It is mid-October and the winds around the shores of the south coast are starting to build more frequently,, the temperature too is dropping and this must mean that winter is on its way. The clocks haven't gone back yet but it won't be long.
I'm booked in to come out again on the hard at the beginning of December and back in, in March 2023, will next year be the year when the longer trips I've been set up for will come?
It has been a disappointing year, but a busy one for skipper and of course the loss of his crewmate's mother so it was what it was.
The lee cloth was eventually made to order and has been fitted, handy for both the companionway and the chart table, and convenient to hear the alarms from either the AIS or Doppler radar, during power naps. Seven hooks fitted under the lip of the table and the cloth extends right to the back of the set and is stapled in place however your weight will hold it in place when being used. When not in use velcro strips hold it folded back to keep it flat.
Lee cloth
What else has been going on, well, the loud hauler has the wiring in situ and only the 6 holes need to be drilled up the mast the unit fitted and wired in.
Remember the Skylink 6000, well the satellite side of the unit is currently being tested this month too, and as you can see below, a phone has appeared at the back of the galley. Is this to ring for takeaways? The whole point of this system is to ensure that weather Grib files can be successfully downloaded so weather forecasts can be viewed anywhere whilst at sea. This appears to work well together with voice calls and at $0.43/m is not too expensive, although the monthly rate, which can be stopped and started as and when in whole months is twice that of the cell network. That's to be expected. The phone's handset will need an elastic band or similar around it in lumpy seas probably to stop it from coming off its cradle. Alternatively of course you could get an accurate weather forecast and avoid such conditions!
I have my own phone number and if I want an e-mail address too. Still, this does mean that skipper is still able to work and keep in touch with Clients (providing no alarms are going off in the background!)
Ordinary phone
Apologise, for a short one, but without much to report on, there's little to say. Hopefully, I'll keep you posted before or at least when I come out. The Marina has suggested that the daily rate for electricity will go up from £1 a day it has been to £5, so I might need some thermals and certainly keep an eye on my water tanks, possibly emptying them if the temperature looks to plummet.
