{"id":8448,"date":"2021-09-09T04:42:53","date_gmt":"2021-09-09T11:42:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/?p=8448"},"modified":"2025-02-07T15:24:29","modified_gmt":"2025-02-07T20:24:29","slug":"all-asea-whos-going-asea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/index.php\/2021\/09\/09\/all-asea-whos-going-asea\/","title":{"rendered":"All Asea Who’s Going Asea"},"content":{"rendered":"
Position: 40\u00b054’55″N 12\u00b056’56″E<\/a><\/h6>\n

\"The-Wind-in-the-Willows-illustrated-by-E-H-Shepard\"<\/p>\n

To paraphrase Ratty, the Water Rat in Wind in the Willows<\/a>, \u2018Believe me, there is nothing\u2014absolute nothing\u2014half so much worth doing as paying someone to mess about with your boat.\u2019<\/p>\n

Such luxuries are for the wealthy. We live large off the sweat of our brows, the calluses on our hands and the wine in our fridge. Putting Aleta back in the water was straightforward. The marinero de cantieri backed up the 100-ton travel lift and using a remote control, lifted her off her stands, moved her to the quayside, and plopped her into the harbour. Then the work began.<\/p>\n

Archimedes<\/h6>\n

Stripped of her sails since February, all three needed rigging. The staysail is my favourite. Small enough to wrangle, yet large enough to add a full knot of speed in the right conditions. It benefited from a new strip of sunshade, and it, along with the jib and main, had a wash and inspection. The main\u2019s boom pouch got a new zip and a few frayed edges patched.<\/p>\n

One benefits of smaller boats is that stuff is lighter and more manageable. We are considered a smaller boat these days, but really we’re mid-sized. I can lug the jib and main around in their bags, but a year of Covid has done nothing for my upper body strength. Fortunately, Archimedes ran rampant centuries ago and we have all kinds of shipboard leverage like winches, pulleys, and windlasses. One only has to remember how best to deploy Aleta’s many halyards and take the load off weakened shoulders. Thanks to said winches, I discovered my aerobic capacity had also not improved. Eventually, most everything found it’s way into a secure place. That’s not to say it will stay put for long.<\/p>\n

Ticking Clocks<\/h6>\n

Ten months after arriving in Gaeta, we finally sailed out. If schoolchildren have suffered life altering learning loss thanks to Covid, then pity the aged mariner. Our nautical neurons may have been hardened over the past few years, but the clock speed at which we access our RAM caches dates back to the 1950s. Almost before clocks were invented. We have an explicit ‘don’t get mad if I mess up’ agreement. It worked for a couple of hours.<\/p>\n

We packed the lockers with food, filled the tanks with fuel and water respectively, and off we headed. Our first stop is the island of Ponza, pearl of the Tyrrhenian Sea. More on that later. About 10 miles off Carol prepared tuna salad and in that moment missed Marlon, our food taster and after meal plate cleaner. Two border collies in the boat yard were excessively cute, but shy and standoffish, so we didn\u2019t get a satisfactory dog fix before we left. Marlon would have terrified them. It\u2019s time we checked in on our prodigal first mate\u2026<\/p>\n

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