SV Ulladh (ul-la): May 2008

Friday, May 30, 2008

Delaware River sailing off Essington PA

Thursday May 29, 2008. Mid 70's F with 10 to 15 knots from the northwest, against an ebb tide, under jib only.

Sunday, May 25, 2008

Sailing at Essington May 25, 2008

Sunday afternoon sail with Vanessa, 70's F, slack after low tide. Sailing past the marinas in Essington, east to PHL with a gentle breeze from the southeast. Spinnaker pole holding out the jib, probably would have been better with the genoa.

Saturday, May 17, 2008

May 16, 2008

Another day of rain, stopped at the marina on the way back from Chester, the planes landing at PHL dropped under the cloud cover just at the marina, streaming water vapor from the wings.

May 14, 2008

Sail to PHL, wing-on-wing with a gentle breeze against an ebb tide, after 5 days of rain. Not visible in the video but lots of debris washing down-river.

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Motor to the marina Delaware River

Wednesday 7th, 2008.

Low 80's F, slack before high tide, but no wind. Take a lunch break from my Chester project meetings and go for a sail. In reality a drift with the incoming tide to the airport with just enough air stirring to maintain steerage. Not enough wind to sail back to the marina against the tide so drop sails and motor. The old Volvo MD1 chugs reliably, but maybe not much longer, the water jacket has several cracks and leaks that I have plugged with Gorilla glue. This year I think it will be time for a new motor.

Monday, May 5, 2008

February 2008

Essington PA

Ulladh

Ulladh pronounced "ul-la" (null lad).

Uladh the gaelic spelling for the territory of the U-Nail chieftains in the ancient Irish province of Ulster (English/Norse), originally the counties of Down and Antrim, but now including Derry, Armagh, Tyrone, Fermanagh, Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan, also referred to as Ulidia (Greek/Roman),.

Uladh was the home of a pre-celtic, cruithne (crew-en-ya) pictish tribe, who may have been descendants of prehistoric tribes indigenous to the British Isles since the retreat of the last ice age.

Evidence from cut marks on deer bones from more than 30,000 years ago found in the karst formations of the Burren probably from hunters suggest a homonid precence. Archeological finds date first inhabitants (DNA evidence suggests dark or black skin and blue eyes) to about 6,000 BC and trade goods from Rathlin Island, County Antrim off the northeast coast of Ireland made from porcellanite stone appearing in Egypt and Crete by 2,500 BC.

The early tribes of Ireland where displaced by later waves of migrants from mainland Europe; about 1700 BC by bronze age tribes, celtic tribes about 500 BC, and in the past two millenia; Roman trading posts, Viking settlements, English plantations... and in the 21st century a welcome increasing diversity from the European Union and the world.

SV Ulladh (for vhf clarity I use "sailing vessel ul-la") is named for the territory of the first peoples to settle in Ireland after the retreat of the last ice age.

Fisksatra

Since 1949 Fisksatra Varv in the coastal town of Fisksatra Sweden, built fiberglass boats from dinghies to a 300 ton minesweeper for the Swedish Navy.

The Havsfidra 20's were built between 1968 and the late 1970's to Swedish Navy and Lloyd's certification standards.

The Havsfidra 20 and a larger version the Storfidra 26 where sold in the United States by Continental Yachts and Trawler Agency of Atlantic City NJ.

Havsfidra; sea-feather?
(fidra; to touch or tickle with a feather -Icelandic-English Dictionary, Clarendon Press 1874)