Latish in May I was back out to the boat. After the drive down I launched the cub and rowed out to Sea Bear on her mooring. As it was dry I decided to tackle the leaky dorade box. After taking out all the screws I carefully used a slim scraper to break the old sealant and lift off the dorade box. At first I couldn’t spot any obvious leakage spot but on a good clean up I saw a hole apparently drilled through the deck near by the standup pipe. What! I thought, anyway that would be easy to fill. I spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning off the box itself and getting ready to refit. thought I would leave that until the morning.

Now normally I lift off the outboard and take the oars from the dinghy before the night. By a combination of a crick in my back, laziness and just stupidity I didn’t. Woke in the night by splashing. Sammy the seal had decided to visit and climbing into the dinghy had upset the oars for one to go off drifting in the darkness never to be seen again. Drat.

In the morning I refitted the dorade box, bedding it on some fresh sealant. Then it was time to bail out the dinghy. I decided I needed  a new oar, I did have a set of old ones from an inflatable but they wouldn’t be very useful. It being near high water, off to the pontoon and thence ashore and a nip to Fox’s. At least I didn’t have to buy a pair. That was enough excitement for the day.

Next day dawned, misty and drizzly with hardly any wind but I set off down the Orwell under sail making very slow progress, still what was the rush? I lost track of time but eventually an empty belly prompted a time check. Blimey 12.30 and I was only just as far as Orwell buoy. OK so engine on and make for Pye End buoy. I was just about to turn towards the channel to the backwaters when there was a change in engine note, a quick look behind and white steam from the exhaust shortly followed by the water alarm on the engine. So engine off, no wind but at least plenty of searoom. First I checked that the inlet was not blocked, no that was clear ok the impellor. Now on a Yanmar 2GM, it is not the brightest design, as you have to take off the water pump and associated plumbing to get access. Still I have had a bit of practise at this and tools at hand, some done revealing a shredded impellor.  In with a new one, pump reassemled and refitted and we were back in business. A little later we dropped anchor in Hamford water and the sun was finally  out.

Rain overnight finally cleared. A lazy day at anchor with strong winds and choppy seas making me forgoing any plans to explore up the creeks in the dinghy.  Surprisingly few boats around.

I left the next day just before high water running down the channel under Yankee alone with a strong SW’rly of about 15 knots. This increased to around 20 knots and it was a little rolly run back up to and past Felixstowe and so back to the mooring. It was bank holiday monday so I suppose you shouldn’t expect good weather.

Very overcast in the morning, windy too. It soon started raining. A pretty gloomy day and not warm either. When will summer come?  The forecast spoke of a complex low centered on the North Sea, strong NW winds. I had had enough so headed off home.