Giles and Paula's Great Retirement Adventure

[Giles]

There she is, all innocent, not having any notion of what we will be asking her to do tomorrow…..

[Giles]

When that gauge reads 4.3m, we reckon we have enough water over the sandbank to miss it. Raring to go, it is going to be a beaut today.....

[Giles]

Pilotage plan done for entry into St Malo....

[Giles]

Almost perfect. We barrelled down here for 11:32 lock opening. Actually managed to get in the queue for the 11:02 opening. Then we got a call on the radio telling us that the 11:02 and 11:32 openings were not happening. Next time the lock gates open is 20:45.

So we are in the next marina on a visitors berth...

Bloody French

[Giles]

In point of fact. The above fuck up helped us in the end. Paula suggested that we pop around to the marina that we have booked, and check out our berth. Guess what? None of the berths are marked, and even the marina staff did not know where F4 (where we were told to berth) was. If it had not been for the lock being dredged (which is why they shut early today), we would had turfed up at 21:15ish and not known what to do. Because, guess what again? The marina staff knock off at 19:00

[motojobobo]

Given this chaos…how in hell did the sailing world come up with the expression ‘running a tight ship’?

[gazza61]

I love the relaxed attitude to work they have they know all about me time and clocking off is clocking off so that's a pretty tight ship as to where you berth is cest la vie bien sur

[Matt]

@motojobobo the ships plenty tight. Once you get off its loose as all hell.

[Giles]

At 20:20 we dutifully turned up to get into the queue for the 20:45 lock gate opening. Paula radioed the lock keeper who then spent about 5 minutes saying there would be no room in the lock, as 2 dredgers and their barges had to transit, and we should come back for the 21:45 transit. We were fourth in the queue after the work boats and a 22m Princess from Jersey with 3 crew and a load of drunk guests, so did not pay any attention to him. Mind you, by the time we got into the lock. 2 French boats, and a German boat had muscled in front of us. It was mayhem, then a bloody great trimaran joined the party too.

[Giles]

But we did get moored, a tad tighter than I would have liked........

[Giles]

And now we are on a train to Paris...

[Matt]

Looks like how my wife parks in the Target lot.

[Giles]

Not bad……

[Giles]

Leaving St Malo. Next stop Sark.

https://vimeo.com/share/6bb3522b-fb81-469d-8a8c-d6b4fe484af4?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci

[Giles]

Today's route.

St Malo - Sark, where we will anchor for the night....

Tomorrow. Sark to St Samson in Guernsey for cheap fuel...

[Giles]

And time to get back home....

[Giles]

said in Giles and Paula's Great Retirement Adventure:

So necessity being the mother of invention, I got the zip ties out and bodged a temporary solution with the help of the gangway which we will not use on this trip...

Did a proper job this week....

[goosehd]

With it being so hot and dry, do you two find yourself spending more time on the boat and/or around the water?

There was a picture yesterday of a jeans release where the football pitch look extremely dry. Is it that bad all over Gosport/Portsmouth?

[AdamJ]

here is a shot of the beach last week, v dry

[goosehd]

@AdamJ wow…not what I picture when I think of the English countryside.