Sailing on, single handed

Max and Elizabeth on board AQUARELLA in Greece

My husband and I sailed together for 24 years, half of which were in the Mediterranean with our 37 year old 31ft Hallberg Rassy. Max was a retired sea captain and marine pilot so he was used to giving orders on board which I obeyed without question.

Sadly he died earlier this year and his very last voyage was when his ashes were spread at sea.
Needless to say I was devastated and faced with many challenges after his death.

Each day there was a new hurdle to get over and there were many difficult decisions to make. One big question was to decide what to do with the boat, which was standing on the hard in a boatyard in Greece.

I decided to take up the challenge of keeping the boat and sailing alone. I was very uncertain if I really could do it and afraid of crashing into something, falling overboard or ruining the boat etc. but at least I would give it a try.

I have now spent more than 3 months sailing around the Saronic islands and apart from a few mishaps it has been a great success. It has boosted my self confidence, doing things I never thought I could, and I don’t regret for a minute that I decided to keep the boat.

I have written many of my thoughts and experiences on my blog “Sailing on – single handed“.

Here is the entry I wrote on my blog after a rather eventful day sailing 30 miles from Poros to Porto Heli.

Alone at sea

I had been studying the weather forecast intensely for about a week and after 10 days of strong Meltemi winds it seemed Saturday was the best time to embark on the 30 mile solo sail back southeast to Porto Heli.

I left the anchorage of Neorion at 7 am, and after passing Poros town in the golden light of the morning I hoisted the mainsail. As there was hardly any wind it looked like it would be a motorsailing trip that day.

Any normal sailor hoists full sails in moderate winds and reefs the sails in strong winds but I did the opposite. I didn’t roll the whole mainsail out but left a few turns on the boom. This was only a reflection of my own uncertainty and lacking self confidence plus a little laziness and nothing to do with any advanced sailing technique. I just wanted to be prepared if any strong winds got up on the way.

Navigating round the islands

I chugged along happily with the autopilot on and camera in hand. I ate breakfast, drank coffee and relaxed, enjoying the changing view. I checked, double checked and triple checked my waypoints on the chart and the ipad, all was well.

Eating breakfast while the autopilot steers.

About half way along I heard the dreaded sound of the engine going right down in revs.The boat came to a standstill ! Instinct told me there was something in the prop. I put the engine into neutral straight way and then eased the gear slowly astern hoping whatever it was would unravel and loosen. However when I tried to engage the gear forward again it was very sluggish and I was afraid of doing any damage to the shaft or the engine. I turned the engine off.

With no wind to speak of, my options were few. I nevertheless hoisted the rest of the mainsail and unfurled the genua in the hope I could get some sort of speed.

1.8 knots was all the wind could give me. This would mean another 8 hours at least, but the worst thing was I could hardly steer and I was right in the middle of the fairway between the islands with high speed ferries charging past on both sides !

I tried to rig my Gopro camera to a boat hook in order to sink it down and inspect the prop. In theory it should be able to connect to my ipad by wifi so I could use the ipad as a monitor and see what was going on. But I couldn’t get them to connect so I gave up that idea. I was unwilling to go overboard and dive under the boat in the middle of a shipping lane. With 104 meters under the keel, anchoring wasn’t an option either.

Fortunately the wind started picking up then and I was under way again. I didn’t enjoy the rest of the trip though as I was worrying about how to anchor in a strong wind under sail. I’d never tried that, not even with Max.

Fortunately Porto Heli is a very big bay so there would be lots of room for mistakes. When I turned into the bay I thought I would try my luck and start the engine and gingerly shift into forward gear. It responded, although still sluggish. It gave me just enough propulsion to turn Aquarella into the wind and get the sails down. Then I dropped the anchor and let out a sigh of relief. My next reaction was to triumphantly throw my arms in the air, YESSSSS – I made it!

After a short rest I donned snorkel and fins to get down to the work of freeing the prop. I’m fully aware I walk like a duck on deck but I do wish I could dive like a duck in water – I can’t. Even my 7 year old grand daughter Olivia laughed when she saw me trying a couple of weeks ago “You forgot to take your bottom with you” she said.

Well at least I could see under water with my snorkel. There was a large strong plastic sack entwined around the prop. I couldn’t reach it with the knife in my hands so I used my feet and toes like a pair of clumsy pincers or plyers. Bit by bit I could loosen and remove the torn plastic and after an hour the prop was free. I had cramp in my feet and antifouling on my toes and in my nails but I was over yet another hurdle I didn’t think I could manage.

The last bit of plastic finally out of the prop.

About Elizabeth Tyler

Elizabeth was born in 1946 in England but has lived most of her life in Scandinavia. As a visual artist by profession she spends most of her time painting and exhibiting her works at galleries and museums in northern Europe. Since it’s the sea, the beach and marine life that inspires her most, she combines business with pleasure by painting on either on board her boat in the Mediterranean or in her studio in Sweden.

Apart from painting, She does etching and engraving and produces art educational videos. She also illustrates and writes books about painting techniques.

Her website: www.elizabethtyler.com
Her art blog: elizabethtyler-artist.blogspot.se/
Her sailing blog: yachtswoman.blogspot.se/

More on this website

• Debbie Leisure learns to sail her boat single-handed: Debbie Leisure writes about how she learned to single-hand her boat after the death of her husband.
• On my own, but never alone, by Laura McCrossin
• All dressed up and too afraid to go: Rediscovering the courage to set out alone, by Laura McCrossin