Kalessin of Orwell

Round the outside and back up the middle, 2006-8

Part 1 – preparation & departure

About Kalessin

• Westerly Storm 33 – 170 built• Built 1988, bought by us 2004• Length 33ft/10.1m• Beam 11ft 7in/3.5m• Draft 5ft 6in/1.68m (fin keel)• Engine 18hp Volvo• Fast, spacious, elegant, solid

Kalessin’s layout

L-shaped galley

Big cockpit locker (with holding tank beneath)

Spacious heads

Aft cabinGuy then Ben Forepeak cabin

Sam & Camilla

Conventional saloon layout

About us

• Sam, 68 – retired 2007• Camilla, 52 – made redundant Nov 2005• Guy, now 18 – was just finishing GCSEs• Benedict (Ben), now 15 – year 8 when we set off• Sam & Camilla RYA coastal skipper qualified • Owned dinghies & trailer-sailers 1986 onwards• Flotillas and charters• Magewind 2002, sailed E Coast & Netherlands• Kalessin 2004, sailed E Coast & France

Ben Sam Guy & Camilla

• Take a year, 2005-2006

• Take Magewind (bilge-keeled Sadler 29) through the French canals to the Med

• Boys to….??

Plan 1 (2004)

Plan 2 (2005)

• Take a year, 2006-7• Guy to take a year out after GCSEs• Ben to be educated on board• Buy & prepare Kalessin• Summer cruising round the

‘outside’ to the Balearics• Winter in N Africa or E Spain• Head on towards Greece in 2007

Plan 3 (what we did)

• Four months, June-October 2006• Guy with us for six weeks• Ben educated on board• Summer cruising round the outside via

Brittany & Spanish Rias• Kalessin winters in Algarve• Head into the Med in 2007 – Balearics &

Barcelona• Home through the French canals in 2008

preparation

Preparation – what we had• Radar• Chart plotter• Autopilot• Navtex• CQR anchor• Rope cutter• Pressurised/hot water• Fridge• New gas cooker

Preparation – on Kalessin• New standing rigging• Rigid vang/rod kicker• New sprayhood • All-new exhaust pipework/fuel lines, new water lock• New anti-siphon valve• New switch panels• New instruments (wind, depth, log) and senders• Replaced GPS repeater (faulty)• 1 extra battery (4 in total)• 2 solar panels• Adverc power management system & lots of wiring• New deck plugs at mast• New CD player & speakers• Replaced deck light, steaming light & tricolour + cabling

Preparation – on Kalessin• New gas alarm (it never worked though…)• Replaced VHF aerial cable• Installed Windex• New rudder bearing• Grab handle on transom • New Lavac & holding tank• New tap & connection for front water tank• Additional electric bilge pump• Replace jib, genoa & spinnaker halyard• New jib sheets• Extra warps• 2 extra anchors (CQR, Fortress, Delta)• New windlass• Clean, polish, antifoul (with Ocean Performer)

Preparation – shopping• Liferaft• 20 Imray paper charts• 4 C-map wide charts (£140 each)• 6 pilot books and assorted maps & guidebooks• Awning and wind chute• New stainless steel saucepans• Full set of kitchen equipment (no more “borrowing”

from home)• New duvets & bedding• Books, books & more books• 2 cameras• 2 laptops and associated wiring• Wetsuits, mask & snorkel and fins• Fray Bentos pies, Pot Noodles, Marmite and bags more

Main saloon

Under-sink cupboardwith two new batteries

New Vetus water lock, seen from aft cabin

Spot the chart table

The holding tankfinally arrives

Holding tank in situ

Note ferociouschiselling

Do we really need all this?

Keeping in touch

• The blog

• April 2006 – Sept 2008

• 155 entries

• 2 laptops on board

• Wi-fi when available

• Internet cafés

• Mobile phones - UK and French SIM cards

Departure

Leaving SYH,6am

Calais 19-22 June

Boulogne 23 June

Dieppe 24 June

Calais (4 nights)

At last… Cap Gris Nez

Skipped Fecamp!

Le Havre 25 June

Honfleur 26 June

St-Vaast 27 June

Cherbourg 28 June

Honfleur… fantastic

Schoolwork in the Baie de la Seine…

St Peter Port29 June – 2 July

Sark 3 July

Lezardrieux 4-5 July

Treguier 6-7 July

Morlaix 10-11 July

Trebeurden

8-10 July

Little Russell… hot, no wind, no land…

An emotional moment – Sam helms Kalessin between the St Peter Port pierheads

All the boys

In and out of Ploumanac’h (low water)

If you must go aground on the Trebeurden sill, try not to do it on the night of the France-Italy match…

Morlaix

L’Aberwrach 12 July

Brest 13-15 July

Camaret 16 July

Audierne 17 July

Loctudy 18-19 July

Benodet 20-21 July

Port la Foret 22-23 July

Ile de Groix 24-25 July

Lorient 26-27 July

Guy flies home

Sauzon, Belle-Ile 28 JulyQuiberon/Morbihan

29 July-4 August

Our first swellAs Hugo Vihlen* once commented, "I don't know who named them swells. There's nothing swell about them. They should have been named awfuls"

* he crossed the Atlantic in a 5ft 4in sailing boat

Camaret

Raz de Sein on a non-scary day

Île de Groix

Lorient station – farewell to Guy, who flew

home from Nantes

La Trinité, racing centre of France…

…and a great place for

repairs

Ben liked the grass…

…but preferred the chi-chis

Weather information

The hurdle race…

Finisterre

Biscay

Chenal du Four/Raz de Sein

Channel crossing

Race of Alderney

etcetc

etc

Across the Bay of Biscay….