Fram's Voyages
Summer Season 2016
Roam was reunited with the sea on 23 April. It was a beautiful, if cold, spring day in Skanörshamn, Sweden. Her mast went up a week later and today 3 June she is ship shape and ready to go. Log will follow as we go along.
4/6
Skanörshamn - north beach, Skanör
Sunny, light winds from S
Dropped anchor and went swimming
Distance sailed 1NM
4-5/6
north beach Skanör - Höllviken's north beach anchorage - Skanörshamn
N55 24 965 E 12 56 071
Distance sailed: 27.3NM
Wind
4/6 S 4-6 m/s
5/6 E 7-9 m/s
Continued on to Höllviken's beach where we anchored for the night. Lovely 2-hour sail using only genoa
Dropped anchor at 20.30 and had shrimp, pain riche and white wine for dinner. Spent a very calm first night onboard Roam. Next morning we took our morning swim, brrrr, water about 12C. As we ate breakfast in the cockpit, we watched the yellow regional buses going by and slowly sailboats started coming out of FalsterboKanal harbor for points north. We puttered around the boat, shining brass and putting things in their proper place before hauling up the anchor which Dan does completely manually, and sailing off back to Skanör the long way; through the canal and then clockwise around Näset. We had to beat close to the wind until we got past the 2nd green marker then fell off and sailed along the coast. It was a beautiful sail and a beautiful day. Took 3.5 hours. During the last hour, I tidied up and got things packed and ready for debarking, so that when we pull into our slip, we can just lock up and take our stuff.
We have a very easy docking method that Dan has perfected over the years. Guidelines from poles to dock and a cross line with a shackle to hook onto the bow to keep us from swinging with the wind on the way in. In addition to that we have a short line with a big shackle at one end and loop at the other. as we come in I hook the loop onto a cleat midships and clip the shackle onto the port stern line which is coiled and resting on the port pole. This is so Dan only has to focus on steering and getting hold of one stern line. The short line that I use is exactly long enough to let the boat reach within 60 cm of the dock. Once he has the stern fastened he puts the engine in forward so I can get the bowlines attached. Then when all lines are in place, he shuts the engine down.
11/6
Skanörshamn - Rødvig Denmark
Wind NE 0-5 m/s
Distance Sailed 19.3NM
Sailing time 4 hrs 53 min
Harbor fee 20€
We left Skanör at 11.30 intending to sail to Møn, but after sailing along at 3-4 knots for about 2 hours the wind died. We motored 1½ hours, constantly watching for the wind to come back as time was getting on. As we closed in on the Danish coast the wind came up again but not very strong and certainly not enough to get us to Møn before sunset so we set a course for Rødvig and had a lovely sail in. Patrick on Eliza from Skanörshamn came in an hour after us. There were plenty of slips available this time. We invited Patrick over for a beer in the cockpit, weather was sunny and warm, about 20C. Patrick is a police constable in Helsingborg so we talked alot about the new restructuring of the police in Sweden that is not working very well. I took Varga for a walk to stretch her legs and mine. She's doing all right sailing, finds a place to curl up and then tries to sleep through the ordeal. Dan gets a bit irritated as she always seems to find her spot right where he needs to be to trim sails. After dinner we went for a walk around the town. It's a very cute village with an active fishing fleet. Lots of fish restaurants and a smokery.
12/6
Rødvig - Skanörshamn
Wind S 7 m/s
Distance sailed 19.1 NM
Sailing time 3 hrs 40 min
Sunny and good sailing on a nice reach. We left half an hour before Patrick who has a Beneteau 40, but he didn't catch ius till we were sailing along the Falsterbo coast. We took photos of each other in full sail. He got a good one of us.
8-11/7
Moved onto Roam as we have rented out our house for the Falsterbo Horseshow this year. Stayed mainly in harbor as I am still working, until Saturday. Weather was stormy and wet. Spent the time stocking boat and getting her ready for summer vacation. Vilda was shipped off the Anna and Eva our friends who love spending time with the dogs. Varga stayed with us. On the day I handed Vilda over, she went lame in left back leg. Figured she must have fallen or stepped on something. Took her to the vet and they diagnosed her with Borrelia. She was put on Antibiotics and anti-inflammatory meds and seemed to perk up.
11/7
Skanörshamn - Helsingør
Wind SW 8-12 m/s
Distance sailed 40 NM
Sailing time 6½ hrs
Harbor fee 159DKK
We left as soon as I got home from work; 13.30. The harbor was buzzing with activity; boats looking for a space, boats leaving and many tourists who come down for the beaches and the fish store and to go to Badhytten which just opened. We motored out of the harbour, hoisted our sails and set course for the first in a series of red, green and cardinal markers meant to keep us out of the shallows as we approach the shipping channels. After 2 hours we sailed under the Öresund Bridge which is always a bit tricky as the bridge columns cause the wind to become extremely erratic and when coupled with the current which can be quite strong, makes for some difficult navigating. When we first starting sailing under the bridge we kept the engine running just in case the current was stronger than the wind propelling us forward. We have since learned to steel our nerves and go it without the engine. Some sun, some rain. GPS stopped working after 14.8 NM. We had plenty of back up, but it's a drag anyway when something stops working. Dan has a navigation app on his ipad which is very accurate; almost like a plotter. We also have a hand-held gps. We took a walk through Helsingør with Varga after dinner.
12/7
Helsingør - Gilleleje
Wind SW 5-13 m/s
Distance Sailed 15.7 NM
Sailing time 3 hrs 19 min
Harbor Fee - 140DKK
We walked into town for some Danish pastries. The Danes make the best pastries! Perfect for a mid-morning coffee break in the cockpit sailing in light winds. But it didn't last long; by early afternon the wind kicked up to 13 m/s and we had to tack to make it in to Gilleleje. We could see Thunderstorms over land in Denmark and got some rain but it was mostly sunny. We had a very hard time finding a place to dock at Gilleleje as it is a very popular destination with its active fishing fleet, restuarants and lovely beaches (not as nice as Skanör however). We were in the process of rafting onto a sailboat when a gust of wind grabbed the bow and sent us swinging right into the stern of the sailboat. There was no one on board the sailboat and after checking that we didn't do any damage, we moved off to find a better spot. Someone waved us in to the inner harbor which is very small but more protected from the wind gusts and we found a spot tied onto a Danish Vindö sailboat that helped us tie up. Gilleleje is another harbor teaming with activities and people. We went for a long walk in the town and then out on the beach. Had a nice dinner of steak that Dan made and french fries that we bought at one of the outdoor grill restaurants. There's a rowing club at Gilleleje and several teams took off in the early evening for a work out.
13 July
Gilleleje to Århus, nope Skanör
Wind W-SW 5-8 m/s
Distance Sailed 75 NM
Total sailing time 15 hrs 10 min
We got an early start to the day as had a lot of sea to cover to get to Århus on Jutland. the wind wasn't the best for us as we had to tack our way but it was a beautifully sunny day so we didn't mind. Lots of sailboats out going in all directions. We were making good progress when the phone rang; it was Anna who was at the vet with Vilda. She had a relapse and after a short examination was diagnosed with an infected uterus requiring emergency surgery right away. I gave my consent and then Dan and I discussed it and found no other option than to come about and sail for home. Such a bummer. we cast a last longing look at Jutland and then focused on adjusting the rigging for a reach to Helsingborg. Along the Danish north Zeeland coast we were accompanied by a dolfin swimming off our bow. He was soon joined by 6 others and they seemed to have great fun swimming alongside Roam, crossing her bow, jumping out of the water and then swimming around her stern and back to the front again. Dofins a bit of rarity in Öresund and indeed in the Baltic so we were surprised to be so privileged to be able to see so many at one time. Dan dropped Varga and I off in Helsingborg where we took a train to Malmö and bus to Falsterbo. Anna picked us up and drove us to the vet to pick up Vilda who was in abject misery after waking up from the operation. Poor thing. We were home again by 17.00. Dan had continued to sail solo to Skanörshamn. He lost the wind after Ven but it came up again so by and large he had a good sail arriving at our slip around 22.45. So that's it for our sailing vacation of 3 weeks. Vilda needs a great deal of care and TLC.
22-23/7
Moved onto Roam for the weekend. Stephanie is home and looking after Vilda
Took Madeleine out for a lunch anchorage. Hot weather has come, no wind and harbor jam-packed. Can't think why people don't anchor out instead of sweating it in a crowded marina. Had a lovely afternoon enjoying the light breeze, swimming, reading. Olivia and James arrived in the late afternoon for their first sleep over on Roam. For dinner we had bbq hamburgers and ice cream cones from the ice cream truck at the harbor. The children were silly excited about sleeping on Roam so had a hard time falling asleep but finally succumbed. Badhytten made alot of noise causing lots of complaints from boaters. It was pretty loud, I don't mind it but can understand that people were bothered by it.
24/7
Sunny warm no wind. Olivia woke us up at 05.30. She had gotten out of bed and climbed up to the cockpit where she sat singing at the top of her lungs. I think it was a song from the movie 'Frozen'. James slept like a log. Olivia and I took Varga to the beach and had a morning swim. Dan Olivia and I ate breakfast when james continued to sleep. I finally had to wake him up at 09.30. Madeleine came over at lunch and as it was such a gentle wind from the East, we motored out of the harbor and hoisted the genoa and had a very nice leisurely safe sail. the little ones sat up at the bow singing songs and listening to stories that I told them. James fell asleep quite quickly. We lifted him down the hatch to our bunk. Olivia fell asleep in my lap in the middle of the Princess and the Pea. Caroline and Peter came and picked them all up before dinner. Dan and I had a nice dinner on our own on Roam. Very happy that the grandchildren had such a good first sail experience.
20/8
Skanör Beach anchorage - Rødvig Denmark
Wind SE 4-5 m/s
Distance sailed 20 NM
Sailing time 4 hrs 20 min
We left the harbor at 09.30 and had a nice sail across. Lots of sailboats. Weather was overcast with some sun in the afternoon. After we tied up, we got our running clothes on and went for a run along the lime cliffs to the old church that is now perched precariously on the cliffs. It's just a matter of time before it goes tumbling off. But right now looks quite dramatic hanging out over the sea 30 meters below. The path along the cliffs was just cm from the precipice so i kept Varga on a leach just in case she saw a rabbit or something and went plunging over the side after it. These cliffs are very similar to Møn lime cliffs and indeed Dover cliffs of England. Not quite as high as the Dover cliffs though. We ran a total of 12 km. Rain came in the evening shortly after we got bakc to Roam. Had a cozy dinner and evening on board Roam.
21/8
Rødvig - Skanör
Wind S 0-1 m/s
Distance sailed 20 NM
Sailing time 4 hours
Uneventful trip home; no wind so motored the whole way. Beautiful day though sunny and hot. Sunned on deck.
8/9
Arrived on Roam intending to spend the weekend. But were met by a very strong smell of sulfur. Turned out the batteries hade cooked over and spit battery liquid all over. Dan disconnected everything so no electricity until this gets resolved.
9/9
Skanörshamn - north beach Skanör
Wind NW 1 m/s
Sunny 25C
We motored out to our anchorage off the beach at about level with the old sea mark on land. We spent a few hours cleaning Roam up after all Dan 's machinations with the batteries. For some reason the gismo we have that monitors the battery charging stopped working and they kept charging and over charged. Everything is back in place, new batteries hooked up. We took a well-deserved swim had a great dinner and watched an amazing sunset in glass calm seas.
10/9
Morning swim before breakfast. Spent some time watching the Light Vessel Race in really light winds. 13 boats from local harbors took part. It was a beautiful sunny day again. We sailed bacik to the harbor to pick up Olivia James and the dogs. Had lunch onboard, went to the beach to play and then took them out for a short sail. They fell asleep again. Good sign, I'm thinking:) Maxine, our niece from Stockholm, joined us for tea.
24/9
Roam lifted to her winter quarters; harbor parking lot
Total Nm sailed this season: 257.4NM
Rather pathetic but we enjoyed every minute we spent on her!
