Intro / Whats New

Combined brochure and newsletter
If you missed the Autumn newsletter its because are sending out only one mailing a year. We are spending more of our time sailing each year which is great but it doesn't leave us so much time for the newsletters!

Exploring under sail
Every year our schooner, Trinovante, voyages to the best cruising grounds in Europe. Our aim is to explore under sail and encourage good seamanship and traditional sailing skills. The itineraries are based around places that caught the crews imaginations the previous year. We like to see new things each season and avoid the routine
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Taster weekends
For all those of you who want to dip a toe in the waters of tall ship sailing before you sign up for a longer voyage we have increased the number of taster weekends in 2008. These weekends are a good chance to get plenty of practise hoisting and lowering sail, perfecting some basic rope skills and manoevering.
This year these weekends will be sailing in our local rivers on the East coast, the Colne, Blackwater, Stour and Orwell from Ipswich marina. Ocasionally we sail down to Southend and the Swale if the winds are right.
Watch out for us in Coast Magazine later this year in a four page feature specifically covering our Taster Weekends - due out in March.

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Offshore Sailing
Trinovante is designed and fitted out with off shore sailing in mind and has a Category 0 (unlimited) stability rating. Easily handled, comfortable and steady to sail, she is setting off on lots more longer haul voyages in 2008 for those who really want to get into the ebb and flow of life at sea.

A Brief Glimpse Of Last Summer

Fair Isle Puffins, completely unbothered by our arrival, went about their business while we lay on the cliff tops watching seals playing in a cove below. Only 71 people live on the Island all year round but it's home to over 345 species of bird
Fairisle lies between the Shetlands and the Orkneys and we have wanted to visit here for some time. We crept into the tiny Fairisle harbour following the local ferry the Good Shepherd just as the fog began to close in on us.
Its well worth a walk up to the cliff tops at the northern end to check out the Stephensons lighthouse built in xxxx. Its not hard to imagine what it would be like up there in a winter gale!

The Iron Man has to get the award for best navigational marker of the year. He greets you at Rosses Point downstream from Sligo. We called in here alongside a small pier for a crew change and had a very warm welcome. It has one of the best beaches around and a handy yacht club close by.
Western Ireland lived up to its reputation as an unspoilt cruising area - dramatic scenery, the sun sparkling on big Atlantic Ocean swells, the good fishing, the music and the Irish people.

The Fastnet Rock came abeam just as the last few boats in the Fastnet Race were rounding the mark. If you were keeping an eye on the race you will know it was pretty windy and many boats had dropped out the previous day. For those that stayed in the race it was a fast passage with record times. We are doing a comfortable 9 knots in this photo with the wind just aft of the beam and only the staysail, foresail and mainsail set.
Good sailing!

Dolphins Swam Under The Bow in 2007 like never before. From the Shannon right round to Lands End we sailed with dolphins every week. One group even stayed with us, all through the night, as we steered by the moon from Milford Haven to Plymouth. This was a large mixed group with lots of quite small young dolphins and mothers swimming together. It was the first time we have heard dolphins whistling to each other so clearly as the more boisterous ones rode the bow wave.

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Summer 2008 Voyage Preview

We were first persuaded to visit Norway by some Norwegian sailors in the Orkneys on one of our Round Britain voyages. With the Tall Ships Race sailing from Bergen to Den Helder in 2008 we have decided to devote our summer to Norway and the Netherlands this year.

Norwegian Fjords
The first leg of our voyage to Norway is a challenging passage across the North Sea to make landfall south of Bergen, probably around Stavanger. The scenery is truly dramatic here and we would need a lifetime to explore properly.
Amongst the outlying islands the slopes are dotted with Norwegian summer houses and the waters are busy with ferry traffic and Norwegian sailors. Inland the islands quickly give way to deep, glacially sculpted fjords.
Our plan is to meander our way through the islands and fjords to berth in the centre of Bergen itself before sailing on up the coast to Trondheim with its famous blue, green and grey soapstone cathedral.
Sailing in Norway is very varied with smooth water sailing amongst the islands and open sea passages round wild headlands with a reputation for being challenging.
We are spoilt for choice with quaysides and places to call into and stop over – this is a land where water transport plays a much bigger role than in the UK.

Voyage Crew
Most of the voyages will have a mixture of abilities sailing on the from beginners right through to yachtmaster's. Some voyages are potentially much tougher and more challenging than others and these are usually the voyages that involve a long sea passage such as our voyage from Ipswich to Bergen this summer. Other voyages will be very easy going and the most of the time is spent in sheltered waters. The easier voyages this year are the Cruise in Company from Maloy to Bergen, the Dutch inland waterways voyage from Den Helder to Amsterdam and of course out Taster weekends. Whichever voyage you sail on the important thing is that you will be fully involved as we all work together as a team to sail the boat and explore new places .

Arctic Circle
The two fourteen day legs to and from Tromso promise plenty of variety with a mixture of offshore sailing as we thread our way north to sail 120 miles beyond the Arctic Circle and short day sails as we explore the Lofotens and surrounding area.
The scenery gets wilder and more remote out amongst the islands and the settlements are further apart. The furthest north we plan to sail is the city of Tromso, handy for international flights, it’s the main city in northern Norway.

Lofoten Islands
Every one in Norway talks about these islands and National Geographic recently voted the Lofotens one of the three top archipeligos to visit in the world so we have to go and see for ourselves.
Their stunning scenery, secure anchorages and relaxed pace of life have made them a favourite destination for the more adventurous cruising sailor. Sperm and minke whales are common off the northern tip of these islands where the continental shelf comes closer to the land and we hope to get a sighting. Evenings could see us alongside in one of the areas remote fishing villages. The fishing up here is very much alive and this is one of the richest cod grounds in the world.

Midnight Sun
You only get true midnight sun above the Arctic Circle which is a circle of latitude around the globe at 66.5 degrees north The days will steadily lengthen as we sail north. Initially it never gets properly dark, there is only a twilight (known as ‘Summer Dim’ in the Shetlands) then eventually the sun never sets and just slides round the horizon. It’s a fantastic energizing experience and our voyages to and from Tromso are timed to take in plenty of midnight sun.

Netherlands And Back Home
After the tall ships race we will be spending some relaxing time cruising the sheltered Dutchwaterways on our way to Amsterdam. The dutch have lots of traditional sailing vessels that ply the inland seas, including plenty of three masted schooners on both the Dutch and English side of the channel.

There is one last overnight passage on the last leg of our voyage sailing from from Amsterdam to Ipswich. This leg of the vboyage will include some time sailing on the East coast.

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Tall Ships A'Sailing For As Far As The Eye Can See

Tall Ships Race – what’s it all about?
For more than 50 years there has been an annual race Tall Ships Race with all sizes of vessels from around the world taking part and 2008 promises to be one of the best yet.

Sail Training International
Today the races are run by Sail Training International, a not for profit organisation, which was created by national sail training organisations throughout Europe, Australasia and North Africa. The main focus of the Tall Ships Race is to ensure more young people go to sea and promote the sail training community and international relations.

In keeping with aim of getting more young people sailing at sea half the crew have to be under 25 fo the race legs, because of our relatively small crew numbers this means the race legs themselves are only open to 18 to 25 year olds onboard Trinovante but if you are older dont worry you can still join the cruise in company!

Sail Training International Web Site

The Host Ports
Race ports put a huge amount of effort into welcoming the Tall Ships Fleet, organising a big programme of events and activities for the crews and generally making everyone feel very welcome. As well as being a great excuse for a party it’s a chance to get a close up look at all the boats and meet with all the other crews ashore.

Cruise in company
This is a chance to sail in company with other large vessels and will be an experience never to be forgotten.

To cruise in company with the tall ships in the dramatic scenery of the Norwegian fjords has to be the icing on the cake. In between the Cruise in Company 'host ports' of Maloy and Bergen there are a number of other smaller ports that will be opening their arms to welcome the Tall Ships and their crews as they sail down the coast.
The cruise in company takes place after the first Tall Ships Race leg rom Liverpool to Maloy and is open to all ages .

Race Classes
Trinovante will be sailing in class B racing against vessels between 20 and 49 metres in length. Smaller gaff and bermudan rigged boats will be sailing in Class C while the big square riggers will be racing in Class A.
We are looking forward to some exciting sailing in the company of many beautiful ships.

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How To Sail A Schooner No.4
Sailing Away From A Quay

We always manoeuvre under sail if we can. Sailing off a quay requires careful timing. All the crew need to know exactly what their specific role is going to be and are well briefed beforehand so they understand what is about to happen. Once the operation is started it will all happen quite quickly and there is no room for mistakes.
We sailed away from a quay just like this last summer.

You can find more how to sail a schooner articles in our online newsletters.

Preparing to sail
The object is to sail off the quay and immediately turn 180° to sail south. We need to avoid driving the stern into the quay so we use the staysail, which is the smallest sail, for backing. Backing a sail means holding it to windward so it turns the boat rather than driving it forward. The other sails do need to be driving the boat forward as we leave the quayside so all lower sails, except the jib, are set well before we start.
The jib is hoisted at the last moment to avoid flogging sail and sheets (ropes) causing confusion on the foredeck.
Skilled line handling is a must for this operation, all sheets and lines have to be ready to run and the crew need to be alert.

Box One

Most of the mooring lines are removed leaving just bow and stern line. This is called singling up
The remaining bow and stern line are made ready to slip by leading them round bollards and having both ends on board.
All crew are aboard with no one left on the quayside.

Box Two

The wind fills the backed staysail and the bowline is slipped.
Almost immediately the jib is hoisted and sheeted home.
The staysail is let fly and sheeted to starboard as soon as the swing of the bows is firmly established.

Box Three

The sails are now drawing

As the ship pulls away from the quay the stern line is slipped and and the fender is taken in.

The helm is kept amidships until Trinovante has gathered way

Box Four

Trinovante is gaining speed fast now. The rudder is put to starboard, the mizzen and main sail, the two aftermost sails, are eased off. This allows the 3 forward sails (jib, staysail and foresail) to turn the boat more. Leaving the mizzen and main sheeted would tend to hold the bows up into the wind.
As we bear away from the wind and complete the turn all the sheets will be eased and we are away!

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Sailors Graffiti

Most working commercial quays that still dock vessels from around the world are covered in graffiti of ships names and home ports. Seamen usually stick to a few words and whatever paint is to hand but if there is a particularly artistic sailor onboard you might get a painting of the ship too and that's how the murals on Wicklow harbour's pier all started.
After a sailor from the Greek cargo vessel Eliana painted his ship on the wall in the 1970s, local marine artist Pat Davis touched up the painting and began to add new vessels.

Wicklow is now the home of the Round Ireland Yacht Race that takes place every two years but still keeps its character as a busy commercial port with many ships bringing in timber from Sweden.
Pat is still adding to the paintings and they are well worth a look if you are over in Ireland

Thanks to Tommy Dover of Wicklow for the photos of the paintings. He has a site which tracks the comings and goings of the vessels visiting Wicklow and all things maritime in the local area. wicklowmaritime
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Satellite Versus Sextant

Sometimes they didn’t get a decent sighting for days on end and they had to make an estimated guess as to where they were. You only have to look at the wreck positions on charts to see how often they got it wrong.
On Trinovante we still mix the old with the new. We have GPS of course, electronic depth sounder and a radar with an electronic chart plotting function but we still do our navigation on paper charts, and carry a sextant, trailing log and a lead line.
Electronics can inexplicably fail and computers crash. Paper charts can get a bit soggy but so far we've never seen one turn into a blank screen.

Photos
Left - Looking at the chart table on Trinovante
Below- The Walker Cherub Log Line still in use
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A Poem From One Of The Crew

On Passage from Arran to Ireland
By Chris Adams

The early morning was grey when anchor was weighed
With cloud down on Goat Fell
We slid out of bay under sail.
An increasing wind and a fast running tide soon put Ailsa Craig in our sighting.With the mizzen sail reefed we were making good speed
Ten knots was the instruments reading

Ailsa Craig now astern in the bright afternoon
As we rushed southwards towards the late evening
To starboard lay Ireland her coast clear in sight
Soon darkness came falling, then night.

Stood alone at the helm in wind and spray
Black surf made the only heard sound.
Then the voice of a coastguard from somewhere on shore
Made the solitude seem truly profound
With only starlight to see and the fishing boat fleets
The ten to two watch was astounding.

Early morning was bright sailing out of the night
We’d made such good time that we’d passed Dublin by and
Wicklow town was now our new finish.
After we’d moored up in the port and caught up with some sleep
We went into the town for some Guinness!

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