Project Nordkapp Part 8...

Just a very quick update with this post.

I thought I'd better get my finger out & do some more work on the Nordy!

Last time I patched some gel on the top coat where I'd gone too deep with the sander & those patches needed sanding now. Inevitably I went to deep again & created a few more patches too whilst finishing the sanding on the top deck!

Soooooo, the new plan is to spray paint here & get here finished as quick as possible as I'm itching to paddle her.

So I finished sanding the top deck & patched some gel coat repairs on the lower deck ready for sanding next time.

 Then I got really carried away & finally glassed in a rear bulkhead as the boat didn't have any originally.

I had previously prepared a template for the bulkhead a couple of years ago but I didn't like it now! I scrapped the template & made a new one, taped it & smothered it in releasing agent & wedged it in place ready for glassing. When the glass is cured & maybe a couple more layers added I remove the template through the rear hatch.

So there you have it, feels like I'm finally making progress!

Next time I'm gonna sand the gel coat repairs that I've done today & cover her in filler-primer ready for final prep & top coats.

Then all that'll be left to complete will be the deck seams, seat & footpegs :)

Born Again Kayaker...

Chris Kitch was putting the feelers out a few days ago looking for people to paddle Barry to Penarth on the weekend. Sounded good to me so we made the arrangements & met up at Penarth to leave a couple of cars there for our return.

The start point was Barry old harbour again :)

 I'd brought my newest lady for a play!

 My shipmates consisted of Chris Kitch, John Petty & Steve Pearce who hasn't paddled for the past year!

Nice to see him back on the water :)

 I think the unnatural angle of Chris' skirt indicates he's excited about something???

 Steve prepares to enter the choppy waters after a years abstinence.

He does well & we soon reach Nells Point with a good force 4 on our backs.

 Passing Barry Dock/Harbour.

 Sully Island was awesome in the West Side race with chaotic waves just over head height! I was the only one to go that way though, the other opted for a portage across the causeway which was a good idea.

Before long we were all back at Penarth in the now calm waters on this East facing shore :)

Nell's Point Tide Race Video...

A bit of fun on the Nells Point tide race with Jules & Stuart. 

We finished the day with a surf at Barry Island, backwards :)

Can't See It, Can't Surf It...

Me & Noel were quite excited about today. We were off to Aberavon for some longboat surfing. The forecast was for 2-4 foot waves with a 13 second frequency & light winds. Perfect!

When we got there though we couldn't see the sea! admittedly the tide was out but even when we walked to the waters edge we still struggled to see much. If that wasn't bad enough the waves, from what we could see were tiny :(

Time for a plan B.

 We had drove to Aberavon in Noels car, mine was at Penarth so we decided to paddle from Sully to Penarth in the fog. We considered doing the trip via Flat Holm but it was far too foggy & we were equipped for surfing & had no maps, GPS, split paddles & Noel even omitted his tow-line.

The vis as Sully was much better than Aberavon but still foggy as in the image above Sully Island was still hidden.

 We launched on the West side of the causeway so as to paddle around the back of the island.

 It was lovely & calm which made me long for a paddle out to Flat Holm.

 Instead I got in close to the rocks & on them once or twice too (whoops).

 Nearing Penarth the vis worsened. I was very close in here but the cliffs are still hidden.

 We just kept following the shore till we reached Penarth.

 Where , you guessed it, it was foggy!

 Noel trying to hide from having his pic taken :)

When we arrived back at Sully, as if on cue the Sun came out & the fog started to lift...

Project Nordkapp Part 7...

About 5 months ago I posted part 6 of this project & fully intended to crack on & get the job finished. Well 5 months between stages is hardly cracking on but I have got back to work on her.

In the previous instalment I had applied a fresh layer (2 actually) of gel coat to the top deck so this post is all about, (can you guess?), sanding. Lots & lots of sanding!

 The grey looking bits have had the initial sanding to remove the imperfections from painting the gel coat on.

 Whoops! I made 5 of these altogether & have now ground them out ready to fill with black gel coat.

Here you can clearly see the imperfections from the painting process. Gel coat is designed to be applied within a mould, I don't have that luxury so am doing it the hard way! 

I have now finished the initial sand & have ground out 5 spots that need filling. I'll do that tomorrow & maybe start the wet & dry process to to start bringing the shine back. Once thats done I can apply the deck seam tape & she'll be floatable if not completely finished.

Wonder how long till the next post?

Motley Crue...

Ok, so this is the same route as my last paddle. I was solo then but i'm definitely not solo today & have joined a Motley Crue of paddlers for the run out to the Holm Islands.

 There was nine of us in total, myself, Jules, Elan, Stuart, John, Gareth, Andy & Chris & Chris.

We all met up at the Captains wife in Sully at 0900 & were rather smug about the lovely conditions & warm sunshine.

We head off at 0930 & make our way across the causeway to the western end of sully island.

 Where Jules leaps a wave in the race!

 I too got a facefull was was soon past the island & heading out to sea.

 We leave the land behind & head off on a rough bearing into the mist as we cant see our destination at first.

 Flat Holm passes on our left but we'll leave that visit for later in the day.

 As Steep Holm is to be our first stop.

 That is if we can avoid the traffic.

 An hour & twenty minutes after departure we reach the Western end of Steep Holm & are nice & wide which means we wont have to fight the tide around the Rudder (an arch on the western tip).

 You can just see the light shining through the Rudder in this image.

 We paddle gently now along the eastern shore.

 Admiring the summer residents as they fill the sky.

 We land on the beach for a well earned rest.

Today I brought an Avocado for lunch as well as some cous cous & chick pea dahl :)

 The recent storms have undercut the steps & dramatically lowered the level of the beach revealing what I believe to be parts of the old pier that used to reside here during the first World war (maybe second?), I read history & then forget what I read! The level of the beach here does fluctuate with the tides but this is most certainly storm damage.

 Some communication cables were uncovered too.

After a well earned break & some banter with my home girls we push on for Flat Holm with twenty minutes of the flood remaining.

 Forty minutes later we reach Flat Holm as it's just a short three mile crossing.

 A terrible pic I know but this is one of a pair of Peregrin Falcons resident on the Island.

 After another break we push on for the mainland.

 Heading through the arch in Castle Rock.

 It was a tight fit with some tide running through!

 As we finally leave the island my watch reads 1300 & there's an hour of ebb tide running.

 But we're on neaps & its really not that strong.

We make good time for Sully due to a very shallow ferry angle.

Chris Evans hasn't swum today which seems strange given his previous record?

He evan pulls off some nice rolls & paddles the last 100 sat on his kayak, can this be a turning point for him???

Here's the route, about 14 miles roughly & a good day out :)