@@pauldavison7265Thanks Paul! Once #623 is on the water it might be time to recruit some 4 legged crew?

Thankyou! I rekon the Skerry really hits a sweet spot: light and easy to beach launch and move around, good to row, quite fast sailing, easy to rig, relatively stable, lots of room .... you get a lot of boat.A good choice I rekon. Are you over Altona way? I'd be happy to line up a sail one day... if the wind ever settles down😊

@@garyhardy3810 sounds like a sweet boat, but I wrote that before I relieved where you are lol I’m actually on Bribie island QLD. Otherwise I would definitely take you up on your very kind offer.

@@bradhampton1270 yes indeed, it is a Hartley ts14. A great little boat, but the cabin is a bit squeezey.

Thankyou Holly! EOI's are open for TN 2025. See you and your gallant crew there maybe? Hope so!

😆 Thanks Wayne. Yes, the older person sounds were a real bonus. 😊 Reboarding I discovered some muscles I did not know I had, and certainly have not used for a very long time. Look forward to our next sail.

Thankyou Darren! Always fun getting to know a new boat. I am really pleased with her, a very comfortable, well mannered little craft.

Thanks Jonathan!

Thanks Rog. The ambient noise of the Torqeedo I am not so keen on, but overall, I agree. 🙂 Glad you liked the vid.

Thanks Tim. I am planning on launching at the Lake on Sunday if you want a closer look!

Hi Paul, the SCAMP is from the brilliant New Zealand designer John Welsford. It was commissioned by Small Craft Advisor Magazine, and a number of very clever, experienced sailors have helped evolve the design. There is a very active Facebook group, and quite a community of people out there who have built them. Google "SCAMP boat". I got the plans from Duckworks, and the CNC file to cut the ply parts from Small Craft Advisor. Took me 10 months to build, an hour or three most days. It is indeed wonderfully stable and a joy to manage on the water, plus being light (round 200 kilos all up) and easy to manage retrieve, raise mast, rig .... it's a brilliant little boat, I am super happy with it!

thankyou! You bet, SCAMP dreams are good dreams.

Thankyou Holly. Yes, she feels like a proper little ship. Hard to describe, but there is something profoundly reassuring about the stability, and the cuddy, and the high coamings. Not like a dinghy at all, you sort of settle down comfortably in that cockpit and feel taken care of.

Thanks Campbell! You will have to come and try the SCAMP experience!

@@garyhardy3810 Yes please.

Thanks Mark. Yes Monday was just about perfect sailing weather. The Bay in Autumn on a good day is hard to beat. Tell your brother to hurry up and get that Dolphin back out there!

Thanks Jeff. Werribee River is a gem alright, a great spot. Glad to bring back some good memories.

Thankyou! It was pretty darn nice alright! Good old Port Phillip!

Hey Roman, no I didn't know that. Crikey, that would have been a great trip. Thanks for kind words re boat, you will have to come out for a sail soon. How's that Sharpie going??

I could not be happier with it Paul. It packs in lots of really smart features, and is great fun to sail. Love it!

Thanks Holly. It was terrible bad luck, if it had fallen off a second earlier or a second later it would have fallen in the boat. We tried diving there with facemask and flippers next day, but too deep and too murky. Really bad luck.

Дякую тобі!!! Сподіваюся, одного дня, не надто далеко, ви теж зможете вирушити у плавання. Удачі!

Yes indeed, sailing without him was just not the same, and he would get very mournful after he worked out he was off the crew list when I would start getting my sailing gear together. I think his life jacket has shrunk in the interim, surely he has not put on weight.🙂 We will have to get him the next size up.

Thanks Chris! Yes, good to have a record of a magic day! Thanks again for your video.

Thanks Peter, yes, the cuddy means Oz can come out of retirement as he is mostly sheltered from the sun in there. He is pleased to be back on the crew list. The music is mostly because I am too lazy to edit out all the wind, sniffing, scraping noises that the cameras pick up. Not so much commentary, just random comments of the moment, you are not missing much.😊 Glad you enjoyed the video. I amreally pleased with the SCAMP, not the fastest boat in the fleet, but by golly it is nice to sail!

Thanks Mark, Autumn has the best days on the Bay I rekon.

Sure is an interesting way to see Melbourne. But I like sailing on the Bay better. I will have to explore the Maribrynong more when they finish the tunnel works.

Thanks Chris! It was indeed a lovely day on the river. And that auto pilot did a fine job 😊

Yes, the Helm Hog Mk1 is always reliable 😅

Thankyou. Likewise, we keep talking about venturing down your way. Probably with the boats on trailers to get there tho. Be careful out there!

Thanks Josh. Soooo good to be back on the water!!!

Thankyou. Yes, it's nice sailing in company, you get to admire just how nice the other boats look in action.

@@garyhardy3810 I enjoy your channel, lots of great history. I did track down one of your books. Thanks for the videos.

Thanks Chris. You bet! The best sailing season on the Bay coming up, let's make sure we get the most out of it.

Maybe, but I forgot my life jacket completely, only realised when we were having lunch. Its all the routines around getting on the water that get a bit rusty. Wayne's boat reminded me a bit of your ketch.

Thankyou Daniel. I have really enjoyed your videos of your adventures with Wildflower. Look forward to the next one. And I am looking forward to getting to know my new SCAMP!

Thankyou Darren! I am pretty pleased so far. Ozzie seems really happy to be back on the water, and is very nice to have him back as crew.

Thanks Mark. I think Anjevi will see me out 🙂🤞

Thanks Holly!! Yes Ozzie was pleased to be back as crew and he approves of his new quarters.

Thanks Chris!

Thanks Roman. You will have to come and try it out one day soon!

Thanks Jeff. That's the plan! Fingers crossed.

Thanks Chris. You made a huge contribution to the endeavour, in so many ways. I am deeply grateful. Now, let's get out there and start sailing!!!!

Thankyou Glenda, much appreciated. Yes, I think Ozzie is quite pleased with his new quarters and he was happy to bacut sailing. He has a very expressive face, and I can always tell when he is not impressed, but yesterday he looked very smiley. I think the solid cuddy makes him feel safe and secure.

Thanks Campbell, yes, Altona boat ramp must have the record for Welsford boat launches... for 2024 at least. Look forward to taking you out for a sail soon.

You've done a good job. Seems you built that very quickly!

​@@damoog5985Thankyou. It took me a bit under 10 months, but I am retired so I could do a couple of hours most days. Seems both fast - some bits seemed to come together super quickly - and slow, some things seemed to take a very long time with not much visible progress. But really glad I have my very own SCAMP now to play with!😊

🙂 Thanks Matt. Nearly a year since I saw you and Salty Dog sail into that little bay behind Simsons Point! A great day, my first sighting of a SCAMP in the wild! Or anywhere else for that matter. And here I am a year later, putting the last coats of paint on my SCAMP. It was a fateful encounter alright!

hopefully we can get the girls together and get salty again soon. @@garyhardy3810 ⚓👍

My boat is a Skerry from CLC Light Craft. Andrew built his tug boat "Mars" from plans from Berkerly Engineering - a "14 foot Can-Du-Ez" . He has made some huge trips in it, down the Murray and Darling rivers and round the Bay, Mallacoota and the Gippsland Lakes.