Finally! The specialised “Dyneema” rope and turnbuckles have arrived for the mast stays. WOHOO!


Although Nautical Supplies is only a few hundred metres down the road from the dry dock, the trailer on Allan’s push bike made delivery possible.
We’ve made a slow start to turning these inputs into a seaworthy yacht. But it was a start nonetheless. A lot of research, messing around and experimenting later we have the satisfying sum of one and two half stays complete and ready to fix one yachtless mast to one mastless yacht. Good result. Or so we thought. Allan has had a post-dinner panic that perhaps he’s done the sums wrong and we’ve done these the wrong length. Tomorrow’s first order of business will be to find out.
Allan has appointments through much of tomorrow so I’m not sure how much progress we’ll make, but perhaps I can get set up to keep us moving while he’s away.

It is interesting how my mood has lifted with something productive to do towards the next phase of my adventure ride. I’m definitely a “human doing” at heart, rather than a “human being”. Maybe that simply needs a chunk more “unwinding” from 40 years of go-go-go. Or maybe it is who I am and to be embraced. Or maybe those two realities are themselves intertwined and inseparable, with the art being more about recognising than changing these characteristics. Who knows?! It probably isn’t really calculable. Does it even matter? Anyway, I now feel we’re one step closer to sailing, and am delighted that the next phase is substantially back in our hands, rather than simply twiddling thumbs waiting for others to deliver