Border Force cleared Rusalka and her crew today and, without much ceremony, they set off.
Again, not very far for the first night - just across the Channel to a club mooring in Barnes Bay, ready for an early start tomorrow.
With Cheryl steering into a 15kt wind, Alex managed to pick up the mooring buoy’s line on the first go!
Just before leaving I noticed a bit of seaweed was stuck on the point where the rudder meets the skeg (the support holding the rudder to the bottom of the boat). They probably picked it up coming through the Marion Narrows – it’s minor, but could slow them down a bit, so once they got to Barnes Bay, Alex got into his bathing togs and jumped in. It’s a quick job to remove, but it involves getting wet!
MetBob has provided a new route for the current weather window. He now has them heading south to 44oS and then east until about 162 oE (on Thursday-ish). Then it may be a “downwind rodeo ride”, with a front passing through on Friday before light winds return for a projected arrival on Saturday (the 27th). The window is not quite as nice as the last one, but a forecast is only a forecast and we’ll see what actually eventuates.
