George
Sun May 11 15:25:02 EDT 2008, 48 35.98'N:004 33.69'W

blogging aboard

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Richard
Sun May 11 14:45:02 EDT 2008, 48 35.98'N:004 33.69'W

This boatyard actually has two horses. The horses are kept (partly) to keep the grass short, which they do a good job of by eating grass most of the day.

We have left this boatyard, and are further down in the harbor of L'Aber Wrac'h, where there is enough water that we can leave at any stage of tide.

Richard

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Sun May 11 14:29:23 EDT 2008

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Richard
Fri May 9 14:33:02 EDT 2008

This is the interior layout plan of Issuma, as drawn by Yann Sergent, the previous owner.

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Richard
Thu May 8 1:50:02 EDT 2008, 48 35.73'N:004 39.88'W

We've been working on getting Issuma ready to sail. Most of the sails are now on, the deck has been covered with non-skid paint and tape, a few electrical and fuel system projects have been completed, and we've been studying the way the boat systems work.

We are still at the boatyard where the ever-helpful previous owner, Yann Sergent lives. One couldn't ask for a better previous owner, as Yann and his wife Patricia have helped us with all sorts of questions and projects, as well as feeding us wonderful French dinners.

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Richard
Thu May 1 16:12:35 EDT 2008

Issuma is still in France, and George and I are at Newark airport.

Several people have asked how long the preparation has been for this trip. The preparation started in January, with a trip out to France to see the boat (I had it surveyed before I bought it, but I was not able to visit it until afterwards).

The departure date was decided upon in mid-January. The choice of departure date was determined mostly by these things:
* spring tides (the highest tides, about 8 metres or 25 feet in this area) were in the first week of May, and it was not certain if there would be enough water to move the boat from where it was any other time in May than at high water in the first week
* preparation before the first sail was expected to take the better part of a week
* southern routes across the Atlantic (East to West) seem best started before June to reduce the chance of encountering a tropical storm
* northern routes across the Atlantic seem best started later in June or July. If there were problems with the boat that caused delays, attempting to take the southern route in May would allow a fallback plan of taking the northern route in June

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Brittany
Tue Apr 29 22:49:43 EDT 2008, 48 35.73'N:004 39.88'W

Richard and his intrepid crew are buzzing about preparing to fly to France to pick up Issuma, his new 16m (52') steel schooner, and bring her across the Atlantic. Richard and George are flying out Thursday, May 1, 2008, an auspicious day upon which to begin an adventure! Al and Peter will arrive a few days later.

Upon arriving in L'Aber Wrac'h in the northwest of France, Richard and George will begin stocking Issuma with supplies and sustenance. Once all crew is gathered, they will undertake a test sail into the English Channel. Barring any need for significant repairs, they will begin their journey. Exciting times ahead!

For those who have not lived in the Arctic, Issuma is an Inuktitut (Eskimo) word meaning knowledge, idea or wisdom.

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George Ray
Tue Apr 29 15:53:03 EDT 2008, Southport, NC, USA

We are getting close to departure from USA to France to meet the schooner Issuma and get underway. Lots to do and lots to figure out. There is hardly time to dot every 'i' and cross every 't' so the challenge is to do a reasonable job of assigning priorities. Lots of nice and knowledgeable folks have added their experience to the effort. Meteorological-Hank and WorldCapt-Martin come to mind.

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