August 15, 2026
The wildfires in France are now largely under control (there are still some burning) other countries are not so lucky. Spain is still suffering with hundreds of fires and this morning I read about a small town on Brac (Croatia) being on fire.
I have spent some time anchored just off of Brac and it is lovely, but I also made friends who have property and family there. Joe and Christina I hope all is well and you are safe. I would reach out directly but somewhere along the way I have lost your contact information.
As France, Spain, Greece and now Croatia burn it is clear that the climate is turning ever more hostile and hopefully we remain safe in the onslaught. Here in France there hasn’t been rain once in the 20 days or so that I have been here and none is forecast. I rode past a golf course last weekend and it was brown. Washing of boats has been banned until there is more water.
Back to talking about the boat . . . While sitting here in Saint Malo, I have mostly been riding the bike and recovering but I am also working on a few smaller projects. I only document them here so that I can look them up later. Sorry for the boredom.
First off has been a focus on the dinghy. The dinghy tubes are leaking rapidly and I have decided to forego further effort at repair. I will head back to the UK in the fall where there is a shop that can re-tube the dinghy. It will be expensive but in theory the tubes will make the dinghy like new again and that will be excellent. I would like to use it more.
With that in mind I have set about working on some of the smaller repair items that will also make the dinghy useful. The cushions are in terrible shape, but I have cleaned them and I am working on replacing all of the broken snaps. (I wasn’t able to today because stores are closed – it’s a holiday weekend. I need ANOTHER special tool). But already it looks better. As well over the past few days I have removed the fuel/water separator and replaced it along with the mounts for my bike rack, cleaned those and the boat frame (very rusty), replaced the mounts using new stainless steel bolts and that looks much, much better.
Earlier in the week I launched the dinghy and tried to get it running but the engine won’t start. It is sparking but won’t run which is likely a fuel problem (best guess) so that has initiated replacing the fuel/water separator. Unfortunately the leaking tube means that the dinghy almost sank while I wasn’t paying attention, so I won’t be putting it back in the water anytime soon. Too risky. I will just wait until it’s refurbished to work on the engine again.
Next up I will likely work on the wiring. It has all come apart at the connections, and I am guessing prior attempts at repair haven’t used tinned wire. I will try to source some new tinned wire and redo connections so that it works better and lasts longer. It’s actually a pretty big project but suits my use of time here.
I have purchased a new bilge pump for Home Free as a spare as they are hard to find in 24V (arriving next week) and a new shade for the forward hatch. It’s kind of crazy how expensive all of this stuff is, but I need it. The new tool I need for the dinghy snaps is going to be another $200 but that is only a couple of hours of labour if I pay someone else to do the work and I enjoy learning these things and improving my skills when I have the time.
I have undertaken a lot of cleaning and organizing as well but that doesn’t need space here. Like most of the other ports I have visited in the UK and France, it is very dusty/dirty here and so regular cleaning is imperative to keep grit off of surfaces. As noted before though the outside of the boat can’t be cleaned due to water use restrictions, so that is looking a bit messy!!
The one other issue that I should highlight is that the propane/gas controller for the HOB (gas stove, in UK speak) has now ‘failed’ twice. Where it just switches off randomly (completely, the whole thing goes blank) and then comes back on later. I have no insight what the root cause of this is but I am expecting a failure in the near future so may source a replacement. One consequence of that is that I am trying to use the microwave’s oven features. It is no longer new, but I haven’t used it as an oven before so I am learning how to use a kitchen appliance. It seems quick and effective, but cooking times are not the same because there is no ‘warm up’ period, or I need to figure that out.
Not much about Saint Malo, I know. I have been riding a lot of kilometers while here, and while the roads are all starting to look the same at this point, there is always something new and interesting to see along most of the routes. Here is a heatmap of places I have ridden so far in France/Guersey/Jersey.
This is a closer look at the riding around Saint-Malo, mostly in August (a couple of days in July).
A big change has been my recovery times. I find myself napping randomly during the day after a ride and my legs need a lot more time to recover. The good news is that my fitness IS improving and my weight IS declining. I am almost back to my weight as a 35 year old. I do miss ice cream and chocolate though!
To add a bit of the people . . . I am being a bit anti-social, but I have had the pleasure to meet Tim & Liz (and their daughter Lily) as well as Barry and Sarah and spent some time enjoying a beverage with these folks. There is another couple from Canada here (BC based). They have sailed across the Atlantic (northern route). Interesting story but I haven’t spent much time with them.
That’s it for now. Back to work!