20 5 / 2012
This is the captain of the P&O line ferry, “Chitral”, that brought me to England from Japan in 1966. He bares a startling resemblance to the mascot I inherited when I bought Nautila, only he looks more jolly. I think you can see Gibraltar in the background.
- Photo: Peter Steggell.
16 5 / 2012
Seaweed soap project
Seaweed soap can be made from a combination of seaweed, sea water and glycerol. Obviously, the water and seaweed should come from an unpolluted source.
I envisage making soap from different marine environments. Each soap sample will come with information about its source/location, and the level of pollution in the water it came from. It will be graded and stamped according to its toxic status/cleanliness.
The public will be offered a chance to sample the soaps in a makeshift onboard or on-the-shore solar shower.
(I just saw that Bellona will shortly be holding a conference about the sustainable utilization of algae as a resource: http://www.alger2012.no/ )
14 5 / 2012
Gardening onboard
Nautila has been undergoing a renovation and upgrade process which has taken much more time than expected, hence the lack of blog posts. In the meantime I’ve been dreaming about what I’ll do during the summer period to find out more about adapting a landlubbers habits to those of a live-aboard. Hence the gardening theme.
I just read that rosemary, one of my favourite herbs for cooking, is relatively salt resistent. Also, I like the idea of a hydroponic garden adatped for cruising conditions, as depicted in this nutty video
26 2 / 2012
Lazy mascot is put to work
I inherited this mascot when I purchased Nautila, but never really got on with him. He always seemed to be lying down asleep. So I put hom to work as the bearer of the thermometer. Now we get on much better. He can be placed both inside and out. Very useful.
13 2 / 2012
Featherless
On the subject of birds, I have banded seagulls from perching on my boat because they also use it as a toilet. Which reminds me; I went to see an exhibition, “Return to home”, by the Norwegian artist Anders Eiebakke. The exhibition was centred around self-built surveillance drones, one of them fashioned in the guise of a seagull. In addition was a map of the intended flight path of the seagull, also functioning as the director’s instructions for aerial photography.
13 2 / 2012
Feathered friends
I started to feed this trio of young swans with leftover bread in the mornings and evenings. When they disappeared a duck took their place, and then came her partner. They wait for me to wake up and come home in the evening.
13 2 / 2012
Sunday dinner
This man caught a bagfull of mackerel next to Nautila, and then the catch of the day; a very decent sized trout. I really should get a fishing rod.
13 2 / 2012
The surface of the water froze over around my boat (and the previously featured pole!) for the first time on Sunday. YIKES! I looked on the echosounder and the underwater temperature has fallen from 3°c to 1°c. A bit concerned about pipes and tubes freezing and breaking, I open the floor hatches so that they can warm up from time to time.
