Pioneer at anchor

Waiting for the dock gate to close at Penzance.......
first of the crew arrive aboard the MBLA's Happy Return looking forward to their trip 'round the corner' to St Ives......
another ex-lugger, the beautifully restored Pioneer lays at anchor off the back of the quay at Newlyn......
work begins on the final stages of scrapping the Roseland.......
and the Geordie boys are back in town having completed their refit of the new Valhalla at Mevagissey......
a relatively still night in the harbour......
in the best of traditions, the weekend wedding of Hannah Pascoe (Huers) and the Wiffer (Sea Jay) is celebrated with the family punts decorated with bunting......
caught at twilight, the Twilight III on the slip.

Fastnet yacht race 1979

Thirty years ago this weekend 303 yachts of left Plymouth at the start of the Fastnet Yacht Race and headed west - unknowingly, headed in the opposite direction, was one of the worst summer storms to hit the south west in living memory.

By the time the storm had passed through the fleet of competing yachts, 15 sailors had died, 140 had been rescued by a huge rescue team that included Nimrods, helicopters, Naval ships, tankers and fishing boats - 23 boats were abandoned and 5 were lost - no lives were lost from the boats that sunk. One of the surviving yacths, Gunslinger, is currently based in Newlyn.

The RYA's inquiry into the race makes for an interesting read, as do some of the subsequent accounts and personal stories from the race.

Satelleite weather images from the time give some indication as to the data arriving at the Met Office, taken from this selection of image galleries.

A few survivors were picked up by the Guilvenec registered prawn trawler Massingey. She, along with two other French boats, the Petit Poisson and the Sanyann arrived in Newlyn late Sunday evening.
The Massingy on the end of the north quay discharging her resued sailors, the white vehicle to the left is possibly a waiting ambulance......
a number of fishermen are stood on the quay while the Massingey moors up......
looking across to the gaps with the Massingey on the left and the San Yann outside the Petit Poisson.

One for the armchair sailor - you can take part in this year's Fastnet Race - virtually - a simple and quick register and you will be ready to set sail from Cowes with the rest of the fleet starting on Sunday - then follow your progress against the rest of the fleet for real!

Three lots of TNT in town

Newlyn Orion gallery's summer exhibition is Linda Tedsotter's Ginnungagap, running till the 17th of October.......
making hay while the sun shines, the Cathryn takes advantage of the fine weather as she makes her way past the scalloper Mattanja and heads out to sea for a third time in the week.....
looks like the strimmer has seen some action down the Old Quay, it would be nice, however, if a few inconsiderate dog owners were to arm themselves with the appropriate kit and follow behind their pooches when taking them for their constitutionals......
landing gear hoisted aboard the CarolH.......
one of the three TN Trawlers, the Philomena takes spares aboard from the suitably decorated JJ Marine wagon.

Fog 1 Sun 2

The Sea Cadets' training ship John Jerwood sits quietly in the wet dock at Penzance......
while Robin Turner conducts the auction of a tuna trip......
and a selection of albacore tuna from the Ben Loyal's 900kg catch........ something to look forward to for the fans of local music in the first week of September over at Sennen beach....... a heavy morning fog bank rolls down the Coombe river from Drift Dam.

Agnes - Classic yacht leaves the harbour

Back from another marathon tuna trip, the Ben Loyal waits in a landing berth at the market.....
back to the paint job now the rain has stopped......
the Agnes, a classic wooden boat, she's a Scillonian Pilot Cutter built in 2002 by Luke Powell of Working Sail, one of a limited number of exceptionally fine recreations of boats from the past......
well, she used to be Highlander of St Ives, the original Cornish Sardine boat, now back in Newlyn again under the ownership of Jeremy Hosking.......
relief lifeboat Ruth Snell has just arrived to cover for the Ivan Ellen which will be away for some months....
there's whole lot of caulking work being done on the Anthony.......
not only is the helmsman female, looks like she's still at primary school, good to see the young ones being given some responsibility from an early age.......
more relief for the IRB........
wishful thinking or is it a special offer this week at the green garage?

Newlyn and the WWW

WWW - wet, warm and westerly conditions prevail over the west of Cornwall this morning, tourists taking shelter in shops will hear locals talk of mizzle - a combination of mist and drizzle........
greets Michael Nowell as he heads the beamer Elizabeth N out through the gaps and heads off to the waters south of Devon.......
three four stone boxes of fish prove little problem for our main man at Ocean Fish as the van is loaded with the morning's auction proceeds......
good fishing for the Lyonesse, after a night on the Cornish Sardines the big cat's seakeeping proved invaluable in the poor conditions, the boat's tallies are all over the tubs of fish.....
and a quick glance would suggest that Falfish Team had seen off Ocean Fish's boat Resolute by 18 tubs to 1, however, a whitewash was the order of the day, there was a shortage of Falfish tubs it appears and they had to borrow one of the orange Ocean Fish tubs!

Porbeagle sharks about

Sometimes a casserole of shin of beef is just what's needed in August........
Eco-Oil Ltd, for all your waste-oil requirements........
a fair few sharks on the market this morning.......
quality monk tails headed for Porthleven fishmonger Wings......
high water leaves its mark in the harbour......
the odd dog-walker braves the prom.