tender were already there - which meant the grill was lit and the beer was chilling on the waterline. Perfect!

Getting out again was more interesting after someone dropped anchor over my anchor line.. and we struggled to free it with half the harbour watching - but such is life. And the short route back was the first time I'd sailed through the NW gap to Sandhamn. Cosy, with oncoming traffic and a big cruiser itching to motor past.. :-)

But I did like that first stretch..

....................
1 August 2007
Vindalsö - Lökholmen
Paul, Karin

On the run...

2007-07-29T22:46:00.000+02:00

Summer is short...and it pays to make the most of it, so it is only a few days after the last trip that Mata Hari is once again headig out from Karlslunds.

This time we are heading north, Karin & I, for a few days dancing and good company with 'Sailsalsa'. It's a fairly straight forward sail past Dalarö to Vindalsö - just short of Sandhamn - but at around 25nm quite a long day-trip. Today though the winds aregood - almost too good.

We have a strong tail wind pushing on, and although I start with the jib part furled I soon decide that justthe main is morethanenough - andwelose the aggravation of the genua flogging in the lee when a true run really is the best course. Strong winds however mean plenty of chop and rolling waves and we are obliged to keep an eye on the wind direction as the boat screws under the waves. A gybe in this would not be fun...

Waves though mean surfing on the run and speeds thatbreak with the usual rules of the gain. So much so that we hit 9.4 knots at one point (by the GPS) coming off a large wave in a gust.. A new record...

And with those good winds it is a quick four and half hours before we are heading in to greet old friends and new.
But - life being never so easy - that's just the time that we lose the wind in the lee of an island - and just the time that the ferry is wanting to back out and round us. It's a good job one of us was able to manoeuvre!

Still we've arrived. Let's dance!

....................
29 July 2007
Karlslunds - Vindalsö: 23,0nm
Paul, Karin

Sunday drivers

2007-07-23T04:45:00.000+02:00

Breakfast.. and the neighbours as usual are first off - though today they have an excuse with a long trip north.

We have a more casual start and see them in the distance as the wind dies and we make slow time across Mysingen's open waters. But the weather is fine so it's no real hardship.

Eventually the wind fills in with a bit of sea breeze and with a healthy four knots plus we cross into more familiar waters - Långgarn and the shores of Gålö. And not long after we head up from the last close reach to drop sail and motor in.

Journey's end...
..and a big thanks to the crew!!!

....................
22 July 2007
Ängsholm to Karlslund: 13,38nm
Paul, Pål, Karin

Back to Mysingen

2007-07-22T04:20:00.000+02:00

St Anna's - Saturday
click to view

Karim was the early bird, but we were not so very far behind - saying farewell to our travelling companions before drawing out on the anchor to get under way.
We motored out from between the islands and sighting Karims reefed main in the distance set a course for Landsort. The winds are fair and it's a pleasant reach across open water - without the light winds of last year.

Gradually we catch up on Karim until , past Landsorts southern cape, we wave cheerio for the present as he heads in to Nynäshamn for a change of crew.
We head on for Ängsholm, breaking the trip up Mysingen at the same stop as on the outbound leg. We arrive as another boat leaves and have more or less the same place as before... to be joined just a bit later by Karim & Malin.

And just as on the first night the barbeque is lit out on the headland and we enjoy another fine skärgård evening. The last for this trip.

....................
21 July 2007
St Brännskär to Ängsholm: 28,75nm
Paul, Pål, Karin

Lazing on a Friday afternoon

2007-07-20T22:43:00.000+02:00

St Anna's - Friday
click to view

After two days of cloud and high winds our homeward trip was blessed with clear skies, pleasant winds and sunshine. By lunchtime we had made it back to Tvären and met up with Blå again for just a short sail before lunch. In light winds between the islands it took a while to pick a spot to anchor, but at last we threw in the hook and drew up to the shore - Lena' boat coming in after the now customary later start...

We are on holiday.. and with sunshine comes a strange desire for swimming and sunbathing and any thought of further travel is abandoned. Well almost. The forecast is for more wind in the night so after a recce on foot we motor round to the other side of the island and anchor again in a sheltered niche between the islands...

It's the last night we're all assembled, and out comes the guitar and flute for a memorable evening of song and good company crammed into the cockpit (but not ours!)

....................
20 July 2007
Lt Trassö to St Brännskär: 16,3nm
Paul, Pål, Karin

X marks the spot

2007-07-20T02:42:00.000+02:00

St Anna's - Thursday
click to view

No sooner have we arrived than it's time to start back again. The weather is not kind and in the blustery morning light we don't see St Anna's in it's best light. But here we are, and before we go about and head north we want at least to see something of the Archipelago.. so the day's plan includes a bit of a pleasure cruise around the islands.

There are two main channels through the islands and we plan to head south on the first and then cross to head back up further out among the islands. The only choice is what route to pick to cross between?

Choice made we head south on a reach.. skudding along between the islands and looking for the buoy that marks the turn.

How does this work again? When we reach the buoy we turn off towards this waypoint by this cob - and when we get there we turn between the cob and that underwater stone. Easy...

So which one was the cob you wanted??

Now on a broad reach, rocks, skerries and small islands rush towards us. The compass looks good and the waypoint is dead ahead... That one.
...and the underwater stone???

On the chart it looks like plenty of room, but out on the water - and not wishing to guess when the last proper survey was done - things don't seem to have so much margin. But better the devil you know.

We hold course on the cob and head up as late as prudence allows, slipping past looking at the darker water of it's sunken shores, but never once seeing that stone.

And so we find ourselves homeward bound.. As the channel bends the close reach becomes a beat, judging the legs to avoid the dots and x's scattering the island shores. And then a narrow gap, between a cob and reef to head into more open water towards Arkösund. We thread the gap between two islands, creeping through the lee, to avoid a more buffeting detour - and shake free onto a fine reach towards Arkösund and lunch.

With good tailwinds the afternoon sailing is more relaxed as we trail Karim across the open waters of Bråviken. Arriving outside Oxelösund with perfect timing the wind dies away just as we nose out across the shipping lane. We are obliged to veer away as the speck in the distance rapidly becomes a freighter bearing down on us.
Woow! But from there it's a quiet and leisurely sail to tie up at Liten Trassö, a popular anchoring spot just off the main channel.

....................
19 July 2007
Verkholm to Lt Trassö: 27,4nm
Paul, Pål, Karin
Winds:
W 7-11 m/s

Full reefed

2007-07-19T02:41:00.000+02:00

The wind in the night has passed over but not left us, and we are well reefed as we head south towards Arkösund and St Anna's. We drop back into the main channel and follow the navigation markers between the islands. It's good reaching weather and keep a good pace despite the reefs, and are glad of them when squalls come in with rain and winds up around 30 knots.

Around Arkösund the wind eases back a bit and we are back to playing the old game of making the mark... close hauled and really not wanting to tack off in the narrow channel - but make it we do and we can set off into St Anna's Skärgård. It's more compact than the Stockholm Archipelago, and that means less open water and more things to keep an eye out for.

The sun is out (sometimes) but the sky is filled with big boulders of cloud that darken the sky and bring whistling winds to whip up the white horses. Close hauled we crab our way to windward, with the wind direction swinging widely on the gusts.

Quite a short days sailing.. but we are all happy when the time comes to drop sail. We are not the only boats here and we end up in a small cove almost under the trees. Quiet, but not the most picturesque stop on the trip.

But... we've arrived!

....................
18 July 2007
Venholmen: 11,5nm
Paul, Pål, Karin
Winds:
SW-W 9-13 m/s

Cold Harbour

2007-07-18T02:00:00.000+02:00

St Anna's - Tuesday
click to view

From our island night-stop it is soon back in the main channel heading south, weaving between the islands and the reefs with a queue of boats behind and in front. The sailing is pleasant and we are soon turning the bow to head in to Oxelösund for lunch and restocking. A nice guest harbour with a restaurant behind - even a dance floor on the green! It's a fair walk to town to get provisions, and then a pleasant lunch in the sunshine - only a little concerned by the forecast for rising winds...

Heading out from Oxelösund we cut southward between two islands and soon find ourselves bobbing in the chop with only fluky winds pushing us nowhere - but time solves most problems and eventually we pick up speed and head off. We have charted a route across the sound between the many rocks and skerries to bring us to what looks like a good overnight prospect - but having the waypoint and knowing just which rock is which aren't entirely the same thing!

Lena's boat has gone another way, and so it's just ourselves with Karim following as our goal comes in sight. Kallhamn - a smallish island, but with a good deep bay on what tonight is the lee side. We give wide berth to an area charted with underwater rocks and glide slower and slower towards the goal until in the end we give up and finish the trip by motor - black clouds menace on the horizon and lightning flickers in the distance. Great atmosphere!.. but nice to have arrived and be moored up against the cliffs.

....................
17 July 2007
Oxelösund to Kallhamn: 17,1nm
Paul, Pål, Karin
Winds:
SW 8-12 m/s (at least on the forecast!)

Through the Stone Door

2007-07-16T14:20:00.000+02:00

St Anna's Semester - Monday

After a day in port it was nice to be out sailing again... even if the winds continued to be fresh and largely in the wrong direction - at least the sun was shining. We took the direct route from Landsort heading west to cross to the archipelago south of Trosa.

By lunchtime we sailed through the narrow sound giving entrance to Tvären. The wind had dropped off and was fluky behind the tree-clad promontory so we ended up beating in no wind just feet from the quayside... holding on for the traffic to pass us and give us chance to tack off.

Soon after we met up with Åsa and the other boats for lunch in the sun.. and a very nice lunch it was too. From there it was time to turn southwest passing through Stendörren (The Stone Door) and following the navigation channel between the islands, sometimes sailing and sometimes turning the engine on as we headed upwind through narrow passages.

As evening approached we stated looking for shelter for the night and eventually settled on an island right on the edge of the archipelago. The open approach was deceptive, until with a little help from the shore we found the right line to come through the shoals off shore. Sheltered from the wind, and with the sun low in the west.. it must be time to share a 'sun-downer'?

We are on holiday after all..

....................
18 July 2007
Landsort to Kallhamn: 22,9nm
Paul, Pål, Karin
Winds:
SW-W 9-13m/s

Blow the man down

2007-07-15T09:01:00.000+02:00

St Anna's - Sunday
click to view

It was a lumpy night, with the wind veering west and the swell breaking into the harbour entrance. I was up several times in the night to check fenders, and the anchor line.

Daybreak showed galloping seas covered with white horses. We've a long way to go to St Anna's, we should be moving on, but there's not much enthusiasm to head out. Karim wants to sail, and sets a reef and noses out - but is back in port inside an hour when a reefing point blows out. So we are in port for the day.

But port is no comfy place with the broken sea that chops up from the entrance - so one by one, as space comes free, we move berth to further in, until we're all together in the farthest corner, the flapping flags the biggest reminder of the choppy conditions round the corner.

Landsort is nice - even when it blows. Take a walk to the clifftops. Watch the surf breaking on the shoals off to the west... or walk down to the pilotboat harbour, sit and take a beer on the quay. ..or best, after dinner, set a little music on, and dance salsa on the jetty.

....................
15 July 2007
Landsort:
Paul, Pål & Karin
Winds:
W 13 m/s

And then we were three...

2007-07-15T08:15:00.000+02:00

St Anna's Semester - Saturday

It was a bright and early start - well, nine o'clock at least - as we left Ängsholm for the next leg. Still with headwinds we beat down Mysingen with fresher winds and more swell as we passed Örnsgrund and tacked towards the open Baltic.

We stuck it out with the genoa for a lumpy and somewhat exhillerating stretch before cutting west and dropping sail to motor into the narrow passage through to Nynäsviken, and lunch with Saul & Cissie - salsa friends of Karims. They have a beautiful summer cottage - and a wee small jetty - tucked into an inlet in this enclosed bay. Here we enjoyed lunch in the sun, talked dance, and listened to salsa. Great!

But we're not there yet. We are meeting Lena on Landsort and have some sailing to do. We go by motor through the remarkable Dragetskanal, just 2.5 m wide - dug by prisoners of war in the 1600s to providing a sheltered exit from Nynäsvik to the west. And from there set sail southward, weaving through the islands towards Öja. The wind is strengthening, and with only part of the jib unfurled it takes a while to get the sheeting position right and get her pointing.

It's a short stretch, and we are soon bucketing in the swell outside the guest harbour, sails down and the outboard complaining, now too deep, now sucking air..
How nice to slide into the lee of the headland and motor into smoother waters.

Lena is already here and we find space rafted alongside... just as well as the small harbour is more or less full. 26 knot winds are forecast for tonight.

....................
14 July 2007
Ängsholmen to Landsort: 25.25 nm
Paul, Pål & Karin
Winds:
SW 5-9 m/s

Southward Bound

2007-07-14T07:45:00.000+02:00

St Anna's Semester - Friday

Holidays have to begin somewhere... and for us it was standing in the rain at Karlslunds Marina unloading the car. A fine start for a week on the boat. But, packed up and ready to go the rain stopped, and beating out into Mysingen the sky cleared.
Somewhere up ahead was Karim, who'd been sailing all day from Bullandö, and Ängsholmen, our evening rendezvous. Past Mysingeholm both came into view as Karim's more southerly track converged on ours, and so we followed them in the last stretch to our evening's mooring, close in to the cliffs in a sheltered bay around half way down Mysingen.
Anders, crew for the day, jumped ship to join Karim & Patrik whilst we all gathered on the headland for dinner ...and to watch the sun set over the sound.

....................
13 July 2007
Karlslunds to Ängsholmen: 16,5nm
Paul, Pål, Karin & Anders
Winds:
SW 3-7 m/s

Midsommar

2007-07-01T10:02:00.000+02:00

Midsommar 2007

Midsummer is not the time to be in the city - unless of course you like being on your own. In cottages and villages around the country family and friends gather to celebrate the longest day, with dancing and feasting .. and having a good time.

And what you can do in a cottage in the woods, you can just as well do on an island out in the archipelago. Which is why on midsummer's eve Mata Hari pointed her bows south west and in company of Ander's Misil we set sail for the southern end of Ornö, for a party with some likeminded salseros.

It's a short and familiar trip - apart from the last part, gliding into Björkosund in the wind shadow from the island. We turned up just in time to be pipped for a place on the quay by Karim's Albin Express - so, most unusually for Sweden, we ended up rafted on the outside.

With a genial host, good company, an enormous barbecue, music, and a broad verandah for a dancing... well you can imagine how that is can't you?

Morning dawned bright and early (I must fix a curtain for the window in the washboard) and breakfast was followed by a morning stroll through the woods and along the shore. The forecast - 80% risk for winds over 10m/s (20knots)- was not inviting, and the winds over the bay were enough to hint at how it could be out in open water. Plenty of time for more herring (and just a little nubbe). But the winds are due to drop later...

Much later, around four o'clock, the wind seemed much the same, but it's time to be on our way. But, good fortune or good planning, by the time we were ready to leave the wind had shifted towards the south and dropped a point and in the lee of Ornö the homeward trip was easy sailing.

....................
22/23 June 2007
Karlslunds to Björkösund: 12,6nm round trip.
Paul, Karin
Winds:
Outbound E 4-7 m/s
Inbound SE 5-8 m/s

See it on the map...

Lunch on the rocks

2007-06-13T06:38:00.000+02:00

Another weekend and another sunny sunday. ..so why waste it?
Pack the barbie and we're off to the islands!

The forecasts as usual disagreed on the wind which turned out to be a good breeze as we reached out to Havstornsudden, and then turned to beat up towards Långgarn. Somewhat wiggly tacks mind, as Eugen is getting the feel of the helm.

Our goal - the island of Långgarnsholm, lies just off the island of Långgarn - itself just off Gålö. Together they form a long sheltered inlet open in the east. Approaching, the wind dies away and it's one of those fluky close reaches to creep up towards lunch. Keep clear of the wind shadow from Långgarn - but not too close inshore...

Soon we are decamped to the rocks and the BBQ is lit. Lie back... crack a beer - and enjoy.

Afternoons are never as long as you'd like, so after a scant two hours it's time to head home. Of course, beating here means running back... A very pleasant - and warm - experience in afternoon sun, not least for the strawberry dessert and coffee and pastries on the way back..

....................
10 June 2007
Karlslunds to Långgarnsholmen: 11,3nm round trip.
Paul, Pål & Eugen
Winds: SW 1-5 m/s

See it on the map...

Lazy daze...

2007-06-04T05:44:00.000+02:00

Mörbyfjärd: click for album

When the motor stops and the sheets tighten that other world slips away. The boat heels and the water gurgles under the bow as she picks up speed, and life is new and fresh again.

It is the finest and loveliest of days. Bright sunshine and a fresh breeze, and we are soon reaching out from Karlslunds at six knots heading out to explore. Where shall we go?

Mörbyfjärd is another of those spots that I'm always sailing past on the way to somewhere else.. yet with sheltered waters and a scattering of small islands there should be a few good spots to anchor. It's not a long trip, and with good winds it almost seems a shame to drop sail and motor in. But, we have a full lunchbox and a blanket and the sun is shining...

After a certain amount of dithering I plumped for a sheltered cliff on the southern shore, and managed to set Caroline on the rocks without quite running out of anchorline. Good, but we are soon nudging bottom on the shallows, and a little adjustment is needed before Mata Hari is sitting pretty with water under the keel. Done. Lunch?

How does tomato and basil flan sound? With melon, ham, grilled peppers, bread, olives, and a nice white wine? Probably not at all like the sound you get when you sit on the aioli. Ooops.

But the sun is shining and the cliffs are warm and comfortable, and do we have to sail back just yet?

....................
2 June 2007
Karlslunds to Mörbyfjärd: 10,9nm round trip.
Paul, Caroline
Winds: E 5-7 m/s

See it on the map...

In the swim!

2007-05-20T17:58:00.000+02:00

Runmaren: click for album

There is this magic with the weather, that when you get away from the land the sun shines...

The forecast for Saturday was winds gusting over 20m/s so we opted for the short tour to be home on Friday; and a trip to Runmaren . Not an island we've visited before although we've sailed past many times.

The trip there was around three and a half hours, mostly close hauled or reaching. After checking out the smaller bay on east Runmaren and finding three boats already moored in the 'best' spot we motored round to West Runmaren and the more open bay there. There was just one other IF for company as we came in to the cliffs. Good deep water close in - but not too many spots where it's easy to step ashore. ... and as I later found - not the best holding for the anchor. ( I was a bit stingy with the anchor line)

It was lovely, with the stern pointed west for the sunset.. and still calm water all around. In May the evenings are still chilly, but there are far fewer boats around so you get these lovely islands almost to yourself. The island itself is part of the Utö nature reserve stewarded by Skärgårdstiftelsen - and it's easy to understand why as eider swim in rafts off the cliffs, and oystercatchers wing past piping.

Supper was beef, pan-fried on the BBQ (I left the rack at home), and grilled bananas doused in Grand Marnier. Which, with a little red wine, is just the thing to leave you feeling relaxed and mellow as the horizon darkens and the stars come out...

............

Morning, still and sunny, saw the first dip of the year. We stretch the mainsheet back to the backstay when we're moored for more room in the cockpit - and oops!... that was the shackle going over the side as I loosened it to move it back. No spare on board - and I think I can see it down there... and a weight and a line to mark where it is, 3m down...
Splash! ...and brrrrr... it's cold!

Sadly I didn't manage to find the shackle - but the water was actually a lot warmer than I'd feared. It won't be long before swimming is back on the agenda for real. :-)

And the mainsheet? We robbed Peter to pay Paul and swapped out a shackle on the boom downhaul for a smaller one...

..............
17/18 May 2007
Karlslunds to Runmaren: 19.6nm round trip.
Paul, Pål
Thurs: Variable S-SE 2-4 m/s
Fri: SW 0-2 rising W 5-6 m/s
See it on the map...

Obscured from view

2007-05-13T15:15:00.000+02:00

After a grey morning it was nice to find sunshine as we headed out from Karlslunds. The wind was light and on the nose... just nice a gentle sail for the season's premier.

It turned fluky as we beat up to Havtornsudde and the main channel, but steadied for a comfortable close reach all the way across the sound. The sun is warm, but the wind is chilly on the fingers.

West towards Mysingen the horizon was grey... fog on the way, creeping closer, swathing the islands and swallowing them up.
But it was still clear and fine as we furled the jib, and dropped the main to motor in to the narrow entrance.

Inside there were just four boats, all moored to shore on the south side in the late afternoon sun. So we were alone as we dropped the anchor and nosed in to the shaded shore on the other side...

The boat is soon shipshape and we decamp to the shore laden with the grill & all the essentials. Experience says it's a short walk through the woods to the sunny side - and fine views out over the sound.

As the coals got started we watched terns fishing from the rocks as the sun slowly set into the fog still spreading out towards us. ..and to the east more fog coming, from over Ornö behind us. As the lamb cooked the far shore disappeared and then island after island -until, as the fruit kebabs sizzled, even the horizon was gone.

Still, silent, calm... the glassy water indistinguishable from the grey sky beyond. Far from Stockholm in another world, obscured from view...
..................
12/13 May 2007
Karlslunds to Kolnäsvik: 9.5nm round trip.
Variable S-SE 3-5 m/s
Check where we went on the map...

101 things to do after breakfast.

2007-05-05T23:33:00.000+02:00

Getting the mast down is the first step. Untie everything and wash it down. Refit the spreaders and the outer stays.. and then sort out the mess so everything will arrive in the right place when it gets upright. A bottlescrew that has a damaged thread and a trip to the chandelry at the shop. Not forgetting a new Windex (how many is that now?).
Lift over the mast to a trolley and carefully wheel 9m of mast out past the parked cars to bag a spot on the quay.

What sort of idiot moors a thirty-five footer on the quay half blocking the mast crane? We squeeze Mata Hari in to lie alongside and practise that peculiar ballet of getting the mast into position and the stays fastened on... and if someone can tell me a cast-iron technique for keeping the windex out of the mast-crane then do, please!

A spectator - great! .. stood impatiently watching with a mast on the roofrack of his Volvo, sticking out a good eight feet in both directions. A triumph of ingenuity over road safety! It turned out to be the mizzen for a (different ) 35 footer. Nuff said.

Just let's get the backstay in place and we can be off back to the berth to tension up everything. Boom, topping lift, main-sheet, kicker, downhaul, cunningham - hoist the genoa onto the roller reefing - Fit the the mains'l, boom cover, sprayhood.

..and refit the refurbished connector for the mast navlight. (Thanks Micke!)

All done :-)
Almost. The lamp's still open circuit. no.. yes.. ermm.. oh. an intermittent connection in the switch.

Oh well. Tomorrow is another day.. and we're ready to sail!

Refreshing the parts...

2007-05-05T22:34:00.000+02:00

Despite the rather snazzy tackle to lift the mast up and down in the mast shed it's still not the easiest thing in the world to get just your mast to the outside and ready to lift down. Halyards and stays, despite being well tied in, seem determined to snag at every opportunity. Which would be ok, but clinging onto the edge of an RSJ five feet up it's a little tricky to deal with a snag over THERE...

"Can't we take that one instead? It looks like it's from an IF."
Sadly no.

But we get there in the end, and I step down to terra firma ..accompanied by an ominous ripping sound. My jeans, wearing thin, are unexpectedly sporting new ventilation (!)

Sjösättning

2007-05-04T21:55:00.000+02:00

Friday, and all those last minute jobs have run out of minutes. Sjösättning has come!

Karlsunds has it well sorted. On time the crane arrives and with it the trailer that will carry her down to the water. I've seen a bit on tying the strops together to stop them slipping, but here they just get on with it. Strops on, slacken the bottle screws on the cradle and lift. Be careful with her.. as two tonnes swings in to the air.

But no worries. Once on the trailer the supports close to grip her and it's off through the rows of boats to the slipway. So many boats with the covers stlll on, work barely started. It's nice instead to be putting her back into her element.

Despite having tested the sea-cock was water-tight once we'd changed it there's still a small apprehension lingering as she glides off the trailer to lie by the quay. Small and fortunately unfounded.

And so I whisper sweet words to the outboard and smile as it sputters to life on the second pull. Cast off! ...and we back slowly away from the quayside before swing the bow round to face away. Slip her into gear and head off to find the berth, the sun shining and ripples gurgling under the bow.

Go South! Young Man

2007-04-26T21:55:00.000+02:00

With the boat almost ready to slip it seemed about time to think about the season ahead. All dressed up with nowhere to go? Well not quite...

The plan was that we would sail to Gotland somewhen under the summer and spend a few days cruising there before heading back. Two boats, for company and added safety, and a little summer sailing adventure. But - talking it over round the table in Tullkrogen there was a more conservative tone from the assembled ship companies. Ah well... night sailing.. weather .. need more crew .. ferries? It's a long way... (about 100nm). So, by consensus - in the best swedish tradition - we are haeding south in the summer. Västervik is nice, if we make it that far.

Gotland? Maybe next year.

That sinking feeling...

2007-04-09T12:41:00.000+02:00

The seacock under the sink has not been working... it doesn't shut off. When we changed the old tatty plastic sink for a stainless one we found that the plughole is not so very far above the waterline, so it's comforting to be able to shut off the seacock when we're under way...
So I thought I'd have a look. ..and yes the seacock's kaput. So we just screw it loose from the hull fitting and..
..and it's too close to the bulkhead to screw off! And that's when you get that sinking feeling.

So now it's either loosen the hull fitting - which I'm loathe to do - or add some ventilation to the locker under the berth.
Pass the saw Pål!

Painted and fine

2007-04-09T12:25:00.000+02:00

Easter and work starts in earnest... sanding and repainting the anti-fouling, and the annual challenge to get the hull looking it's best.
The blue colour matts out under the summer, and the finish gets streaky and uneven - so every year it's a once over with rubbing paste, and then polish and wax. It works, and gets easier year by year. She looks fine afterwards, but I'd love to find a way to keep her looking that way all year round!
..and someday I will get some gelcoat in the right colour and get rid of all those marks where the anchor has kissed the sides on the way up.

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Covers Off!

2007-03-11T20:31:00.000+01:00

Last year at this time the snow was still piled high around the covers, and the bay was thick with ice (...actually not thick enough, but that's another story!). Today though the sun shone and spring is definitely in the air. Time to get started. Covers Off!

It's more symbolic than a big step on the way - but taking down the winter covers at least means we get to check her over before we go to the chandlers. And she will get a little air before we start with the rubbing and painting.

Strange that we're the only ones...

Charted...

2007-03-08T13:20:00.000+01:00

The snow is still lying round about, but thoughts turn to spring and getting the boat ready for 'sjösättning'. It is after all spring proper in more southerly climes.

Yesterday, to give a sailing jolt to the system, it was a visit to 'Allt på Sjön' - the annual sailing exhibition here in Stockholm. Amongst all the motorboats and enormous outboards there were sails flying to whet the appetite: A new range of boats from RS - new to me at least - had me yearning for a bit of dinghy sailing, and the small collection of traditional boats reminds me that I really ought to have a boat at home. Something to potter with in the evenings. Living on a lake shore ought to have some benefits!

But... we didn't buy a boat... not even a shiny new kayak. But one thing did open the purse-strings. A new chart - a large scale chart of some of the islands out round Huvudskär - and so we have the beginnings of a plan, for one of those weekend trips...