Monday 19 June
Mate’s friend arrived at the appointed time, but my crew were a bit laid back this morning and were glad of extra hands to prepare me for sea. It was another hot and windless day, so we employed Trevver to run us across a glassy calm Northwards for Ramsey Bay. We briefly spotted a pair of dolphins, and Mate produced a hearty salad from the galley by way of lunch en route.
Just as they were discussing which mooring buoy they were going to pick up, the wind suddenly developed, so we turned back out to sea and allowed the new crew member a taste of sailing a kite; that is to say Skipper unfurled my beautiful big red gennaker, and Mate gave advice in steering to keep her filled. Typically the wind continued to build and was soon 18 knots, so the sail was furled away as quickly as possible and we headed back into the mooring field alongside the old pier.
For some reason I couldn’t quite follow, mooring here involved a new technique of lifting my 35kg Spade anchor up onto the foredeck, apparently so it didn’t chafe, or even cut through, the lines attaching me to the mooring buoy. Murphy was obviously having a fine old time of it that afternoon, as that was the moment the ‘up’ button on the windlass decided it wasn’t going to work, and my (regular) crew had to haul the anchor manually.
Next it was time to wiggle the tender out of the sail locker onto the foredeck (avoiding the anchor), pump her up and fit the outboard engine, so our guest could be returned to land to make his way home. Everybody donned wet weather gear and clambered inelegantly into a bucking, bouncing dinghy for a wet and bumpy half hour ride deep into Ramsey harbour. Right by the bridge they tied up to a ladder rising straight up the stone quay wall, and clambered cumbersomely up to street level. Skipper, as ever, aware of the tide times for heading back out of the harbour, decreed there was not time for a last meal together, so final goodbyes were said and my crew made their way back. Inevitably conditions were by now much calmer, but we still endured a rolly night.