Indholdsfortegnelse for August 2017 i Sailing Today

‘Plastic can take up to 500 years to completely biodegrade, and it does not go quietly.’ On 8 June, World Oceans Day went up against the General Election for the public’s attention. One had the power to influence the UK for the next five years, the other, the power to influence the planet forever. Over five trillion pieces of plastic currently litter the world’s oceans. There are water bottles, plastic bags, discarded electricals, the list is endless. What’s more, the addition of plastic microbeads into certain cosmetic products means many millions of tiny pieces of plastic are also finding their way into the oceans and can’t even be seen to be removed. And the problem is not showing any signs of improving; in fact it’s getting worse. As our apparent…

Bluewater 50 £995,000 Having carved out an excellent reputation for long legged bluewater monohulls, Discovery Yachts raised a few eyebrows in 2010 when it headed off on something of a tangent with the introduction of a new multihull: the Discovery 50. Yet the basic premise was the same as that of its monohulls; primarily to provide a yacht that was tailor-made for long-distance cruising in comfort. The lines for the 50 came from the hugely respected design house of Bill Dixon and the yacht received plaudits when she was first launched. Seven years on and it’s time for a few tweaks, however and the MKII has been carefully rethought and refined in order to move forward from an already excellent product. Noticeable changes include much deeper windows which give a…

‘There is always a job on any boat which the owner dreads having to tackle’ I once met a woman who was in the fortunate position of having had a boat built to her precise specification. She knew exactly how she wanted her boat to be, not just for efficiency and speed, but comfort as well. She wanted a boat, in other words, which would fit her like a glove. And she certainly got one. No Savile Row tailor could have made something with a more precise fit. It was as if the designer had taken a mould of her body and built the boat around that. Which was, in fact, pretty much what he did. He measured the length of her arms to make sure she was always within…

Legend has it that when Prince Karim Aga Khan’s yacht sailed into northeast Sardinia in the early 1960s and he took one look out of his porthole at the impressive granite boulders, rocky coves, creamy beaches and clear blue waters, he decided then and there to make it into a playground for the enjoyment of his friends and fellow millionaires. Fast forward 50-plus years and it is billionaires, rather than your common or garden millionaire, that flock to this area once summer descends over the Mediterranean. There’s even a famous nightclub here called Billionaire. I’d heard on the cruising grapevine that marinas on the Costa Smeralda, the 12nm stretch of coastline south from Porto Cervo, could cost hundreds of euros a night, just for a small sailing yacht. When I…

For worldwide distress alerting via satellite the choice comes down to a PLB (Personal Locator Beacon) or an EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Rescue Beacon). When activated, both function in a similar way – by transmitting a distress alert to the nearest satellite, then to a terrestrial rescue co-ordination centre. So what is the difference and which should we buy? EPIRB OR PLB? PLBs can now be bought for under £200 and, being half the size and weight of an EPIRB and registered to a person rather than a vessel, are easily moved from boat to boat. Unlike EPIRBs, however, not all of them float, or are even waterproof. Instead they usually come with a neoprene flotation jacket, which often needs to be removed in order to operate the device. Another…

Lymington is ideally placed for south coast cruising and access to mainland Europe, so the opportunities for day sails and longer cruising adventures are excellent. If you’re looking to stay local and perhaps cruise along the coast for lunch and a pint at a friendly pub, then Beaulieu is a short sail east along the Solent, while Yarmouth is no more than a half hour sail. You do need to watch the tidal offset, though, as on a spring tide the current whistles through this bottleneck at a surprising rate. If it is peace and tranquillity you’re after then Keyhaven is only a stone’s throw away, tucked in behind Hurst Point and is a wonderfully tranquil spot to drop the hook and relax in peace. If you’re after a slightly…

DISCOVERY 50 CATAMARAN | KIWI SPIRIT Kiwi Spirit is a beautiful and incredibly spacious 50ft catamaran, described by brokers, Berthon as, “like new”. As an example of her pedigree, she was originally owned by John Charnley, then CEO of Discovery Yachts, who had her specifically commissioned so that he and his wife, Sue, could enjoy a two year sabbatical aboard her. She has six berths across three cabins, with plenty of room for entertaining in the saloon and on deck, making for the perfect holiday yacht or home. She has undergone extensive upgrades and is fitted and furnished to a very high spec. New sails and batteries have also been installed, and she has been given a new paint job in preparation for her new owners. Her current owners are…

With summer in full swing, we no longer need to sail to distant shores for vibrant sunshine and clear blue skies. Shoreham-by-Sea in West Sussex (pictured), is just one of the many seaside towns promising a classic British holiday. Nestled on the south coast, Shoreham was built by the Romans and counts Jane Austen, Oscar Wilde and Harold Pinter among its most notable residents. There are cafés and restaurants galore and, of course, the resident seagulls poised to swoop in and swipe your fish and chips when your back is turned.…

Dress to impress Step out in style this summer With summer in full swing, we’re excited to get out on the water and back into our summer clothes. We love the Rosanna Boat Shoe, as it can be worn with pretty much anything: dresses, skirts, jeans, shorts, the list is endless. (Chatham also design men’s shoes.) The essential non-slip, non-marking, rubber soles, make them perfect for boat days when the weather is favourable, and they’re so pretty, that you’ll happily wear them around town too. Be sure to keep them out of reach of the water though; the leather will not thank you for it. • chatham.co.uk • £55 Bags for sail Carry more than the breeze This is definitely one of the greatest forms of recycling we’ve seen yet.…

It was enough to change anybody’s plans. As the ebb tide accelerated round the corner of Brownsea Island and out through the narrow entrance to Poole Harbour, a sheer wall of pinkish-green fog became apparent. It roiled, like a vaguely malevolent blancmange, and for a moment it wasn’t hard to imagine why sailors used to believe that fog was a kind of wicked spirit. Before the tide took too keen a grip on the hull of our Sadler 34, it was time to turn around and drop the hook while I put a meditative coffee on to boil. Executing a sharp about turn, we puttered off to anchor in the muddy shallows off the Royal Motor Yacht Club, out of the tide. And it wasn’t a moment too soon. With…

‘A bronze tone to your skin is desirable when you’re an Englishman snatching a brief sojourn from your desk job’ ‘Oooh, aren’t you lovely and brown!” our families cooed in awe soon after we started our sailing adventures. Funnily enough, their admiration actually made us turn rather pink with embarrassment as, in our books, that meant that we weren’t protecting ourselves enough. A bronze tone to your skin is a desirable thing when you’re an Englishman snatching a brief two-week sojourn from your desk job; it acts as an advertisement for your health, wealth and vibrancy and suddenly renders your smile even whiter by contrast. But when every moment of your ‘job’ or rather your daily life takes place under the glare of the sun’s rays then it becomes less…

Until relatively recently if you wanted to buy a keelboat you had a fairly simple choice – a cruising yacht, a racing yacht or a cruiser-racer. Of course, you could have various blends of cruiser-racer but essentially you knew where you were with the basic premise. That was until 2008 when some genius at X-Yachts decided to introduce a new range – the Xc – and suddenly our whole labelling system for yachts was thrown into jeopardy. Here was a yacht with a decent turn of speed yet one that also had nil pretensions of being a racing yacht. Subsequently the Xc range has sold like hot cakes and a new genre has been born. Unsurprisingly, other manufacturers have now seen the light and the concept of a sort of…

Konus Navyman binoculars The Navyman binoculars are, as the name suggests, designed for use at sea. They’re waterproof, have ruby lenses to reduce glare across the water making distant objects easier to spot, and have a rubber grip so won’t slip from sea-soaked hands. • £74.95 • tcschandlery.co.uk B&G Zeus3 With the new Zeus3, B&G has turned its attention towards bluewater cruising. This hardy bit of kit is easy to use, with a clear drop-down navigation menu and the screen’s clear and readable from all angles and in all weather conditions. Large letters and numbers mean you don’t have to squint at the screen while stood at the helm. Touchscreen functionality works in all conditions and isn’t rendered useless when wet, essential for equipment on a boat, yet not always…

FALMOUTH WEEK 6-12 AUGUST – FALMOUTH, CORNWALL Join the largest sailing regatta in the southwest, with more than 450 yachts racing over eight days, along with a lively programme of shoreside events. Overlooking one of the deepest natural harbours in the world, Falmouth’s amphitheatre-like setting is the ideal locale for visitors to enjoy the spectacle. visitcornwall.com NELSON’S NORFOLK 29 JULY – 1 OCTOBER - NORFOLK Experience the might of Nelson’s Navy, in this one-off exhibition at Norwich Castle. The exhibition includes French Tricolour Ensign, captured from Le Généreux by Nelson and his crew. museums.norfolk.gov.uk SAIL TALL 27 MAY-24 SEPTEMBER - WEYMOUTH Spend a day sailing on the high seas in a traditional square-rigger. Take part in crewing or sit back and enjoy the ride along the beautiful Dorset Coast. All…

REDISCOVERING SOUTHERLY British boatbuilder Discovery Yachts has thrown a lifeline to fellow Brits, Southerly. The purchase will see the famous brand, known around the world for its swing-keel yachts, emerge from the murky waters of financial oblivion, to again sail the seven seas. Southerly's parent company Northshore faced winding up orders in 2013 and the doors on its Itchenor based factory were closed in 2014. Discovery’s MD, Sean Langdon, said: “The purchase of the Southerly Yachts brand is a vital element in the exciting growth and investment strategy we are planning for the Discovery Yachts Group”. He continued: “This purchase enables us to offer our clients a much more extensive size range, as well as the versatility of the variable draft designs.” Chichester’s Moth flies again Sir Francis Chichester’s celebrated…

Bente 39 £tbc Bente Yachts burst onto the scene a couple of years back with the launch of its Bente 24, a yacht that aimed to ‘save the sailing world’, according to Bente CEO Alex Vrolijk. The idea was to make yacht cruising more accessible to a wider audience by producing fun, affordable yachts. The 24 was packed with innovative ideas and has sold strongly, and now the company is back with a new yacht and a new concept. Vrolijk, whose father Rolf has achieved great fame as a designer of a number of America’s Cup winners, designed the Bente 37 as a sort of offshore equivalent of the 24. With this in mind, performance had to be good, but the yacht also had to be comfortable and practical. A…

‘By the time I came aboard, the beast had sunk into the category of National Health Hazard’ One thing you can say about running cruising courses is that it’s never boring. I began my career as an Instructor Examiner long before GPS had been thought of. Training boats were smaller in those days and I well remember Competent Crew bonanzas with six-up on a Contessa 32. Sounds like a crush? It was, but it was luxury after Day Skipper weeks on a Seal 22. The crowding wasn’t a dead loss, though. The shortage of elbow room tutored all hands in the vital seaman’s art of tolerating one’s shipmates – for the length of a course at any rate. These days, boats are longer and wider. Instructors can lock their cabin…

XC 42 PRICE: £318,000 Danish X-Yachts is the manufacturer that introduced the concept of a sort of ‘grand tourer’ of the yachting world. The 42 has been around for the best part of a decade now, but her styling is still fresh and alluring. craftinsure quote: from £928 x-yachts.com DEHLER 42 PRICE: £207,000 (DELIVERED AND COMMISSIONED) Possibly erring towards the sportier end of the spectrum, the Dehler 42 is a polished performer that nevertheless features a smart, stylish interior. craftinsure quote: from £774 inspirationmarine.co.uk SOLARIS 42 PRICE: £286,000 Solaris Yachts has developed a reputation for ultra stylish fast yachts built for fast cruising. The 42 boasts a beautifully fitted out interior married with a sporty rig and slippery lines, making it a polished performer. craftinsure quote: from £872 solarisyachts.com…

FERRY CHANNEL Large ferries run regularly between Yarmouth and Lymington. These need to be given plenty of room in the relatively narrow channel WESTERN SOLENT Lymington sits at the Solent’s western end, making it a good start point for a cross-Channel cruise WINTER STORAGE Lymington Yacht Haven has a large area of hard standing and good skilled labour is readily available LYMINGTON TOWN The pretty Georgian town is about ten minutes away on foot The western end of the Solent is generally acknowledged to be the more peaceful and picturesque corner of this yachting hub. With all-tide access and excellent shelter, Lymington is, understandably, a popular stopover both for sailors on a weekend cruise around the Solent and those plannning to head across the Channel. A thriving market town, Lymington…

Despite a few twists and turns along the way, the channel provides ample depth for yachts, even at LW. The marina sits just inside the entrance to the Lymington River. Approach to the river (WPT 50° 44’.20N 01° 30’.28W). The initial mark to look for is the Jack in the Basket, a conspicuous post with a barrel flashing red (Fl.R.2s). This is the first fixed marker for the main channel into Lymington River from the Solent. Beyond that, the entrance to the channel is also clearly marked by the Royal Lymington Yacht Club starting platform (pictured right, Fl.Y.5s). From hereon, the channel is clearly and regularly marked with port and starboard piles, all of which are lit at night. Keep within these markers as the depth shelves off rapidly on…

Suspended in a cradle in the narrow slip at PSS Boatyard, SY Esper had little protection from the midday broiling sun. The smiles on the faces of our dockside friends and workers melted as we all waited for Jamie to work out how to make Esper’s new depth sounder talk to the newly-installed B&G navigation system. “RTFM!” some wag shouted. No-one was quite sure how much of the river lay under our keel. It was high tide, and we only had half an hour left of slack water to safely navigate out of the jagged slipway. We had seen a few yachts try to reverse out when the current ran fast and most came a cropper,. Just one year and one month ago we began what felt like the longest…

The Burnt Islands are three islands in the middle of the Kyles of Bute Eilean Mòr, Eilean Fraoich and Eilean Buidhe. They’re dotted with little inlets, perfect for a Swallows and Amazons style adventure, whilst providing essential shelter to anchor for the night. Free from human intrusion, except for the ancient fort on Eilean Buidhe, the islands are strewn with rocky beaches, secluded coves, and wild vegetation running rampant from shore to shore. There’s plenty of wildlife too. It’s a perfect place for birdwatchers, with scores of gannets, guillemots, shags and cormorants. The surrounding waters are popular with seals and there’s a very good chance you’ll spot one or two bobbing around in the water. One local said he saw 16 seals the week before we visited. Also, if you…