What's going on with the boat?

After ten years living on Tarquilla we have moved to land. I'm often asked if we love the house or miss the boat and the real answer is - both. We still have Tarquilla and we are open to all options at the moment as far as her future is concerned. We will carry on working on her, it would be great to be able to sail her again. The Scilly Isles, Portishead marina, Bristol harbour and Falmouth are all places we have talked about as well as many others further afield. But, on the other hand, if a family was looking for a boat, ready to do the preparation she needs and wanted to take her on then we would sell her. She is not ready to sail off into the sunset but has a lot of life left in her. If you or someone you know would be interested then please contact us. She is 3 ply cold moulded, 42 foot long, one off design built in the 1960's. She has 2 double cabins and 2 single berths, a good size saloon, a decent size galley, head and a covered cockpit. She has two engines and a full suit of sails. We have lots more photos and can provide more details or answer questions. In the meantime, this blog has come to a natural pause for now as we take on new adventures.

An update on repairs


What has been happening since our lift out.

Mark spent the next few days preparing and sorting the boat. The yard staff had carefully chocked us up making her secure on the hard. As the stormy weather blew through however we could feel the wind pushing on the boat and the noise was awful. At least we were not going to sink though.

The skipper removed canoes and dinghies to make room on the deck and the anchors were lowered over the front to reduce the weight being supported. He put netting up all round the guard rails to stop things falling overboard.

Dinghy dangling off the davits prior to being lowered

The boarding ladder was lowered and secured with an extra rope fixed beside it as a hand rail to enable us to get on and off. Underneath the boat the workbench needed to be set up and wood lowered down ready for using in the repairs. A secure spot for the dog to be tied to and somewhere for his bowl meant he could watch and stay slightly more out of trouble. Two ropes work for us to get things on and off. One with a quick release clip for bags and a bucket on a rope for loose things. This can easily be lowered over the side and is safer than climbing the ladder whilst carrying something. Again our experience on the beach proved valuable and saved us time as we had already been through the trail and error stage.

View from the deck

A bucket placed under the through hull (drain) for the kitchen sink collects all the grey water which can then be emptied easily. Once again our composting toilet has proved its value as we are able to use it on the hard which is much safer for young boys overnight than climbing ladders. It feels like the floors are sloping because of the shape of the hard and there are now bracing poles throughout the boat to duck around, especially in doorways.



The first night we were woken by the sound of waves underneath the boat which had us both sat bolt upright wondering what was going on. The big spring tides meant that the water was high up on the slipway which runs behind the boat and therefore almost underneath our bed.
Amongst all these preparations for starting the work, the Skipper was also preparing things for a long anticipated holiday with family (more of that in a later blog). Although the timing was far from ideal at least she was safe on the hard. Knowing that we would be leaving her for a week in stormy weather had influenced our decisions about hauling out.

We really appreciated all the kind comments and support from everyone, thank you. We are now back from our trip and the Skipper is ready to start work. There will be more photos and updates when we can.






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