Category: Exlex

DEPARTING HORTA
After only a week or so I long to be back at sea. I have already gotten strong abstinence syndrome.

First my plan was to ship Exlex back to Sweden but that would not really have been fair to her. Also I decided that it will be better to spend the shipping money on my next boat Exlex Rex.

Now after having had the use of my legs and gotten new books from Amazon, eaten fruit, bread, cheese, the urge to go to sea again is possessing me.

Also I have here been lucky to be out on the whaleboats 3 times. The hull of the next boat, Exlex Rex will have a whaleboat shape.

Exlex my present boat is painted below the waterline with Copper Coat. There have been different reports on how well it works. In my case the result is excellent. Exlex bottom is as clean as the day she came out of my workshop. I am pleased.

I intend to sail down to Porto Santo, Madeira. If Exlex can have the same average speed as from Ålesund Norway to Horta, 2 knots it will take us 20 days, but the weather decides. Only God knows how long it will take to reach Porto Santo. I have no self steering, no motor. In calms I have to wait for wind or use my oar, but thats fine as I have plenty of food and water and like to spend time at sea especially now that I have so many more books to learn from.

Some internet people worry about me not sailing fast enough. They say 2 knots is to slow.
I say the sense of speed is like most human senses adaptiv.
Therefore there is laws stating that cars must have speedometers. There is no speedometer on Exlex. My sense of speed has adapted so that I feel fine sailing with 2 knots.

High speed attracts strong forces. Nothing has broken during my recent 78 days long sail. Exlex is gentle on her gear and crew. I feel fine sailing with two knots. 4 – 5 knots would be fine too.
Haste makes waste. I take it easy. To read a book slowly, to enjoy a meal slowly, to make love slowly, to slowly reflect on life is fine for an old man. 60 years ago I was more in a hurry. I have learnt some.

After spending time in Porto Santo with nice friendly people the idea is to fly back to Sweden.

In my workshop I will start on Exlex Rex. Her beam will be 1.22 meter, or 4 feet, same as the present boat. I do not need more beam.
Exlex Rex will be at least 6 beams long, hopefully even up to 7 beams long or 8.4 meter depending on space in my workshop.

Adding 2 meters my present boats length will add about 80 kilos to her weight. Her circumference is 4 meter.
4 meter times 2 meter is 8 square meter.
Each square meter is 10 kilos.
10 kilos times 8 square meters is 80 kilo.

Adding wave creating length to a boat reduces her resistans. It is a better alternative of creating speed.
It is better for the environment, it is also cheaper for the builder than adding sail area and ballast keel and winches and rigging, its also more gentle.

After working on next boat in Sweden, in the end of April 2021 the plan is to return to Porto santo and Exlex and sail her to Dingle in Ireland and from there to trail her to Sweden.

This is the prediction. What really will happen might be a different story.

I thank everyone that has contributed to my experiment. Hopefully my work will lead to small safe ocean going boats that do not use to much of the earths non renewable resources.
Regards Yrvind

Exilex is a fine boat.
Her problem is me.
My ambitions was to greedy. Sailing to New Zealand non stop was not realistic. Now I have learned that lesson.
Sailing an Atlantic circuit in her would have been no problem if I had not loaded her with water for 160 days and food for maybe 300 – 400 days.
Also Corona changed everything. Borders were closed. The plan was to depart from Ireland like I did in 2018. That was not possible year 2020.
While considering different options someone asked me what I was going to do in New Zealand.
After some thinking I realized that really I had no business in New Zealand it was the voyage I desired.
I said to myself: With all the hassels of Corona visas customs bureaucrats etc why not just float around on a nice piece of the deep blue endless eternal ocean that I love so much?
1983 I sailed my boat Bris to Museum of Yachting in Newport R.I. via the Sargasso sea.
I had a fantastic time. Sunshine a very very light breeze, the Sargasso sea was flat like a mirror. I enjoyed myself.
The new idea 2020 was to load up the boat with as much food and water as possible.
I overdid it. After 78 days at sea I still have 75 liter water of 130 having used 65 liter.
As for food even worse. I do not know how much food I loaded but I have hardly dented it. Probably there is still 80 or 90 % left. That is I have not eaten more than a fraction of it.
This time with boarders closed I left Ålesund, Norway 27 of June 2020.
It turned out to be a very cold, grey, windy voyage.
Finally after passing the latitude of Cape Finisterre I hoped to get god weather. The pilot chart showed 1% gales but then there was 3 days of gales and predictions for more just at the beginning of September.
There was also some problems with the boat. She sailed very slow with all the food. I had experimented with a new type of hatches that was not satisfactory. The steering system, The jammers did not work. There were other things also that could be improved on.
Besides I had such good ideas for a new boat, a canoe cruiser. The hull shape like a whale boat. In Horta Azores there are whale boats. I have been extremely lucky twice so far I have been out sailing whale boats.
I cut the voyage short mostly due to bad weather and winter coming.
I now have sailed from Norway west of Scotland and south three times, first in Bris  1973, then in Bris 1983, now in Exlex 2020.
1973 was very stormy
1983 was good weather
2020 was windy cold and gray.
I will try to ship Exlex back to Sweden if I can afford it and myself somehow get back.

 

About next boat more later.
Regards Yrvind

Yrvinds arrival to Azores in his small boat attracted interest. Portuguese television did a report. Click the link to watch it!

 

https://www.rtp.pt/acores/sociedade/velejador-de-81-anos-passou-78-dias-no-mar-entre-a-noruega-e-o-faial-video_67922

Yrvind is enjoying himself at Horta Azores. The long period (78 days) at sea took it’s attribute. He is now slowly adopting to land life. He says he making progress, but still suffer from fatigue.

Kind people have offered him ice cream and that’s something he really like. He also have to stay in quarantine a couple of days. That sounds crazy with respect to his long lonely period at sea. But the authorities have to treat everyone equally, so he find it okay. He will soon start writing on his website and tell us his story. For now he is satisfied to stay where he are and have found some interesting boats to study for his next boat project, a kind of narrow whale hunting boats. For sure, as soon he gets home he will start  building a boat inspired of all new ideas he acquire from his latest adventure.

/Beppe

Today Yrvind have reached Horta on the Azores. 78 days at sea, 3571 nautical miles at an average speed of 2 knots. Yesterday was a little bit frustrating for him because there was a light head vind and he was close to land but could not dock at the port. He had to stay at sea and wait over the night for better conditions. To stop the boat from drifting he decided to use his sea-anchor. To get this thing onboard again was a heavy work that took him three hours to get done. 78 days at sea is a long time. His muscles is far away from what they use to be and he need support to be able to walk. But this is not a new experience for him and he has gone through this befor a couple of times. I spoke to him on telefon and he said he was in a good mental shape and look forward to stay on land and visit Horta.

/Beppe

Hi friends

Today September is day 70 at sea. There is still plenty of food and water and I am in good shape. My plan is to float around here fore a while. Bet it is now September in the North Atlantic. The gale frequency is increasing. In fact bad weather is on its way, a thing I disapprove of. But being a Stoiker it has to be. Pilot chart also show hurricanetracks passing my position. I will see how long I stay here before heading for Horta Fayal Azorena . All sail are now down. I have trailing from the stern a kind of drogue consisting of a SPADE-anchor, trailing from the anchor a chain attached to a rope with plywood rondells, a kind of homemade Jordan series drogue. In the end of the rope with the roundels is a piece of chain to sink it. The strong winds are not here yet. The daggerboard is up.

Exlex behaves fine for the moment. However I have a transom stern not suitable to this strategi. Next boat will be a double ender, a canoe cruiser. But it is a long way to my workshop. 

I thank for all donations that helps to make this interesting cruise.

Yrvind

Greetings

Today 27 of August it is two months since I left Ålesund Norway. Most of the time the weather have not been pleasant. Lots of strong wind, very cold grey and damp. However since a week or so (have lost track of time), after having come south of bay of Biscay and south of Cape Finisterre, the weather now is exceptionellt excellent. Cannot be better. But hardly any wind so progress is very slow. I am still heading for Horta Fayal Azorena. I do not have any idea when I will be there. In fact north of Faeroes island a rescue helikopter came out to investigate after I had been becalmed there for a few days. Most sailors turn on the engine in small winds. 

It is very warm in the days. To take a swim in the flat calm warm water is very tempting. But last summer I did and due to lack of boarding ladder I was not able to get back on board. I am getting older. Now I have a stirrup in a rope. I have not tested it and do not like to try it out here. I would feel silly if I was not able to get back on board. There is no sign of more wind but I still have plenty of food and water.

Thanks everyone that have donated, helping me to develop small sustainable cruisers
Regards Yrvind

Hi everyone

It is now i think 55 days since I left Ålesund Norway. It has been a grey damp cold sail. I think only 3 – 4 days a week at the most have been sunny. Again this morning drizzle. But now sunshine and warm nearly to warm with 28˚ Celsius. My sleeping room the main cabin is fine. But I have in strong winds a small leek of saltwater in the forepeak and back. It comes from behind the food stowage. I cannot see its source. The only possibility is the pumps. I hate saltwater inside a boat. I asked my hardware supplier for a seacock to put between the pump and the hull. ” That is not necessary he said. It is back-valves in the pump”. And so it is. However, in strong winds when waves with tremendous force bang against the hull, maybe they let in a bit of saltwater. It must come from somewhere. The problem is all the food that prevents inspektion. Thats the saltwater. There is also lots of condensation. I know where thats comes from. It comes from the hatch coamings. They are not insulated, creating a cold spot. I knew that, but I did not think I would have so much cold that so much water would be produced. The problem is now solved. For the next boat I will put the gasket not in the hatch but in the deck outside. That enables to build the hatch coamings with divinycell that insulates. The aft gets some ventilation. The forepeak is the big problem as I only open that hatch briefly to adjust the centreboard. Its all wet and mildew.

Progress have been very good. I am now past the latitude of Cape Finesterre at 42˚ 53`. The bay of Biscay is now behind me. The weather should be better. The good thing is there is still plenty of food and water. It’s sardines and kind of very simple müsli. Just oat flakes, almond powder a few raisins and powder milk. When I pour water on it it becomes kind of soap. Very liquid. Strange thing is. I was eating it for two weeks before I sailed 2018, and then 40 days at sea. Now 2020 I got tired of it after 3-4 weeks. I found it kind of disgusting. Each day it got worse. Then somehow I started to like it again. I guess there was no choice. Now its fine. Still I do look forward to fruits, cheese bread and at special occasions a nice ice-cream.

It’s fine out here on the big endless eternal ocean. I am happy. The moral is high. I work on the next design. I solve a lot of problems. Health is excellent. Although I worry about my leg muscles that have not seen any use for nearly 2 months. I take my time. There is still plenty of food and water. I am slowly heading for Horta Fayal Azorena. I do worry about getting into harbor as Exlex do not go to windward with so much food loaded. I do have my oar but having been idle for so long time, I am not in a good shape. However, Horta is an easy harbor and I have been there before, although its nearly 50 years ago.

Also very important. Thanks to you all for the many fine donations. I very much appreciate it. It makes this splendid voyage possible and the development of small sustainable boats.

Regards Yrvind 

Hi friends

Today its forty days at sea. It has been cold and grey. Luckily, now I am on an latitude south of Ireland and it is already a bit warmer. Exlex worked fine during test sails. She pointed high. Then I got a lot of food. When I was going to load her there was nonplace for it. Bad planning. I wanted my food so I buildt more storage in the ends of the boat. Never change a drawing. The plan had been to keep the ends of the boat empty so that when I opened the hatches, spray would bee easy to get out. The world is full of surprises. Not all of them are good. Two things happend. Exlex lost her ability to go to windward. This is serious. When tacking I lost about 10-15˚ everytime. A lee shore would mean me being wrecked. The danger is still here. Those that seen my track might wounder about all the windlings. I can dump 80% of my food in the water and she will sail fine again. Dumping is not good for the environment. Also I am to greedy for that. The secound problem is that spray coming in is making the food packages damp and salt. It means that acces to the centerboard and foresail is restricted also. The main hatch have to be watched. Once a wave broke over the boat, when it was open, I got a lot of water in the boat that I was unable to get out. Also some of my clothes are wet. Its no use flogging a dead horse. I will build a new boat. However its a long way to my workshop and I have not that kind of money. But by dividing the task into small manageble parts eventually I get there. Exlex by normal standards is still a good boat after some fixing.

The short term plan is to sail to the Azores. Unfortunately its against the prevailing winds. Catch 22. However I have built up good searoom. I plan to sail south intill I get into the northerly winds and then south of Azores, sail west and up to the islands. Whats most worring is entering a harbour and being blown on the breakweater and there be wrecked. I do not know how this will work out. We will see. Luckily like most of the time moral is high. I am happy and I have good plans for the next boat.

Regards Yrvind

Message from Yrvind received 27 July.

I left Norway 27 of June so now 27 of July I have been at sea for one month. It takes me a month to adapt and forget the world and start my own. Corona forced me to leave from Ålesund Norway. 2018 I left from Dingle Ireland. That was more easy. It was a question of departing or staying at home. It was more than I asked for. Myself is much to blame. I loaded Exlex with far to much food. I am a packrat. Exlex would not go to windward. Bad and dangereous. I had to be careful.

As I was getting near the Fareoe Island, bad wather was coming from the north. I took a chanche and tryed to sail between Shetland and Faereoy. I did not make it before the wind changed. Threre was also oilfield west of Shetland that I was afraid of. I went north rounded The Fareoe Islands. Now I have pasted them.The weather up here is cold grey damph. It´s a lot of rain and drissle. There is no sun. The heroes are the Sunbeam System solar panels. They give me all the power I need. Luckily I had hoped to bee across the Bay of Biscay before August, before gales. From my present position north of Scotland it´s still a long way to. I can handle most tasks good. The good thing: moral is high and I am in a very good mood and shape. Before leaving many persons was worried that being 81 years old I was pushing my luck.

– Sven Yrvind

Update 28 – july.
Yrvind  expecting bad weather coming thursday and friday.