Very high tides and sea testing our new fuel filters and new VHF radio

Ravensdale on the Solway Firth with Scotland in the distance. Photo: Bryan Stephenson

We’ve had some very high tides here at Maryport in Cumbria, UK, this week with a difference of up to 9m – almost 30ft - between the high and low tides.

And we took Ravensdale out on the water on Monday for the first time since Phil changed her fuel filters himself.

It was also the first time we’d used our new VHF radio properly since he fitted it last weekend.

It wasn’t our most successful fishing trip ever, but it definitely wasn’t the least successful either as we brought home our supper 😊

Meanwhile, we had to rush poor little Ruby to the veterinary surgery this week when she suffered a sudden and severe allergic reaction to something, but we still have no idea what caused it ☹


Monday’s fishing trip

Ravensdale heading towards the marina gate on Monday

The forecast was calm for Monday but, as usual, we decided to check the sea state before going so Phil took Ruby around to the pier for her first walk of the day.

He came back saying the water looked pretty calm, so we decided to go fishing when the marina’s sea gate opened.

It would also give us a chance to check the engines were running properly after Phil had changed the fuel filters.

The trip also meant we could do a proper check of our new VHF radio.

The view from Ravensdale's flybridge as we headed out between the piers

We left the marina at 11.15am and headed out onto the Solway Firth to go to Phil's favourite fishing spot in Allonby Bay.

Ravensdale leaving Maryport

There was very little wind, but it was still pretty choppy between the piers as we left Maryport.

This was caused by the big rising tide meeting the River Ellen that flows through the basin, especially as the river was swollen by long periods of heavy rain in the preceding days.

Ravensdale's two 300hp Volvo Penta engines sounded good after their fuel filter change and Phil pushed the speed up a bit from our usual 8-10 knots to 16.5 knots to check they ran OK at speed.

Phil giving Ravensdale's engines some throttle while keeping an eye on the temperature gauges

The water was much calmer when we dropped anchor but we were still rolling around a bit for no apparent reason so there must have been a good swell that wasn’t easily visible to the eye.

The view of Scotland from the saloon window while we were at anchor on the Solway Firth

Phil set up his fishing rods and was hoping for some decent cod, but all he was catching were dogfish.

Phil waiting for the cod to start biting

The dogfish were becoming a real nuisance when he pulled in his first codling of the day, which was too small to keep.

This was followed by three codling that were big enough to keep.

Phil with one of the larger codling he caught on this trip

He also reeled in the first pouting he’s caught from Ravensdale.

The first pouting Phil's caught from Ravensdale

I have to confess that I was really pleased when both of Ravensdale’s engines started first turn when it was time to go home.

This used to bother me a bit when we first started taking her out of the marina.

As we’ve now taken her out more than 70 times, I’ve come to expect them to work, but this was the first trip since Phil changed her fuel filters. I really should’ve had more faith in him 😊

Ravensdale heading for home

We returned to the marina at 2.55pm after around three hours and 40 minutes out on the water during which time we did 5.3 nautical miles.

The entrance to Maryport on our way home

And, I’m pleased to report that the new VHF radio also passed with flying colours.

We knew we’d had no problem hearing other people’s calls and, when we were back in the marina, we checked with the marina staff to be told that our transmissions were also very clear 😊


Fitting new radio

Phil fitting our new VHF radio

Phil fitted our new Standard Horizon VHF radio at the weekend.

He then carried out a radio check, which proved we were right to replace our old fixed radio as the new one was so much clearer.

He has since spent some time trying to connect it to our Standard Horizon chart plotter.

We thought this should be fairly simple as they’re both the same make but it’s proving much more difficult than expected.

Phil intends to revisit this task very soon as he’s checked online and it’s supposed to be possible but lots of folks seem to have real problems connecting them up.


High tides

Boats and pontoons at Maryport Marina almost level with the car park at high tide on Sunday

We’ve had some very high tides here in Maryport over the past week with the highest being a 9.4m tide at 00:54 on Monday morning.

I considered getting up to see it as it was one of the highest tides we’ve had in the almost three years we’ve been living on our boat here, but decided to stay in bed as I wouldn’t be able to get a decent photo of it in the dark.

However, the 9.2m tides at 12:38 on Sunday and 13:19 on Monday were also pretty impressive and considerably easier to photograph.

The same view when the marina gate is closed to keep water in the marina when the tide drops

It’s always strange to see the boats in the marina almost level with the road on one side of the marina and the car park on the other.



Flybridge cover

Phil scrubbing Ravensdale's flybridge cover

The cover on Ravensdale’s flybridge had become very dirty and has started to leak.

So, we decided to give it a good clean before reproofing it.

Wednesday was a lovely calm, sunny day and we considered going out fishing but there were a few jobs we needed to while the weather was fine.

We took the flybridge cover off and carried it up onto the marina road to the west gate, where we had more room to stretch it out.

Phil scrubbed it with caravan awning shampoo, and I hosed it down to rinse the shampoo off.

It hadn’t totally dried by the time it was getting dark so we put it back on to dry and will take it off again to proof it on the next dry day.

Meanwhile, I’m considering trying to make a new one myself as having one made for us is going to be pretty expensive.

We measured it while it was off. I also had a look at how it was constructed and it looks as though it should be doable.



Packing our dinghy away

Phil washing our dinghy - watched by Ruby 😊

Our dinghy has been hanging on Ravensdale’s davits throughout the summer, but we decided to pack it away for the winter.

I lowered it down with the winches while Phil pulled it towards the pontoon with a boathook.

He gave the dinghy a good clean and left it on the pontoon to dry overnight and during the day yesterday (Thursday) before packing it away yesterday afternoon.

And that was no easy task.

I don’t understand why it always seems to be so difficult to get a dinghy that was packed in a bag when you bought it to fit back into the same bag when it’s deflated. One thing’s for sure, it provided us with a good workout 😊



New rod holders

One of the new rod holders a friend made for Phil

A friend who has a small fishing boat in the marina turned up at our boat on Saturday with two stainless steel rod holders he’d made for Phil’s fishing rods.

A week or so back, Phil was telling him he was very disappointed with the new rod holders he'd bought online as they wouldn’t stay upright when there was a fish pulling on the line.

The friend had offered to make some, but it was still a lovely surprise when he turned up with them.

And they’re so much better than any of the holders he’s been using previously.

They’re really solid and much easier to lift the rods in and out of than the last ones he bought.


Ruby of Ravensdale

Ruby relaxing on Ravensdale

Ruby had us really worried on Saturday when she suddenly broke out in a horrible lumpy rash.

We could see the lumps coming up under her coat while we watched so I called the vet who said she was obviously having a severe allergic reaction to something.

The vet said to give her two piriton tablets immediately and take her straight to vets in Cockermouth for a steroid injection.

Ruby on her way home from the vets on Saturday

The rush was because the vet was concerned that it could affect Ruby’s airways.

Thankfully the rash disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared.

The scariest part is that we don’t know what caused it so we know she’s very allergic to something, but we have no idea what.

Ruby on look-out duty on Ravensdale's foredeck

I’m sure Ruby is very pleased that she no longer has to wear her doggy knickers as that part of her season is over, but we've still had to keep her out of the way of intact male dogs in case she was still fertile.

As usual, she’s been watching everything we do on Ravensdale and was very unimpressed when the dinghy was drying on the pontoon next to the boat. Every time she saw it there, she made sure we knew she didn’t approve by barking at it 😊

But, thankfully, she still seems happy enough when I tie her to lead to the railings around the harbour when I want to stop to take photos while taking her for a walk.

Ruby checking out the view while I take photos

She has a good look around but is always sitting quietly when I finish because she knows she gets a treat when I untie her if she’s being good.

I know it’s bribery, but at least it means I get a chance to take photos and Ruby seems happy with the arrangement too 😊


Photography

The sun going down over the Solway Firth on Sunday

 On Sunday evening, I took my camera along when I took Ruby for a walk around the harbour.

Fishing boats in the entrance to Maryport Harbour at dusk

Maryport Harbour at low tide

Christ Church at Maryport at low tide

River Ellen at Maryport

I also took lots of photos while we were out on the Solway Firth on Monday.

The northern fells from the Solway Firth

Maryport from the Solway Firth

The entrance to Maryport Basin from the Solway Firth

Maryport from the Solway Firth

And we were back in the marina in time for me to get some photos of local fishing boat Silver Stream towing the yacht that had to be rescued last week back home to Maryport.

Fishing boat Silver Stream towing a yacht back to Maryport Marina

Silver Stream towing the yacht into the marina

The broken down yacht tying up in the marina

Silver Stream returning to Maryport Harbour

I captured some shots along the shore and of the marina around sunset on Wednesday evening while out walking Ruby with Phil.

The sun setting over the Solway Firth

Maryport Pier at sunset

Maryport from across the basin at dusk

Solway Firth sunset

Reflections on the still water at Maryport Marina

Another view of reflections at Maryport Marina (Ravensdale is on the left of the image)

The Isle of Man from Maryport

And I took a few photos of another local fishing boat Chelaris returning to the harbour yesterday (Thursday) after she’d been repainted at the boatyard next to the marina.

Chelaris about to pass Ravensdale in Maryport Marina

Chelaris leaving Maryport Marina

Weather watch

We’ve had some mixed weather over the past week but there’s been a definite chill in the air in the early mornings with the first frost yesterday (Thursday) morning.

It rained overnight Friday into Saturday morning, but it was dry and bright during the morning and throughout the day. There was a good breeze during the day, but it was much calmer during the evening.

Saturday afternoon at Maryport Marina

The top temperature was 14C (57F) and the top average wind speed was 18mph.

Heavy rain returned overnight Saturday into Sunday and it carried on falling throughout the morning. We had light rain from around lunchtime on Sunday and it dried up later in the afternoon.

Rain on Ravensdale's aft deck on Sunday

The top temperature was 13C and the top average wind speed was 22mph, gusting 31mph.

Monday was fairly calm, dry and cloudy with sunny intervals. The top temperature was 14C (55F) and the top average wind speed was 8mph.

We had more heavy rain overnight Monday into Tuesday and very windy on Tuesday morning. It was milder overnight than during the day with an overnight temperature of up to 11C (52F).

Maryport Marina on Tuesday

The top daytime temperature was just 10C (50F) and the top average wind speed was 30mph, gusting 41mph.

Tuesday night into Wednesday was a chilly night with the temperature falling to 5C (41F). Tuesday was dry, bright, sunny and calm with a distinct chill in the air first thing.

Dry, sunny and calm at Maryport Marina on Wednesday afternoon

Wednesday/Thursday was another cool night with the temperature dropping to 5C (41F) again and marina staff salted the paved area by the marina facilities to prevent anyone from slipping on the frosty surface.

The same view on Thursday afternoon

Thursday morning started dry and bright with a few spots of rain early on. It then stayed mainly dry until early afternoon when we had a few light showers. This was followed by heavier rain during the evening.

The top temperature was 10C (50F) and the top average wind speed was 28mph, gusting 36mph, at our nearest weather station at St Bees Head but it was definitely calmer here.

Dry and bright weather at Maryport Marina today (Friday)

And, so far today (Friday) the weather has been dry and bright with a top temperature of 15C (59F) and a top average wind speed of 13mph.

Ruby’s first dinghy ride and a successful fishing trip

Ruby in our dinghy with Phil at Maryport Marina in Cumbria, UK

Our nine-month-old staffie puppy Ruby is a proper boat dog now 😊

Phil took her for a ride around our marina at Maryport in Cumbria, UK, in our dinghy at the weekend and she took to it like a duck to water.

On Thursday, we were also able to take Ravensdale – our Neptunus 133 motor cruiser – out on the Solway Firth for the first time in more than a fortnight.

We went out on our boat again yesterday (Friday) and this time Phil caught our supper 😊


Ruby’s first ride in our dinghy

Ruby about to set off on her first dinghy ride

Phil got the dinghy out on Sunday and took Ruby for a paddle around the marina.

She was a bit unsure about getting in but allowed me to lift her in using the handle on the back of her lifejacket.

Phil then placed her between his feet on the floor of the dinghy and tied her lead around his waist to stop her escaping, but she made no attempt to get out of the dinghy.

I guess this wasn’t really surprising as Ruby doesn’t like water 😊

But she seemed to enjoy her little trip around the marina.

At one point, she tried to make her way forward to look over the bow of the dinghy at the water.

But, most of the time, she just sat up looking around as Phil rowed her up and down the rows of boats.

She was really calm and never made any attempt to get out, even when Phil stopped to chat to fellow liveaboards whose cat was sleeping on the pontoon by their boat 😊

Ruby in our dinghy with Phil

We’d been meaning to see whether Ruby was happy in the dinghy since our trip to Kirkcudbright in May.

Before we went up the river to Kirkcudbright, we spent a day at anchor off Little Ross Island.

We were only a short distance from the shore and watched another couple, whose yacht was anchored nearby, put their dog in their dinghy and take it over to the beach for a walk.

The beach on Little Ross Island where we could've taken Ruby ashore

We would've loved to have done the same with Ruby, but we had just discovered she had outgrown her lifejacket and the new, larger one I’d ordered for her hadn’t arrived when we left Maryport.

Also, she’d never been in our dinghy so we didn’t know how she would react.

For both reasons, we decided we just couldn’t risk trying to take her ashore.

Her new lifejacket arrived soon after we got home and we’re now trying to get her used to the dinghy in the marina before taking her in it on open water.

And, from what we’ve seen so far, it looks as though she’s going to be fine 😊

Phil making a fuss of Ruby after her first dinghy ride

Thursday’s fishing trip

Ravensdale leaving Maryport on Thursday  morning

We managed to get out fishing for the first time in over two week on Thursday.

At long last, single-figure wind speeds coincided with the times when the marina’s sea gate was open, which is about two and a half hours either side of high water.

We grabbed a quick breakfast before preparing for the off.

I then packed up everything inside the boat that could fly around if it gets bumpy when we’re out on the water while Phil popped around to the pier to check the sea state and visited the Aquarium on the harbourside to pick up some more bait.

Ravensdale heading towards the sea gate before I saw the message about the car window

We set off at about 10.20am but had only got as far as turning Ravensdale around to leave the marina and heading out towards the gate when I spotted a Facebook message on my phone saying he’d left one of the car windows wide open.

So, we turned around again at the other end of the marina and headed back to our mooring.

As the marina wasn’t expecting us back quite so soon, there was no one to catch our ropes so I had to moor Ravensdale up using our docking sticks, which was good practice as I haven’t needed to use them for a while.

He quickly closed the car window, then we set off again at 10.35am so a little bit later than we’d hoped but we still had plenty of time to make it worthwhile going.

Ravensdale heading out of the marina for the second time

We headed up to Allonby Bay and, on the way, we passed a flock of seagulls that appeared to be drawn to a certain area of the water and wondered if it meant there were mackerel around.

Some of the flock of seagulls that we went to investigate

Phil went a bit closer to them to see if we could work out why they were there, but none appeared to be fishing so we went on to the mark where he’s had some good cod recently and dropped anchor there.

Phil fishing in Allonby Bay

He pulled in one dogfish after another which was getting really annoying as we don’t keep them to eat because they are too much trouble to skin.

One of the many dogfish Phil caught on this trip

He eventually caught two small gurnard – the bigger of the two measured 25cm, which was technically big enough to keep but it wouldn’t have made a meal for us, so we threw it back.

The first gurnard Phil caught on this trip

The larger of the two gurnard Phil caught on this trip

They’re always fun to catch as they’re really weird-looking fish.

They almost look like some sort of scary creature out of a sci-fi movie 😊

The second gurnard smiling for the camera

We headed back in good time to return before the marina gate closed, getting back at around 2pm, about four hours after we initially set off for our fishing trip.

Me enjoying the sunshine on Ravensdale's aft deck on the way home

Ravensdale heading home to Maryport

Yesterday’s fishing trip

As we’d left all the stuff I stow away inside Ravensdale packed up after Thursday’s trip out on the water ready to go out for Maryport Trawler Race today (Saturday), we decided to have another go at fishing yesterday (Friday)

And we were very glad we did as this time we brought home our supper.

Ravensdale heading towards the sea gate at Maryport Marina

Looking back across Maryort Marina from Ravensdale's fore deck

We left the marina at about 11.20am. The plan was to look for a mark Phil had put on our chart plotter that looked to be a deep area between the rocks as he hoped it might fish well.

On the way out of Maryport, we saw a couple of trawlers heading our way and a friend’s yacht that I wanted to photograph so Phil took a bit of a detour to enable me to get some photos.

A trawler heading for Marport

Bonnie Lass heading for Maryport

Another view of Bonnie Lass on her way into Maryport

Yacht Freya sailing on the Solway Firth

We then headed up to Allonby Bay to look for his mark.

When we arrived at the right area, he began studying the fishfinder for fish before deciding where to drop anchor.

Phil checking the fishfinder to see if there were any fish around

As there appeared to be fish around, we decided to stay put and we were delighted when he caught two cod that were big enough to keep.

Phil with the first cod he cuaght on this trip

We almost lost the second one to a hungry tope that chased the cod that Phil had hooked but, unlike our last fishing trip, he managed to land the cod before the tope had eaten half of it.

Phil the cod that the tope tried to take from us

The cod's tail showing the damage caused by the tope

The wind started to pick up a bit while we were out, so we decided to pack up a bit earlier than planned as we’d had a good session and caught our supper.

On the way back, we followed a friend’s boat into the marina. He had come over the Solway Firth from Scotland ready for tomorrow’s trawler race.

We were back in the marina at around 3.10pm after almost four hours out on the water.



Lobster supper 😊

Our lobster on the bench in the galley waiting to be cooked

Soon after we returned from our fishing trip yesterday (Thursday), a friend offered us a lobster, for which we were very grateful.

We’d never cooked a lobster before, so Phil looked it up online to find out how long it needed to boil it for and followed the instructions.

I knew they changed colour when cooked, but I was still amazed at just how different they look raw and cooked.

The cooked lobster

And he must have cooked it right because it was delicious 😊


Pros and cons – then and now

Ravensdale out on the Solway Firth

This week I looked back at the list of pros and cons I wrote about 18 months ago and compared it with the list I wrote last week to see how my view of the good and bad aspects on life afloat has changed.

And it seems that they haven’t changed very much at all.

Totally coincidentally, there were the same number of pros as my first list and, although worded differently, they were very similar to the things I liked most about boat life in December 2017 – just over a year after we moved on board.

I came up with more cons this time, the main ones being missing having a garden and a garage/garden shed to work in.

And, apparently, I no longer consider using the marina toilet facilities most of the time, not very comfortable seating and the maintenance costs associated with a boat to be a problem – or at least not enough of a problem to include them in my list of cons.

Dealing with high humidity and the challenges of finding sufficient storage space on a boat appeared on both lists.



Ruby of Ravensdale

Ruby relaxing in her lifejacket during yesterday's fishing trip

Poor Ruby has another ear infection.

Ruby hiding when I tried to take a selfie with her

Last time, it was in her left ear and this time it’s her right ear.

But, thankfully, it isn’t as bad as last time, so the vet is trying to treat it with drops twice a day rather than the injection she gave her last time.

The big problem here is that Ruby totally hates having drops put in her ears and runs away if she sees either of us even reach for the drops container, so we have to be really sneaky.

There’s no way to get the container anywhere near here so one of us puts the dose on our finger and rubs it inside her ear.

However, even this is getting more difficult as she’s worked out when we’re likely to do it and gets out of our way and I think she probably smells it on our fingers.

We’re now varying the time or rather the point in our daily routine that we apply the drops and are still managing to get them in there at the moment, but I’m not sure that we’re going to be able to get away with it for the required 10-day period.

Thankfully, she doesn’t seem too worried by the infection and she hasn’t been scratching it enough to warrant putting her inflatable collar on her.

Meanwhile, she’s still enjoying life on Ravensdale and is equally happy whether we're in the marina or out on the water.

Ruby out on deck while we were out on the Solway Firth

Ruby sunbathing on the aft deck

When we're out, she likes to come up on deck to lick Phil's fishing box and the deck clean of any fish juice. She also likes to sunbathe for a while, then goes back indoors to relax in the saloon.

Ruby chilling out in Ravensdale's saloon

When we're in the marina, she likes to sit out on deck watching the world go by and particularly likes to sit out and watch the sun go down after her evening meal.

Ruby playing with her ball on the aft deck

She also likes playing ball on deck, which is pretty risky but she hasn't lost a ball yet 😊

Phil playing ball with Ruby on Ravensdale's aft deck

And she likes going for walks in the meadow by the shore and around the harbour, where she gets to meet lots of people and dogs.


Photography

Most of my photos this week were taken while out on the Solway Firth on Thursday and yesterday (Friday).

Maryport from the Solway Firth

Market Steps at Maryport from the Solway Firth

Trees on the skyline from the Solway Firth

Maryport pier with the Iggesund paperboard factory in the background

The entrance to Maryport Basin from the Solway Firth

Another view of Maryport from the Solway Firth

I also took photos of the marina last Friday evening and while trying my hand at low light photography late on Wednesday evening.

Reflections at Maryport Marina

More reflections at Maryport Marina

Maryport Marina

Evening lights at Maryport Marina

Another low light photo at Maryport Marina

And I took a few photos of the meadows while out walking Ruby on Monday.

View across the Solway Firth from the meadows at Maryport

Grasslot shore at Maryport

Weather watch

Although we’ve had some dry, sunny weather here in Maryport, there’s been an awful lot of rain for the time of year.

It was wet overnight Friday into Saturday then it dried up for a while during Saturday morning, then the heavy rain arrived and kept it up for the rest of the day.

Rain pouring down Ravensdale's windows on Saturday afternoon

The top temperature was 16C (61F) and the top average wind speed was 10mph. It was fairly calm while the marina gate was open so we might have considered going out on the water if it hadn’t been so wet.

Sunday was dry and bright with a top temperature of 19C (66F) and a top average wind speed of 14mph.

Sun breaking through the clouds at Maryport Marina on Sunday

We had rain overnight which continued until about mid-morning on Monday. It then dried up and the sun came out during the afternoon.

The top temperature was 17C (63F) and the top average wind speed was 11mph.

Annoyingly, the weather was horrible while the gate was open and really nice after it closed ☹

Blue sky and fluffy white clouds at Maryport Marina on Monday afternoon

Tuesday started wet then dried up and the sun came out for a while. However, it clouded over again late afternoon and we had heavy rain and thunder and lightning. There were only three flashes of lightning, but the rain continued into the evening.

Heavy rain viewed through Ravensdale's windscreen on Tuesday afternoon

The top temperature was 20C (68F) and the top average wind speed was 16mph.

Wednesday was cloudy with showers on and off during the morning and heavy rain and a thunderstorm during the afternoon.

The top temperature was 21C (70F) and the top average wind speed was 15mph.

Thursday was dry, bright and calm feeling warm in the sunshine when the clouds cleared.

Blue sky with a few clouds over Maryport Marina sea gate onThursday morning

The temperature reached 20C (68F) and the average wind speed peaked at 13mph late afternoon, but it was only 6-8mph while we were out on the Solway Firth.

Bright sunshine at Maryport Marina yesterday (Friday)

And yesterday (Friday) the weather was dry, warm, sunny and fairly calm. The top temperature was 20C (68F and the top wind speed was 8mph.