Category: Alternative lifestyle
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34). Camelot Sold at last
The first weekend in September was Labour Day so a Monday off for Jon. We drove over to Alexandria in Virginia to visit Hilton and Suzy in their home. It was good to catch up and hear about their experiences at the carnival in Trinidad. Coming home they had done the offshore route using the…
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33). The Chesapeake Bay
The Last leg up to Annapolis. There were still some 200 miles to go to reach the city of Annapolis. Passing out through the Hampton Roads we covered 50 on the first day. We dropped the hook near Deltaville on the Rappahannock River which was a lovely tree lined deep estuary. We rowed ashore with…
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32). ICW Carolinas-Virginia
Last section of Intra Coastal Waterway When we rejoined the Waterway after our overnight stay near Savannah, we calculated we had covered more than four hundred and thirty miles since leaving Fort Lauderdale. End of the Intra Coastal waterway for us at the lock in Norfolk, Virginia We were able to sail for long sections…
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31). Florida – Georgia ICW
We were glad to leave down town Fort Lauderdale to set off under the Las Olas Boulevard Bascule Bridge after a few days. The sheer volume of people, boats, road traffic, chic shopping, waterfront bars and restaurants was quite overwhelming in Florida after so many weeks of glorious solitude and natural landscapes. Leaving Las Olas…
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30). Bimini to Fort Lauderdale
Crossing the Gulf Stream After our lonely night anchored where the Mackie Shoal beacon should have been we set off again at dawn. We spent two nights in Bimini enjoying our last swimming and beach time in the Bahamas. There was virtually no road traffic on the island, only dirt roads and rows of charming…
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29). Day Sailing The Bahamas
We deliberated about which route to take to the Bahamas. It all looked impossibly shallow. It was time to leave Puerto Plata which Olly insisted on calling “Porta Potty.” When another yachtsman had seen Jon mending Bernard’s sail, he asked if his mainsail could be re-stitched. He was happy to oblige. Turks and Caicos Settling…
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28). Puerto Rico and The Dominican Republic
Cruising in company with Kundalini There were several boats we knew in the anchorage off the big marina complex at Palmas Del Mar. A Dufour 35 “Kundalini” belonged to a young French Canadian called Bernard who sailed with his dog Bertine as first mate. He was an architect from Montreal. Jon had done some work…
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27). Goodbye BVI
Goodbye Road Town On Friday 29th April Jon completed his last day at the Hood Sail Loft. He was having farewell drinks with the lads from the loft at The Moorings. I had been ashore with both boys at Village Cay Marina to do a load of laundry. We returned to the dinghy dock. Whilst…
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26). Christmas/New Year 83
Jethro had his sixth birthday just before Christmas. A party for his friends was held on board in a slip at The Moorings so they could all have tea and cake on board then swim in the pool. He had a girlfriend by then called Scarlet, a school friend from Passea Kindergarden. Scarlet’s mother Jo…
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25). Back to Blighty and Back
Proceeds from so much sail repair work in Gustavia and the fees from filming on Camelot meant Jon could afford a trip back to Blighty the first time in two years. I flew back with the boys directly from Antigua. Jon wanted to take Camelot to the BVI to be safely hauled out for the…
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24). Filming in Antigua
Over the next few days in English Harbour most of the visiting yachts left for their home ports. Many would return to Northern USA or Europe before the Caribbean hurricane season. There was great excitement as Duran Duran were looking for boats to use in the video to promote their new album “Rio.” Camelot used…
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23). Antigua Race Week
English Harbour April 1982 Five days after Oliver’s accident we set sail for Antigua. The distance was about 100 miles so an overnight sail. We left Gustavia in perfect conditions just before sunset. Both boys were tucked up in their bunks with renewed strengthening securing the netting to keep them safe. We sailed on a…
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22). Tragedy on board
Oliver’s first Birthday Oliver had a party for his first birthday. We had taken Camelot up into a slip at the head of Gustavia quite near Jethro’s school. It was the Easter holidays. Several little friends came along with their parents to a table set out in the grassy area near the boats. I served…
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20). Nightmare crossing
The optimistic weather forecast said: “Swells 3 to 5 feet, wind 30 to 40 knots, the Upper Level Trough is Dissipating.” Along with eight other yachts we set off for St Barths only 14 miles away from St Maarten. Visibility was good. The sun was shining. We could clearly see our destination. Two sixty foot…
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21). Making sails while the sun shines in Gustavia
JON’S SAIL REPAIR TECHNIQUES Before we had time to lower Guinevere from the davits, other yachtsmen had read the ‘Sailmaker’ signs and tenders were queuing up to beg him to fix sails. So many other boats had experienced the rough conditions over the past six weeks there was huge demand. When presented with ripped seams,…
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19). Disasters on board – rough sailing and leaks.
The children and I had a great time in the UK. My parents met me at Gatwick and drove us back to Cheshire. I took the boys to see Father Christmas in Manchester. We acquired some much needed winter clothing from charity shops. Olly was still only eight months old. He amused my family with…
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18). From Black to bare Teak
Painting the hull black in that climate was a mistake. The tropical heat on the black paint was so hot the planks on the topsides were opening up. Jon wanted to take all the paint off and take her back to show off the bare teak. We needed to haul out again to apply new…
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17). Marina berth – The Moorings
MOVE FROM ANCHORAGE TO A SLIP Moved to slip at Moorings After a month or more living at anchor we had suffered too many interrupted nights. As the wind dropped in the summer months, boats did not lie so well at anchor. So frequently we had to jump up and start the engine to avoid…
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16). Settling into Work and School.
The Hood Sail loft near The Moorings Getting a Work Permit stamp in Jon’s passport seemed remarkably complicated. First an interview with a Government Minister to prove himself worthy of employment . Then a grilling by an Immigration Officer Mr Potter ( whom we had met many times over the past eighteen months). Next the…
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15) Work Permit for Jon – and school for Jethro
Jon needed to start earning again. It had been a year and a half since we sold up in Norfolk and the proceeds from that were now getting dangerously low. It was time to earn a regular income. The odd repair and canvas work he had done on board within BVI territory was no longer…
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14). Oliver joins the Crew of Camelot-April 1981
In early April we were asked to house sit for Paul and Betty Backshall. He was editor of The Virgin Islander magazine. Betty was an interior designer. They were leaving for a holiday in England. Their house was a bungalow with a dock on the coast of West End to seaward of the Ferry Dock…
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13). The Extended Alsop Family Cruise.
We stayed at anchor in English Harbour for a few days so that Jon’s parents could recover from their jet lag and get acclimatised to the hot weather. They thoroughly enjoyed the historic surroundings. They bought souvenirs in the museum where Jethro told his grandparents: “This is the pirates House.” Tucked away in some more…
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12). To English Harbour Antigua-via St Kitts and Nevis
On 5th January we left St Barths and sailed south to St Kitts. There was only one other yacht within site, and inspired by the beach nudity he had just seen, Jon decided to try and get an all over tan. Both Jethro and I used a lot of sunscreen but Jon said he would…
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11). Uncharted Waters – Towards Antigua
We had very few charts on board Camelot and had been trying to acquire more by asking around amongst sailing friends. Not one of the chandleries on Tortola had one covering the waters between the Virgins and the Lesser Antilles Islands. We planned to sail to Antigua to meet Molly and Fads – Jon’s parents…
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10). New Crew Confirmed
On the 5th November the results of the US Presidential election confirmed a landslide victory for Ronald Reagan. That same day I visited a doctor in Road Town and it was confirmed that I was pregnant and the baby due the first week in April. Jon was perturbed that this would curtail our sailing plans.…
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9). Shake Down Cruise – literally
We left Red Hook setting off again for Cruz Bay to clear out of the USVI. After the stormy night the wind had settled again into the Easterly Trades. Jon hoisted mizzen first then opened up the roller furled Genoa, whilst I steered and Jethro was secured in his car seat on the taff rail.…
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8). Re-wiring Complete
With a few final adjustments from Ashton and Smiley we had a working engine at last. Our maiden voyage was to sail over to St John so that Lee could complete the electrical installation. We had installed two new 190 amp batteries fixed side by side in the cockpit locker. One was just for the…
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7). The New Engine – at last.
Hurricane forecast In early August there was news of a hurricane heading our way. It had been given the name Alan which meant it could be serious. On Saturday the centre was 800 miles east of Barbados. This was Carnival Week and all shops offices and banks would be closed until Thursday. Loud music blared…
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6). Back to the BVI -after the sailing and packing away.
After Durban Fireball Worlds Our time in South Africa was only moderately successful as far as sailing the Fireball was concerned. With Jack Davis crewing, Jon just about stayed in the top ten overall . Not only was the class growing and many more good international crews taking part therefore the standards getting higher. Also…
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5). Paint it Black – it’s a pirate ship.
Back in the Water With only four weeks left before we were booked to go to Durban for the Fireball World championships, Jon wanted to get Camelot back into the water. The generator had been fixed. The new bowsprit was installed. We had no battery power but all the brass paraffin lamps worked below decks.…
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4). Life on board in the Yard (and not just human)
Moving on board The day we moved on board Camelot was spent removing much of the unwanted gear from all lockers. Jethro wanted to help so we set him up with a paintbrush and a bucket of water and asked him to ‘varnish’ the 28 inch propellor. That kept him busy for hours. In between…
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3). Buying Camelot
Price agreed – Subject to Inspection On Saturday 22nd March we made an offer through Bill to Camelot’s owner in Nashville, Tennessee. After some haggling, our offer was accepted subject to an inspection for which she would be hauled out. The travel lift at Nanny Cay could do that on Tuesday. There was a South…
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2). Searching for the Yacht
First to Fort Lauderdale Having hired a Dodge Aspen from the airport in Miami we fixed Jethro into a car seat and headed twenty miles North to Fort Lauderdale. We found a motel with a room called an efficiency, which meant it had a neat little kitchen. They provided a portable bed for Jethro. There…
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1). February 1980 – leaving Norfolk
Snow was falling in Eastern England. When the wind blew from the North there was nothing much between our cottage and the North Pole. Margaret Thatcher was the new broom voted in to clean up the country from the grip of trade unions. One of her ideas to raise money was to increase Value Added…