Finished the last jobs, I don’t think so! However, the target has been achieved many time over this season what with the fine weather enjoyed. Just before leaving for my birthday June cruise, I completed the final edit on latest book. See earlier post. I am now awaiting it to be finalised for final acceptance…

Last year our summer sailing was particularly torrid in respect to an ability to obtain refill gas cylinders from marinas, or, as it later turned out, from anywhere. I recounted this in a web article, see: I followed this up with a little research. It would seem that the problem actually surfaced at least a…

As promised for those who are interested in such affairs, I have been over the last week dealing with the final edit and insertion of illustrations and captions for the my editor to do their bit. There is a little tale here: I quipped to the mate that I expected the job to appear in…

The paint coatings on the underside of the fore cabin top and fore deck had ‘crazed’ over a large area. It looked as if it was deep penetrated to the wood (ply) surface. It needed attention. So, after moving to a club berth where we had a power supply, we set to work. A large…

Thankfully, the time expended upon my next book has petered away to virtually nothing of late. The final edit has taken place and it has been in the publisher’s hands for a little while. See: A few days ago I received an communication telling me that they will be in position to send the edited…

All of a sudden April drew nigh and I knew time for maintenance to Whimbrel would be calling loudly. It is not often that the month of April swings by with so little rain: we can’t actually remember the last time we experienced rain, even the ‘famous’ April showers have been absent. During March I…

Knowing we were going to be in South Devon over our Forty-fourth wedding anniversary on a ‘no boats’ holiday, I kept a little something up my sleeve… Although we did travel across the pretty harbour on a ferry – for a trip on the Dart Valley Steam Railway, I saved it until last. On the…

Last week, a milestone was reached a couple of days after getting away for a magical night afloat with my youngest sibling. The mate and I were out walking – a bit of a hike actually – on an urban yomp to Westcliff and back to home. Sitting over a coffee along the route I…

The Island Yacht Club was blessed indeed with the long and fruitful membership of Jack Fenwick. Sadly, last summer, Jack died after a short illness. I only found out because I said to another member, ‘I haven’t seen Old Jack lately…’ Jack was around the water all his life. In later years he spent many…

February, like January and the last two months of 2021 were particularly windy. I had a splendid over-night run with my eldest brother, Graham, while he was in England for our mother’s funeral, but nothing since, for this last month produced four names storms, with three, one after the other, a week or so ago.…

During last summer we spent over a week bumbling around the River Deben with several nights in the Tidemill Marina. We were conserving gas by reducing usage aboard to the minimum – the marina had not had a delivery of gas for 11 months the harbour master explained! I eventually solved this problem by changing…

On BBC Radio 4 this week, prostate cancer was the ‘talk of the day’ with discussions with Bill Turnbull who has a serious case – currently living with it and its treatment – and a chap from NHS England. I have chopped a piece out of the media (Yahoo News) to help concentrate the minds…

The exhibition is open until Sunday 13th February. It has a wonderful array of talented works with views up and down the River Thames and its furthermost estuarial environs. The slogan the group is operating under currently is: ‘A Changing View’ which is something right up my street with what I have been writing about…

On Monday, last, the 31st January 2022, the family laid our mother to rest. As reported in an earlier post, she died on Boxing Day 2021 with our sister holding her hand. Our mother was born on 14th December 1931 into a world far removed from the world we now live in. She met our…

During this last week, I received a note through the post with unknown handwriting. It was from the sister of Pat O’Driscoll. The sister had opened the post of Pat’s on the run up to Christmas and probably is still doing so: Pat, bless her, died on 28th November. It would have been about the…

A little while ago, before the end of last year (2021) there was much in the media about safety around the coasts and within harbours and rivers. It was the irresponsible behaviour of watercraft owners in particular which was homed in on. The hiatus caused by irresponsible ‘new’ owners of Personal Watercraft during the Covid-19…

I was walking across the yard of the Island Yacht Club some time last year when a hail arrested my steps towards the jetties and Whimbrel. I toddled over and was met by a grinning chap who proceeded to furnish me with a flourish of praise and thanks. What for you might ask. Well, he…

It has been a bit of a month down on the Thames estuary with just a few available days fit for sailing when the tide was in. I grabbed two of those… My eldest brother was over from Canada a little while back and he hit a period of excellent weather in the east, enjoying…

I first met Max when he pitched up at my yacht club to begin working on the regular Saturday routine. He had been at it a little while without my knowledge while I was away summer sailing aboard Whimbrel. I immediately found Max to be one of those honest down to earth guys that often…

I knew Dick in a childhood sort of way one does when the person appears in one’s life to crew (and work) aboard your Thames spritsail barge home. Dick disappeared from my life and he next turned up as a ‘yotty’ working for Yachting Monthly. Dick later graduated to News Editor and had his own…