Wonderful passage down the Bristol Channel, round the tip of England and up the Cornish coast to an 18th century gem of a harbour.
All posts by Skipper
Winter work
When I bought Guiding Star, the surveyor suggested replacing the keel bolts. Once we hauled the boat out in Bristol in December 2016, it was clear he was right. Martin from RB Boatbuilding lifted out five tons of lead to get at the bolts.
Old keel bolts removed in December 2016. Some might have dated from 1907
New keel bolts in place
That was just the start of the winter work.
Joe, Eric and I repainted the hull
Relaunching Guiding Star…
It was a cold winter
I rented a workshop to varnish the spars
Martin built a spurning pipe for the anchor chain
Jay replaced almost all the standing and running rigging
Jay’s new Dyneema backstays
New running rigging
New name on the stern after struggles with a stencil
Spliced rungs for the ratlines
Completed ratlines
Hauling out in Bristol
Nineteenth-century technology to haul out an early twentieth-century boat. Underfall Yard in Bristol is still using the slipway installed in 1890, restored in the 1990s.
Guiding Star Looe Lugger 1907 