that’s good advice - Lawrenny is very sheltered - and also very beautiful…

A sheltered anchorage with its own pub.... what more could you ask for :-)!

it’s all good learning 😉😁

Thank you 👍🏻

Thank you! No, the waves never look as big on video, including in my videos! I look at it and it doesn't look anything like as bad as I remember it 🤥

Thanks mate 😁

Thank you Hugh 👍🏻

Thank you 👍 Hope you find that boat and have great adventures 😀

Thank you 😁

Thank you 👍🏻

Thank you 👍🏻

Thanks John, only been out in force 10 once in deep water, it was quite a rush. Certainly got the blood pumping.

1970, an intense, brief summer storm, out of the south, F9 for about 4 hours. Caught us about half-way from Holyhead to Peel, IoM. Wind against spring tide kicked up the worst seas I ever encountered. Probably only about 4 - 5 metres but criminally steep with breaking crests that kept coming over Green. Cockpit filled twice. Tied a drogue to her anchor chain, paid it all out, lashed the tiller and tried to shelter behind the coach roof. Back then we never had a dodger (sprayhood) to shelter behind. That’s when you swear that if you ever make it back to dry land you’re never going near another boat, ever, ever, EVER!! The feeling disappears the moment you round the breakwater. That was my first offshore as skipper. The boat was a Holman designed 28ft. ‘Twister’ and she took it all in her stride.

Thank you, Steve 👍 The sea anywhere should never be taken lightly, it must be revered and respected, or you get bitten. I would never go out in those conditions unless there really wasn't a choice. Fingers crossed for next week, it looks like nice sailing weather 🤞

Sailed in and out of there a couple of times, it’s exhilarating even in good conditions 😉

Thank you so much Paul 👍🏻 Yes, every day is a learning day on the boat, and I doubt that will ever change no matter how much experience you have. Nature has a habit of throwing the unexpected at you 😉

will be sure to tune into you next thrilling adventures - what's the plan for the rest of your journey ?

@@Monkeymaker_fn have just done a 41 hour sail to Falmouth and from here I’m still deciding if I should press on to Portsmouth or stay here and sail locally in the winter while I do some upgrades. Adding solar is a must before I head to Norway.

Can’t imagine being out in that weather in a 32 foot boat, GG felt tiny in those seas and she’s 40 foot!

@@sailingonadream They all look big until the sea makes them look small.

Thank you 😀

Thank you Terence!

Thank you 😁 fingers crossed 🤞

Wow, sounds like you had a real adventure! It may not all be “fun” at the time, but it’s all good learning and growing as a sailor and individual. Character building my mother would say 😂

Yes, very true, it isn't clear until you set foot on dry land again, how much fun it was. Up until then I called it fear!! Your Mam's words are so true. Looking forward to watching more of your videos. Have a lovely day.

Thanks, yes just over the outside of them. I'm still looking for someone local that can make a hinged Perspex cover to go over the switch panel...

Haha, thank you 👍🏻

''Lovely creaky boat!!'' As opposed to a noisy smell diesel..........................

@@eastsidetrader Definently better than a noisy smelly diesel 🙂

Thank you Bernd 👍🏻

It's lovely, friendly staff and good facilities 🙂

Thank you Debbie 👍

Only been like this in the last few weeks, the spring and summer have been fantastic, warm and calm, lovely sailing 🙂 Come between June and August and you will be very unlikely to get any really bad weather.

Thanks Liam 👍🏻

Thank you :) Hope you find your perfect boat ;)

Thanks Steve 👍🏻

Glad you made it safe. It’s been horrendous but I’m hopeful for high pressure and lighter winds next week.

Thanks 👍🏻

Wasn’t easy to share, but I felt I had to. All the summer had been beautiful but boat life isn’t all like that.

Yes, when I watch it again, I can’t help feeling it didn’t come close to doing the waves justice. But I’m all honesty, I didn’t feel any fear, GG was just trucking on through whatever came her way. My confidence in her has grown immensely through these experiences.

👍🏻 no choice when you are cruising and living aboard, you eventually have to face it head on.

So true and thank you Jerry 👍🏻

@@sailingonadream It’s the same thing with flying. Sometimes inexperienced pilots take chances just to get on the ground and escape bad weather, but like the sea, safety come from the air. I am a retired airline pilot, now 76 years old living my sea going dreams vicariously through videos such as yours. The best time and method to escape the weather is the storm you did not fly into.

Definitely not a Fairweather sailor...

Thank you, was very happy to get my home to safety!

The sail from Holyhead to Fishguard was great, the rest, not so much fun at the time! Pleanty of learnings to take away though 🙂

Thank you Linda 👍🏻

Thanks Jesus, yes definitely good to have a reliable engine! The Starlink is due to arrive soon. I’ll be sure to put a video together on my experience with it 😁

Thanks for the advice! Yes, plan is to head for Newlyn next, as soon as the weather permits.

@@sailingonadream Newlyn is a good place to aim for. I was stuck there one winter fo 6 weeks waiting for NE wind to change, I was heading north east! One of the harbour staff, Dave Osborne looked after me, please send my regards. Have a good trip.

@@mjcooke2sailingmostly I spent a couple of nights in there on the way up, lovely working fishing harbor and as you say, very friendly!

It’s certainly been a horrible autumn for the last few weeks. Looks like that may change next week so I can get sailing again though 😁

Hi Reg, she’s a 2003 beneteau 393. I’ve been living aboard for almost a year now. Thank you 😁

Thank you 👍🏻

Thank you 😁 I did speak to the tanker but they were foreign and hard to understand, so caution over valour seemed prudent.

Thank you 🙂

I have storm sails, she is Solent rigged. Have only needed to use them on one occasion so far, as I prefer not to go sailing in those conditions. Haven’t had a freezer for almost three years and haven’t missed it once.

Thank you ☺️ Hope all is good with you.

Had my first camping trip with Willow and it made me think of you in the’ Wild’ 😉

@lynparry4297 hardly in the wild… living in a luxury boat isn’t quite like camping 😂 Hope you had fun though. Where were you camping?

@sailingonadream swanage

Are you down the south coast?

Thank you Chris 😁

I had no choice so I’m not sure it counts as brave. Trust me, I didn’t want to go out in that, but I’m very glad I did, the alternative could have been far worse.

I’ll definitely be putting something together to cover it 🙂

It took every ounce of power the engine has to get her moving. Until that day, I always thought her engine was over powered for her size. Thank you 🙂

😂 no never, I love the complete freedom of sailing, the fact that the wind and currents decide where I end up, in spite of my plans, and the whole world fades away out there, it where I feel completely at peace. 👍🏻💨⛵️🏴‍☠️

I did, the first one wasn’t a problem going port to port, but the second one was almost impossible to understand on the radio, so I decided to not take any risk of misunderstanding, and stay well out of his way. Not a stupid question at all 🙂

Yes I’m going to have to find a way to improve the sound. I’m not planning to stop sailing, but once I get to the Solent it will be shorter sails as I plan to get a solar arch made down there and a few more upgrades over the winter. Then in spring I would like to head for Norway.

It's nice to be safely tucked up in the marina here in Milford Haven, but I'm chomping at the bit to be off again and heading down the south coast.

She’s far more capable than I am 😉 Recon I would break long before her.

I was always taught to step up to your life raft it's the last resort your vessel can handle more than you think if maintained properly

Precisely 👍🏻

I found that all I did in storms was to rebuild my boat in my head. (I built mine). I still cringe when the stays started moaning and then screaming.

Scary!

Hi Simon, thank you 😁I use an iPad, but you have to get the model with the sim slot, because the ones without don't have the GPS chipset.

Aye, although the biggest waves I have been in were off the southern tip of the mull of Galloway, surfing down the overfalls there. Even stood on the helm seat they were a good 2 meters over my head. That was the most fun I've had in a long time.

Thank you! Safe sailing 👍🏻

@@sailingonadream cheers

A good tip for capturing realistic swell size is to hold the camera at deck level and zoom in a few times untill the image maches what you see with your eyes. For the static wind on the microphone noise get a dead kitten and put your microphone in it !

@@peregrinegrace8570 thanks... hunting kittens tomorrow 🤭

It’s a good question… they were steaming at 21 knots on a collision course with me at the time and the visibility wasn’t great. It was more to do with making absolutely certain there was no confusion about intentions and that I wasn’t going to find myself with several hundred tonnes of tanker bearing down on me. I changed course and then contacted them on the radio to make sure. I often hear people banging on about the rules of the road online and how someone was in the right or wrong… but at the end of the day pressing on and crossing the path of a tanker that is 10 minutes away from smashing you into flotsam because you think you are in the right… is definitely the wrong thing to do.

👍🏻

Plan is to make a Perspex cover for the panel. 👍🏻

Thank you!

Lol yes, nothing like as bad as off the mull of Galloway though 😅

Not the place to get caught in those winds!

I'd be waiting for a new supply of underpants if it were me.

That's a really good question. I'm the other way round, can see the instruments but not the distance. You will notice in my videos I wear a baseball cap a lot, it definitely helps, and you can pull your hood over it. When it's really lashing down I simply have to take them off, like you. but here's a tip... I repeat all the instruments on my ipad and iphone, so I can sit under the spray hood and still have access to navigation and instruments. I fitted an NMEA to wifi dongle, it wasn't expensive and was easy enough to fit.

If it is extreme, ski goggles. I have actually made a dive mask with an old set of my bi-focals in them. Next option is a face guard. Mine is on its way so I'll see. I dropped my glasses overboard 50 miles offshore. Luckily my sunglasses are prescription ones. Unluckily sunglasses are rubbish when it is dark.

Prescription ski goggles with clear lenses. Hopefully you won't need them often but when you do, you will be very happy to have them

Too right!

I use many weather sources, met office, windy, predict wind, etc. I find it best to compare all the different models. However I have found wind speed and direction to be highly inaccurate on all of them. Really all you can assume is the general pattern for the overall weather.

She’s a Beneteau 393. We’re heading for Newlyn (Penzance) next, as soon as there’s a window in the weather.

@@sailingonadream Ok thanks. Have a good and safe passage. Looking forward for the next video.

Thank you 😁

Yes absolutely true, Milford was the nearest marina and it was going the blow 60 knots in a couple of days, and keep blowing for two weeks. So staying on anchor in Fishguard wasn’t an option.

Days are short here now so adding 3 or ; hours to go round them all just isn’t always an option. I deliberately timed it so I was going through as near to slack as possible.

@@sailingonadream We only ever get 12-13 hour days because of our proximity to the equator. I had a wake up call when crossing "benign" overfalls in the Cumberland group. It changed my perspective. They literally swallowed my boat between each wave.

That sounds like quite a rush! We’re you surfing them or smashing into it? I love surfing over falls, always with respect though, things can so south very quickly!

@@sailingonadream Actually sailing at about 6 knots. The swell was around 2 metres at 7 seconds interval, suddenly it was 4-5 metres at less than 1 second. The water depth was around 7-8 metres and standing up on deck was not a thing you could contemplate. I have never seen anything like it. It was similar to that thing that happened to Erik Anderra. I have it marked on my chart now. DNGT.

It has a phased array to aim the beam directly at the satellites so doesn’t use the motors once it’s done the initial setup. Fascinating technology, would highly recommend looking up how phased array antennas work 👍🏻

Adding more of that detail to the next video 👍🏻

I've been sailing all year round for years, the weather is very often fantastic! This autumn has been pretty damn exceptional for strong wind though. I can't understand why anyone would pay huge amounts for a boat and only use it for 4 or 5 months a year, when there are sooooo many lovely days all year round 🙃

I've had weeks of the most beautiful sailing weather, whilst many sailors have had their boats locked up until next May/June 😂

I sailed to Denmark in a big grey ship. We needed an icebreaker to get out of port in February and had Force 10-11. I think the Vikings had other ideas about what to do in winter. I bet sailing was a bit low on the list.

Yup that’s the one 🙂 I did consider that option, but to be honest where I crossed they weren’t as bad as closer in. If it hadn’t been for the autopilot going off it would have been a breeze. At the time I preferred the look of them to the potential of confusion with thousands of tonnes of tanker moving at 20kts in poor visibility. I don’t think there’s a right answer as such, each option has its issues. I really just wanted to spend as little time out there as possible so I chose to pole on at 40 degrees to the waves.

@@sailingonadream absolutely and you were there I wasn't :-)! Appologies if it sounded like criticism it completely wasn't intended in that manner, and a huge oil tanker does tend to concentrate the mind! Well done for making it through such a challenging set of circumstances so well. I can certainly understand the desire to be out there for as little time as possible!

@@tomriley5790 I didn’t take it that way at all Tom 🙂 There’s many options for what to do in those circumstances, none of them are wrong, and whatever choice I make it’s all on me. I try to make the best choice for my circumstances and on reflection to analyse how the other choices may have panned out. I certainly learned a lot on that trip. Every sail is a learning sail… I think in 30 or 40 years I may be getting quite good at this sailing lark 😂

Ah but watch the other videos that are in the summer. I’ve had the most amazing time and seen so much beauty and wonders. Safe travels.

@@sailingonadream I'm like the sailor in the song brandi. My love and my lady is the sea. I'm really disappointed that I missed out on the 32 foot pearso vangaurd. I really believe a better boat was never built. But I've seen some very good deals on Catalina 30s which is my second choice. I can't stay away from the water for long.

@@johnwright291 Really hope you find that boat for you John. She's out there somewhere. I found GG on my birthday, put an offer in and had it accepted an hour later. Best birthday present of my life! Serendipitous 😄

😂

It wasn’t predicted in any of the forecasts or apps. The wind speed was double the forecasts as well, that’s what really caused the issue. Had it been 20 knots it wouldn’t have been anything like as bad. I have found the weather forecasts to be completely unreliable throughout the year though. I wonder if global warming is making the models less reliable.

Thank you Ken, looking back its less scary, you learn the limits of the boat and yourself are far greater than you had thought.

Yup, Bob the auto-helm was steering so I could video 😁

@@sailingonadream Oh, cool i didnt know sail boat had those.

Brought back some memories ! Just found your channel and just subbed! Nothing better than watching others doing all the scary stuff from the safety of a couch Infront of a real log fire, warm dog on the rug and a glass of Bells finest. Hoping for better winds and calmer seas for you ... Take care. !!!

☹️ at Holyhead?

@@sailingonadream Southern ocean Just got update he was picked up safe from raft by another racer, transferred to freighter,

@@chhindz Ah yes GGR, sorry didn't get the reference before. Glad to hear he's safe!

I don't know how you can say that, she is absolutely built for sailing in weather. Shes built as an ocean cruiser, not a coastal cruiser. There are so many older 393's like mine, sailing around the world without a problem.

@@sailingonadream I know you are upset but these yachts just like Bavaria and even Dehler are made very thin. To reduce costs and money. They are build with small margins. You will never hear problems with the swedisch brands or other firmly build yachts. Beneteau is slightly better and stronger made. Its just about not getting the costs out of hand and make these boats affordable.

That’s why I went for an older one, they were built solid. It really isn’t as simple as that, though. I’ve heard many people say things like that, what is a blue water boat, and I’ve heard a lot of nonsense answers. I’m not upset, I did a lot of research and chose a boat that is right for me. I didn’t need a 1 year project to get ready to leave, I wanted to be sailing. It’s all about choosing where you compromise and being happy with your choices. She’s a solid boat that is quite capable and safe to sail round the world. Your choice would be something different I guess, what boat do you have?

@@sailingonadream I think youre right, its all about choices. But i heard and saw a lot of faults with these bouts, especially in rough conditions. I have a 30 foot R0300sail from 2000, brand name Ronautica. They dont exist any more!. They are well build and i sailed in pretty rough conditions, but i try to avoid these now ;). The rigging for example is 8 mm and 7 mm thick! You dont see that on a 30 foot yacht!

Tell me about it 😂

​@@sailingonadreamour yacht was on your camera shot there! Swinging mooring.

The rewards are out of this world!

@@sailingonadream that was truly some horrid water to be in. Marina too in a different way. Good footage to show because most other sailing YT’s just show warm sun and swimming in off beaches. For yrs I watched them, then retired and bought an old 34’ sloop and began practicing on Lake Michigan. Three seasons later I took opportunity to crossed the Carib with a newbie credit card captain on his cat. Five days of no sleep, bad conditions, no AIS and learned we didn’t have data in chart plotter and almost sailed onto a reef. The dreams created by YT’ers lied. Ha. Boat life is indeed awesome but there are many difficult days too. It’s not for the faint of heart. 😉

Thank you David! No it’s not all sunshine and bikinis living on a boat, you have to take whatever cards are dealt in the flop and hope the turn and the river are good ones, because there’s no bluffing the weather 😂 Keep sailing, the rewards for putting up with the bad days are out of this world 👍🏻

😅

At sea in a gale solo is hard work, tiredness sets in quickly and mistakes get made, things break and dealing with it can be dangerous. I’ve had a halliard snap in F9 and recovering the Genoa from the sea so I could put the engine on took over 30 minutes with no way to control the boat. I was of course clipped on but even so it was exhausting, wet and dangerous. It’s not always safer to be at sea. In this case I moved to the other side of the pontoon and all was good. I don’t shirk away from being at sea in bad weather, I’ve been out in 3 gales in the last month, but I know my limits, a few hours is good fun, 12 is too much and 24 is just asking for trouble. Especially in the dark.

@@sailingonadreameveryone is a f,ing expert aren’t they? You know what you are doing and you are the one who was there dealing with the problems at hand. Good on you for knowing your limits, for making good decisions to protect yourself and your boat, and for living to fight (sail) another day. Glad you are well.

@@bigslim492 Thank you Jeffrey 👍

Great video with useful advice .real seamanship,thanks you for taking the time .Enjoy the journey.

@@sailingonadream I know, solo is a different story. You need to watch around. You won't get much sleep either. A safe ancre spot or a port is wise. But always realise, an uncomfortable couple of days do not wreck your ship. Besides, great those Navy men were so helpful. Have a good Christmas and new year.

Most of that was filmed with one, for all the good it does in 35 knots of wind🤣

@@sailingonadream Oh, must have been wild alright. 😱

@@sailingonadream The noise in the rigging just gets to whistle then scream, and dead cats do nowt then.

No they help but when the wind really blows not so much 🙄

I’ve replaced them now with lines that don’t creak 😁👍🏻⛵️🏴‍☠️