Well, where has the time gone!

Well, I can't believe its been over a year since writing a post. Generally its been great. We have enjoyed living in Charlotte our van, she has cared for us well and we have had some very good times. Currently we are living on a boat near where I work.  I have been working for Ashley Butler up until a couple of weeks ago. I have really enjoyed working at Butler & Co and it is almost like I have not left as I am now renting work bench space from Ash in order to work on our new project, Zephon a Harrison Butler Zyclon yacht.

Below are some photos of the Butler & Co launches last August of Martha Primrose and The Pilgrim.

The launch of the new Mayflower 50', Martha Primrose.

Martha Primrose waiting to be slipped.

The Charles Sibbick yawl Saunterer came to the launch.

The launch of the completely rebuilt Brixham Sailing Trawler, The Pilgrim.

Pilgrim in the dry dock ready to go.

Pilgrim being towed to her temporary mooring on the Dart.

Zephon, 22' Harrison Butler Zyklon, our new project.

Zephon's broken mast and buckled pulpit.

A very pretty little boat.

The fallen oak tree.

Rae and I have recently bought Zephon, a 22 foot Harrison Butler Zyklon Class. We are very excited about becoming Zephon's new owners and are really looking forward to spending as much time as possible sailing her.

Zephon's build began just prior to World War II. When war broke out she was mothballed and completed in 1950. Her last owner was shipwright Richard Hunn. About 10 years ago Rich and his partner Danielle sailed Zephon round the UK and they sailed as far North as the Hebrides. 

Over the past few years Zephon has suffered a bit from neglect and last November she had a very near miss when a large oak tree came down on the steep bank opposite her mooring. The uppermost branches of the tree clipped her bow snapping the end of the mast and buckling the pulpit rail.  Zephon is structurally sound but needs a total overhaul which means we are going to be very busy over the next few months!

Van living and working for Butler & Co.

 I have completed, well almost completed converting our LDV Convoy van, Charlotte, into our new home. We have been living full-time in Charlotte since the beginning of November and we are now based near Kingsbridge in Devon. It is so good to be living back in the West Country!

Van living is great. To live simply and to be in close touch with nature is wonderful. We have experienced gales, torrential rain, still sunny days, a thunderstorm accompanied by lots of hail, then sleet then rain, and of course lots of snow. We love this kind of living and the other day laughed at the fact we have started van living in the coldest winter probably recorded! Still our van is cosy and warm, even on the coldest of nights thanks to our Windy Smithy stove.

I am working full-time for Butler & Co at Old Mill Creek Boat yard which is in Dartmouth. Ash is great to work for and I am enjoying the work immensely. I am learning so much and feel very lucky to be working with such highly skilled and talented shipwrights. 

Arctic adventure to 78º 12' N

Sailing on the 101 year old Bristol Channel Pilot Cutter Dolphin from Ornes to Svalbard was pretty amazing. It was a bit of a fast-paced mission though as Capps had a schedule to keep.  This meant that the overall pace of the journey was relentless and exhausting and there were times I just wished we could have spent longer in one place. We sailed approximately 900 nautical miles in total. 

Perhaps the strangest thing that I really never got used to was the 24 hour day light. This is a strange phenomenon that confused me more than once and I had to ask Rae, John or Capps if it was very early morning or mid afternoon. This confusion about whether it was day or night added to the overall other worldliness of the glacial, desolate and pristine wilderness that is Svalbard. 

It has been an absolute privilege to sail with Capps on Dolphin in the Arctic and I have met some truly remarkable people. The Arctic takes no prisoners and I have to be honest and say I am relieved that Rae and I returned in one piece.   

We worked pretty hard for the first 48 hours getting Dolphin ready for her adventure.

Midnight sun.

Torsvag, the last stop before crossing the Barents Sea.

When on land it is sensible to carry a gun in case the polar bear scarers fail to scare the bear. Happily we did not encounter a polar bear although we met a French couple who did. They, thankfully, were unhurt but their sea kayak is no longer sea worthy!

Whilst walking on this glacier we heard it boom twice in half an hour as the millions of tons of ice slowly moved seaward. 

Gone Sailing (Ornes to Svalbard). Will be back middle of July.