Victory day in Pompey

Our last day of idling before the big push to get home. We left Cowes around ten, and Nic who was on the helm had a ferry-free exit from this very busy port.Whoop. Crossing the Solent's major shipping channel was fairly straightforward, helped by the AIS technology which shows us the track of big vessels, their names, speed and what our closest distance might be. We avoided large Wightlink ferries and the fast hovercraft to sidle into Portsmouth up the Small Boat Channel, and this time into the Gosport Marina.

This marina is still known locally as Camper and Nicholson's - when it was a shipyard, it was the birthplace of our beloved boat in 1978. Sirena IV is truly home tonight, and so we are celebrating with a glass of fizz. 

This afternoon we crossed by ferry to Portsmouth to see HMS Victory as both of us are fascinated by the Nelson era of naval history, being massive fans of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/ Maturin books. 

It's not the first time we've been on board the Victory but being there never fails to please. This time we spent more time in the lower decks and the hold, which is especially redolent of the period, for some reason.

Lesley spotted what may be the biggest cleat in history with the biggest rope wrapped around it - Nic posed by it to add some human scale.







Sadly the top masts of Victory have been removed for refurbishing which is really quite disappointing as she looks stumpy and unfamiliar like that.





Now it's back home on board with a beef stew on the go and the fizz chilling. We've done more than two thousand miles in Sirena IV since we bought her two years ago, and we shall drink to her tonight, so very close to the place she was made.