6 Days to go – Weather & Conditions

 “What Will Croatia Be Like in April?”

The big unknown:

What will the weather actually do?

Because sailing is:
Entirely dependent on it

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Wind (the important bit)

In the Adriatic Sea, April can bring:

• Light winds (lovely)
• Moderate winds (ideal)
• Strong winds (character building)

Local winds like:

• Bora – cold, strong, and not your friend
• Jugo – warmer, but can build waves

So:
It could be anything

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Temperature

Typically:

• 15–20°C

Which sounds pleasant…

Until you add:
Wind + spray

Then it feels:
Much colder

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Sea State

From:

• Flat calm
  to
• “Why am I doing this?”

Depends entirely on:
Wind + fetch + timing

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Final Thought

The weather will:
Do what it wants

My job is to:
Dress for it and deal with it

 

7 Days to Go – Living on a Yacht

“How Do You Actually Live on a Boat for a Week?”

Up until now, I’ve been focusing on sailing.

But there’s a small detail I may have overlooked:

You also have to live on the boat

For a whole week.

With other people.

In a space smaller than my kitchen. Now I have done this lots of times before. We have taken holidays on the canal, we have cruised up and down the Canal du Midi, but we have never done this at sea with swell.

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Sleeping (or attempting to)

Sleeping on a yacht involves:

• Small bunks
• Odd angles
• No guarantee of silence

And possibly:
Falling out if the boat moves suddenly

I suspect:
Earplugs may become my best friend

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Toilets (The bit everyone worries about)

Ah yes… the marine toilet.

From what I understand:

• It involves pumping
• There are rules
• Breaking those rules is… memorable

I have been warned:

“Nothing goes down there unless it’s passed through your body first”

This feels like important advice.

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Cooking (at an angle)

Cooking onboard means:

• Things slide
• Liquids move
• Balance is everything

So meals may range from:
“Surprisingly good”
to
 “Why is this on the floor?”

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Space (or lack of it)

There isn’t much.

Everything has:

• A place
• A very small place

And if you leave something out:
It will be in everyone’s way

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Final Thought

Living on a yacht is less about comfort…

And more about:
Adaptation

Let’s see how adaptable I really am.

Day 8 – Knots Refresher

“The Knots I Should Know (But Might Forget)”

There comes a moment in every sailing journey where you realise:

You definitely learnt the knots
You’re not entirely sure you remember them

That moment is now.

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The Essential Three (Apparently…)

Bowline (The “proper sailor” knot)

Forms a fixed loop that:
Doesn’t slip
Doesn’t tighten

Very useful.

Also very easy to forget under pressure.

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Clove Hitch (Quick… but don’t trust it)

Great for:

• Temporary tying off

Not so great if:
You forget to secure it properly

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Sheet Bend (When ropes don’t match)

Used for:
Joining two ropes of different thickness

Which sounds simple…

Until you try to remember which end goes where.

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My Own Survival Strategy

Fortunately, I’ve written all this down before:

https://pmrsailing.uk/sailing-lessons/sailing-terms-list/

So in theory:
I should know these

In practice:
 I may be quietly checking my own website…

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Final Thought

Knots are like:

• Passwords
• Or names at a party

You know them… until you need them

Then suddenly:
Nothing.

 

Day 9 – Safety at Sea

“What Happens If Someone Falls In?”

This is one of those topics that starts as theory…

And very quickly becomes:
Something you really want to get right

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The Reality

If someone falls overboard:

• Time matters
• Visibility matters
• Calm thinking matters

And shouting:
“They’ve fallen in!”
is only the beginning.

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Back to My Previous Blog

I’ve already looked at this on the Thames:
Recovering someone when a safety boat isn’t immediately available

On a yacht at sea:
It becomes even more critical

(No convenient riverbank to drift towards…)

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Man Overboard – The Basics

The key steps are simple (in theory):

1. Shout & point – never lose sight
2. Throw flotation – anything that floats
3. Press MOB on GPS (if available)
4. Turn the boat – quickly but under control
5. Recover the person – safely

In practice:
It’s harder than it sounds

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Lifejackets vs Buoyancy Aids

This is where things get important.

Buoyancy Aid:

• Helps you float
• You still need to keep yourself safe
• Common in dinghy sailing

Lifejacket:

• Turns you onto your back
• Keeps your airway clear
• Essential offshore

On a yacht:
You’ll be wearing a lifejacket

No debate.

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The Key Lesson

Safety isn’t about:
Knowing what to do

It’s about:
Doing it quickly, calmly, and correctly

Preferably:
Without needing to use it at all

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Final Thought

I fully intend:
Not to fall in

But if I do…

I hope someone’s been paying attention.

 

Day 10 – Cameras & Filming Plan

“Filming a Sailing Course Without Falling Overboard”

This is, I suspect, going to be harder than the sailing.

Because it turns out:
Sailing with cameras is one thing
Sailing while filming properly is something else entirely

And ideally:
I would like to return with footage… and still be onboard.

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The Plan (In Theory…)

The goal is to document the whole experience:

• Learning as a Royal Yachting Association Competent Crew
• Life onboard
• The mistakes (there will be many)

All while:
Not dropping expensive equipment into the Adriatic Sea

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The Camera Setup

360 Cameras (The “point and hope” method)

These are my favourites on a boat:

• Capture everything
• No need to aim (very helpful when you’re busy not falling over)
• Great for action shots

Downside:
They also capture everything… including mistakes

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Olympus Tough (The survivor)

My trusty Olympus Tough TG-6:

• Waterproof ✔
• Drop-proof ✔
• Sailor-proof (hopefully) ✔

This is the camera I can hand to anyone and say:
“Just press that button”

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The Backup System (Because things go wrong)

Every day:

• Dump footage to a hard drive
• Possibly a second backup (if I’m being sensible)

Because losing footage is:
Worse than getting wet
Almost worse than falling in

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Cross-Filming Plan

This is where it gets interesting.

We have:

• Two boats
• Two filming teams (Steve doesn't know tjhis yet)
• Often the Sunsail Instructors also film

I’ll be filming the catamaran, my wife will be filming me
Steve will be filming us on the yacht

Which means:

• External shots ✔
• Different perspectives ✔
• Much better storytelling ✔

Assuming, of course:
We don’t both miss the shot at the same time

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Final Thought

The aim is simple:

Capture the experience
Tell the story
Stay dry (optional)

What could possibly go wrong?

 

Day 11 – Packing Begins

“Packing for a Yacht – Why Everything Must Be Squashy”

Packing for a sailing holiday is not like packing for a hotel.

There is no:

• Wardrobe
• Chest of drawers
• “I’ll just leave this on the chair”

Instead, there is:
A very small space and nowhere to hide your luggage

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The Suitcase Problem

Bringing a hard suitcase onto a yacht is roughly equivalent to:
Bringing a grand piano into a tent

It:

• Doesn’t fit
• Gets in the way
• Annoys everyone

And once it’s empty…

 It’s still taking up space

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The Answer – Soft Bags

The golden rule:

If it doesn’t squash… it doesn’t come

Soft bags:

• Can be shoved into lockers
• Fit odd-shaped spaces
• Don’t attack your shins at night

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Dry Bags (The Sensible Addition)

Water has an annoying habit of:
Getting everywhere

So dry bags are ideal for:

• Phones 
• Cameras 
• Anything you don’t want to replace

Particularly useful when:

• It rains
• Someone splashes you
• You drop something (hopefully not yourself)

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The Minimal Clothing Reality

This is the hardest part to accept.

You do not need:

• 7 outfits for 7 days

You do need:

• A few quick-dry items
• Layers
• Something warm
• Something waterproof

And yes…

You will wear the same clothes more than once
No one will care
Everyone else is doing exactly the same

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Final Thought

Packing for a yacht is not about choice.

It’s about:
Survival of the smallest bag

Next Blog Day 11 The Technology Onboard

 

Day 12 – The Kit Question

“Do I Need Salopettes in Croatia?”

This is the real question.

Not:

• Can I sail?
• Will I pass Competent Crew?

But:
Will I be wet, cold… and regretting my life choices?

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April Weather Reality Check

Looking at the forecast around Trogir and the Adriatic Sea:

• Temperatures: pleasant (15–21°C)
• Sunshine: plenty 
• Wind: oh yes… sometimes a lot of it
• Rain: just enough to catch you out

So it’s not exactly tropical.

And definitely not the Med you see in glossy brochures.

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The Good News – The Jacket

I did at least get one thing right.

My Gill OS2 Jacket is:

• Waterproof ✔
• Windproof ✔
• Bright enough to be seen from space ✔

In fact, I may be slightly overdressed.

“Prepared for the Arctic… sailing in sunshine.”

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The Salopettes Problem

But below the waist…

Nothing.

No waterproof trousers. No salopettes. Just optimism.

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So… do I need them?

Reasons to take them:

• Sitting on a wet deck = cold very quickly
• Wind chill is real
• Early mornings / late evenings can be chilly
• Spray happens (especially when someone else is steering…)

Reasons not to:

• Bulky
• Possibly unnecessary if the weather behaves
• Yet another thing to pack

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Honest Conclusion

For:

• Dinghy sailing on the Thames → optional

For:

• A week on a yacht in Croatia → increasingly sensible

I haven’t bought any yet…

But I suspect:
Future me may be writing a follow-up blog titled
“Why I Should Have Bought Salopettes”

Next Blog Day 11 – Packing Begins