Home Port; on the Delaware River at Fox Grove Marina Essington PA.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Sunday August 24, 2008

Sunday August 24, 2008

Midday sail around Little Tinicum with Vanessa, mid 80's F 5 knot or less breeze out of the west-south-west.

Tack the Tinicum Range shipping channel, island to Paulsboro from the Valero Terminal to Darby Creek. Mostly close hauled down river, retreating out of the 50 foot deep channel into the 20 and 30 foot waters of Little Tinicum for traffic to Valero and an OSG on its maiden voyage from Aker with bow cone out of the water.




Thursday, August 21, 2008

Wednesday August 20, 2008

August 20,2008
Mid 80's F, clear sky 5 to 10 knot from south.
A slow afternoon sail to Billingsport
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Sailing past Mifflin Bar Dike

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Saturday August 16, 2008

Saturday August 16, 2008

Morning sail, 5 to 10 kmot breeze out of the north with gusts to 15.

Sail with the flood tide on a beam reach to the airport. Jib of Billingsport and close reach to Mifflin Dike. The wind direction changes from northwest then west with building gusts.

To pass between Mifflin Dike and Little Tinicum my course is northwest then west to the marina. Approaching Mifflin Dike with full sails the boat is now stationary against the maximum flood. Motor on and drop the genoa, pass Mifflin Dike, cut the motor and tack into the wind but after a few tacks I have not made any forward progress against the flood tide with respect to folks fishing at the UPS terminal.

Motor sail to the marina where the power boats are loading with beer for an afternoon at the island beach party off the mouth of the Schuylkill.


A LNG carrier at the airport dock, when in transit it will have a coast guard and marine police escort.

Monday, August 4, 2008

Sunday August 3, 2008

Sunday August 3, 2008

Sunday morning sail, mid 80's F, 10 knot wind out of the northwest rising to 20 and gusts to 26 (NWS at PHL)

Leave the marina and wind changes to almost due west, tack against the flood tide to Eddystone. Wind builds with gusts out of the northwest and the boat develops good speed.

My competitor from the previous round the island informal race is tacking on the same course. Not a Hunter, a Compac 25

A coal bulk freighter is unloading at Eddystone and a tug with coal barge has entered the Eddystone channel. The Eddystone channel is the most direct exit down river from Tinicum, but with a tug and barge is not wise to enter. Today is a short sail for me, I need to return to Philadelphia by 1:00 PM, so come about "jib" at the Eddystone dock, the wind is now out of the north and I have a fast broad reach back the the marine with the flood tide.

My competitor continues into the Eddystone channel but jibes to the New Jersey side to clear the coal barge now be rotated by the tug.

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)