Sailing away...

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.

Simple sailing

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 :)

Green Onions

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..

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1 August 2007
Vindalsö - Lökholmen
Paul, Karin

On the run...

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!

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