Month: July 2015

A little island in the outer skerries, once a pilot station. Planned for an afternoon’s sail. 

After a sleep-in, a sunday breakfast, a morning being domestic, including a large clothes wash, lunch and a post-lunch snooze, decided, as the weather was propricious, to continue north. Turned out to be a bit strenuous, as the wind strengthened a lot and after a while at a non-sailable angle, we motored and bounced into quite uncomfortable choppy seas. No problem. Until, far from shore: Fishing gear, almost invisible until rather too close, lots of small floats and ropes on the surface. Stopped engine to avoid knitting and sailed out of harms way. Continued back on course on engine. This was in a marked track, though well out to sea. Kept an eagle watch after that, and just as well, another lot of traps for an innocent sailboat. Did the same jig. Very glad to creep into this harbour, which is very small, and an interesting, well-marked narrow lane in. The wind has calmed somewhat now, but has gone round to the NE, so what was a quite sheltered spot is now more exposed to the wind, causing small waves to develop and rock the boat. I’m sure they will not keep me awake! Late now, more tomorrow. 

Now Kristinestad 

Lovely sail today with a wind from the SE, over the quarter, and plenty of it, so we really scooted along. Long stretches without navigating, then lots of red and green poles to watch, count, evaluate and avoid.  Tied up in the official guestharbour outside a large hotel. Only two other boats, one enormous, with lots of sea-scouts, and one small runabout, with family from gran to pram.  Need a snooze now, night a little distrubed. 

All’s well, from SailorJohn. 

more tries at piccies:

The view from the top of the lighthouse, at last!  It would seem that it is necessary to be online to upload photos. Odd. Since they are in the iPad anyway!
Peaceful Jurmo:  

 Ex-Russian fort, whats left of an insignificant bit of it.  
 

So now, when on the internet, more pics may appear with blogs

JosinJohn

I have tried to load the view from the top, but still have no luck, so. ……

Breakfast museli was taken sitting very quietly in the cockpit, watching the swifts coming and going. They have nested inside the woodwork of the jetty, and access is via missing planks. Two just by the cockpit. Very busy little birds.

Sunshine again today, but getting overcast later. Wind has gone round from the south to NNW, so today is a motoring day. First part is outside the rocks and islands, so no navigating, just blogging with a regular peek out. But the waves are from the west and we roll. Not good for the weak-stomached!  In a few hours we will be back in sheltered waters. 

Goal for the day is Reposaari, 61 37 / 21 26. Again recommended by neighbour in Lappo. Looks sheltered. 

Surprise this morning when I returned to the boat. There was a man standing, looking at my flag. “Unusual to see a Norwegian here, where are you from, etc” Turns out he is from Nordheimsund in Hardanger. We had a long chat. Motorboat type, lives up the coast somewhere else with an unpronouncable name. Relief for me to be able to communicate easily! 

Evening: didn’t get the above sent, WiFi dead. Now in Reosaari after an interesting day, partly motoring in and out of the islands, and partly sailing in open waters with plenty of wind, almost on the nose, mostly in the last hour getting here. The marina is in an inside lagoon, with very shallow water just before the entrance. Followed the markers carefully, and briefly saw 0 m depth on the echosounder. No bump, not even a slow squelch. Mystical. 

Neighbour sailboat came in just after me, but from the north after an exhilerating sail. We sat on the park bench and compared notes and harbours. I now have at least 20 recommendations up the Finnish coast, easy when you get to know how! Forecast for the next few days is not promising. Hope they got it wrong!

Hungry now. Dinner time. All’s well, from SailorJohn

  

I have just written a long post, and it has disappeared, not sent. Grrrrrrrr!! Try again. 

Yesterday evening, at nearly nine o’clock, the outside and inside temperatures were both 28,5 degrees, and that was in the ‘cool’ of the evening. Yes, summer is here. 

A motorsail yesterday north up the main channel, not relaay enough wind, and then lots of navigating in to this charming town with the unpronounceable name. The charts and lanes are peppered with markers, and the depth, or shallowth, of the lane one is negotiating. Need to pay attention, otherwise surprises. Pressing need to find a chart-shop, as we are now almost off the edge of the present ones. 

If you look at the map of this place, you will see that it is all in rectangles, about fifty meters each. All houses are similar, of wood, painted in a variety of colours, some fading, so must have been built all about the same time. A placard on the hard here tells of much maritime activity, customs, smuggling and prosperity. Probably to do with timber, as there are trees everywhere still. A large factory area, outside the town on the way in here, was belching both white and brown smoke, luckily out to sea, so there is still prosperity.

The heat sent me to the supermarket, air conditioned of course. Reckon that a lot of others had done the same. Anothr country, another system in the ‘super’. You pick up, for example, your carrots, and take them to the weighing machine. Behind is a large tablet of, not icons as in Sweden, numbers, a hundred of them. Help! Nobody could, until a young teenager showed me how. The carrot-shelf has a number. So, back to the carrot shelf, find and remember it and return to the weighing machine. Wait in queue. My turn. What was that number again? Whatever, the machine squirts out a sticky lable to be stuck onto a suitable carrot. No problem when you know how, but it taxes the number-remember part of the brain a bit. Shopping priority had to be strict, as it had to be carried the halfhour back to the boat. Choose the shady route. Find a bench half way. Sit and watch. Smalls in prams not happy. Pram-pushing mums none too happy either.

WiFi here is intermittent, and free, but only if you sit in everybody’s way outside the cafe. Roaring trade in cooling drinks and ice creams. One small boy angry because his favourite one was sold out. 

Goal for the day is not Rauma, the next largish place, but a lighthouse, Kylmäpihlaja, with small harbour, out to sea a bit. 61 09 / 21 18. Praised by the harbour-book, it will avoid the long navigational-knitting to and from the town. 

There is a breeze, from the SW, which will be perfect for a sail today if it holds. All’s well, from SailorJohn. 

Jurmo was very peaceful, very. Took a walk around and listened to the sigh of the wind in the trees and calling of birds. Took pictures, but uploading isn’t working.  No WiFi, so no internet and no blogg yesterday evening. 

So, pottered on and found a nice quiet bay a mile or two north and relaxed, and watched the birds. Early evening there was a considerable commotion of cormorants, at least a hundred of them, obviously following a steam of something and fishing it energetically.  About half an hour it lasted, then some of them flew away, but most swam to the nearest rock and struggled ashore, quite replete. Much flapping and drying of wings and competing for space.  Glorious sunset, at after elleven.  

Woken by the sun this morning at just after five, so the day began. Yes, I did have a dip, not long, water temp 14,5. Brrrrrr. Feel good afterwards!  Bright sunshine today and not a cloud. Pressure high and rising. Maybe summer starts here and now?

Goal for the day is Uusikaupunki, about 25 nm to the NE.  The little wind is in the east, so we are motor-sailing, and expect to get there at lunchtime. Neighbour boat in Lappo, Finish, excellent english, strongly recommended the place, so we must visit. (Don’t think it was his home town).