Words of wisdom from a seasoned sailor…and why we’re glad we took his advice

Ravensdale safely back at home in Maryport Marina, Cumbria, UK

“Better to be in the marina wishing you were out than out of the marina wishing you were in it.”

This is a saying we learnt from Captain Keith Morgans while studying for our RYA Day Skipper and Yachtmaster Offshore certificates last year.

And we discovered the true value of his words of wisdom this week.

We’ve had high winds here at Maryport in Cumbria, England, every day since we brought Ravensdale back from Kirkcudbright in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, on Thursday of last week.

We’d intended to stay a bit longer than the two nights we were there but decided to cut short our stay when the forecast for the following days changed.

And the weather we’ve had this week made us very glad we were safely back in our home marina rather than trying to cross the Solway Firth in wind speeds that were higher than we would’ve considered comfortable to be out on the water.

Phil bringing Ravensdale home from Scotland in calm conditions last Thursday

We also had a proper look at our route back on Navionics - electronic navigation charts of marine areas - this week to discover that I really need driving lessons 😊

And, at long last, we've found a solution to our Wi-Fi problems.

My first attempt at steering across a tide

We checked the distance and our average speed on Navionics when we got back from Kirkcudbright last Thursday but hadn’t studied our track in detail until this week.

Our route from Kirkcudbright back to Maryport

Phil showed it to me and pointed out that it was very obvious when I took the wheel.

While he was driving, he closely followed the plotted route.

When I was at the helm, the line looks more like a wiggly snake 😊

The wiggly part of the track when I was at the wheel

In my defence, I should point out that it was the first time I’d tried to drive Ravensdale across the tide rather than with it or straight into it and she didn't behave anything like I was expecting.

But at least I now know that I need more practice at taking the wheel in different sea conditions.

Cleaning Ravensdale

Phil gave the boat a good clean on Saturday to get rid of the salt spray from our trip across the Solway Firth to Kirkcudbright last week.

He also had to scrub the marks on the gel coat caused by the dogfish he caught while fishing at anchor off Little Ross Island in Kirkcudbright Bay.

Phil cleaning Ravensdale

So Ravensdale is looking nice and clean again now.

But we really must get around to buying some rubber matting to put on the foredeck while fishing to save it getting marked.

Replacing sealant on exhaust cover

Black marks had appeared on Ravensdale hull above the fibreglass exhaust cover on her port side.

It was obvious that they had been caused by exhaust escaping from gaps in the sealant along the top edge of the cover.

Phil removing the old sealant along the top of the exhaust cover

Phil removed the old sealant, cleaned the area up and resealed the affected area, but he’s intending to replace the sealant along the full length of the exhaust cover soon as it has become yellowed with age.

Muddy water

The spell of very windy weather this week together with a big swell meant the marina gate remained closed for several tides.

When it reopened for the first time after this extended closure, the muddy water coming in formed a distinct line across the cleaner water in the marina.

The leading edge of the muddy water coming into Maryport Marina

We’ve seen this happen before, but never as dramatically as on this occasion.

Wi-Fi problems solved – but not by the marina

The Wi-Fi connection here at Maryport Marina had us tearing our hair out earlier this week.

We had next to no signal on Saturday morning and what little there was disappeared for long periods.

The aerial for the marina Wi-Fi is on the left-hand end of the building

Results of broadband test on Saturday

When I eventually managed to get online, it took ages before I could even get an internet speed test to work and when it did, it showed we had a download speed of 0.06Mbps and an upload speed of 0.03Mbps so little wonder that we couldn’t do anything much online.

Soon after that check, the Wi-Fi dropped out again, so I contacted the marina office about the problem.

And, on Sunday morning, we had real problems getting online again and, when we did manage it, the connection kept dropping out before we could achieve what we were trying to do.

We started looking around to see if there was a viable alternative as we felt we really couldn’t rely on the marina Wi-Fi any longer.

We even considered leaving Maryport and moving on to another marina with more reliable Wi-Fi.

However, we came up with a different solution.

Vodafone Wi-Fi box

On Sunday, we went to the Vodafone store in Workington and signed up for their mobile Wi-Fi, which will give us 50GB of data per month for just over £25 per month.

We just wish we’d signed up for it before our trip to Kirkcudbright, where there was no Wi-Fi, but at least this means we will always have Wi-Fi, even when the marina’s connection is down.

We should also be able to use it wherever we go as long as there’s a good mobile phone signal.

Mobile phone camera issues

As I’ve said many times before, the camera on my Huawei P10 lite phone takes really poor-quality photos and I truly hate it.

It’s so bad that, if I want a photo of something and don’t have my camera with me, I ask Phil if I can take it on his phone.

A poor-quality photo of Kirkcudbright taken with my mobile phone

The most annoying part is that, when I moved from Vodafone to EE in November of last year when my old phone packed up during a holiday in Scotland, I told the sales assistant in the shop in Inverness that I needed a phone that would take good quality photos.

She insisted this phone would do the job and I stupidly believed her.

I discovered this to be untrue within days of getting the phone. 

We called the shop to complain while still in Scotland and able to return it to the same store, but they wouldn’t take it back.

Apparently, if I’d got it online I would’ve had a “cooling off” period but EE does not allow a cooling off period when getting a phone from one of their stores.

To say I was annoyed would be an understatement.

The useless camera on my mobile phone

I tried changing settings on the camera on my phone but could get no improvement, so I practically stopped using it for photos.

The Huawei P10 lite works well as a phone and for getting online, but they might just as well not have bothered putting a camera on it at all.

A few months later, I called EE again to see when I might be able to upgrade my phone.

I discovered that I was tied into a contract with EE that meant I couldn’t upgrade my phone, without paying to get out of my contract, until October next year.

While in Whitehaven this week, we decided to pop into the EE shop to see if there was anything we could do about it as the quality of the photos is driving me bonkers.

The manager tried to help and wanted to exchange the phone for me on the spot, but she wasn’t allowed to do so because the phone had come from a different store.

However, she did get the provider to shorten my contract by six months, so I’ll be able to upgrade my phone next April instead of October.

Photography

I’ve taken my camera out for a few short walks in the local area over the past week and the highlight of the week was when a rainbow appeared while I was out taking photos on Sunday.

Rainbow over Maryport lighthouse

Rainbow over Maryport

Admittedly getting soaked to get the rainbow photos was less good, but I didn’t mind too much as it was all in a good cause 😊

Maryport beach last Friday afternoon

Bait diggers on the shore at Maryport

I took photos along the shore on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday.

Maryport pier on Saturday

The old groyne on the shore at Maryport

A small boat washed up on the shore at Maryport

The rain arriving on Sunday just before the rainbow appeared

Big waves on Grasslot Shore at Maryport at high tide on Tuesday

Waves crashing against the sea wall at Maryport at high tide on Tuesday

Looking back along Maryport pier to the old lighthouse

And, on Wednesday, I got some shots of the harbour and marina at high tide, which was a good bit higher than usual as we’re on spring tides at the moment.

I just wish I’d thought to take my camera with me when we went to Maiden Marine chandlery at Whitehaven on Monday, but I didn’t so I had to borrow Phil’s phone to take a couple of shots of the marina there.

Whitehaven Marina

Another view of Whitehaven Marina

West Strand at Whitehaven Marina

And, on Wednesday, I popped over to Maryport Harbour to get a few shots of the boats at high tide.

Fishing boat Alauna returning to the harbour after undergoing work at MPM boatyard

Fishing boats in Maryport Harbour at high tide

Another group of colourful fishing boats in Maryport Harbour

Two more fishing boats in Maryport Harbour

Marina wildlife

The swan family still regularly turns up for food when the marina gate is open.

The hungry birds also come to Ravensdale expecting to be fed when they get locked in the marina after the gate has closed. If this happens, they can’t get out until it reopens around seven hours later.

One of the adult swans and two cygnets waiting for their food

The cheekiest cygnet

The boldest of the three cygnets – the one who pecks at the food beaker I use to feed them – has started making a strange noise while waiting for his dinner.

It’s difficult to describe the sound, which is very definitely some kind of call.

Despite being called mute swans, they are definitely not mute.

Not only do they snort and hiss, but the babies have been making a cute little noise that sounds rather like “eee, eee, eee” when they want to be fed from the very start and the bold one is now making a muted trumpet or bugle call to demand its food.

Most of the gulls around here know to stay well out of the way while the swans and their cygnets are feeding, or they get warned off by the adult swans.

However, this black-headed gull somehow manages to sneak in and steal some of the floating swan and duck food. It may not be the same one every time, but there is often a single black-headed gull swimming

Black-headed gull waiting to gobble up the swans' leftovers

Meanwhile, we saw a kingfisher flying along the harbour wall by our boat and landing on ledges on Monday. It was too far away to get a decent photo from Ravensdale, so we walked around the pontoons in an attempt to get closer, but it flew away before we could reach it.

Kingfisher on a ledge on the harbour wall

This poor-quality image was the best I could get from our boat.

Canine visitors

We’re always pleased when friends visit us on Ravensdale and I’m even more pleased when they bring their lovely dogs with them.

We’ve had a few visits from dogs and their human friends this week.

Sylvia and Bunty on Ravensdale

On Tuesday, Stewart came for coffee with his Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Sylvia and Bunty, and on Wednesday we had a visit from Keith and Fiona and their beautiful Dalmatian Tabitha.

Tabitha on Ravensdale

Weather watch

Wind, wind and more wind just about sums up the weather here in Maryport this week.

We’ve had sun, clouds, heavy rain and light drizzle, but all have been accompanied by high winds.

Last Friday was fine and dry with a top temperature of 15.2C (59F) and the top average wind speed recorded locally was 22mph, gusting 29mph.

Rain on Saturday morning at Maryport Marina

Saturday started overcast and damp. The rain arrived soon after we got up and it stayed wet until around lunchtime. This was followed by cloud and sunny intervals. The temperature peaked at 15.3C (59.5F) and the top average wind speed was 16mph.

Saturday night into Sunday morning was very windy with the average wind speed reaching 25mph, gusting 34mph.

This was followed by a wet and very windy start to the day.

The rain continued until lunchtime when it gave way to cloud and sunny intervals, but it was still very windy. Top temperature 16.1C (61F). The top average wind speed was 23mph, gusting 32mph.

Heavy and persistent rain on Sunday morning

The wind continued overnight Sunday/Monday with a top average wind speed of 24mph, gusting 33mph.

Monday started overcast, dry and windy. It began raining around lunchtime and kept it up for the rest of the day and into the night with the wind increasing in strength as the day went on. The top daytime temperature was 14C (57F) with average wind speeds of up to 26mph, gusting 39mph.

It was warmer overnight Monday into Tuesday than it had been during the day on Monday with night-time temperatures reaching 14.6C (58F). The top wind speed overnight was 25mph, gusting 39mph.

Dry and bright conditions at Maryport Marina on Tuesday

Tuesday was dry and bright but still very windy with the cloud cover increasing during the afternoon and evening. The temperature reached a high of 15.3C (59.5F) and the average wind speed peaked at 23mph, gusting 31mph.

Sunshine and cloud at Maryport Marina on Tuesday

After yet another very windy night with wind speeds of up to 25mph, gusting 38mph. 

Wednesday started dry and bright and slightly less windy than of late with a top daytime wind speed of 19mph. More cloud developed during the afternoon with a heavy shower just before 5pm. The highest temperature recorded locally was 14.7C (58F).

Blue sky and white fluffy clouds over Maryport Harbour Wednesday lunchtime

Overnight Wednesday/Thursday was another windy night with average wind speeds of up to 22mph, gusting 30mph.

We woke up to drizzle yesterday (Thursday). It was then cloudy but mainly dry, continuing very windy. Top temp 14.5C (58F). Top wind speed 21mph, gusting 31mph.

And, so far, today (Friday) has been wet and windy.

Winter cruising joys and the misery caused by flooding bilges

Phil at the helm of Ravensdale in the bright winter sunshine

The past week has been both exhilarating and nerve-wracking in equal measure.

We took our 43ft cruiser Ravensdale out to sea for her first cruise of the year in beautiful cold, sunny weather on Sunday.

There was very little wind again on Monday so we decided to go out for a fishing trip, which proved successful for the first time ever J

On both days, we enjoyed spectacular views of the snow-covered mountains inland from Maryport in Cumbria, UK, and, on the way back to the marina on Monday evening, we were treated to a dramatic sunset.

At that stage, I couldn’t have been happier with our new, or rather newish, liveaboard lifestyle.

I was convinced that boat life was so much better than real life J

But that quickly changed on Tuesday evening when we discovered our bilges were filling up with water.

Rising water levels in the bilges

Phil removes the broken bilge pump

By the time we discovered the problem, the water had covered the metal grid between Ravensdale’s two 300hp Volvo Penta engines. The bow bilges were also pretty full.

The engine room bilge pump cleared the water in there, but the bow bilge pump refused to work and, when Phil removed it, he found that part of the impeller had melted.

Just hours after pumping out the engine room, it was filling up again and Phil discovered that the water was coming in around the port prop shaft.

It wasn’t just dripping. There was a steady flow of water coming in and he was reluctant to touch it while we were afloat in case he made it worse.

So we spent the night waking every couple of hours to pump out the bilges until we could ask someone with more knowledge than us to take a look at it the following day.

The broken bilge pump showing the melted impeller

Meanwhile, we ordered a new, fully automatic bilge pump that can pump 2,000 gallons per hour.

We’d been meaning to buy an automatic bilge pump for some time and the water ingress, together with the broken pump, forced our hand.

The plan is to install the new, more powerful automatic pump in the engine room and move the functioning pump from the engine room to the bow. We are also going to see if we can get a replacement impeller for the broken pump to provide back up.

First thing on Wednesday morning, we started trying to track down Norman, the local man who’d sorted our overheating engine problem, but he doesn’t use a telephone.

He’d previously told us to catch him at the marina, where he has a small fishing boat, around the harbour, where he can frequently be found working on his son’s and grandson’s commercial fishing boats or to call at his home.

We tried all three locations without success, then I realised that we could probably reach him through his grandson, who’s a Facebook friend. I sent Tom a quick message saying we were in urgent need of Norman’s assistance and in no time at all I had a message back saying “He’s on his way”.

While waiting, we continued to pump out the bilges.

And, to say we were relieved when we saw Norman and his black Labrador walking along the pontoon towards Ravensdale would be the understatement of the century.

I quickly put the coffeemaker on as I now know coffee (or tea) to be the first priority in all boat-related situations J

Norman took one look at the water that was coming in and declared that the stern gland was leaking. He tightened the two nuts on the plate and the flow stopped.

He said it would be worth replacing the stern gland packing next time we have our Neptunus 133 lifted out, adding that there was no rush to do it.

The port prop shaft stern gland that caused our sleepless night

We both slept a lot better that night, partly because there was no need to keep getting up to pump out the bilges and partly because we didn’t have to worry about the boat filling up with water.

The new automatic bilge pump arrived yesterday (Thursday) and will be fitted asap.

Winter cruising

A local woman took this photo of Ravensdale on Sunday and kindly allowed me to use it here

Our trips out into the Solway Firth on Sunday and Monday were a much happier experience.

Ravensdale cruising into the winter sun

The first was to test the starboard engine to make sure it was working properly after Norman cleaned out the heat exchanger and intercooler for us a couple of weeks ago.

We didn’t attempt high speeds, but took Ravensdale up to 13-14 knots with no problems. The engine temperature stayed well below 200F. Before the work was carried out, the temperature started to shoot up as soon as we went over 12 knots.

The port engine was running a little hotter, so we plan to get the heat exchanger and intercooler off that one for cleaning one day soon.

The weather was amazing. The sea was flat calm and the sun was so bright that we needed our sunglasses when heading into it.

Me on Ravensdale's aft deck on the Solway Firth

We didn’t drop the anchor, but put the engines in neutral and allowed the boat to drift while we had a cup of tea on the foredeck and enjoyed the views. That said, we didn’t drift much at all as there was very little wind.

Unsurprisingly for such a beautiful day, we were not alone on the Solway Firth.

Ten other berth holders from Maryport Marina also took their boats out for a sail or cruise, which is the largest number we’ve seen out at one time since we moved onto our boat here 15 months ago.

We decided to go out again on Monday to test our anchor as we’d never dropped it outside the marina and thought it best to check everything was working properly while close to home.

Phil also fancied doing a spot of fishing so we headed north up the coast a short way.

Sunrise fishing on Monday

We stopped fairly close to a local fishing boat called Sunrise and, as we knew the owner, tried to make contact. We didn’t know which VHF channel he’d be using so I suggested calling him on his mobile phone.

And, while I was looking for his phone number, he called us. Great minds think alike! J

We dropped the anchor and Phil set up his fishing rods while I got lunch and a cup of tea, which we had on the foredeck in the sun.  

Phil dropping the anchor

Phil fishing in the Solway Firth

Phil was just about to give up fishing when we decided to give it another 15 minutes and, shortly after making this decision, he got a bite and reeled in a decent sized cod.


Sadly, we will never know what it weighed as Phil gutted it before I had a chance to get it on the scales, but it provided two reasonable sized fillets.

Phil with the first cod he has caught from Ravensdale

I spent much of the time we were at anchor taking photographs and was moaning that I couldn't get the view of the snow-covered hills that I wanted so Phil suggested I try taking them from the flybridge, which helped a lot.

It was the first time I'd been up on the flybridge at sea and I was amazed that just being a few feet higher made a big difference to what I could see.

A row of bare trees stand out against the white hills behind them

Me on Ravensdale's flybridge

We retrieved the anchor without any problems and headed back to the marina as the sun went down.

Phil weighing anchor at the end of the fishing trip

I was delighted with the dramatic clouds, with the sunset breaking through them that made for some good photo opportunities on the way back to the marina.

The view as we returned to Maryport from our fishing trip

The Isle of Man was just visible in the distance

The sun breaking through heavy clouds over Maryport pier

A wider view of the pier including the old lighthouse on the left of the image

The sunset as we entered Maryport on Monday evening

Ravensdale about to enter the gate to Maryport Marina

Winter weather

We’ve had a mixed bag of weather this week - ice, snow, rain, drizzle and sunshine, but for the first time in a very long time we’ve had very little wind.

Last Friday was a lovely sunny day in Maryport and there was a very high tide so I just had to get out and take some photos.

Maryport Marina with a 9.2m high tide

Maryport Harbour at a very high tide

Colourful fishing boats in Maryport Harbour

Maryport from the bridge over the River Ellen

We had a 9.2m tide, which brought the water level in the marina and nearby harbour up almost to the top of the dock walls, totally changing the look of the town.

Most of Saturday was wet and miserable, but it cleared up later in the day.

On Sunday, the sun came out again. We got a bit of a sunset in the evening and clear skies led to low temperatures overnight.

Sunset at Maryport Marina

We woke up on Monday to find ice on the surface of the water around the boat and on Tuesday morning we discovered it had snowed overnight, but it quickly cleared when the snow turned to rain.

Wednesday morning was another icy morning after a cold night during which we were told it went down to -4C in Maryport.

Ice on the surface of the water at Maryport Marina

And yesterday (Thursday) was mainly overcast and drizzly, with sunny intervals.

Wildlife in the marina

We’re always interested in any wildlife that visits the marina and this week we were told two otters had been seen on the ramp between the marina facilities and the pontoons.

We’ve seen otter scat on the ramp, but we haven’t seen the carnivorous mammals yet. Hopefully we’ll get to see them soon.

Sadly, we found a dead kingfisher floating in the marina this week. We’ve often seen one flying around, or at least we assumed it was the same one, but we've seen a kingfisher again since so it seems there was more than one.

A kingfisher in Maryport Marina in December of last year

We’ve started dropping our prawn pot off the boat while in the marina again lately and have caught a few small fish and a lot of shore crabs, but this week we also caught a spider crab.

The spider crab we caught in our prawn pot

Other boat jobs

The dark blue canvas we ordered to repair the cover on the flybridge arrived.

I then realised that I should also have ordered the proper thread for the job.

The order was placed and it has now arrived so I will have to get my sewing machine out to put a patch on the cover on the next available dry day.

We’re planning to use the remaining fabric to make a cover for the windlass.