Little Grace to Finland

A journey of the more unusual kind: David Appleby trailered his Alacrity "Little Grace" all th way from Coventry in the UK to Finland. He used a 1600 Ford Focus estate at max kerb weight, using a braked trailer and Bulldog stabiliser (the latter to reduce the risk of fishtailing). David writes:

"The car coped really well and the whole rig was very stable; having said that I stuck to a max of 80km/PH."

Here are some pictures.


"In one of the photos you can just see the stabiliser that I think helped a
lot. Another detail that may interest others is an easily obtainable elastic
net that fitted very well over the cockpit which meant that I was able to
fill it (the cockpit) without having to worry that things would fly out,
such as the step ladder you can see.



It was tempting to go faster and indeed the optimum speed for cruising
seemed to be 85-90 km ph but only on level and very smooth road surfaces.

The boat was loaded with a lot of my personal effects, as was the car, which
also carried two people and a Labrador. The heavy items were in the car, not
that the people or the dog are particularly heavy. Lighter, bulkier items
travelled in the boat. The car’s max tow weight is 1200 kg.

We set off at about 14:00 on Sunday and drove to Dover where we got the
ferry at around 10:15. When we arrived in Calais we drove through the early
morning to get away from the industrial/more built up areas. Stopped and
slept in the car from about 2am.

After breakfast we set off again once the rush hour traffic had died down.
The use of Tom Tom and sticking to the E roads made driving smoothly and
safely easier.

The only problem that occurred was when we got lost in a diversion and had
to stop quickly at traffic lights outside of Eindhoven. Stopping was not the
problem but the handbrake popped up and the retainer dropped into the
ratchet. Not knowing this we continued towing until the breaks overheated
and boat seemed to be getting heavier. Luckily we pulled into a service
station and reached a parking space at the same moment that the boat trailer
refused to move any further. After identifying the problem and anxiously
waiting until the beaks cooled down and proved that for certain that it was
not the bearings, which had been replaced the week before departure we set
off again. The retainer that had dropped into the ratchet was taped up so as
to prevent it causing another cardiac arrest.

The next stop in Germany was recreational and a chance to exercise the dog.
After a short stint the next stop was for a meal and sleep during the busy
traffic period in the evening. Driving through the night and luckily getting
through km after km of road works the next stop was at 3 am followed by a
short drive at 5am to the next services for more sleep then breakfast until
the rush hour was over.

We finally arrived in Rostock North Germany 10 hours early for the ferry we
were due to board at 00:00. This was as a result of choosing to stay on the
E roads and push on after the scare at Eindhoven rather than a more
leisurely approach, i.e. to give us time to deal with any problems, but
there were no more.

The crossing to Finland was 26 hours in a F10-11. At Helsinki at 8am there
was snow. The last leg at normal speeds is normally 1.5 hours. We arrived
home (my new home) at around 12.30 having stopped a couple of times. The
last few kms were on minor roads in the countryside that had settled snow on
them but not much. There was one minor but steep hill that was just a little
tricky and I had to get the revs right to avoid wheel spin but the car
managed the pull with enough grip.

Upcoming: 50th anniversary

Next year is the Alacrity's 50th anniversary as a class. Designed in 1960 the boat was built during many years and upgraded a few times. However, the basic lines have been the same all the way back since the first plywood version.

Now, I have been asked if I would be interested in editing an anniversary publication which would be printed and sold by a publisher in Ireland. I said, I might do it, but I would want to check with the crowd first. I don't think I will have the time or resources to write everything myself so I would want contributors. I also would want good pictures in high resolution.

While most of the basic facts, history and technical bits already are present on this site, some of it would have to be rewritten and polished up some. There are articles that could be used, but where permission would have to be obtained from the original authors. As this would be a somewhat commercial project, it would have to be done correctly.

I am not saying you'll get paid, but there is a chance of it, even if it might not be much.

So my questions simply are: 1. would you be interested in buying such a thing? 2. would you be interested in contributing to the project. Please answer in the comments below.

A new Alacrity blog: Sea Witch

Andrew French has just started a blog about his new Alacrity. I am sure he will have lots of adventures with her. Keep us posted, Andy!

A survey of "Limpan"

No, not a boat survey, it's an island. In fact it's the nearest uninhabited one from my club, and despite having sailed past it lots of times I never had been ashore there. I had anchored in its lee a few times and seen other boats moor at the rocks, so I knew it was possible.

This week-end a friend and I decided to give it a try. There was quite a blow, with very gusty winds from the west, so we started with the small jib and a reef in the main. This worked quite well and with the wind mostly on the beam we made it to Limpan in record time.



When we came closer we saw that there was another boat already there, trying to find a spot to moor. So, we would not have the privilege of our own island - oh well. We did, however, find a nice spot to moor, out of sight of the other boat.



The island itself makes quite a good lee, despite the wind howling past it on both sides. On this picture the border of the lee can clearly be seen, where the water is darker the wind is blowing.



We had a little picnic and then made a thorough examination of the island. It's probably less than half a kilometer long and at most about 100m wide, so the survey was done quickly. A good thing was that there is almost no undervegetation, so it was very easily accessible.

View towards the island from its southern point.


And the narrow sound between it and the next little island to the north.



The northern one might be worth a visit as well, but it's not as easy to get to as the beach is very shallow at most places. We saw two kajakers however who went ashore there later.

Survey finished, we set off back home. As we had the wind dead against us in the beginning, we did use the engine for a while. Yes, I know, but I am not getting any younger, either.

Finally a video I shot on the island. It turned out in some Blair Witch Project style, which wasn't really the intention, but you can see a little of the island anyway...



Altoghether, a nice day trip and perhaps the last landfall on unexplored land of the season.

Afternoon sail

The weather has been glorious here this last week and is supposed to stay that way through the week-end. Of course, I have to work the whole week-end, so there will be no sailing for me. But I did sneak out of the office at 3 pm today just to get a few hours on the boat anyway. There was not too much wind, but enough to sail around the nearest island.

I took a short video when passing through the narrow sound north of it. Someone there has bought himself an old military vessel, I'm not really sure what kind though.

New shelf

There had always been unused space where the former owner had his stereo and switchboard. As I have removed those the space had been empty. Now I have made a new shelf where the stereo once had been. I used half an old washboard I had kept as a reserve, and ten screws. Easy job...

Summer cruise 2009 - Part III

(If you have missed the earlier parts you may want to start reading from Part I)

The day my father arrived I sailed the boat to Finnhamn, only a short distance from where I was moored. It still took quite some time, in blazing sunshine and with almost no wind. When I finally was moored up I had to take a swim at once.

I was moored at Idholmen a 20 minutes walk from the ferry landing, but my Dad likes walking in the forest so I thought it wouldn't be a problem. Shortly after I arrived, a big Bavaria 36 moored closely next to me. But this is to be expected here, where it is quite deep everywhere and there is a shop and a restaurant as well. Still, the crew was nice and offered me a whiskey for compensation, which I accepted, of course.

An hour and a half later I started to walk to the ferry landing. When I got half way there I realized that I had forgotten my wallet, so no beer at the pub while waiting for the ferry... Anyway, my Dad finally arrived on this slightly less ugly ferry.



In real "Riddle of the Sands"-style he had not only a rucksack but a hard suitcase which may not have been the best choice of things one would like to carry through a forest - or onboard a boat. But we managed nonetheless.

I had offered my Dad two choices as for destination for the next day: a pittoresque fishing village with a pub or a deserted island with a view of the horizon. Knowing my Dad I was quite sure he would pick the fishing village. So we sailed to Möja.

Winds were very light and we managed to sail about halfway until they died down completely. We then motored the rest of the way, taking the shortcut through the Möjaström passage, which I had never done before. At the entrance to the channel someone was restoring this beautiful vessel.



And here is a short clip from the passage.



At Möja we went to the restaurant in order to book a table for the evening, only to discover that it was closed for restauration until 2010. Instad we had a hamburger at a grill at the ferry landing. Later we discovered that the café which only used to sell breakfast and danish pastry now had expanded and even served food. So we went there again in the evening and had very nice steaks...

Before that, we visited the little church. I had never been inside before, despite having been to Möja several times earlier. It is really nice. From the roof hangs a big model ship. Unfortunately I only had the camera in my mobile phone at the time and the light inside was too bad. When I got back the next morning with the proper camera, the church was closed...Oh well, another time.



Möja also has a new harbourmaster.



The next day we sailed in a little more wind to Lådna. It's a place I have visited many times and it is always nice to come here and have a swim. My Dad enjoying the water.



Afterwards he told me that this cruise was the best he had yet. Mainly, I think because of the much warmer weather (it did not rain even once!), but he also liked the food on board better. (Although I cannot remember the food having been worse last year...).

From Lådna we sailed on to Gällnö, another known place from my reports. On the last leg back to town it is a bit difficult to find new anchorages. This time, it being a week-end and very sunny and warm, the achorage was so crowded I did not find a suitable rock to moor at first. Instead I sailed the boat until the keels touched the mud and we could jump into the water and wade ashore. Coming back aboard wasn't as easy though...




We moved to a proper rock later.

Via a short hop to Hästholmen south of Grinda (which my Dad did not like at all as we were moored in shadow from trees most of the time), we sailed on to Getfoten. This time, however we took another route, through Lindalssundet. It's a shortcut, but usually much frequented by wash-making mobos, so I try to avoid it. This time it wasn't so bad and we could sail all the way through. Only the last part, through Vaxholm itself we had to motor against strong winds in an area with much traffic.

Shortly before entering Lindalssundet we met this survey vessel, moving some buoys.



And this nice Dutch boat.



At Getfoten we arrived at the same time as the garbage barge...no nice smell...



And the boat next to us, a mobo from Uppsala with engine trouble had fixed a tow to a boatyard that would arrive at 0600 the next day.



With rain (finally) in the forecast, I thought it was just as well for us to make an early start as well. And so we did, arriving at home just before it started to rain!

After all, this cruise was definitely one of the nicer ones. We did not have to sail in rain once. In the beginning, the winds were a little on the strong side, but as they were from the right direction we could sail anyway. The engine did us good service, and with the old Honda we might not have been able to make good the distace from Söderarm to Blidö in one day, so there is something to be said for a little more horsepower sometimes.

Still we did not use much more than six litres of petrol for the whole trip. As for improvements on the boat, I don't really think there were any this time, although I got a little better at reefing.

Finally the tracks for the last leg. First Finhamn - Möja - Lådna - Gällnö.



And Gällnö - Hästholmen - Getfoten - Home.