Author Archives: Patrick

Time flies

It was time for me to go back to writing, as this year is nearly at his end.

It had been a year rich in events, let’s see :

First, old memories of 1958 regatas coming at Skøiern, an octant from the 18°century coming from Marseille (perhaps the one of Captain Blight…) and the schooner « De Gallant » sailing for his unhappy fate.

For the »Gras » carnival of Douarnenez the captain became Captain Haddock, even his son din’t recognise him !

Its now traditional : a trip on the north coast, te see our friend Gilles in his home at Kergall and his wood of Kermarie, make beautiful enconters in the river Trieux we would sail up to « La Roche Jagu », only to see the Castel rising from the fog. In Saint Malo pilgimage at the « Bar de l’Univers », to admire the picture of Skøiern which adorn this bar in the fifties… Saint Servan and his Solidor tower, rememberings of past holydays… and visit at the Enim, the place who pay the retired sailors. A surprise with visitors from Saint Pierre et Miquelon, Pascale and Charlot, and a extraordinary enconter with Micha.

A round in Brest roads, to discover Roscanvel, his chapel’s stain glasses, his fonts, the Saint Pöl Roux cottage, the »Chaumière de Divine », reenconter by chance Jean Marc, some twenty yaers later and the gorgeous « Mariquita » and « Moonbeam », splendors coming from a glorious past.

It’s the feast in Douarnenez : with « ça cartonne » you can assist at wonderfull wreckeages in cardboard, while in the bay, at the « Aber » ancorage you always meet beautiful things.

After the passage of the Olympic flame in our boat we could not miss the Brest maritime festival, go back in the Penfeld knowed by the captain 50 years ago, be side by side with the « Pen Duicks », see the friends of « Fleur de Passion » and all the others. It was fantastic, with a night parade for the end, on a Yann Tiersen music. A regata to join Douarnenez were the feast was smaller, but nevertheless as great.

After another pilgrimage in Sainte Anne La Palud, we had enough time to join Galicia, A Coruna and Cedeira, climb up to the San Anton hermitage, assist to the fishermen feast with their Virgen de los pescadores, and by chance find by an antiquairy a magnific field glass, the one of the Chevalierde Haddoque I think. As usual a stop at the Groix island after a detour to see Jean Luc and Anne.

As usual again a trip to Marseille to hug Jacques and Sophie, Emilie and Manon, Eric and Martine, Marie and Jean Louis and make a walk where Anne Marie spend her childhood, the Anthenors, the Grand and Petit Mejean .

Autumn is coming on the Port Rhu, we celebrate the 80 years of Georges, the boatswain from Plogoff, Stéphane and Louison for a remake of the maritime festival, Nicolas, gran son of Louis Rivière came on board and there are the celebrations of the big stike of the “Penn Sardin” in 1924. The captain and his friend Alexandre found the association « Les gardiens du Bateau-Phare » to try to salvage the « Scarweather », the light ship anchored in the Pouldavid river : we will be busy !

Then we wish you

a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year !

The land where boats fly

In Douarnenez, time flies… one day in Lorient, to visit Lilian and his dog, another one in Plogoff, to see again our friend Georges and his hens, another time walking to the Juch and look at the devil in the church.

Douarnenez it’s also the «Greyhound » sailing under the orders of Captain Philemon, or the (great) hawks on Fabrice house….

More they are the « Gras » festivities where the captain couldn’t refrain to demonstrate, obvioussly to tell his lack of understanding to see the « Abri du Marin », Jacques de Thézac master piece, go to the hands of richs and wheeler dealers of all sorts !

April 18th 2023, SKØIERN enter for 3 months of work in the shipyard « Pleine mer » , to Christof Eberhardt, located in the Port Rhu, at the same place of the shipyards of the past :

Big works on the hull : 5 swan frames, 4 steamed frames, a tens of planks, the rudder trunk refited, a new paint for the engine…

Kilos and kilos of paint, liters of oils, oak and acacia for the frames, larch for the planking, okum for calking, bitumen for the seams, and a lot of elbow grease !

And on july the 19, at 17h12 o’clock SKØIERN goes back to his élément, by air, as many others, realy in Douarnenez boats are flying !

The actors :

Christoff and Pierrick,

Ivan, Xavier,

Patrick, Anne Marie, Zoé and Iris

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At least, back to the sea ! A running off to the Aber Wrac’h, meet again our friends, the « Bel Espoir » where the Captain will have the honnor to embark, not for long, but enough to jump 50 years back…. the wonderfull « Swallow », our oak at the Moulin de l’Enfer, then the Trieux and Lézardrieux to hugg the friend Gilles, meet again Dominique, make a tour in Paimpol.

We will enjoy Ouessant, the Tas de Pois and Camaret where you see sailing boats from the old times, when the boats where of wood and beautiful under their multicolored sails.

 

Port Rhu

Winter came, our second winter in Saint Pierre, and then we start thinking whether we were realy at the right place here.
Nevertheless we took time to enjoy the snow and the ice, wind permitting, in company of our furred and feathered friends, and at spring we sailed again, that time Eastward, to reenconter our families and friends, back to Britany to offer a better shelter for our boat, more in accordance with her past.
After the Great banks and the fog the Azores islands and our friends welcomed us for the summer : Horta, Praia da Vitoria, Santa Maria, still so beautiful and so dear to our heart.
The weather would be tricky for the last part of our journey but at least we will join Praia to Douarnenez with a direct course, this time the huricanes let us pass !
Douarnenez where we found ourselves quickly in our element, as if we had never let it. Here the maritime heritage is not virtual, it’s living and it’s with a great plesure that we reenter the Port Rhu, a place where the sea meets the river at the mercy of the tides, where the boats sleep under the trees.

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Anchored

Anchored, usualy us sailors we talk of anchorage but now it seems that we are about to be realy anchored in the archipelago. Spring came shyly, slowly, but we had a real summer, even hot, more than 20°C, nearly 24°C ! Of course we have taken the oportunity to pace up and down Langlade, his “Belle rivière” and the peat bogs, Miquelon where we circled 5 times the Cape, admiring the balsam firs, the deers, collecting mushrooms and naturaly enjoying lobsters (thanks to André!). We even took a bath at sea !

Again meetings and visits : Gérard, Linda and this time Michèle and Marc, nearly the whole Dattolo’s family ! Laurent finaly arrived whith his “Julie” and oncle Pierre, Ning, little chinese girl alone on “Andreth”, her 23′ sailing boat, shamely pushed back by the authorities, all together, but we keep the contact with her, “Zhai Mo 1”, another chinese sailing boat coming from the NE passage, better welcomed, difficult to understand authorities decisions…then the “Vagabond”‘s family : Eric, Anne, Léonie and Aurore, here to take some warm after so many years spended in the ice. Then came the sailors feast, the neighbour-of pontoon – feast, always with music, the 14th of July…the historic reconstructions of the Zigotos, demonstrations, unusual in Saint Pierre, far from the ones in “la Canebière”! the photography competition Capi won and boats, boats : a trip to Fortune whith the friend Stephane to unload the king crab, the dry docks of “Elinor Marit”, of “Cap Marie”, and naturaly our’s, where our “Skoiern” will exit, once more, even more beautyfull.

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Anchored, yes, and we are standing well !