Warsash for Lunch and update on maintenance

Yesterday we went all the way to Warsash in Hampshire to meet up with other Tommies (members of the Tomahawk Owners Association)
As well as being a social get together in a rather distinguished venue, we used the opportunity to get advice and tips on the big issues of maintenance we are facing.



Lunch with some members of the TOA



 We are very nearly ready to order the work to begin on replacing the old engine with a new Yanmar 15.
This has been a subject of discussion for several weeks, and it would be boring to go over it again. However, our feeling is that we have done all the work of researching and investigating while the Peters at Peter Leonard Marine have been less than helpful.

Meanwhile, the Blakes stopcocks have been removed, looked at and passed by Peter and Ian (of TOA) and polished.



Before



After polishing

Other jobs ticked off the list are:

sails removed to sailmaker for advice/repair

sailcover washed and repaired

window battens removed and sanded ready for revarnishing and window reseating

most of all John has done a fantastic job on sanding off the bottom of the hull ready to epoxy coat and antifoul

Tomahawk Owner's Association. The Commodore's Pennant

The Boat Show was the location for TOA AGM, and we had a special reason for being there.

The South Coast Rally to Cowes in May enjoyed some fine weather culminating in a rendezvous at the Folly Inn of Three Tomahawks. Top marks went to Imogen and John sailing “Mahaskah” for 12 hours from Newhaven to Bembridge then taking a Taxi to the Folly Inn to meet up with the Tomahawks rafted up on the pontoon to enjoy a meal to share experiences.

I would like to reward this determination with the Commodores Pennant for 2012 and would encourage members to follow Imogens fascinating blog: http://www.mahaska.blogspot.co.uk/

We are proud and honoured to receive this.

The Boat Show, Excel Centre, London

The Boat Show was quite disappointing: too many motorboats, few innovations and new ideas, no freebies. The "wow factor" was lacking.

But we loved the location.

This picture illustrates a little of the landscape that we found so awesome.

The Emirates Airline Cable Car rides above it all, the buildings beyond and below represent the industrial power of London during the19th and 20th centuries. The support poles of The O2 Arena point into the sky, and two figures in the foreground, instead of being fishermen, dockers, lightermen, stevedores, or  bargemen, are city workers at play.

Disaster at Cuckmere Haven

I can't let the new year's blog get any further without getting our worst disaster off my chest.
Following on from a quiet gentle evening in Cuckmere Haven with Summer, Kia and children:

we invited Nick and Trish along for a meal on board.

It was to be the beginning of a romantic weekend for them, taking their VW camper for a wedding anniversary trip.

We were anchored in the usual spot, and were ready to collect them from the beach in the inflatable.

Unfortunately they couldn’t get there till early evening, but when we heard their shouts, John jumped into the inflatable dinghy, using the outboard engine this time, and puttered off.

Nick lost his phone almost immediately he arrived on the boat- he had set his jacket down on the spray hood, and when I picked it up to suggest it wasn’t the best place to leave it, the phone slithered out of the pocket and into the sea before anyone could catch it.

Never mind, he was due an upgrade.

Food was consumed and wine was drunk, and Trish began to go quieter than usual, she was getting a bit cold, and I lent her my oilies.

By this time it was dark, and a bit of a swell had commenced, and Nick wasn’t feeling too good either. 

John offered to take them back to shore, which they happily accepted.

It wasn’t easy for them to climb down into the dinghy in a swell, (Trish still wearing the oilies) and Nick sat in the bow. John aimed to drop them on the western bit of the shore, but in the dark couldn’t identify where the river split the beach until too close, when he tried to change course, the waves hit the dinghy broadside and it went over.

Trish was out of depth and weighed down by the water inside the oversized oilies, The bag containing shoes was lost, and the dinghy was upside down. Nick and John righted it and as we always take the oars John was soon rowing back to the boat.

Our nearly drowned friends stumbled barefoot back to their van,  John got back on board terribly cold and shocked.

It wasn’t until much later the next day that we heard how they were; we had spent an anxiety-filled day not knowing, but thank goodness the van keys were in a pocket and not lost and they were able to get warm and continued with their unforgettable Anniversary Road Trip.

(We have since wined and dined them properly on land, and we are still friends!)

New Year, with resolutions

We've left Newhaven Marina, in a way, sad, because it's a nice spot and so convenient. We like the industrial scrap metal heap on the East side of the harbour, and the fishermen, and the ol' geezers.

Tiffany fishing for crabs, and catching a smelt from the boat will be an abiding memory.

 

Well, it's lift out, bottom scrub and maintenance time at Peter Leonard Marine on Denton island. It was fun motoring up river with the bridge open.

 

There's a long list of things to be reviewed and assessed: the engine is the biggest. There is still a leak of diesel on the lifting pump in spite of Peter Leonard's mechanic having a look at it. This is the original Bukh engine, and is over 40 years old. It's only 10 Horse Power, which is barely sufficient. We are considering  a brand new Yanmar 20.

The thought of 20 horses pulling against the tide or speeding up an uncomfortable journey is very appealing!

Resolutions:

Back to Chichester Harbour (swinging mooring at Sparkes Marina ). This is at the Harbour mouth, so we can either revisit the lovely locations within, or, be more adventurous and use it as a base for explorations of the Solent and Isle of Wight.

We have untill 1st April to tick off jobs on the maintenance list.

Peace Camp

At last some sunshine!

We had the small matter of fouled propeller to attend to, thanks to Glenn of Newhaven Scuba, who dived down to free the weed and fishing line.
We made another mud sliding exit from the berth to head to Cuckmere Haven. Unfortunately the black smoke which we had interpreted as a symptom of fouled prop hadn't gone, but the engine sounded ok, and after a bit of consultation on the Visitor's Berth, we decided to go for it.
No wind, but light engine seemed to provide no problem.

Another yacht was anchored in the Bay, but they didn't know about the events in the field behind the Coastguards' Cottages.
Peace Camp Cuckmere Haven

We crept as close to the beach as we could because we didn't want a long row into the shore in the middle of the night.

Inflating the dinghy in the cockpit

Lanch the dinghy

We watched the purple light darken and as the sun went down a strange glow showed on the hillside behind the cottages and trees, the Peace Camp was beginning. We tried to liase with Hanna and Rich by texting, we had formed a plan to meet them there, but intermittent network coverage meant that we missed their message. We decided that the best plan would be to go to bed and wake up before dawn to row with at least some light and enjoy the installation as the sun rose.

Approaching the strange glowing village

Morning mist flows down the valley

That dot in the sea is Mahaskah

We launched the dinghy in here and ran the rapids out to sea!

Rowing back to the boat

Ghostly in the mist