Saundersfoot

We went to Saundersfoot yesterday afternoon with our daughter and two grandchildren. It is a lovely spot albeit somewhat crowded on a sunny day. The painting of the harbour above was one I did a good few years ago and I think I skipped it if I recall correctly.

Alex and I bought one of our yachts from Saundersfoot. It is a crowded little harbour and getting to know a boat can take a little while so we were a bit apprehensive about taking it out of the harbour and sailing it home across Carmarthen Bay. The wind was force 3 - 4  so we were in for a brisk sail.
we had a friend who owned a similar yacht so he volunteered to come with us. All went well Alex as helmed it out of the cluttered harbour without incident.

 As we got out into the Bay we really caught the wind and Alex was having to hold the tiller hard with both hands. She suggested taking a reef in the sail. Our friend laughed and asked to have a go at the helm. She handed it to him and as he took it the tiller nearly threw him overboard. At that point he readily agreed to reefing the sail (reducing the size of the sail to reduce power). The sail home after that was fast and fun but without further incident.

To be honest although a lovely traditional boat with plenty of teek and mahogany she was a real pig to sail with a mind of her own. The boat really needed a bowsprit to balance the sails. We never did add the bowsprit but eventually sold her for a real pedigree sailing yacht which we gave up with reluctance when we had to stop sailing.