About this site

Piers and Lin du Pré bought their new Fleming 55 / 129, Play d'eau, in 2003.

She was berthed in Beaucette Marina, Guernsey in the Channel Islands at N49° 30’.197 W002° 30’.350 until she was sold in October 2021.

This site charts the thrilling adventures they had in her.

You can contact us here.

Where’s Play d’eau?

If the new owners have the AIS on, you can find where Play d'eau is right now.

Click here.

Zoom in and our position will be shown on a map.

Recent Posts

Did the walls fall down?

First, holes were drilled into the granite walls
Granite dust flew everywhere
click to enlarge

Following our previous post (The Trumpet shall sound), we can happily report that the walls didn’t fall down.

Just in case

Just to be on the safe side, Beaucette Marina is making sure the walls won’t fall down.

For the last two months, Matt and Jake of Geomarine quarry engineers have been working in Beaucette marina, pegging walls with two metre rods, strapping with cable, and on part of the west wall, covering with netting.

Why now?

Following surveys by the States of Guernsey in the late 1960s, before the east wall was blasted by The Royal Engineers to create an entrance from the sea to the quarry, concern was raised over the stability of the quarry’s walls.

However, detailed inspection proved the walls to be stable.

But that was 45 years ago. A recent survey from geologists raised fresh concerns over certain areas, and especially part of the west wall which just happens to be where Play d’eau is moored!

Reinforcing

The work has involved drilling deep holes into the rock face, inserting hundreds of two metre rods and fixing them with grout before strapping heavy gauge cable between them.

2m long rods were fixed with grout
click to enlarge

In one particular area of the west wall, where Play d’eau is moored, netting has been hung as well.

With 316 stainless steel being used throughout, the netting is covered in a heavy grey plastic coating.

Teas and Coffees

We have to admit, it’s been somewhat noisy. What with the hammer drilling, the pneumatic clipping to hold the nets together and the screaming grinding of the hundreds of rods, echoes reverberated around the quarry.

Seeing the men working so hard, suspended and hanging down the walls by ropes, we felt we had to give them regular hot teas and coffees. One sugar each, with just a spalsh of milk, twice a day, please.

The spin off was periods of glorious peace as they downed tools to refresh themselves. Time to hear the oyster catchers again, time to revel in the quiet, yet all too soon shattered as the air compressor re-started heralding the bursting into life of the heavy power tools.

Nets were hung and clipped together
click to enlarge

Ah, well, not too long until the next round of teas and coffees.

Piers and Lin
from the anechoic chamber of
Play d’eau
Fleming 55

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