Fantastic. I sailed up the Solent today and yesterday. My first real solo passages. I only started sailing in May this year and your films have really inspired me. Thank you so much. However I prefer Yarmouth to Lymington but Bucklers Hard is lovely.
I quite agree about Yarmouth. A lovely place ... but I had to get some charts! Fair winds and stay safe. And thank you for watching the videos. ATB James
Dear James. You are an amazing sailor. I envy your skills. Being a 62 year old Electrical Engineer and ex-VP of Global Business Development, I now am thinking about traveling the world on my terms. I live in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania USA and am looking to move to the Chesapeake Bay area before Winter to find my boat. I have no experience, but what the heck, the Vikings did it thousands of years ago with a lot less. What boat do you have? What port did you end up in during this trip? It looks like there are thousands of boats. Many must be for sale. Do you know where they would be advertised so I can look for one online? Thanks for all your help and please think about teaching while you are sailing. Guys like me could use all the help you can provide. Take care of yourself out there. Mike Dergance
Dear Mike. I don't know how I missed your message. The Vikings were great sailors with huge experience. But as you say it was pure sailing and seamanship. And I guess the ability to improvise. Something that we still have to have ... in my view. I started this journey from Orford UK and returned to Orford UK. A very good US friend who has sailed round the world and done thousands and thousands of miles besides, sold their boat recently. They knew what they wanted to buy and could find nothing in the US ... anywhere. They had to travel to Holland to get the boat to suit their long distance needs. With their experience they knew what they wanted. Even then there will always be a compromise. I have a Westerly Typhoon. She is a fast stable passage maker and well built. I have adapted her to suit my single-handed needs. I'm not a teacher. I can tell people what works for ME. I would not dream of telling them how to do it. BUT ... I could perhaps point out a few things NOT to do :-)). Fair winds when you eventually get out on the water. And stay safe. James
One of the few I've seen do this trip without windvane steering. I assume the autopilot held up well. My own boat is self sufficient enough in power to run the tiller pilot & nav gear full time as long as theirs a bit of sun during the day. It's raymarine so should hold up to a months of continuous use too. I'd love to do this one day but too be honest happy enough pottering around the east coast at the moment. Would also love to go over to europe and sail upwards and explore the numerous Scandinavian & Frisian islands. The riddle of the sands style.
Thank you so much for watching the video. I great amount of preparation went in to taking me and 'Talisker 1' in to the ocean. If money was no object I would have, and still would have, in an ideal situation, wind vane steering. I discussed the steering with Harry Heasman at Raymarine. The answer was if the boat could generate the power their Evolution self steering with linear drive would steer the boat. The perfectly good old 6000 became the spare and with a bit of clever plumbing it could be relatively easily swapped over. The Evolution steering has been extraordinarily good. State of the art. It's steered the boat in all wind directions including some very hostile conditions. I took a lot of trouble with electrics and generating power. I also did not want to run the engine to generate power or for propulsion in the ocean. I wanted to sail and be able to hear the ocean. I love sailing further north. I spent a couple of summers in Shetland and Norway. In 2016 I returned via the Kiel Canal. I have to say the Frisian Islands worried me in anything other than ideal conditions. I'm a huge fan of the 'Riddle of the Sands'. Wonderful book. Its so much easier with a few thousand metres under the keel and nothing to hit for a few hundred miles. Where do you sail? Fair winds and stay safe. ATB James
Nice video and looking forward to the rest. What type of boat do you sail and what is your experience level? I love to single hand as well except for the time the crew argues with my decisions. Ha Ha
Hi Doug. Many thanks for watching. My boat is a Westerly Typhoon www.samingosailing.com/my-boat-westerly-typhoon-talisker-1/ I suppose experience wise ... like a London Cabi .. I've done 'the knowledge' but you never stop learning. Lots of offshore NM 30k +. ATB James
Thank you for watching. Raymarine Evolution. I installed it at the beginning of 2016 when I was thinking of sailing a fair distance in the ocean. It has been very very good. If I was going away for a longer period of time I would have wind vane steering too. ATB James
Fantastic. I sailed up the Solent today and yesterday. My first real solo passages. I only started sailing in May this year and your films have really inspired me. Thank you so much. However I prefer Yarmouth to Lymington but Bucklers Hard is lovely.
I quite agree about Yarmouth. A lovely place ... but I had to get some charts! Fair winds and stay safe. And thank you for watching the videos. ATB James
Dear James. You are an amazing sailor. I envy your skills. Being a 62 year old Electrical Engineer and ex-VP of Global Business Development, I now am thinking about traveling the world on my terms. I live in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania USA and am looking to move to the Chesapeake Bay area before Winter to find my boat. I have no experience, but what the heck, the Vikings did it thousands of years ago with a lot less.
What boat do you have? What port did you end up in during this trip? It looks like there are thousands of boats. Many must be for sale. Do you know where they would be advertised so I can look for one online?
Thanks for all your help and please think about teaching while you are sailing. Guys like me could use all the help you can provide.
Take care of yourself out there.
Mike Dergance
Dear Mike. I don't know how I missed your message. The Vikings were great sailors with huge experience. But as you say it was pure sailing and seamanship. And I guess the ability to improvise. Something that we still have to have ... in my view. I started this journey from Orford UK and returned to Orford UK. A very good US friend who has sailed round the world and done thousands and thousands of miles besides, sold their boat recently. They knew what they wanted to buy and could find nothing in the US ... anywhere. They had to travel to Holland to get the boat to suit their long distance needs. With their experience they knew what they wanted. Even then there will always be a compromise. I have a Westerly Typhoon. She is a fast stable passage maker and well built. I have adapted her to suit my single-handed needs. I'm not a teacher. I can tell people what works for ME. I would not dream of telling them how to do it. BUT ... I could perhaps point out a few things NOT to do :-)). Fair winds when you eventually get out on the water. And stay safe. James
One of the few I've seen do this trip without windvane steering. I assume the autopilot held up well. My own boat is self sufficient enough in power to run the tiller pilot & nav gear full time as long as theirs a bit of sun during the day. It's raymarine so should hold up to a months of continuous use too. I'd love to do this one day but too be honest happy enough pottering around the east coast at the moment. Would also love to go over to europe and sail upwards and explore the numerous Scandinavian & Frisian islands. The riddle of the sands style.
Thank you so much for watching the video. I great amount of preparation went in to taking me and 'Talisker 1' in to the ocean. If money was no object I would have, and still would have, in an ideal situation, wind vane steering. I discussed the steering with Harry Heasman at Raymarine. The answer was if the boat could generate the power their Evolution self steering with linear drive would steer the boat. The perfectly good old 6000 became the spare and with a bit of clever plumbing it could be relatively easily swapped over. The Evolution steering has been extraordinarily good. State of the art. It's steered the boat in all wind directions including some very hostile conditions. I took a lot of trouble with electrics and generating power. I also did not want to run the engine to generate power or for propulsion in the ocean. I wanted to sail and be able to hear the ocean. I love sailing further north. I spent a couple of summers in Shetland and Norway. In 2016 I returned via the Kiel Canal. I have to say the Frisian Islands worried me in anything other than ideal conditions. I'm a huge fan of the 'Riddle of the Sands'. Wonderful book. Its so much easier with a few thousand metres under the keel and nothing to hit for a few hundred miles. Where do you sail? Fair winds and stay safe. ATB James
I'm refitting a Beneteau to take out from Texas. I'm too tired to take many videos. When I need a boost I watch you to remember why I'm doing it.
Ron
Thank you
Very cool. On to Episode 2. :-)
Thank you very much. ATB James
Nice video and looking forward to the rest. What type of boat do you sail and what is your experience level? I love to single hand as well except for the time the crew argues with my decisions. Ha Ha
Hi Doug. Many thanks for watching. My boat is a Westerly Typhoon www.samingosailing.com/my-boat-westerly-typhoon-talisker-1/ I suppose experience wise ... like a London Cabi .. I've done 'the knowledge' but you never stop learning. Lots of offshore NM 30k +. ATB James
30 seconds in and I have to ask which autopilot do you have.??
Warren
s/y Legend
Thank you for watching. Raymarine Evolution. I installed it at the beginning of 2016 when I was thinking of sailing a fair distance in the ocean. It has been very very good. If I was going away for a longer period of time I would have wind vane steering too. ATB James
What boat do you have?
Hi Bernt. A much modified (rig) Westerly Typhoon www.samingosailing.com/my-boat-westerly-typhoon-talisker-1/ ATB James