as the probate progressed it came to light that my grandparents
had been very thrifty and left me some money. So on the day
I bought my boat I found out that my grandparents, whose
holiday home in Salcombe was the reason I fell in love with
the sea, left me to the penny, the cost of Auriga. I don’t believe
in coincidences but I do make sure to thank my grandparents
every time I go on the boat.MAIDEN VOYAGE
The purchasing process all ran very smoothly. We arranged
for a sea trial and survey at Crinan Boatyard about a month
later and I met the previous owner Michael, who was lovely.
He had owned the boat for 12 years and actually brought her
up to Scotland from Dartmouth, which was more or less the
journey I took in reverse to take her south.
If I thought Auriga looked big in the water, it was nothing
compared to how large she looked when chocked up in the yard.
The surveyor said that although she was showing the usual signs
of wear and tear of a 50-year-old steel vessel, there was nothing
majorly wrong with her, so the deal went ahead.
I fl ew up to Scotland for a third time on 3 July, met a PYD
delivery crew at the airport and we set sail for Devon at fi rst
light the following day. The 4 July turned out to be my own
special Independence Day – my fi rst time at sea overnight,
on my fi rst boat. It was all so exciting.
I woke to an incredible sunrise and things just got better
and better as we headed south, making the most of last year’s
amazing summer weather. We had fl at seas and sunshine for
the entire 500 miles south. We saw whales in the Irish Sea and
watched a pod of dolphins surfi ng in Auriga’s bow wave as
we crossed the Bristol Channel.
Even after eight months I still have to pinch myself that I own
a boat like Auriga. She is a wonderful little ship with so muchsoul. I give her a kiss every time I get on board. But as an
old boat she needs lots of care and maintenance.
One thing I didn’t predict was how steep the maintenance
costs were going to be with an old craft. During the delivery
run, the chart plotter, radar, depth gauge and wind vane all
broke, so I have just replaced all that kit with a Raymarine
Axiom Pro, Doppler 2 radar, AIS, twin multifunction displays
and an HD camera to keep an eye on the stern and solve the
large blind spot looking astern from the wheelhouse. That little
lot cost a cool £10,000.
The electrics were also a confusing mess of wires that had
continually been added to over the years. And some of the
batteries needed replacing too, so that cost another few grand,
but now we know how much charge is in the batteries and can
monitor the level of charging from the generator and alternator.
The other chunky cost this winter has been installing 1m-high
teak guard rails around the whole deck, fi rstly to make it safer
for me and my family moving around the boat when out at sea,
but also so I can get the boat coded for commercial work.
I could have saved a few quid by going for a stainless steel
handrail, but I am glad I went for the teak. It’s like the icing
on the cake and honours all that Auriga is. It looks great, feels
great and when moving around the deck, it’s like being enveloped
in a big, safe hug.
All the works have been carried out by Justin Soule of
Traditional Sail and electronics specialist Richard Lewis, both
based at Winters Lincoln Boat Yard.
I am also having the stainless rail on the fl ybridge deck raised
to 1m, to make it safer up on the top deck. There was a second
set of throttles up here, presumably to make stern-to docking
easier in the Med but they looked like they hadn’t worked for
over 25 years and thanks to that rear view docking camera
I no longer need them so they are being removed too.My first time overnight on my first boat was so exciting. I woke to
an incredible sunrise and things just got better as we headed south
A misty sunrise
in SalcombeCruising off the coast
of south DevonA marine surveyor
checks Auriga’s hull