The last few days of 2007 were nothing to write home about. The weather wasn't much - either too much wind, or no wind at all.

Brigitte was still working and Yanni invariably volunteered to look after the dog on the days we could go sailing. So, in the second half of December we managed on very decent daysail and last Sunday a couple of hours of 'drifting in style'.

The daysail in itself was very nice - winter sailing at it's best. A W 3-4 (could have don with a bit more) and not another boat in sight. It was glorious if cold, but fun all the same. By the time we rounded our usual mark (Medusa) the sun began to set. From then on it got dark pretty quickly. By the time we returned to our berth is was pitch dark.

Our last sail of 2007 in contrast was not exactly what you might call 'going out with a bang'. A F2-3 which was literally all over the place. Drifting in style. Over two ours we drifted from SYH to the container terminal and back - twice. And that was it. A fitting end to a pretty lousy year.



2007 has not been kind to us at all. My dad died (much too soon) in January, on the job front everything went tits up (found out I had completely and utterly wasted the last two and a half years of my life) and uncertainty loomed large. Things can only get better.

One of the few sources of constant joy was Guapa. Better than the year before and on an unstoppable upward slope. On the electronics front we've pretty much renewed everything (just radar/plotter left to be installed). Having a fully functional autopilot has completely changed our sailing experience. A real blessing on those longer or shorthanded passages. The electrics still need some minor tweaking but we're getting there.

Guapa proved unphased by the F8-9 we had to endure on two occasions. A boat capable of far more than it's crew. She was extremely comfortable over an extended period. Plenty of room for all 4 of us.

Next on our 'to do' list is taking care of her deck. In places the teak is still as good as new, in others it's got to go. Much as I like teak the replacement won't be teak. It looks great, but the costs are prohibitive. In order to keep the look the replacement will be cork based. We can keep the 'teak look' and have a natural product at an affordable price.

Roll on the first sail of 2008.