Intrepid Travels
| Vessel Name: | Intrepid Elk |
| Vessel Make/Model: | Outremer catamaran 51 |
| Hailing Port: | Fremantle |
| Crew: | Robert and Revle Elks |
16 May 2017
Cherbourg encore
We are reunited with Intrepid Elk after a winter/summer separation and it is good to be home again. IE has had a facelift and her shiny white hulls are dazzling once more. She has a beautiful new bimini (shade cover) over the helm seat, which Robert designed and which was fabricated in Portsmouth and [...]
06 October 2016
IE preparation for winter
Our sailing days for this year are over and we are once again busy getting IE ready for a winter in the northern hemisphere. This year, she will be in the water for most of the time, with a short interlude on land in a large painting shed, where she will have her hulls painted. In order to get her into [...]
30 September 2016
Cherbourg, France
It was an inky black moonless night as we slipped out of the river and across the sand bar with fishing vessel Emma Louise behind us. Revle was on the bowsprit with a spotlight looking for hazards ahead. I was at the helm, peering at our chartplotter and concentrating on following our inward track. [...]
22 September 2016
Plymouth
We made a motoring passage of 35 miles to Plymouth Sound, then battled against strong currents up the Tamar River to an anchorage at West Mud where we spent a peaceful night. Plymouth has been a major naval base for centuries and we had some close encounters with modern navy ships in the harbour. We [...]
18 September 2016
Falmouth
Our passage to Falmouth took us past The Lizard, a projecting headland with a ferocious tidal race. We passed a little too close and got caught in the race which was too bumpy for comfort. Approaching the Falmouth harbour, we had the excitement of crossing our track from June 2015 when we made landfall [...]
17 September 2016
Newlyn
We left the Isles of Scilly early in the morning to catch a light northerly wind to Land's End and the fishing port of Newlyn, just south of Penzance. We couldn't believe our luck, having another gentle passage through one of the most treacherous and notorious waterways in northern Europe. We galloped [...]
Arendal
Arendal is a large town near the southernmost point of Norway. Formerly Scandinavia's largest port with many impressive buildings, it is now a beautiful holiday centre with lots of interesting things to do. We found a fishmonger and stocked up with torsk (cod) and salmon. We took a clunky old ferry to the island on the opposite side of the sound and came upon a small fair, with stalls run by both adults and children. We sat in brilliant sunshine, soaking up the colour and atmosphere whilst eating waffles. Mysterious streaks of yellow powder appeared on Intrepid Elk during our stay. With difficulty they could be washed off. Presumably some industry upwind of the town emits this.
Leaving Arendal we headed west along the coast to a small anchorage in Kvasefjorden, sheltered from the strong winds overnight. Then a very rough and stormy passage to Mandal - Norway's southernmost town. As we approached Mandal we decided not to enter the river due to strong winds. Instead we anchored off what is said to be Norway's most popular beach, deserted at the time in the bleak conditions. As the wind eased we went up the river and found a marina in the middle of town.
