Azores or Bust

I have been on a mission to reduce the power consumption and cost of getting Mischief ready for adventures and to this end I had a success. I have made a GPS module that draws 60mA, cost less than £20 and feeds GPS NMEA info in a format that my VHF can read. This module also works on my laptop. My previous GPS feed was a Gamin 72H which draws over 100mA and cost around £100. One attempt at this resulted in a spare GPS module for my AIS unit. I bought a GPS receiver through ebay that cost £2.92 so I wasn't expecting much. It turned out that the GPS receiver didn't have a UART and the USB connector had no power connections. I tried removing the USB plug and pressing the bare wires against the GPS connector on the Matsutec. Within 30 seconds I had a GPS fix. After fitting a TNC connector I now have a back-up GPS unit. The official Matsutec GPS units cost £45!

WOW, she sails like a dream. Gusting force 7 and Mischief didn't miss a beat, I wish I could say the same about the engine! After loading up some more gear I set off from HNYC and moored up overnight on a club mooring then sailed to Stangate Creek on Saturday where I anchored for the first time. After dragging due to a rock caught in the flukes I had a calm night despite the f6 westerly. My chums from HNYC anchored nearby but it was too rough to raft up. The next morning I tried to weigh anchor but it was too shallow so after some towing and shouting I left the anchor on a fender and set off for lunch.  We had a good lunch in Queenborough at the Flying Dutchman, I didn't make it last year but did win blunder of the year award instead :-(. Engine cut out twice as I was approaching the ATL at Queenborough but wind and tide plus a helping hand from the chap on the dock made it look like I knew what I was doing. After lunch I returned to the anchor and retrieved it, it was v...