San Fernando

Day Sail

With a crew of five on board we set off for a day sail down to Buenos Aires. It was a lovely winters day with a light following breeze.


Exiting the River Lujan. We were not the only ones out for a sail.
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Erica gracing the foredeck.
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Nephew Jordan helming and Nancy.
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Erica taking a break from the foredeck.
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2.1 knots and a depth reading of 1.9 metres. Outside temperature around 8ºc.
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Grimaldi Lines "Grand Francia" manoeuvering in Darsena Norte Buenos Aires.
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Kiriwina on the buoys at Yacht Club Argentino.
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In the lancha heading ashore.
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We had planned to spend the night in the marina at Puerto Madero. They said they were full. Later, around 22:00 we counted 12 empty berths so they were not full at all.

This was no real problem apart from the fact that with a malfunctioning Eberspacher we had no heat aboard with an overnight temperature around zero.



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Shift Ship

This morning I had to go to the dentist a few stops down the line at Martinez. It was all over in about 7 minutes with everything OK. The cost was Arg$150 (about £25).

Back on board at CNV I had been allocated a new berth. Socios have priority and with the club pretty much full we Transitorios are slotted in where space is available. Water levels were again very low.

Three marineros helped me move using a club launch as tug. Here we are stuck but with the launch full astern and me rocking Kiriwina from side to side we pulled clear.
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Temporary helmsman.
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My new berth is closer to the club entrance from Rio Lujan.
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The closest yacht is aground in shallow moorings.
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My new mooring. Still with WiFi, electricity and water. Being closer to the river it is exposed to some surge and wake but the motion is gentle. To port is "Alaska" a 47 footer which provides some protection from surge.

Boat spacing is greater with a lot more space astern.

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I'm told water levels this low are very rare. Here the mooring chains are exposed. These heavy chains are secured to the bottom. Shorter lighter lengths of chain with mooring lines are shackled to the heavy chain at each mooring. The mooring lines are bought aboard and secured.

The theory is that as water levels rise the heavy chain lifts just enough to ease tension on the moorings. It seems to work pretty well but one needs to experiment a bit to find the right line length.

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All secure and we are more or less afloat with the water level some 0.6m below datum. Fortunately the bottom is soft mud.
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A quick trip round to Club Albatros where Gilles has his boat ashore for a major refit including re-engining.
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