We’re getting there! Kensa’s back in the water and we’ve finished the water ballast tank and fitted a bilge pump. The temperature rose for long enough for us to get the fibreglassing work done we were hoping to do and after some fairly chilly days touching up paint and fitting the pump we relaunched Kensa at Percuil last week!

Once we were afloat again, we spent some time testing and checking the water ballast tank was working and making a few adjustments to the bilge pump set up so that we were happy with filling and emptying the boat of water (a fairly high priority really…) and it was pleasing to see that with the ballast tank full she floated right on her designed waterline. Clever boy that husband of mine!

Luckily we managed to find one lovely bright (albeit freezing cold!) day to go out for a test sail last week and we’re really pleased with how everything’s working. Weather seems to be all we’re all talking about at the moment but that really is the only thing stopping us from getting out there and getting fishing and we are so hoping for some better weather after Easter. How can there be any more easterlies out there to blow into Portscatho?!

We’ve also been talking to some of the fishermen we met down in Newlyn when we were doing our courses last year and it’s been reassuring to know we’re by no means the only small boat not able to get out on the water of late.

We’ve also been gathering advice from people about our best options for fishing methods and ordering kit, which is the best progress we can be making at the moment without actually being able to try everything out first hand. It’s going to be a long process of gaining experience by trial and error before we are good enough to call ourselves proper fishermen but we’re itching to get started and willing to be patient!