To say we had a leaky deck would be a bit of an understatement. Below deck, whenever it rained, it was becoming a bit like using a fishing net as an umbrella. So, we booked in with the Sandy Cove Boatyard (SCB) at Newlyn to have the deck resealed.
The timing for this work depended on SBC availability, and in early September we took Happy Return out of commission for an anticipated two-week period for the deck work to be done. The weather gods did not shine on us. The shipwrights, having removed all the old pitch and oakam from the seams between the deck planks, were afflicted with rainfall which caused a ten-day delay. Needless to say, everything got a little wet below deck on the Happy Return. But eventually, the sun came out, and work commenced once again on resealing the deck.
It was at this time, that Murphy’s law came into play!
Murphy’s Law is amazingly simple. It states that if something can possibly go wrong at the most inopportune moment, it probably will. And in this case, it did. We had a leak in the hull, right up in the bow on the garboard plank, which is next to the keel. A little luck was on our side as the main slipway in Newlyn was free. So, off we went to the slip to sort out the leaky plank.
Thus, the shipwrights, who were working on the deck, moved to the keel and immediately set about the necessary repairs. They racked out all the old corking around the garboard plank, then with new oakam and red lead putty, they resealed the whole length of the keel. That was yet another four days lost on the deck project. But as all things must end, we did eventually have the deck finished.
The Deck is now twenty years old and in the life of a wooden boat, it is regarded as a consumable part of the boat. So, it was decided that we would extend the life of the deck, (hopefully), another twenty years by painting it.
The deck is an attractive, light grey nowadays, and looking very nice too. So far, it has only had two coats of paint, so the work continues. It is planned to apply another two coats of paint prior to the winter.
All this extra work has meant that our expected spend this autumn went somewhat over the anticipated budget. The planned work on the deck and the keel turned out to be about £2000 over the anticipated cost for the shipwrights. On top of this, we had the emergency visit to the main slip in Newlyn, which gave us a bill of just over £1000. All that being said, we do have a contingency fund for such events. Just as well.
In the meantime, we have rigged the large mizzen sail on the fore mast in readiness for some sailing when the weather permits. Happy Return will remain in Newlyn for the remainder of October. So, any sailing will be from the north arm of Newlyn harbour, which is directly opposite the fish market.
