Arwen's meanderings

Hi everyone and welcome to my dinghy cruising blog about my John Welsford designed 'navigator' named Arwen. Built over three years, Arwen was launched in August 2007. She is a standing lug yawl 14' 6" in length. This blog records our dinghy cruising voyages together around the coastal waters of SW England.
Arwen has an associated YouTube channel so visit www.YouTube.com/c/plymouthwelshboy to find our most recent cruises and click subscribe.
On this blog you will find posts about dinghy cruising locations, accounts of our voyages, maintenance tips and 'How to's' ranging from rigging standing lug sails and building galley boxes to using 'anchor buddies' and creating 'pilotage notes'. I hope you find something that inspires you to get out on the water in your boat. Drop us a comment and happy sailing.
Steve and Arwen

Saturday 31 January 2015

My fire kit

I realised the other day that during the summer on my jaunt up the lynher I used my fire kit to start my beach fire at Redshank Point. And I had forgotten to replenish it. So today I took five minutes to make up a little fire starting survival kit that goes in the grab bag in a sealed Tupperware container. It comprises

Three little mini light glow snap sticks
Six little fire sticks
Some powder that catches fire very quickly, bought from a survival store
Two nine hour slow burn candles
Some wind proof matches
A survival blanket 
A signalling mirror
A Flint striker and key
Some cotton balls soaked in petroleum jelly

I really don't think I will ever need to use it as sailing anywhere along my stretch of coast isn't far from some habitation but as I discovered in the summer, anchoring off a beach, beach combing for some kindling and small bits of driftwood, and building a tiny little fire whilst making a brew........well it is quite a pleasant little interlude!

Roll on spring and some sailing weather. 
Plans for Easter through to summer sailing this year include

An invitation from my friend to sail within down at Falmouth in his post boat. Then in arwen, 

Sailing eastwards around to Dartmouth and up the Dart to Totnes, taking Arwen out at Totnes
Sailing westwards down to Falmouth, taking in Fowey and then the Helford River, along with the estuary rivers around the Fal
Sailing over to Salcombe and right up into her creek heads 



And on these journeys, maybe some stop offs at Polperro and Looe, maybe mevagissy and a few smaller village harbours on the way to and from Falmouth. Who knows? See where wind, tide and mood take me!

2 comments:

Bursledon Blogger said...

Steve you're making me feel very guilty, for a well stocked day sail I might ship a Mars bar and a bottle of water, I need to work on preparation this year.

steve said...

Hi max
Actually I normally go overkill on most things but I was trying to assemble just one grab bag that would serve for days ail or coastal camp cruising sail of few nights camping on board.
The danger is of course that the grab bag becomes too heavy.........and sinks!!!
Sort of self defeating really
You well?
Steve