I make you right @Poptop2, they won’t be able to resist to reply with one of their childish school boy comments
I am so. I sold the fibreglass half cabin last year because I'd only used it 4 times in the previous 12 months. I DO NOT hide things from Ms.T behind paint tins. . . . . . . Everyone knows I use pallets and strategically placed vans to hide things from Ms.T. Sent from my ALCATEL ONE TOUCH 9002A using Tapatalk
Think it's auto - a light flashes on occasionally and it isn't an oil light so .... Sent from my SM-A320FL using Tapatalk
ah boats ... still in the process of looking at a few might even buy one ... ones with sails as I want to go round the UK in a couple of years time but the bank balance isn't big enough to pay for the fuel to do it in a motorboat ...
This is for you Malc, I'm better at telling them than writing them, especially with a few bottles in me but here goes. The boat looked a bit like this It would have been the summer of ’86 and as usual me and a few of the lads were hanging around the little fishing harbour when, Willie asked us if we wanted to go for a spin as he was heading out to the Aran islands, we were delighted at the opportunity of a bit of an adventure. So off the four of us went with Willie and TJ (it’s OK we knew them) in Willies boat which for the life of me I can’t remember the name of. It was a ketch rigged 54’ trawler which had been built in Scotland around 1936 and had been roughly converted for deep sea fishing trips, mostly Germans fishing for Blue and Porbeagle shark. Our mission as it transpired was to collect some sheep for TJ off of Inisheer (Craggy Island in the titles of Fr Ted) but the tide was going out so we had to leave Liscannor before we were beached, unfortunately the tide would also be out on Inisheer so Willie decided to head for Kilronan on Inis Mor. On arrival at Kilronan, it was time for pints (about 11am) and I as the oldest was left in charge. After a few hours drinking it was time to set off for Inisheer. At this stage the lads were only half *******ed so the craic was good. The weather station in Valencia had started sending out weather warnings over the VHF but we weren’t too worried we even cooked up a big pot of crab claws some of the fishermen in Kilronan gave us, I remember that we were rolling enough that the sink in the galley would partially fill and then empty with each roll. Having reached Inisheer the lads set off for a few more pints, some locals arrived with the sheep and after they were loaded we brought them all in for Tea and Bacon sandwiches. There was a very strong run at the pier as the boat tried to surf away from its moorings, with bits of the Sampson posts coming off when it would reach the end of the rope. After about 4 hours at the pub the lads returned and luckily for “Safety” sake we (the youngsters) had drank the flagon (2Lt) of cider in the fridge not a lot between 4. Having left the island I was given the helm as Willie was too *******ed, he headed off on deck as we rolled our way through the Atlantic swell and was nearly caught while having a bit of a dance, luckily there was a stout rail around the boat which he just managed to catch having gone through the air from one side to the other. The rest of the trip was pretty uneventful, Willie cut out the dancing and had sobered up a bit by the time we got back. She only had 90hp and could just about manage 8knots flat out, we didn’t raise the sails that day which was just as well. We were back at about 10pm, we were gone for about 14 or 15 hours, told no one and no one even asked up where we had been for the day, a bit of a change from nowadays.
I’ve done a few thousand nautical miles at 4.5 knots. VWs are simpler, faster and a hell of a lot cheaper, but you can’t get a view like this . . .
The Broads... I live in Norfolk (for the last 12 years anyway - I am a Yorkshire man). One of the most relaxing places on Earth for a week away...we hire a cruiser for a week every year. Do it - it is amazing.
Of course, those cute little clouds along the horizon at 300° are going to turn into a 40-knot squall, which is also not something you worry about in a VW van, but let’s enjoy the tranquility while it lasts.
Yes it was The Virginia, I spent the last 5 hours trying to fight memory loss by remembering the boats name, I got there in the end, I'm still young amn't I
Brill story. Made me smile thinking how simple and carefree your life must have been then. Cheers for that
