Tent removed and ready for launch (photo courtesy Julian Willmott) click to enlargeWith Play d’eau’s three and a half months in the Plastic Surgery Operating Theatre to deal with her extensive blistering and GRP issues, the finishing touches to her new bootline and antifouling have been completed.
Play d’eau is perfect, ready for launch, sea-trials, acceptance testing and departure to Beaucette Marina, Guernsey, on Monday 22 December.
Weather or not
But as much as she’s straining at her warps to cast off and come home, she has a wary eye on the weather. With two cold fronts stretching west-east across the UK’s Midlands, the forecast for Monday midday is W’ly F4 gusting F7 with rain.
Sea-trials should be OK since they’ll be in the shelter of the River Itchin and Southampton Water, but departure for Guernsey could be a completely different story. Strong winds have been blowing for so long that the seas will have been heaped up and are likely to be really uncomfy – to say the least.
So we’ll see.
from the Meteorological Office
of our temporary abode
not on Play d’eau
Fleming 55
The forecast chart for midday Monday 22 December 2014 Isobars 4mb apart click to enlarge
The ECMWF forecast chart for 0001 Monday 22 December 2014 Isobars 5mb apart click to enlarge
We left beautiful Beaucette Marina soon after midday click to enlarge1 September 2014. A decision had been made.
Having prepared our Fleming 55, Play d’eau, for the journey, Kim and I left sunny Beaucette soon after midday delivering a long and triumphant blast of the Kahlenbergs echoing around the marina’s quarry walls, and set sail (set motor?) for the journey. Not to South Africa, but Southampton via Alderney where we’d have a few hours break for supper.
Casting off from Buoy 20 in Braye Harbour, we travelled throughout a moonless night in a rather emotional sea and arrived in a flat calm Solent just as the sun rose, casting her fire orange hue over the water.
Having completed the handover to GRP Boat Repairs Ltd at Shamrock Quay, I caught the 1440 Blue Islands flight back to Guernsey and was tucked up and asleep by 8pm.
Why Southampton?
The sun rises over Cowes in the Solent click to enlargeWell, Play d’eau is in need of extensive repair work which will be carried out by UK specialists. Whilst there, Lin and I will take the opportunity to visit South Africa for the two months Play d’eau will be under cover in a heated shed.
A great friend of ours, Kim Hollamby, had flown to Guernsey to accompany me to Southampton. Lin was staying behind to make final preparations for our extended South African adventure.
Why South Africa?
Readers will remember that our youngest son, Toby, married his fiancé Amy in April this year in the Tala Private Game Reserve just outside Durban. We spent a month sightseeing this beautiful country and meeting members of our new extended family. We agreed that this, our first time in South Africa, would not be the last.
Why two months?
The chart plotter shows exactly where we are click to enlargeSimple. The work needed on Play d’eau will take two months, and since she is our home we have taken the opportunity to return to beautiful South Africa.
There’s so much to explore. Magnificent mountain ranges, wines, exotic game reserves, wines, family to meet, wines, journeys to be made, and have I mentioned the fine luscious South African wines?
What’s up with Play d’eau?
Good question. The main problem is hundreds of blisters on many of the surfaces above the waterline. Above the waterline? Yes, above the waterline.
Apparently, when she was built a water-attractive filler was used in some places under the gel coat rather than an epoxy water-repellent filler. Hence, any water resting on surfaces was ‘sucked’ through the gel coat, into the filler, causing blistering, looking just like a bad rash of teenage acne. Given her debut was at the 2002 Southampton Boat Show, she’ll be thirteen in a year’s time, so teenage acne isn’t a bad metaphor.
The Blisters
The hundreds of blisters look like a teenager’s bad rash of acne click to enlargeSo, Play d’eau will be in a heated tent, with the blister correction work being carried out by a Fleming recommended facility. Work will be monitored by a marine surveyor and finally signed off as complete and corrected.
Other work will include blasting the hull back to the original epoxy coating, applying additional epoxy, re-antifouling, reseating caprails, remaking any loose caulking in the teak decking, repairing any ‘dinks’ in the internal wooden flooring, certifying the fire protection systems, replacing a gearbox oil seal and servicing the Glendenning engine synchroniser.
And that will all take two months. But at least she’ll be ready for next year’s cruising with not a hint of acne.
Piers and Lin
from a friend’s bungalow near Cobo Play d’eau
Fleming 55
Having so enjoyed my stay in The Victoria Wing being thoroughly spoiled by the nursing staff and Chef Dave, I returned to take some pics of the team and Chef Dave’s food.
One thing leads to another
The pics were liked so much that they reached the eyes of my consultant, Mr Owen Cole, and Debbie Guillot, CEO of The Medical Specialist Group.
A meeting was arranged with Ms Guillot, her Deputy CEO, and the Communications and Marketing Manager.
The upshot is that du Pré Guernsey Ltd has been engaged as an advisor to the CEO’s team to re-design The Medical Specialist Group’s new web-site, and also that of The Victoria Wing.Claudine and a selection of her nursing staff click to enlargeThat includes the design, branding, colours as well as new wording and photography. Exciting.
The Medical Specialist Group provides emergency and elective specialist medical services for the Bailiwick of Guernsey within the secondary health care framework of Guernsey, in partnership with the Health and Social Services Department.
The Plan is…
The plan is for the websites to go live in early September which will coincide well with our next trip to South Africa (more of this to come in another post!).
The emphasis of the new sites is to concentrate on patient care.
So maybe this is a good opportunity for me to give something back to the staff who gave so much to me when I had my prostate op.
Here are some of the pics…
Cod with a red pepper sauce click to enlarge
Monk fish, so succulent click to enlarge
Chef Dave and lamb chops click to enlarge
Meringue anyone? click to enlarge
A mango delicious click to enlarge
This time it’s a strawberry delicious click to enlarge
Piers and Lin
from the design studio of Play d’eau
Fleming 55
Diccon and family gaze out to sea on the south coast click to enlargeAs one son and his family left, another arrived.
So excited
As soon as Diccon and Charlottes’ two children, Oscar and Maia, scrambled down the Flybe aircraft steps, they started running towards the terminal building leaving Mum and Dad behind. Baggage in hand, all four emerged from Customs and the children ran into our arms.
With cries of ‘Can we go to the beach?’ and ‘Can we go on the boat?’ we find the car, drive to Beaucette Marina and board Play d’eau. The sun is out in all her shining glory and it’s hot.
Beaches and Walks
Suitably smothered with oils and lotions for protection from the blazing sun, L’Ancresse and Pembroke Bay were first on the list. Walking along the coast line past Fort Doyle and Fort Le Marchand, low tide showed off the vast sandy beaches where explorations of pools, worm casts and seaweed brought squeals of delight.
South Coast
Oscar makes the seagulls fly in Le Petit Bôt Bay click to enlargeWaking to a slight overcast, a walk along the south coast from Saints Bay to Petit Bôt Bay with its Loop-holed Tower and mandatory tea-room was eagerly chosen.
With so many roads closed we couldn’t leave a car at Petit Bôt Bay. Simple. We’d walk both ways!
Instead of potential rain, the skies cleared and the sun shone. With wellies and rain coats in rucksacks rather than suntan lotion, some of us were somewhat reddened by the time we returned.
Beaucette Restaurant
A meal out saw us at Beaucette Restaurant (again) with all six of us. With cushions for Oscar and Maia, we spent the next two hours eating, laughing, and being spoiled for choice. The wines were good as well…
Until next time
Low tide shows off acres of sandy beach at L’Ancresse Bay click to enlargeOur time together went far too quickly and the now all too familiar drive to the airport saw us motoring along the coast road. Errors on their boarding passes meant a close shave to missing their flight, but they didn’t.
Lin and I gave yet more hugs to the children, waved goodbye, and headed for the car.
With no more family to take their place, there were no more shriekings and no more clamourings of ‘What are we doing tomorrow?’. Play d’eau seemed empty when we returned. But soon we found the odd shell, sprinklings of sand and sticky finger marks. Memories. Glorious!
Until next time. Mmmm.
Piers and Lin
from the memory banks of Play d’eau
Fleming 55
Red Pepper Sauce. Rich, thick, looks brilliant and tastes even better click to enlargeThe colour is vibrant and the taste is so pure.
As we continue to search for the beauty of flavour simplicity, we’ve honed this recipe to produce a sauce that’s one of the most beautiful to look at, let alone a tasting delight.
Ingredients
10 medium size red peppers
Unsalted butter
Pinch of salt
Just a tiny bit (thimbleful?) of veg stock
Maybe, just maybe, a drop or two of organic maple syrup
Preparation
Cut the peppers into quarters and remove all traces of the white bits and seeds.
Brush with a small amount of light olive oil on both sides, and place them on a baking sheet in a roasting tray, skin down.
Put the tray on the middle shelf of an oven at 180C.
After 20 mins or so when the peppers are cooked, remove and place the quarters in a poly bag to sweat a while.
One by one, take them out and remove the black bits, only. Be careful not to lose any of the juices.When cooked, remove the peppers from the oven click to enlargePlace the juices and peppers into a liquidiser and liquidise well. You may find the liquidiser struggles given there’s minimal liquid. If this happens, shake it about. If this doesn’t help, add a thimbleful of vegetable stock.
Sieve through a ‘normal’ sieve using the back of a spoon to force the liquid through.
Liquidise again, adding just a pinch of salt and reasonable lump of unsalted butter to create a rich mousse.
Maple syrup?
If, and it’s a big if, you find the sauce to be slightly bitter, add a drop or two of maple syrup. A slight bitterness tends to be caused by the type of pepper and the time of year. Smaller peppers are sweeter than large.
Removing the skins
This is a question we’re often asked. The answer is simple.
Removing the skins,
is a fiddly and time consuming job, and never 100% successful.
removing the skins also removes some of the gorgeous oils
…so keep the skins and let the sieve remove them!
Piers and Lin
from the galley of Play d’eau
Fleming 55
Beaucette Marina
You can get in touch with us any time by using our Contact Form.
Toby and Amy, three weeks before they marry click to enlargeToby, our youngest son (yet he’s 28 years old) is marrying Amy on April 19 in South Africa.
And we’ll be there!
Game Reserve
Since becoming engaged in April last year, Amy has gained a law degree and Toby has expanded his marine businesses. We are so proud of them.
Toby and Amy, well, Amy mostly, have planned their marriage in a game reserve near KwaZulu Natal near Durban.
Given the distance to South Africa, many family members and friends are unable to attend, so Toby and Amy have planned a celebration party in the UK in July which will be simply marvellous.
Travel plans
Neither Lin nor I have been to South Africa so we’re really excited. We’ll be making the best of the time, exploring Cape Town, the Garden Route to Port Elizabeth, Durban and Johannesburg.
During the last week, I’ll be visiting some schools on behalf of Double First Ltd.
Captain Nick
Whilst away from Play d’eau, Captain Nick will be looking after her, checking warps, power supplies, and generally stroking her to make sure she feels loved…
Piers
from the packing cabin of Play d’eau
You can get in touch with us any time by using our Contact Form.
Mr and Mrs Pigeon had hunkered down out of the wind for the night click to enlargeBy gum, did it blow last night!
…and fire lit the Heavens
Overnight, rigging screamed, Play d’eau lolloped (a nautical technical term) and the wind stirred surface water to slap the hull.
We recorded a N’ly average of 21kts with a max gust of 26kts, and that was even though we were in the lee of the marina so it must have been far greater on the exposed coast.
Having been rocked and rolled we were up at by 6am and had coffee (tea for Lin) and toast (with fig jam – gorgeous) in time to watch the sun’s rays strike the soft underside of the night’s clouds with the most brilliant red orange fire to light the heavens.
By 9am the sky had mostly cleared revealing a blue sky scattered with blobs of cotton-wool fair weather cumulus clouds, and a wind that had gradually veered and abated to an E’ly F3.
The pigeons were grounded
It was as though the sky was on fire (The picture is completely untouched) click to enlargeIt had been so gusty over night that even our neighbours, Mr & Mrs Pigeon, who have their berth (nest) on the granite wall in the creeper next to Play d’eau, had hunkered down in the lee of the rocks and foliage.
During the day, the tempestuous seas that had raged outside the marina tempered their behaviour and quietened, and the wind continued to drop.
John and Beryl
Our dear friends, John and Beryl, come to see us on Monday for a week. We can’t wait, but just hope the NE’lys don’t pay the marina a visit with their rock ‘n’ roll during their stay….
Piers and Lin
From the Meteorological Laboratory of Play d’eau
You can get in touch with us any time by using our Contact Form. The sun rose to strike the clouds after a night of strong winds (The picture is completely untouched) click to enlarge
It was still dark when we awoke and we had to wait for the sill to open click to enlargeWe didn’t want to go home.
Having spent three months and six days of cruising to new and exciting places, the explorer bug had set in. Yet, we both knew the time was right to be back home in peaceful Beaucette, Guernsey.
The three days in Jersey were a ball. With our friends Graham and Frances of Woolly Mammoth, we ate on Play d’eau the first evening (Piers head hurt the next morning), we ate at Shaun Rankin’s new Ormer restaurant the next evening (Piers head didn’t hurt the next morning), and we’d had lunch at the Royal Yacht Hotel, in the sun, on our last day.
Learned fact: Life revolves around eating and drinking, interrupted with elements of work.
The weather
There were bursts of bright sun when the cloud allowed it through click to enlargeA whispering easterly F1/2 was all the wind could muster whilst grey clouds were interspersed with short bursts of bright sunlight. You could smell the dampness in the air which reduced visibility to just over a mile. Yet it was warm enough for shorts and T-shirts.
Pinch points
St Helier marina’s sill time was the limiting factor, but if we left as soon as it opened our time on passage would allow us to motor straight into Beaucette without having to wait at St Peter Port or hang onto one of Beaucette’s visitor’s buoys.
The nav plan
The tide would be against us for the short time from St Helier until nearing Corbière, after which it would help by pushing us along.
The journey
We left St Helier’s marina as soon as we could click to enlargeWe were awake well before the alarm went off, full of anticipation.
Once out of the harbour, we turned west, passed Noirmont and close to Corbière before turning NNW for Guernsey. With no wind, the sea was glassy flat calm, even in the Little Russel where we took the inner route from St Sampson to Beaucette where the current gave us extra 3kts.
Arriving
Ricky, the marina manager, always likes Play d’eau to give a good blast on her Kahlenbergs when we enter of leave Beaucette. Today was to be no exception. Shortly before entering through the quarry walls, the Kahlenbergs let rip. The echoes seemed to reverberate around the old quarry for ages. Yes!
The tecky details
Back at our berth in Beaucette where even the pigeons were there to welcome us click to enlargeDeparted St helier – 0731
Arrived Beaucette – 1105
Time on passage – 3hr 36min
Total planned distance – 30.2nm
Tide: Half way from springs to neaps
Longest leg 19.3nm from Corbière to east of St Peter Port
Tech issues – nil
Incidents – nil
Navigational info: The Little Russel can be avoided by taking the inside route from St Sampson to Beaucette which avoids the angry and sometimes tumultuous seas the Little Russell can throw up. But, it’s a route not to be attempted without local knowledge.
The end of our summer cruise
Well, we started cruising on 17 June, and finished on 25 September. The longest we’ve ever had together on holiday, let alone on the sea and in our boat.
It’s been brilliant. We’ve learned a great deal about each other, we’ve eaten well, we’ve enjoyed cooking, we’ve met some wonderful people, we’ve so enjoyed exploring and can’t wait until next year.
Now, do we go to the Baltic, or head back down to the west coast of France again to explore the areas we missed this time? Who knows? Maybe we’ll just exit Beaucette and make the decision then. North or south? That’ll be the question.
Piers and Lin
From the Pilot House of Play d’eau
Fleming 55
You can get in touch with us any time by using our Contact Form.
We passed close to Corbière lighthouse click to enlarge
The quietness and tranquillity of Beaucette Marina, Guernsey click to enlargeHave you ever wondered about coming to Beaucette Marina? Ever wondered how the marina was created – its history from quarry to marina? And what about the restaurant which seems to have changed hands a number of times over the last few years – is it OK?
Having taken many calls from friends and colleagues asking us these questions, we’ve created new pages on this website which hopefully answer the questions so we don’t have to keep repeating ourselves!
Tranquil Beaucette Marina, Guernsey click to enlarge
Beaucette Marina Guernsey with its 115 berths is the quietest, if not the most beautiful and tranquil marina we have found in all our years of cruising.
Positioned on the NE corner of Guernsey, Beaucette Marina is the only privately owned marina in the Channel Islands and benefits from being a member of TransEurope Marinas.
Beaucette is home to a wide variety of sail and motor boats, some of the larger being a Trader 58, an Oyster 60, and our Fleming 55, Play d’eau.
Listen carefully and all you’ll hear are the Oyster Catchers and an occasional seagull. Maybe a boat will start its engines; maybe there’s a swish of water hoses as boats are cleaned. But no noise from passing cars or pedestrians; the only nearby road is the access to the marina.
Beaucette Webcam
Have a look and see Beaucette marina real time, right now, from its webcam.
Maritime info
Beaucette Marina HM office building click to enlarge
There is all the maritime information you need to know about Beaucette Marina, Guernsey, in Reeds Nautical Almanac under Channel Islands, and on the Beaucette website.
However, here are our own observations which you may find of use.
Beaucette Marina, Guernsey – the Entrance
Beaucette Marina’s entrance looks different from others for one reason, alone. Instead of the typical pair of concrete piers you might expect either side of a marina entrance, Beaucette Marina has tall cliff walls which can make the look of the entrance daunting when in fact it really isn’t.
The sill is flat. The north wall is vertical whilst the south wall slopes up at some 45 degrees to the vertical making the entrance wider as the tide rises. When it has 3m of tide over it, the marina manager advises it’s 15m wide – that’s more than at most marinas.
The entrance through the cliffs into Beaucette Marina click to enlarge
Let me give you a comparison – Perros Guirrec on the North Brittany coast has concrete piers with a width of only 6m and we’ve been in and out of there and Play d’eau’s beam is 4.9m! Now that’s a challenge.
If you are at all uncertain, just call Beaucette Marina on Ch80 and Ricky, the Marina Manager, will either come out himself or send someone in one of the marina’s dorys to help guide you in.
Beaucette Marina, Guernsey – approach the Play d’eau way
There’s a small 15 degree dogleg to the right in the final 250m before the entrance, and this is how we handle it on our Fleming 55, Play d’eau.
Call Beaucette Marina on Ch80 for clearance to enter. Like many marinas, there’s not room for two to pass.
Keep just south of the middle of the approach channel.
Aim to pass quite close to the last port hand marker.
Having just passed it, straighten up for the entrance.
When there’s only 3m of tide over the sill the entrance is already 50’wide click to enlarge
Two more points we bear in mind,
Although Play d’eau can enter at HW+/-3hrs (she has a 1.5m draft) we like to deduct 30 minutes either side to allow the tide to have its initial rush over the sill, first.
After the fun of the entrance and the immediate wonderment of being in such a lovely marina, don’t forget to turn to port into Beaucette Marina’s large marina pool to avoid meeting the small breakwater in front of you!
Piers
from the Pilot House of Play d’eau
Fleming 55
You can get in touch with us any time by using our Contact Form.
Aquastar 74 Beaucette Marina Guernsey click to enlarge
Makalu, a Malahide trawler Beaucette Marina Guernsey click to enlarge
Spindrift, a 1905 Zulu fishing boat Beaucette Marina Guernsey click to enlarge
Discovery 55 Beaucette Marina Guernsey click to enlarge
These were the voyages of Piers and Lin du Pré aboard their Fleming 55
Having so enjoyed my stay in 
