ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Winner of the YJA Young Sailor of the Year and Young Journalist of the year, Katie McCabe is a 14-year-old sailor based on the river Exe. In 2019 she found her dream boat abandoned in Polruan and spent the winter restoring her. In summer 2020 she sailed Falanda to the Isles of Scilly in preparation for a solo sail around Britain this summer, and is now considering her next offshore challenge: a mini-Transat race.
After buying Falanda, my 26ft Morgan Giles, in September 2019 and spending the winter restoring her in my dad’s shed, she was launched on 19 March 2020 – two days before the first UK lockdown.
Living on my parents’ 50ft converted fishing trawler Ros Ailither on the river Exe, I was able to spend the whole of lockdown sanding, varnishing, painting and scraping in the amazing weather. Once the river was open again, I could finally go out sailing and enjoy the light winds and sunshine on the water. After several trial sails alongside my parents in their 33ft classic yawl Amaryllis dad and I set off west on the two boats on 10 July 2020.
My first proper single-handed sea trip was to Salcombe. It was my first time navigating completely by myself, and without any electronics on board I was completely reliant on two-point fixes.
I planned the passage and waypoints the night before to give myself a rough line to follow. It was an amazing eight-hour trip with the wind behind us.
I had been in front the whole time, however as we rounded Start Point the wind changed and dad shot ahead.
This story is from the November 2021 edition of Practical Boat Owner.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the November 2021 edition of Practical Boat Owner.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Shearwater sloop sailing in the 1960s
Genevieve Leaper shares her late father John Leaper's recollections-compiled from handwritten notes-of cruising the Channel
Timing an Atlantic crossing
Professional meteorologist and sailor Chris Tibbs shares his knowledge of how to choose the best time to sail 'across the pond'
Transatlantic first
It's 70 years since Ann Davison became the first woman to sail solo across the Atlantic. Katy Stickland looks back at her achievement
Going dizzy on an island sailing odyssey
Ken Fowler becomes the first sailor to circumnavigate every island in England and Wales-and all done in a 4m dinghy!
Boats for coastal cruising
Duncan Kent chooses a selection of the best sail and motor boats under 40ft most suitable for adventurous cruising along the coast
Industry view on HVO
The RYA, IWA and CA are working to help recreational boating transition to a Net Zero future, as the CA's
HVO RENEWABLE DIESEL Myth or miracle?
A new generation of biofuel that's cleaner, greener, better for your engine and less prone to microbial growth sounds too good to be true... but the facts beg to differ
Little ships and the wrong sort of waves
Why the correct manoeuvres for the sea conditions will reduce hogging and sagging stress on both ship and crew
Watching boats, saving jerseys
It's amazing what you can see from a hospital window if it's the right hospital
Sweating the mooring asset
Sam Llewellyn looks at ways of getting top value out of his boat's swinging mooring
