We dropped Steve and Sue off at the dock in Fowey where they had looming a rotten drive back to the Yorkshire Dales. Meanwhile we set plans to take advantage of the mild weather for a trip to Dartmouth – about 7 hours East of Fowey.

We came out of the Fowey harbor – into a grey day but very moderate seas and light winds on the beam. We were able to sail towards our destination – always a good thing! The winds were expected to die off considerably, so we were initially delighted that they stayed fresh for longer than expected. So much so that we arrived at the headland ‘Start Point’ 2 hours before the change in the tide – so we had adverse current against wind and therefore steepening seas, forcing us to go further offshore than planned. Then the winds got fresher – until we were fully reefed down and with reefed jib, in 33knots of wind and 6-8ft seas! It all rather got the better of us and we were forced to gybe in 30knots – a really scary prospect, and the execution was equally daunting, Laurie getting her hand bruised when it got trapped in a line. We finished the trip with just the reefed down main, doing 8.5knots – and arrived in Dartmouth as the evening closed in around us.

Dartmouth was in full swing for the annual regatta – and the harbor was packed. We took up a place on a raft of 5 other boats on the mid-stream buoys, lying alongside a 53ft Jeaneau, and licked our wounds. That had been the worst sail of the entire 2 year cruise!

Dartmouth was great! What a pretty town. In the morning we watched a tug of war between two row boats, in the afternoon we attended a really nice luncheon catered by OCC Port Officers Tony and Rachel and later watched some really good aeronautic displays, and then had the cat-bird seats for a fantastic firework display in the evening. The barge setting them off was just a couple of hundred feet from Toodle-oo!

Viewing Airshow from Dingy – Toodle-oo! right behind the helicopter!

Picking up crew – RNLI fashion

Raft-up – half of it!

Dartmouth

Dartmouth by dusk

Paddle Steamer

Leaving Dartmouth

Pretty Town

After Dartmouth, we headed further east towards the Solent, stopping at Weymouth for a night. Turned out to not be such an interesting town as the pilot led us to believe so in the morning we set off for Poole in Dorset. However, half way to Poole, I realized that by pure luck we had a fair tide that would carry us right into the Solent if we so choose – which indeed we did, passing by the Needles in the early afternoon with a 2 knot favorable current – and came into the delightful harbor of Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight – where we have remained for the last few days! It’s a very nice little harbor and town and we sit in the cockpit watching boats coming and going constantly.

Laurie wants to clean up the dirty lighthouse!!!

The Needles – guarding the entrance to the Solent