24 May 2009 Plymouth to Mylor to Newlyn in 36 hours
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26 May 2009 - Around Lands End
24 May 2009 Plymouth to Mylor to Newlyn in 36 hours
We left Plymouth at 4.30 am Thursday 21st May & towed out to beyond the break water . We'd only just hoisted the sails and let go of the tow when Toby slipped true to form down my shrouds then hung on for dear life whilst I called up SUB to report a man over board. It has to be noted that his aquatic gymnastics have certain flair, but I was still horrified as he disappeared under the water (intentionally) It was only when I got the call to say he was on board SUB that I could breathe again. He had previously been given the nick name "Yellow Bird" but this has now been modified to "Yellow Duck".
The Met Office had predicted a force 3-4, occasionally 5, which is the limit we‚ve imposed for safe sailing. However, only for a short time did we get a force 3. Most of the trip was force 2 or less, which made the whole journey take 13 hours rather than the 8 or 9 we'd expected.
Huge thanks to Falmouth & Plym(?) Lions who waited on the quayside for so long, and particularly to the Lion who came out to Falmouth Bay to guide us into Mylor. I must apologise for running off to the loo without so much as a photo opportunity, which we'd have loved for our records,. I‚m afraid that I was pretty wet from the tow and hadn't seen a shower for several days. Mylor Yacht Club has great disabled facilities and lovely hot showers. Jo & I are considering titling the book "In Search Of the Perfect Disabled Shower".
The following morning someone appeared with a £20 donation which was incredibly generous. He then took a further £2 out of his pocket which his son Sennen (who will be 7 on Friday) had received from the Tooth Fairy. Sennen had asked for money towards some Lego, but had heard about our trip and wanted to give us his money instead. It was really special to meet him and his sister Rosie later on, by which point they had Œfound‚ even more money, for which many thanks (who did you pinch it from? :-) ). It gave me the chance to let him have a go at working the tiller on the boat. I'll do my best to remember your birthday Sennen, but in case I don‚t happy birthday for Friday. We had a great send off from Mylor with people blowing their fog horns. Thank you so much for letting us take over you car park with caravans (and dog).
The forecast for the trip around The Lizard was again force 3, but dropping. I remember the overfalls from last year & was keen not to go "rock hopping". However the force 1 we had leaving Mylor dropped to a zero. We drifted with the tide for a while until we had "sailed" the short distance around The Lizard that I had had to be towed over last year and then picked up a tow. We caught the shore team & Paul the cameraman on the hop as we only managed to give them 20 minutes notice of our arrival! Somehow they still managed to appear with smiles on their faces, kit and mugs of hot chocolate which were extremely welcome as we had all got very cold on the water.
After a night on the quay in Newlyn we are at a camp site which has fantastic disabled facilities and grass in abundance, which Lotti loves. We are now just discussing the weather for the long sail around Lands End.
Page last updated on 28 May 2009 at 15:05