They travelled around the
world, through the Northwest and Northeast Passages, to the Poles, to the
bottom of the ocean, through the sound barrier, to the edge of the atmosphere
and to the surface of the Moon. They built their craft from papyrus, balsa,
cedar, oak, iron, titanium, canvas, carbon fibre and aluminium foil.
Their teeth fell out, their joints came apart, their blood boiled, their
eardrums burst and their eyeballs came out of their sockets. They made voyages
that were thought to be too far, too fast, too dangerous or too expensive – or
As usual, our traditional twice yearly welcome to
new members will follow the Boat Show. This year, Jimmy Cornell will celebrate
the release of his latest publication, Cornell’s Ocean Atlas, at a
special launch event with a short talk and some cheese and wine. The Atlas shows
the prevailing direction of winds and currents for every month in all oceans of
the world, and also along the most commonly sailed trans-ocean routes, and all
based on the latest meteorological information rather than the old observation
data used by pilot books.
35 Years of Cruising Sailboat Design: Chuck Paine gives an illustrated retrospective of his favourite designs from both sides of the Atlantic
Chuck is giving the talk to the Victoria Shadow Association, of which he is a member but the talk is open to all CA members and interested yachtsmen alike.
There will be NO admission charge and the talk should last for 70 minutes.
Greece is lucky to have
large numbers of free anchorages and quaysides, some superb destinations to
visit, and good yacht support, albeit relatively few marinas. This makes it a
very economical cruising destination. – all the more so if you can tolerate its
uncertainties and idiosyncrasies. Jim has lived, worked and sailed around Greece
for over 30 years. His talk will illustrate many of the highlights, oddities
and surprises of cruising in Greece,
using lots of pictures. Anecdotes will illustrate the common bureaucratic traps
For those who have
always wondered how and why celestial navigation works, and for those of you
who once used to know but now feel the need for a quick refresher, John has the
answers. Here’s an explanation of the underlying theory, how it has developed
over the years, a demystification of all the specialised words that are used,
and a review of the practical aspects of celestial navigation from a small
boat, including the calculations necessary to turn your hard won sight into a
position line. Illustrated with diagrams, photos, sextants and almanacs,
Anne and Gen won a special award in the CA log
competition this year for their account of their trip around Britain. They left
Burnham-on-Crouch on Easter Sunday in Amanapuri theirJeanneau 42 foot Sun Oddessey, heading
up the East Coast to take the anticlockwise route. On the way they enjoyed
fabulous scenery and wildlife and all the pleasures and frustrations of the
British weather. As well as distances, tides and harbours, their planning had
to take account of timetables for planes, trains, buses and ferries, because
Yacht surveyor, lecturer and author, Paul
Stevens, will explain how to conduct a thorough inspection of your boat. Small
craft surveying is entirely unregulated and can be a potential minefield for
the boating public, so this is an excellent opportunity to pose those
awkward questions! Paul has written a definitive handbook, based on the
course he teaches at the International
Boat Building
Training College
in Lowestoft, that will prove a godsend to
small craft owners as well as being used by practising surveyors and students.
Roger and Jenny Flint took their Gemini 105
catamaran, Demani, through the European inland waterways to the Danube
delta and Istanbul
in 2005. For Roger, it was a retirement project which took 18 months of
meticulous planning. A channel for conquest,
commerce and culture since its banks were first settled, the Danube links the
heartlands of Central Europe with the Orient.
Over the past 2000 years, it has seen the passage of Roman legions, crusading
knights, the armies of the Ottomans and the Hapsburgs, and more recently the
Britain was a
shambles at the time of the Vikings, but quickly and uniquely built a
financial, technical, and political infrastructure that kept our sailors
healthy and our ships at sea for long periods. With Napoleon defeated and the
Industrial Revolution in full swing, the role of the Royal Navy was changing
rapidly when ‘Beagle’ was launched at Woolwich in 1820. The focus had
moved from making war to suppressing piracy, discouraging the slave trade, and
charting the oceans.
Many a cruising
yachtsman begins the sailing life in their tender years, racing dinghies or on
the family boat. It’s not always the easiest of pastimes to start from scratch
in adult life, but that is just what Anne Noon did. In just a few years, she
has gone from novice to navigator and from classroom to the South
China Sea. In this talk she will share the highs and lows of the
voyage and her experience of cruising around the world from the glittering
waters of the Swedish Archipelago to the beautiful Falmouth Estuary and further
afield in the Philippines
and the South China Sea.
