Wander Lost

Author: John

  • Better late than never. Haha 🤣

    It’s been a while since I’ve written on this but I guess it’s better late than never.

    As you all already know, John spent Christmas and New years with my family and I which was absolutely lovely. I can’t speak for anyone else but I definitely ate and drank too much. Haha 🤣

    Dotty and Jack 🐾

    There was lots of singing, dancing and laughing over Christmas and New year. Oh and how can I forget the carrot c*ck fish bowl and playing with nerf guns drunk. Haha 🤣

    Some of you may be thinking “what is a carrot c*ck fish bowl?” well I’ll tell you now.

    My sister in law and I decided to have a fish bowl.. Okay maybe 2 or 3. Haha 🤣 and we came up with the idea of carving a fish out of a carrot to put in the fish bowl but John had other ideas and he carved a penis instead so that’s where the name came from. Haha 🤣

    • New Year’s Eve fish bowl 🥂🥳
    Christmas Day jam 🎸🎤🎶
    John and I on Christmas day 🙂

    January really just disappeared, I really can’t believe that it’s mid February already. At the end of January it was my dad and my sister in law’s birthday so even more food and alcohol was consumed. Haha 🤣

    For dad’s birthday we had booked tickets to see a rock band so some of my family, John and I went and it was amazing. It made my family and I realize how much we miss gigging.

    The UK Rock Show in Aberystwyth 🎸🎤🎶

    It’s all been a bit crazy recently John needing to prepare his boat ready for when he sails off, with my parents and I along with my brother, sister in law and their 2 kids moving house. Even with this John and I have still managed to see eachother nearly every week with me either going to see him or him coming to see me.

    I’m hoping to go to Aberystwyth on Saturday to help John with some jobs on the boat so I really hope these storms pass quickly and that everyone stays safe.

    I am planning a surprise for sometime in the future but only time will tell if it actually happens.

    Keep checking back regularly to see if the surprise goes to plan 🤐🙊

  • Long winter

    Wow, it’s over two months since my last blog entry 😳 I am sure nobody noticed 🤣

    Up until New year’s eve, I was working 5 nights a week in Tescos from 5pm till midnight and on my days off I usual either went to Ffions or she came up to stay on the boat with me. We spent Christmas and New year together too. I have done some smaller maintenance jobs on the boat but not much. From now until mid March I will work two nights a week at Tescos and spend more time working on the boat. I have booked a lift out for February to renew the hull anti fouling and check some through hull stopcocks.

    The New Year is here though and a new start. I have dismantled then re installed the new V berth to paint the new wood and and put up some insulation against the hull. Condensation is always been an issue in here and the superwrap insulation seems to be working so far. I have done the starboard side, I now need to do port side.

    Underneath modified v berth

    My current plan is to leave Aberystwyth marina at the end of March, sail back to Southampton, spend a couple of weeks there with family and wait for a good weather window to cross the channel and head South toward the Mediterranean in May or June.

    For regular readers with curious minds (nosey), Ffion will not be coming with me when I sail South. We have had a great time together over the last 7 months but our futures lie on different paths. We have both always known and accepted this. I think and hope we will both be happier, richer and better people having spent so much time together. I would like to thank her publicly for the fun, the singing, the company, the long chats, the tapas, the hugs, the sailing, the driving, the theme parks, the fancy dress, the shopping trips and giving me the courage to try new things 🥰. I would also like to thank her parents, her brothers, sister in law, nieces and nephews for making me welcome and trusting me with Ffion.

  • Winter job

    I have got a job at Tescos supermarket next to Aberystwyth Marina for the Winter to top up my funds. I had always intended to work while travelling but had not intended to in the first year. I saw an advert for seasonal staff, applied and got it. I started this week filling shelves.

    Its interesting to see the differences between a big supermarket and my old convenience store. They get daily deliveries and most stuff goes straight out onto the shelves rather than keeping a supply in a stockroom.

    I have spent a lot of time with Ffion over the last few weeks, she passed her driving test, we went bowling, dressed up for halloween plus loads of other stuff.

    I will be blogging less often over the next few months as not a lot will be happening. I will be working on the boat when not working at Tescos and making sure I leave time for socialising.

  • Remodelling started

    I have started the changes I want to Lady Cindy’s interior this week with the V berth. I have lowered the bed by several inches which gives extra head room.

    There is still a lot to do in there with a new cupboard, painting and work on the side and roof panels but the bed is structurally complete and much stronger than the old one. Behind the panels i found one deck safety rail stantion and one chain plate were leaking at the deck, this will be a major reason for damp in this cabin. These are easy fixes with sealant when the weather dries up.

    I am back at Ffions parents for a few days to help her dad and help prepare for her test next week.

  • A week ashore

    An overnight stay at Ffions parents house has turned into a week of driving, truck racing, car repairs and landscaping.

    We drive to Cardiff and back via Swansea to see some friends and the car behaved flawlessly. The next day when driving to get some dog food there was a horrible scraping noise from the right rear. The shock absorber lower mounting bracket had rusted and broke. Luckily as a horse owner, Ffion had lots of baler twine in the car so we made a temporary fix to get back. The car is in a garage and we are in the process of sourcing a replacement bracket.

    Baler twine fix to the car

    We went to Pembrey to see the truck racing and had a BBQ for lunch.

    This week, as well as helping Ffions dad move scaffolding and using a mini digger to move tons of soil, we hope to get a scrap car to strip for parts for Ffions car.

  • Can you have too much fun?

    No, of course not 😊 A three day trip to Alton Towers that turned into four days, plus Ffions birthday week (why just have one day when can have a week?). Smiles and laughter have been the theme.

    Ffions mum looked after Dotty while we were away. She howled, escaped across a busy road looking for me, climbed on the kitchen sides to look for me out of the window and pood in their front room. Does anyone have a collar of shame i can borrow for a month 🥺

    Meanwhile Ffion and I were doing this…

    We had so much fun we booked an extra day.

    This week its Ffions birthday so had chinese with her parents and her niece, went to Folly Farm and moved a sheep at her field..

    Today I got the wood needed to start structural changes to the interior of Lady Cindy and later will drive down to Ffions parents to stay overnight. We plan an early start for a day out.

  • In Aberystwyth for the Winter

    I have moved the boat to Aberystwyth Marina on a 6 month winter mooring package a week earlier than planned. The weather has changed this week with a colder and windier outlook.

    When preparing to leave Aber laat week, i noticed a leaking fuel hose, I managed to find a replacement online.

    Leaking pressurised fuel line

    During the winter I have lots of plans for doing improvements based on my first 6 months experience living on the boat. I want to move the anchor winch further forward, improve interior storage spaces, lower the front V berth beds to give more headroom, make the table a drop sided one so i dont need to keep putting it away when not in use, I also want to get the boat lifted out for anti fouling and other hull maintenance

    I also have other things i want to do this winter. It’s Ffions birthday and driving test next month so today Ffion and I have a 3 day trip to Alton Towers planned, it should be a lot of fun plus great driving experience for Ffion with new unfamiliar roads and following SatNav.

    Ffion and her dad need help up at the field to do some work in the farm shed and they are also preparing for a house move.

    I want to restart developing some computer software etc which will eventually provide me with an income.

    I also want to do sone winter sailing to gain more experience before heading off to the Med.

    I think I have a very busy winter ahead of me 🙂

  • Summer coming to an end

    I have had a fantastic first summer living on Lady Cindy, the regular company of Ffion aboard made it special, we have had so much fun. Its not all been a bed of roses though, plans were made and changed all the time. Flexibility is an absolute must for this lifestyle. I have had diy jobs that i had to redo, some several times, until i got things right, i have had my low moments, but without them you would not appreciate the highs. I have done many miles of sailing (i will work out how far some day soon) sailed in lots of different conditions and got a good feel for how Lady Cindy handles and likes to be trimmed. I have spent time in New Quay talking to old friends and customers. Looking back on it, I definitely made the right choice for this lifestyle and looking forward to the next steps.

    So whats next? I am booked into Aberystwyth marina for six months and plan to use that time to refit the interior with better storage, lift the boat out of the water for hull maintenance and spend time with Ffion and other friends. Next April I will sail South via Southampton to say farewell to family there and then head South to the Med for the Summer.

    These are just random photos from my phone taken since I moved aboard that remind me of a few of the many things I have done…

  • Swansea

    I have sailed from New Quay to Swansea to see my eldest daughter and grandsons, I am now on my way back to New Quay.

    Towy Lock in Swansea

    On the way down I stopped at Fishguard and Milford Haven. The last and longest leg into Swansea was a bit touch and go because the Towy lock closed around 9.30pm which was my eta at one stage. Motoring and a turn of tide meant I eventually arrived with an hour to spare.

    It was great to spend time with family again, we went to a museum and had a meal.

    I am currently on the way back, I broke the Swansea to Milford Haven leg in two this time and caught a nice Thornback Ray while at anchor.

  • Keeping busy

    Since returning to New Quay I have spent as much time ashore as on the boat. I have spent a lot of time at Ffions house and their field where Ffion keeps her horses. I have been helping her dad by moving tons of ballast, dismantling a shed, moving swings etc.

    I have done some smaller jobs on the boat such as installing a rain collection and storage system including a pump and cockpit tap. It uses an old original tank at the back of the boat that I can also fill at marinas. I will use this water for washing and deck showers. Ffions dad gave me a gas cylinder so I have a more plentiful supply for cooking. Previously I only had two small cylinders in the cockpit which were not enough for liveaboard.

    There was some excitement in New Quay last week when somebody got stuck on rocks at target rock on the headland in New Quay. The Coastguard helicopter was called out to airlift him and his dog back to safety.