Ummm... did someone say wind? A lot of it?
Just the day for taking out some friends of friends for a nice gentle sail then lunch and a swim behind the port.
Or so I thought…
Yesterday had been somewhat blowy.
That had been predicted, though the forecast was actually higher sustained winds and lower gusts.
The gusts reaching 35 knots, according to windfinder. A gust is defined as a sudden increase of the wind's speed that lasts no more than 20 seconds. I've sailed through gusts before. Note in the definition 'that lasts no more than 20 seconds'.
Because of the strong winds yesterday (which seemed a lot stronger than the chart above showed for the average) there was a swell in the water which meant though sailing was pleasant and quiet the rolling of the boat was uncomfortable for at least two of the crew. Crystalised ginger was given out and I decided to head for the anchorage north of the port for lunch and a swim.
We had lunch and Sam and Helen swam then got on board and we were chatting…
Suddenly the wind drops. 0 knots. Helen asks what the time is so she can remember it, because it's so unusual to see 0 knots on the wind sensor. The time is 14:12.
By about half past two the wind is picking up again. 10-15 knots and steady, but just before 3pm it feels like it's picking up slightly, so I decide maybe it's time to up anchor and return to the marina. Time to put on life jackets, put out all the fenders and get the boat ready.
By the time we had done that it's now blowing 25 knots.
Helen is bringing up the anchor, so she finds and gets a lanyard to clip on. By the time she is clipped on it is now blowing over 30 knots and the boat is careening all over the place despite my best efforts to control it!
I'm now slightly concerned that seeing 31 knots for a while and my 6 HP outboard may not actually push us to the marina since it was direct southerly by then so it was straight into the wind with waves building rapidly.
If we cannot make headway I thought we'd go into the port for a safe heaven till 'the storm' (which is what I thought it was) passed.
The wind is now metering continuously between 25-31 knots but I'm pleased that my 6HP outboard is pushing us through the water and we're making headway. I even reduced the power to about 75% to save fuel!
It was not fast and bouncing over the waves, but we're making headway. At this stage I have no idea how I will actually get into my berth since a 25-30 knot southerly would make it impossible, so I prepare lines to find any berth that I can get into.
We turn into the 'main drag' at Larnaca marine and suddenly the wind drops to a very much more reasonable 15 knots. By the time I am ready to turn into the channel for my berth it had dropped to 4 knots. So easy berthing!
'A gust is defined as a sudden increase of the wind's speed that lasts no more than 20 seconds.' Well, all I can say is that if that was a 33 knot gust (as metered at the airport) then their 20 seconds and my more than 20 minutes must be the same thing!
It was not fast and bouncing over the waves, but we're making headway. At this stage I have no idea how I will actually get into my berth since a 25-30 knot southerly would make it impossible, so I prepare lines to find any berth that I can get into.
We turn into the 'main drag' at Larnaca marine and suddenly the wind drops to a very much more reasonable 15 knots. By the time I am ready to turn into the channel for my berth it had dropped to 4 knots. So easy berthing!
'A gust is defined as a sudden increase of the wind's speed that lasts no more than 20 seconds.' Well, all I can say is that if that was a 33 knot gust (as metered at the airport) then their 20 seconds and my more than 20 minutes must be the same thing!
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