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A couple of months ago we were adamant that Sailing Today would be a safe haven for those cruising sailors who had seen and heard more than enough about the home Olympics in the rapidly ramping up mainstream media. In fact, I’d gone as far as requesting a logo to be made up consisting of Ben Ainslie’s face with a big red cross through the middle of it and emblazoned with the motto; ‘No Olympics guaranteed’. However, it started to become aparrent last year that this head in the sand approach would be shirking our responsibilities towards south coast cruising sailors who were beginning to ask questions about how thier summer cruising plans might be affected by the event. Plus, there were just as many other readers who were asking us somewhat worrying questions about how easy it would be for them to bimble on down to Weymouth in the old Centuar to ‘watch the Olympics’ this August. So, for readers who fall into either of those camps, on p84 we’ve taken a look at what plans the organisers have put into place concerning exclusion zones and berthing arrangements and the like, and how
they might affect the ordinary south coast sailor. Arrangements are subject to rapid change in this arena, to put it politely, so even during the weeks we were putting this article together there were various upheavals, so watch this space. We won’t be getting any more Olympified than this in ST. if you’re anything like me though, you’re from the camp that is planning to give Weymouth at least 50 miles sea room for the whole year, but you nevertheless have more than a passing interest in the sport side of sailing. In which case it’s worth me mentioning that our sister title All at Sea, (Britains most read waterfront newspape, available free of charge at all good marinas), will be featuring all the behind the scenes Olympic sailing stories you could wish for, so keep an eye out for that. Thanks for all the applications we received to fill the role of our ST correspondent for 2012 Rally Portugal. We were surprised to receive such an overwhelming response, so clearly a lot of you are toying with Biscay plans this year. We’ll be introducing the winners in the next issue.
Jake Frith
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CONTENTS
Buyer’s Guide p28
APRIL 2012 ISSUE 180
72
THE VIKING The story of the 1934 grain race
54
USED BOAT TEST Dehler 38
NEW BOAT TEST Dufour 335GL
78
04 Sailing Today April 2012
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44
MY MARINA Bristol
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Books reviewed p16 To buy a back issue call 01442 820580
62
CRUISING Secret Camaret
This month NEWS AND VIEWS Sailing News
6
Readers’ Letters
10
View From the RYA
14
Riding Light
130
GEAR AND EQUIPMENT Books
16
Gear on Test
18
Buyer’s Guide: Sailing boots
26
Group Test: Charting software
32
BOATS New Boat Test: Dufour 335GL
44
Your Boats: The Boat Project/Catana 47
50
Used Boat Test: Dehler 38
54
CRUISING Secret Camaret
62
Cruising Cuisine
70
Barque Viking - The 1934 Grain Race
72
MY MARINA
Bristol
78
Visiting Weymouth during the Olympics
PORTLAND FOCUS Cruising to the Olympics
84
84
SEAMANSHIP Marina Handling
87
Tides
92
PRACTICAL Fitting a manual bilge pump
95
Inventor’s Corner: Magnetic trip line
98
Q&As with Nick Vass
INVENTOR’S CORNER Magnetic trip line
98
100
WIN! WIN! WIN! Old Pulteney 12-year Old whisky
10
Force 4 Chandlery voucher worth £50
12
Bareboat charter holiday in Greece
76
SUBSCRIBE AND SAVE!
60
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LY D HIGHMENDE M ECO
BOOKS Sam Jefferson and Jake Frith stoke up the cabin stove, shut out the cruel world, and take a look at the latest sailing reads. THE PRACTICAL SKYWATCHER’S HANDBOOK
ED END
OMM
REC
T FIRS
K
LOO
UPGRADING YOUR BOAT’S INTERIOR
AUTHOR: MIKE WESTIN PUBLISHER: ADLARD COLES NAUTICAL PRICE: £19.99 When it comes to boat interiors, I’ll keep it tidy, repair anything if broken and I’ve even gone as far as replacing 1970s brown and beige checked upholstery for something a little more modern and less garish. I’d never really considered that there was a great deal more that could be done. I thought that to have a modern looking, bright, airy interior on a 70s or 80s sailing cruiser was just beyond economic sense; that if it’s important to have a modern, more attractive interior, you basically need to buy a modern, more attractive boat. This is where this book was a revelation. Flicking through its pages, I was suddenly struck by the wonders that a bit of simple joinery and sewing could work. Your taste might not chime exactly with the author’s; perhaps not for you a giant code flag M emblasoned on the forecabin door. However, I’d imagine most readers would find at least one of the interior projects in this book would suit their tastes. I was particularly taken by Mike’s whole cockpit infill and cushion idea that makes any cockpit with a tent an occasional double berth for summer. Our favourite bit: “A mattress with pocket springs is so much more comfortable to sleep on than old, sagging foam. It is unexpectedly simple to make.” ST Verdict: Read this book like an Ikea catalogue to find inspiration or follow some of the projects step by step and transform your own boat.
T
BES
AUTHOR: DAVID H LEVY AND DR. JOHN O’BYRNE BUY PUBLISHER: BLOOMSBURY GET M D U U I B M PRICE: £16.99 PREODUCT PR BUY I find that most sailors have an enduring fascination with the constellations. Not surprising, as a peaceful night watch at sea is unquestionably the best place in the world to ponder the wonder of our heavens. The Practical Skywatcher’s Handbook is a useful means of getting a better grip on the stars and enables you to pick out a constellation and glibly state that it is Orion’s Belt or Satan’s Thong or whatever. Perhaps this affinity sailors have with the stars goes back to the days when mediaeval navigators used the stars to plot their way to various destinations. These days, the stars have been largely rendered redundant to yachtsmen by modern navigational tools. However, for single male sailors they still serve a more important practical purpose: to woo women.
RYA BOAT SAFETY HANDBOOK AUTHOR: KEITH COLWELL PUBLISHER: RYA PUBLICATIONS PRICE: £13.99
I’m not overly keen on too much safety in life and am always slightly taken aback when someone tries to give me a safety briefing when I catch a lift across a harbour with them. It scares me slightly. I also have a theory that many yachtsmen become so obsessed with safety that by the time they actually get out on the water, they are too terrified by the potential risks to actually enjoy themselves. I do, however, realise that this is a foolish attitude to have and that one day it will land me in serious trouble. The Boat Safety Handbook is therefore a good starting point for an idiot like me. It seems like a
This book will give you all the knowledge ATE required to seem deep and UPDmysterious while E T A gazing UPDat the sky, especially if you have also constructed the cockpit infill on page 23 of Mike Westin’s boat interior book (left). The book charts every constellation in the northern and southern hemisphere and features 150 maps, charts and diagrams. It’s a surprisingly dense book and also has some pretty thorough information on the formation of the various planets and galaxies. It is definitely being secreted back to my boat once this review is written. Our favourite bit: “Many a time I saw Pleiades rising thro’ the mellow shade, glitter like a swarm of fireflies tangled in a silver braid.” ST Verdict: A great starting point for anyone who wants to know a little bit more about what they are looking at when they gaze at the heavens.
very comprehensive guide, working its way through all the gear you require and also discussing what you should do in various scenarios such as man overboard or a fire aboard. It’s not exactly inspiring reading, but it is very informative. Keith Colwell is an experienced writer and he manages to stay just this side of authoritative without being patronising. Reading the book also reminded me of how lacking I am in safety equipment aboard my own yacht. Our favourite bit: “Strap a paddle to the side of an outboard motor to create a tiller. You may have to disconnect the steering linkage at the front of the engine.” ST Verdict: A valuable guide to get you up to speed on keeping safe at sea.
16 Sailing Today April 2012
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NEWS AND VIEWS
STREET’S GUIDE TO THE CAPE VERDE ISLANDS AUTHOR: DON STREET JR PUBLISHER: SEAWORTHY PUBLICATIONS PRICE: £35
Unless you happen to have a very intimate knowledge of the area, it’s difficult to get a handle on whether a cruising guide is good or not, and much as we’d like to pop over there and check the accuracy of his port plans, we just have to look at what the book appears to offer. Don Street’s guide to the Cape Verde Islands differs for a number of reasons from the more formulaic guides from mainstream publishers and the main one is Mr Street himself. He’s been circling the
CLASSIC CHOICE SAILING TO THE EDGE OF FEAR
AUTHOR: FRANK DYE PUBLISHER: ADLARD COLES NAUTICAL PRICE: £12.99 (NEW) Farnk Dye’s exploits at the tiller of Wanderer, his trusty Wayfarer dinghy, are worthy of the highest accolades. Whatever your views on the sanity of a man who was willing to tackle the high seas in an open dinghy there is little doubting his incredible insouciance in the face of extreme peril. Sailing to the Edge of Fear recounts a little jaunt he took from Miami, USA up the Atlantic coast to
world, penning sailing books and building up the kind of suntan that keeps dermatologists awake at night as long as we can remember. Indeed, there are two pages devoted to superlatives about Don before you even get near the Cape Verdes. By the time I had finished reading the gushing hyperbole, I felt like a cruising pygmy simply because I hadn’t rounded the Horn in an engineless cutter. Anyway, the guide looked like it was pretty comprehensive and chock full of useful chartlets and descriptions of this often overlooked group of islands, which lies off the coast of Senegal. Don recently
the Great Lakes in the late 80s and early 90s. It may start off as blue water cruising, but it soon degenerates into brown trouser cruising (to paraphrase ST’s Editor). The very thought of dealing with this treacherous coastline in a Wayfarer makes my blood run cold, yet Frank relates it with admirable pluck. The book simply narrates the trip day by day in a very spartan, matter of fact manner. I often object to books like this, which can become rather repetitive, but in Frank’s case, he gets away with it simply because this is a journey that is extremely varied and staggeringly dangerous. While I can’t say I ever aspire to do the kind of sailing
told ST: ST “Hopefully my Cape Verde guide will open up the Cape Verdes to the cruising yachtsman and change it from a way stop en-route to the Caribbean to an area that yachtsmen cruise for three or four weeks before departing across the Atlantic.” A noble aim. Our favourite bit: “Gerry, being a bit of a lad, began to cut a wide swathe through the young ladies of Horta.” ST Verdict: I have little doubt that this is an excellent guide and can’t wait to sail to the Cape Verdes to find out first hand.
that Dye indulged in, it does give you pause for thought when you look at the insane amount of equipment we load our yachts up with and makes you wonder how much of it we could do without. That said, the thought of dragging my aching, chilled body from under the boom tent of a Wayfarer dinghy of a morning, shaking off the condensation and dealing with the prospect of facing untold danger means that I will steer clear of dinghy cruising for a while yet. Our favourite bit: “I left Wedgeport yesterday to cross the bay in light wind and sun and got completely lost. I had sailed off the north edge of my chart and then got confused by a lighthouse which I didn’t think ought to be there.” ST Verdict: A terrifying insight into the realities of cruising in open boats. Not for the faint hearted.
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April 2012 Sailing Today 17
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USED boaT TEST
phoToS: rick bUETTnEr 54 Sailing Today April 2012
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dehler 38
SHEER DEHLIGHT? The MId eIGhTIeS WAS A GOldeN erA FOr CrUISer/rACerS ANd ONe OF The leAderS OF The PACK WAS The dehler 38. SAM JEFFERSON TAKeS A 1987 eXAMPle OUT TO See hOW She hAS WIThSTOOd The TeST OF TIMe. Ever since Willi Dehler introduced the radical Dehler Varianta back in the 1970s featuring a lifting keel and removeable cabin top, Dehler Yachts has had a reputation for versatility. The Varianta was an early signpost for the route that Dehler yachts was setting sail along; producing yachts that were versatile enough to bridge the gap between cruiser and racer – a compromise they are still achieving today. The company was originally based exclusively in Freienohl, Germany, but in the late ’70s acquired the Van de Stadt yard in Zaandam, Holland and production was split between the two yards. The move to this yard coincided with a particularly fruitful crop of designs from Dehler, with many of their yachts dominating racing using the popular International Offshore Rule (IOR) handicapping system. The Dehler 38, designed in 1986 by the Van de Stadt team, was fairly typical of their mid-80s offerings: a cruiser racer featuring a fair amount of innovation and honed to rate well within the IOR. To this end, she was relatively beamy amidships with generous overhangs. The yacht featured an integrated alloy space frame and Kevlar was extensively used in the construction to keep the displacement down. The result was a yacht that weighed in at 5,500kg. Compare this with one of her contemporaries, the Sigma 38, which weighs in at 6,250kg. a substantial difference.
The Dehler proved successful on the race course, winning her class in Kiel week hands down. The yacht came with the optional ‘race package’ when new. This included an extra length of mast, which could be attached to the bottom and added a few extra square feet of sail to an already generous rig. In addition to this, serious racers were given the option of tiller steering and an extra deep fin keel. In addition, the Dehler also came with the option of a shallower, longer shoal draught keel with about 250mm less draught. Dehler did not recommend combining the shoal keel with the racing rig. An unusual feature of the yacht was having the engine mounted directly on top of the keel and bolted to it with the short propshaft coming out just abaft the keel. This meant that, much like a mid-engined sports car, weight distribution is optimal and makes for peaceful motoring out on deck. It also means that the main cabin is fairly dominated by the engine, which is hidden under a large table. It actually works very well, ensuring excellent access, although the main cabin is slightly noisier under engine power than on your standard cruiser. It also means that the aft cabins are particularly huge. Starry Night, the vessel that we tested, dated from 1987 and featured the cruising rig. She has been Awlgripped, as her colour scheme deviates from the standard Dehler white and she also has a rather fetching layer of Coppercoat on her underside.
ABOUT THE OWNER Worthing based Matthew Norris-Jones is Managing Director of an IT support business. He has owned Starry Night for three years and sails her with his wife out of Chichester Harbour. He has been sailing on and off since childhood and previously owned a Legend 326. He purchased Starry Night as she ticked all the boxes in terms of the family’s cruising criteria. Unfortunately, a growing family has limited sailing opportunities and she is for sale with Boatshed: http://chichester. boatshed.com. Tel 07552 1692120.
April 2012 Sailing Today 55
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cruiSing
“
eventually the day came when we retired from full time work
”
Leaving Plymouth for a new lifesyle.
HIDDEN CAMARET
TREVOR AND JO TAYLOR EXPLORE THIS POPULAR ROUTE SOUTH VIA TWO OF EUROPE’S MOST CHALLENGING TIDAL GATES, THE CHENAL DU FOUR AND THE RAZ DE SEIN.
i
f you want to sail to the sun from UK waters then you might very well find yourself passing through Camaret. This Brittany port is to many yachts what Crewe is to trains with lots of routes, north and south bound, passing through. Not that it’s an unwelcome stop. Oh no, it’s a delight. Alight at Camaret and there’s the risk you might be tempted to dally. Many have. The town sits between the two awesome tidal gates of the Chenal du Four and the Raz de Sein opposite the French naval port of Brest. It provides a perfect, sheltered halt between these two tidal challenges and as a bonus offers intrepid sailors a feast of seafood as a reward for their successful navigation of this sometimes treacherous stretch of coastline.
historY
Let’s get the history lesson out of the way
first. For more years than you can shake a baguette at, sailors and boat building have been part of this Breton town. The iconic Chapelle de Notre Dame de Rocamadour sits at the harbour entrance, its bell tower missing, shot off by a cannonball fired during the battle of Trez Roux in 1694. Legend has it that the ship that fired the shot promptly sank after the cannonball bounced back and holed the vessel. Good story, impossible to prove or disprove. Alongside the chapel is Tour Vauban, a defensive tower that saw off an AngloDutch attack and which today is a World Heritage Site. For centuries the town prospered from the thriving sardine industry. It was boom time in the 19th century with hundreds of boats bringing in the lucrative catch. Lobster fishing swiftly followed and boatyards and boat building thrived
supporting this substantial fishing fleet. However, things took a serious turn for the worse when it became obvious lobster stocks were being seriously depleted and the industry finally closed in 1990 after decades of decline. Today there’s still a fishing fleet, but it’s a minnow compared to its former self. However, old traditions die hard and it’s become custom for fishing boats, when at the end of their life, to be beached in the harbour and left to rot while crews, families and townspeople worship in the sailor’s Rocamadour chapel.
tidal ChallEngEs
Unless you make a long detour to the west of Ushant (Ile d’Ouessant), then heading south from the UK you can save around 20 miles by passing through the Chenal du Four and the Raz de Sein. Incidentally, Raz is pronounced Rah not Razz. >>
62 Sailing Today april 2012
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brittany : camaret
Libenter
Gde Basse Portsall
Gra
nde
Basse Paupian
Ile d’Ouessant
CHENAL DU FOUR
nal Aber Benoit
Le Four L’Aber Ildut
Pointe de Corsen
Ile Molene
BREST Pte de Kermorvan Le Conquet
Ile de Béniguet
Pte St Mathieu
Vandree
Goemant
Camaret Pte du Toulinquet
Basse
Morgat Trevor
The Four light at the du northern end of the Lis Chanel du Four.
WAYPOINTS CHENAL DU FOUR PASSAGE (SOUTH) 48°31.500N Le Four 48°26.490N Valbelle 48°22.000N Grande Vinotiere 48°19.400N Vieux Moins 48°18.161N Swansea Vale Buoy 48°17.425N Camaret Approach RAZ DE SEIN PASSAGE (SOUTH) 48°17.425N Camaret 48°17.434N N Grand Gougin 48°16.842N W La Louve 48°14.927N 2.5m W Grand TdeP 48°02.420N La Plate
L’Aber Wrac’h
Che
at the helm on a beautiful Breton morning.
RAZ DE SEIN
004°49.000W Ile de Sein 004°49.960W La Vielle 004°48.480W 004°46.700W 004°38.883W 004°34.973W
Pte de Raz
Libenter
Gde Basse Portsall
Gra
Audierne
nde
Basse Paupian
Ile d’Ouessant
004°34.973W 004°36.105W 004°38.508W 004°41.245W 004°45.800W
Reminders of Brittany’s rich marine heritage are never far away.
CHENAL DU FOUR
St. Helier
nal Aber Benoit Benoi
Le Four L’Aber Ildut
Pointe de Corsen
Ile Molene Cherbourg
L’Aber Wrac’h
Che
BREST
Ile de Béniguet
Pte de Kermorvan Le Conquet Pte St Mathieu
St. Malo Brest Camaret Morbihan
Vandree
Goemant Basse du Lis
Biscay
Camaret Pte du Toulinquet Morgat
RAZ DE SEIN Ile de Sein
La Vielle
Pte de Raz
Audierne
Grande Vinotiere, Chenal du Four.
april 2012 Sailing Today 63
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rOunD THe HOrn aBaFT THe MaST THESE DAYS, TAKING A SABBATICAL IS ALL THE RAGE, BUT BACK IN 1934, JOHN SPENCER-DEWHURST UNDERTOOK A YEAR OUT WITH A DIFFERENCE – A PAYING PASSENGER ABOARD A CAPE HORN TALL SHIP. MARTIN PILKINGTON REPORTS.
i
n 1934, at the age of 30, John Spencer Dewhurst signed on as a passengerapprentice aboard the Finnish barque Viking, sailing on her from Copenhagen to Port Victoria in Australia, and then home to Falmouth in the Grain Race. Out for 108 days past the Cape of Good Hope, back around Cape Horn and past the Falklands which took another 112, considerably longer than that year’s victor, Priwall, which needed just 91. Four years after him, a young Eric Newby sailed a similar route on the barque Moshulu, also owned by the Erikson Line. Newby recalled that time in his book The Last Grain Race. John Dewhurst left a different record: moving images taken with a wind-up 8mm cine camera. “He bought the camera on a whim from a shop on Deansgate in Manchester just before he set out,” says his daughter Penelope, a fount of knowledge about the trip. “He was always interested in technology, learning to fly, setting up an engineering company that in WWII serviced Lancaster bombers. “He always wanted to go to sea but his father said no, he had to enter the family business. But when he saw the cotton trade going bad he decided to take a year off to
John and a rather motley crew pose for a photograph on Viking’s deck.
realise his ambition of going to sea and, in particular, rounding Cape Horn.”
Last stronghold of sail The grain trade from Australia to Europe was one of the last where sail could compete with steam. Viking belonged to the Finnish Erikson line, owners of many other similar vessels run with the bare minimum
crew to be economically viable. The Grain Race was an unofficial event where the sailing ships bringing grain from Australia to Europe would compete to make the quickest passage. Owners were more worried about the risk of losing gear than winning the nominal contest, but at the same time liked the kudos of victory. Recognising the adventurous allure of the voyage, the Erikson line also carried passengers and men like John. He signed on as a crew member but paid 10 shillings a day for the privilege. He worked with the men – up the rigging in a storm on the first day out – but ate with the officers. “On the outward voyage there were two passengers in addition to my father,” Penelope explained. “Firstly, the Belgian Baron de Witte, whose late wife had been a lady-in-waiting to his country’s Queen. “When he got drunk, as he frequently did, he’d become maudlin and bring out pictures of his wife in her coffin, and my father would later have to carry him unconscious to bed. “There was a gentleman farmer from the shires, an Eton and Balliol man, but so scruffy and unkempt that when they reached Australia the authorities at first wanted to ship him straight back. He was
72 Sailing Today April 2012
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BARQUE VIKING – THE 1934 GRAIN RACE
John Dewhurst (right, with cigar) dining in 1978 with other Cape Horners and his daughter Penelope. To his dying day if he heard three blasts on a whistle it gave him a thrill as that was the signal on Viking for all hands on deck. (left). A sextant given to John Dewhurst by fellow passenger, the Duke of Santa Mauro (above). A rare photograph of the Viking under all plain sail barring the main course and crossjack (bottom).
a remittance man, sent on such voyages to keep him out of trouble.”
Silk long johns John travelled by steamer from Harwich to Esbjerg then spent two weeks waiting to go aboard, staying at the Grand Hotel in Copenhagen where he took the opportunity to kit himself out: “I still have the thighlength seaboots he bought there,” says Penelope. “One thing he did buy in Manchester made him the envy of his shipmates – some wool and silk long johns from Jaeger!” His film, now in very delicate shape, records episodes like a shark caught and
brutally despatched as a perceived enemy of seamen. And he filmed everyday scenes like the sheep, pigs and chickens kept on deck to provide fresh food. “He told me the hens hated it, they would be rocked on their perches by every roll of the ship. The crew got eggs for a while then the birds stopped laying and, within six weeks or so, they were all skin and bone and good for nothing but soup to the despair of the cook. “The pigs, though, loved it. Kept in a pen on deck that would be washed by the occasional wave, they seemed to like paddling in the water. “Other than the fresh meat, which was a
rarity, they lived on salt pork, salt beef and salt cod. Salt cod was the one thing my father couldn’t eat. He loathed it, so the cook smuggled him an extra bit of bread and cheese. The bread was excellent, made fresh daily.” Another episode recorded on that leg was a liner that circled the four-masted barque to give its passengers time to see one of the last sailing traders. Some moments were deliberately not recorded. “My father and the first officer got sick and tired of the foul woolly cap the scruffy farmer wore constantly, so they pinched it and the cook boiled the thing for >> an hour or more. Sadly the farmer
ERIC NEWBY’S LAST GRAIN RACE If you’re interested in tall ship adventures, then author Eric Newby’s The Last Grain Race is an absolute classic. Newby, a bored clerk at a London advertising agency, opted to resign and shipped aboard the barque Moshulu, which was sailing in what was to be the last major grain race in 1939. The mildly racist Finnish crew promptly label him ‘Newby the Focking Rosbif’ and he is bullied relentlessly by them for his unusual habit of standing on the toilet seat in order to perform his daily evacuations. His misadventures are hugely entertaining and colourfully narrated. The Moshulu eventually won the grain race, taking 91 days, and The Last Grain Race was published in 1956. His pictorial record of the voyage, Learning the Ropes, was published in 1999. Moshulu finally traded Cape Horn storms for a prosaic life as a floating restaurant in Philadelphia.
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