Oostende is not so good in strong north or north westerlies unless your behind the lock in the inner harbour. I'm never in too much of a hurry to leave as I have lots of Flemish sailing friends. It's a fascinating place with Bruges, Ypres and Gent so close. The German Atlantic Wall was never dismantled between Oostende and Nieupoorte and is now a museum. Ha ha, Med style docking! I'm not so good at it although I manage. It's easier going between two boats and with lots of fenders, walk your way in using the two other boats. It's ok if its not windy, even if your the only boat. This time I mercilessly used wonderful Simon Munters, harbour master in his rib. I'm still slightly fragile!

And to you too Jesus

Hi. Thank you for watching the video. It is a sail I have done countless times for many many years. It does not get easier. There is no need to sail single-handed. Many of my friends and much better sailors than me, would never sail alone. Sailing solo is just a different discipline and it does not suit many. You have to have the right attitude. But it is no more clever than sailing as a good crew member. A solo sailor has to look after themselves properly and avoid injury. If your fit to look after the ship a sound well found vessel will look after the crew. Close to land and traffic a solo sailor cannot sleep. So knowing ones limits is vital. It is only when you get offshore deep in the ocean, away from traffic that a solo sailor can relax. Stay safe ... James

Hi Mark. Happy New Year. Please forgive the delay in replying to your comment. Which Typhoon do you have? I'm right in the middle of production with TN20. There is a data base with most Typhoons accounted for. Re the stay sail. I always felt that it was necessary for the sailing I was going to do and there were various things to overcome. Ed Dubois gave our plans the thumbs up, not very long before he died. I did not want to have running back stays so the new sheave had to be very close to the genoa sheave. The anchor locker bulkhead was substantial so a specially designed chain plate was manufactured. I started off hanking on the stay sail before converting to a furling gear. The sail works superbly. With strong winds on the beam or to windward under double or triple reefed main and stay sail she sails beautifully. ATB James

@@samingosailing hi my westerly typhoon is grand slam, I am just watching some more of your vlogs as I have just started to build a solar arch and wondering how you got past the back stay. It’s great to be able to go through your vlogs to see your setup .

@@Sailinggrandslam I have Grand Slam down as TN23 and Liverpool based. I have a video just on the arch. Let me have your email address and I'll send it to you ... if that might help.