Folkboat Ownership - just got real

Just a mere handful of days after exchanging handshakes and handing over a small bag of cash, the reality is slowly seeping into my bones. 

Of course I have a deep physical memory of the Folkboat s feel, the day to day ramifications are still being fixed into my being.

Yesterday, after an evening of online window shipping, I had a thought that there may be some electronic goodies stowed in the shed. In the Old Boating Stuff cupboard I quickly uncovered marine radio and deeper down, an EPIRB. 

As it transpires the radio is a 27MHz, not VHF. Its the radio of choice for weekend anglers and small pleasure boaters rathan than cruising sailors. Although the frequency is noisy, its waves carry further and Marine Rescue stations broadcast there, as they do VHF. It also satisfies the statutory requirement to have a radio on board. A tick for now, I think later I will buy a portable VHF. 

The radio beacon is still in its box. I recall buying it years ago when I was planning to go offshore in NY Hunter 19. Its battery has passed its use by date by a year but still works. I will buy a replacement. 

I still needed portable ship to shore transport. Something I could lug on my folding bicycle and I went out and bought an inflatable kayak. She's not top quality, but nor is she a vinyl piece of crap either. I trust that buying it from a reputed supplier of adventure gear,eans that it will prove to be reasonably durable.  I put it down to my love of Audrey Sutherland. As a divorced mother of three finds herself living on Hawaii and taking up wild swimming. But Ms Sutherland is a unique and adventurous soul; she goes off for swimming for days while  using a foam fruit box to float  her camping gear! Over the years, after achieving increasingly daring adventures, she progresses to a one-person inflatable kayak. Ultimately, she flies to the west coast Canada-US border and paddles alone, the Inside Passage towards Alaska. Her books are enthralling and while reading it I went from being concerned about shark attack to orca attack while being totally engrossed with the prospect of such a wonderfully simple and rewarding mode of travel. My other preoccupation apart from singlehanded sailing is bikepacking. A subset of bikepacking is bikerafting which involves carting and inflatable raft on your bike and using the raft to traverse waterways or run a river. So, hopefully, there might be some of that too.  

Intex Excursion Pro K1

Slowly slowly, I  am sorting out a lifestyle and equipment that feeds my love of solo, low key adventuring; folding and  fat bikes, an inflatable kayak, a motorcycle and small seagoing sailboat. All of a mode and scale that are better for the environment and affordable.