En route

Follyfin was duly launched on Saturday 2 May in the pouring rain! Prior to launch, the keel needed to be anti-fouled, as whilst on the ground the keel is folded up inside the hull. So once the boat was hoisted into the air to be taken down to the water, there was a brief 'window' during which this task could be completed by the skipper.

The photos above will give comfort to those people (not least those crew members joining us across the bay of Biscay and the Atlantic Ocean) who may wonder exactly how deep the keel is when fully let down. Now you can see, it is almost as deep as the skipper is tall!

Gale force winds are currently confining us to port, in Crouesty on the eastern side of Quiberon Bay. We managed about 40 miles yesterday with a nice following wind, which at least allowed us to emerge from the shelter of the Vilaine River. Hopefully the weather will have abated by tomorrow evening when we aim to cross to the western side of the bay, and then begin the journey north in earnest. Our aim is to be arrive in the Channel Islands by early next week.