Adjusting to the nomadic life

After the 3 weeks training, we are back in Tréguier (Brittany). We learned a lot about boat handling and sailing from Brad who is a precious source of knowledge and good practice. Anyone who has spliced an eye in a braided rope will understand when I say that it feels like magic when the final traction hides the bits and bobs and reveals a perfectly formed eye at the end of the rope.

New improvements

The plan is to stay 2-3 weeks in Tréguier during which Boréal can make adjustments to the boat. Some repairs are due to the initial saltwater ingress and some improvements will add to the comfort, like additional plexiglass insulations for the hatches. The nights have been cold in Brittany, and we noticed a lot of condensation around windows and hatches. Every morning, Yan goes on the dew hunt armed with the kitchen towel. The webasto heating system works efficiently and provides very appreciated warms in all parts of the boat. It however represents an important fuel consumption. We therefore added an electrical heating fan that can be powered by renewable energy sources. A new blue bimini will provide indispensable protection for times when we will finally sail to the warmer sunny latitudes.

The training flew past in a blink. Between passage planning, practicing, equipping the boat and testing out everything, we had little time for ourselves. We were in our bubble while major events impacted the world. In addition, our access to internet was flaky. Most of the marinas offer internet access but it rarely covers the more remote pontoons. In our previous urban life, we were so used to have everything at the tip of our fingers. We had to find a way to get access to internet other than staying out in the cold outside of the marina’s head office.

Stay connected

We decided to buy a plan with a French telecom company. The process made us feel like outsiders. The enrollment must be done online but it expects French address, phone number and bank credentials. Fortunately, we experienced how helpful the people of Brittany are. On-line is good for the straightforward situations. However, in this case, we needed human intervention. One lady even let us use her credit card to pay the 10 Euros for the new SIM card, the last required step of the process. Credit card is the only means of payment accepted for this step. We had used our Visa in the most various places without any issues. But for this telecom enrollment, we kept getting an error message saying that “the country issuing this credit card (AKA Canada) is not allowed”. With patience and a lot of local help, the order was finally completed. We should be connected by the end of the week.

Paimpol

On the bright side, this experience allowed us to revisit Paimpol and go out for a ‘Galette and Crêpe’ There is an energetic vibe to this town whose heart is located just next to the harbour with shops, restaurants and bars. We loved to be back in this animated atmosphere for a sunny afternoon.

Time

This new nomadic life takes adjustments on our part as well. It is a different pace with bursts of activity and times of waiting. Waiting for the right weather window, the person with the knowledge to fix a problem or the opportunity to make progress on a project. Or could it be the other way round and could these periods be gifts of time for reflexion and contemplation without a specific goal to pursue? Time will tell.