Douarnenez Festival 2008 and disaster!

Leaving the boat in Douarnenez, we returned to the UK and went back on tour. Our final gig was in Frankfurt on Thursday 12th July in the evening. We packed up and got to bed in the early hours. At 5:30 in the morning after a couple of hours sleep, we got up and dropped Lochlann off at the airport. He was heading back to the UK for Port Elliot Festival. Then we started our long, long 15 hour drive to Douarnenez. As we got close,About 15 miles away, we picked up a group of young hitch hikers also headed to the festival. It was great fun to arrive with their enthusiasm and excitement. We dropped them off and headed off to park and find Island Swift.

Performing Bellevue Hotel in Frankfort

There she was waiting for us. What a great feeling to arrive! But no time to relax. First Simon had to fit the new exhaust elbow that we had brought with us from the UK. Yes! It fixed the problem. Lots of water was coming out the exhaust! More than ever before!
We cast of the lines and motored around the bay towards the festival.
The sun was setting, we cracked open a few beers and enjoyed the moment.
We had arrived, it felt wonderful.

The amazing fleet of traditional boats

I really had finally made it to the festival after all these years! We were there for the Saturday and Sunday, but the weather was very wet and windy so not great for sailing. We did meet up with friends and had a good time soaking up the atmospher. The highlight was the sculling competition!

Need more arm strength

But sometime things don't quite go to plan...

We left Island Swift again, promising to be back next week, and headed back to the UK. We had a gig in Belgium. We arrived back in Penzance changed sets, because we would be performing a different show. Everything when smoothly and we got to Belgium put the set and performed the show.

Sadly at the very end of show, a stunt went wrong and I was hit by a falling piece of theatrical set.  My ankle was badly broken! I was going to need an operation!
I was not happy! I was only just recovering from breaking my wrist 10 months previously. Now I was going to have metal work in both my wrist and ankle.

Whoops!

The point being was that poor Island Swift was left in France. We finally managed to travel back to Douarnenez in late October. I was still on crutches (only allowed to put a small amount of weight onto my ankle), but it made me feel so much better to be on the boat.

We had to make a plan. I was not fit to sail her home. We could not leave her in Douarnenez for the winter. But what to do?

We drove around to Camaret-sur-Mer looking to see if she could lifted for the winter. There we met a fellow Englishman, the ex vicar of Devoran, Mike and his wife Nettie. They very generously offered us their mooring up the river L'Aulne for the winter. What a kind and generous offer.

We knew where they meant, we had already motored up that river to Port Launay. We had thought we could leave the boat there for the winter. It is a beautiful river and Port Launay is about 15NM up the river behind a lock gate. We had arrived at high tide, at dusk, but the lock gate manager was not there to open the gate! We discovered that it is a great place to visit, but unless you are living on your boat, not a good place to leave a boat. They get big swollen tides in the winter and boats end up on the dock! It was getting dusk, and too dark to go back down river, so we put our legs on and spent the night in lock gate until high water early the next morning. We left in the dark, feeling our way out, as twilight arrived followed by a milky winter sun. It was very beautiful.

We sailed Island Swift up to the mooring and she has been there ever since! We now have a French passport for Island Swift and Mike had passed the mooring on to us. It is lovely having to boat in France so some good came out of my broken ankle.

Next time in 2020, I want to fully participate in the maritime festival!

November 2018