Summer Adventure - Update

The Golden Cloud - 07/03/2013

I have made a decision to move the start date for the round the uk sail for Royal National Lifeboat Institution, Isle of Wight Society for the Blind, Multiple Sclerosis Society (IoW Branch), and Surfers Against Sewage, with beach cleans to next year to give more time to organise charity, sponsor, council, harbour, and boat logistics. 

The original May 1st start date is fast approaching, and with the potential size and fundraising potential of the project I feel it would not do it justice to rush it now and not do all we planned.

This said, during summer (probably May-June and Sept-Oct) I still plan to have some practise runs of the event, likely to involve a few beach cleans, and a passage perhaps Aberystwyth to Isle of Wight, or to West Coast of Scotland or something along those lines to check everything is in order on the boat. 

Those who have offered to be crew this year, if you're still available it would be ace if you could join for practise sails this summer, and please keep in contact with regards to next year.

If you have been helping with sponsorships and permissions please forward this message (or something along the same lines) to anyone you have contacted to inform them of the change. We may find that people who have turned us down for this year, we could be top of the pile for sponsorship next year!

Summer 2013 Plan

The Golden Cloud 26/2/13

What a busy few week's its been since I returned from the land of Ice, and ice, and ice, and oh a bit more ice.

On return from Greenland I decided that this summer me and The Cloud would be going on an adventure. Over a nice cup of tea with a good friend Billy Whitehouse, and then numerous phone calls to charity's and sponsors a plan slowly formulated, and its one I'm now very excited to announce.

Summary: 2300 Mile Anti-Clockwise Lap of the UK leaving 1st of May, doing beach cleans every overnight stop (aim 1000 bags of rubbish) raising funds for Surfers against Sewage, RNLI, Isle of Wight Society for the Blind and The Multiple Sclerosis Society. 

On the 1st of May 2013, The Golden Cloud will depart Ynyslas, and after stopping off in Aberdovey, will head South to do a 2300 nautical mile of the United Kingdom, in an anti-clockwise direction. The route according to passage planning software would take 35 days of direct sailing with a vessel profile similar to golden cloud. However, the plan is not to rush this and enjoy the journey as much as the destination. We plan to do 20-50 miles (~4-7 hours) sailing a day, taking advantage of the best weather and tidal conditions, and staying at anchor when it's not ideal.

The Giants Causeway
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Giant's_Causeway_-_geograph.org.uk_-_133.jpg

The Route plan includes natural beauties like The Scilly Isles, various gorgeous estuaries, Ramsey and Skomer Islands, The White Cliffs of Dover, the North West of Scotland, and the The Giants Causeway to name but a few. 

Seeing the Puffin's of Skomer Island
http://www.coolplaces.co.uk/places/uk/wales/pembrokeshire/st-davids/1596-skomer-island

It also takes in Every Capital of the UK (Cardiff, London, Edinburgh, Belfast) as well as the City's of Bristol, Falmouth, Plymouth, Poole, Southampton, Portsmouth, Brighton, Dover, Newcastle, Liverpool, Bangor etc.

A personal highlight will be sailing under Tower Bridge
Source http://www.travlang.com/blog/category/london-travel-guide/

The journey will give us a chance to see this beautiful nation of ours from angles we've never seen it before.

As per normal on the Cloud the journey will be planned as Sustainable, Low Cost and Eco-friendly as possible.

The plan is to live off the sea, fish and forage where possible, we'll even try to grow some veg and mushrooms in the limited space onboard. The plan is to sail everywhere as much as possible without using the motor unless absolutely nessasary (emergency's and tight harbour manoeuvring). All our electric will come from a small solar panel on deck. I'm even looking into changing the motor to a electric one that runs off the panel!

Its planned that we will moor in little bays and harbours instead of marinas and ports, as there is increasing evidence that large marinas are unsustainable, and huge point sources of pollution from oil in bilge pumps, antifoul paints, sewage from sea toilets and litter. We will reduce our impact in this way because the boat has no sea-toilet, all garbage will be recycled where possible and binned, and we will be careful in the use of antifoul paints and bilge pumps. Added to this the anchoring in open bays and smaller harbours means any pollution from us will be a more dilute source and thus more easily dealt with by nature. 

We wanted to give something back as part of the trip ans so we decided that we would collect sea-rubbish, an ever increasing plight on the coastal beauty of the world (we even saw it in Greenland!)

After talking to Surfers against Sewage we have decided to do a beach clean at every overnight stop and aim to collect 1000+ bags of rubbish. We want to do this to add to the cause, but also to make our trip a positive one for the environment, making it better after we leave than when we arrive, and to highlight the issue of sea rubbish to a wider audience. 

Beach Litter Picture
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/gallery/2009/apr/08/waste-marine-life 

Added to this we aim to raise money for the RNLI for their work for seafarers, The Isle of Wight Society for the Blind and The Multiple Sclerosis Society for the help they gave my dad when he lost his sight with MS a few years ago, and Surfers against Sewage for there work cleaning up the coast.

http://rnli.org 

http://www.iwsightconcern.org.uk/

http://www.wight-ms.org.uk/

http://www.sas.org.uk

http://www.muckbootcompany.com 

And in the past few hours I can gladly announce the 1st Commercial Sponsor for the Project "The Muckboot Company". The Company are supplying the crew with their specialist, hard wearing  neopreyne boots. In Greenland we wore Muckboots for sailing was very impressed, hence going to Muckboot for sponsorship. 


And so the next step! Well were currently looking for crew and sponsorship (personal and commercial) for the journey. A just giving site will be set up shortly after we have discussed things through with the charitys. If you would like to become part of the crew, want to help with your local beach clean, want to help out in the organisation, or have any ideas or offers for sponsorship, Please send me an email on joeberpearce@yahoo.co.uk

Looking forward to a Great Summer!

Come Fly With Me

Come Fly With Me!

The Golden Cloud 03/02/2014

Flying down the motorways of Denmark we started to realise that time was running out. We had about the same amount of driving to do as time before our flight and we hadnt slept properly for 24hrs. Enroute we decided to try our luck in the town of Arhus for a ferry to cut the corner to the island with Copenhagen. On arrival we found the ferry not too dear, and one leaving that evening, added to that as a cargo ferry you got a Free Cup of Coffee, and so into Alun’s primordial soup of a thermos flask went 2 free coffee’s!

With a few hours before the ferry Alun and I made our way into the town centre, and via chatting up the receptionist, we both had 15minutes in the most gorgeous Hotel toilets I’ve ever seen, in the Gold, Brass and Marble encrusted Royal Hotel. 

 After this we walked the gorgeous streets between stunning old buildings, and then downgraded slightly and went to McDonalds for dinner and free wifi!

Back to the van and we waited till our mid night ferry by cleaning the van and swapping gear from bag to bag to even everyone out to 20kg for the Flight to Greenland.

I was amazed to find how little alun took with him, but little was I to know how much he stored in a container in Uummannaq, another in Kangerlussuaq, on Gambo and at Uummannaq Polar Institute, and his reputation for travelling over-light, for example once camping on an ice sheet with a childs sleeping bag!

Cleaning out and packing the van on the dock of the bay

We boarded the ferry to find ourselves the only non-commercial people onboard, I went upstairs to stretch my legs while Alun went to sleep in the van. Upstairs I found only one member of staff who seemed incredibly amazed to see anyone walking upstairs on the ferry, I think I startled her quite badly! For a while she even followed me, I think checking I wasn’t a ghost!

I then found a lovely sofa and slept till we arrived on the otherside. After allowing the boystrous lorrys to get off the ferry first, we drove on through the darkness, to make a final assault on Copenhagen!

We were definitely parked on the front right corner beneath those lorrys

I soon returned to my slumber only waking as Alun parked the van in a random suburb of Copenhagen (I eventually found out it was the street on of Aber Uni’s Doctors had once lived in, and thus he felt he could trust the neighbourhood). Soon we were back asleep for the 2hours before we had to get the train to the airport.

And so we jogged from the van left in this sneaky suburb... the bikes were unlocked so we presumed we could trust it.... and jumped onto the first train. 

About 5 minutes later we arrived at Copenhagen Central, this big bussling central station gave us little clue of where to go but we soon found a platform. Here we were told by a couple of people that the train was running very late and we should get the metro. Having no idea where to get the metro from we waited for the late train.

Alun Confused by Copenhagen Central's dissy lights!

And then we were there at the airport. We sat down sadly the cafe's weren't open in time for breakfast, and I had a coke while Alun raided the Duty Free for the Winter's supply of alcohol! As we approached our departure gate we met up with Tom Clarke of ITN News and his film crew. They were joining us in Greenland for the first week to make a special report for C4 News. We said our hello's and then boarded the plane....

To be continued!

Das Fun Fun Fun of Das Autobahn

Das Fun Fun Fun of Das Autobahn!
The Golden Cloud 03/02/2013

Flying down the Autobahn, Alun and I were singing Kaiser Chiefs and “Da Fun Fun Fun of DAS AUTOBAHN” (our cover of the Kraftwerk song) at the top of our lungs. We had only a handful of miles to the German-Danish Border (and safety?). Suddenly it looked like our game was up. An unmarked police car sped past us, slowed down, then lit up and pulled us in. The sharply dressed plain clothed officer walked up to the window and as Alun wound it down, said in an almost perfect Middle Class English Accent “Good Morning” “Good morning officer, I’m sorry was I going too fast” Alun responded trying to act the innocent, but dobbing himself in! “Oh no no not at all, just a routine check” to which Alun responded in an comically surprised tone “Oh… :S Oh, Great!”

The officer after questioning and checking our papers, looked over Alun’s shoulder at the suspicoulsy large load in the boot. “Whats in the back” he probed. “Ahhh, Yes, I was wondering when you’d ask. Were going on a expedition in the North, its our food for the next few months!” Rather confused the officer asked “For the winter!?! May I have a look?” “Most Certainly” Alun said, obviously looking forward to the officers surprise when he opened the boot.

“Wow that’s a lot of food” staring at the too the roof, 2 tonne, mountain of food, [Kicking Wheel] “looks heavy” “Yes yes it is… Could I interest you in a pringle to lighten the load?” Alun joked “Ha. Ha. Ha. [in a very short german laugh] no I’m ok. Please get in the vehicle” To which Alun attempted to get into the backseat of the police car. “No! Your Car”…“Everything is ok … Good Luck”

The overladen axel of the van

Finally the Danish Border!

 Gleefully we escaped and made for Alborg, humming the tune of the Great Escape.

Not Far to Aalborg

And so on we went up through the bland North German and the boring monotony of the Danish Landscape. We tried to brake the meloncoly by playing “spot the turbine parts” as wind turbine blades, towers, and hubs were zooming past us on the motorway from the factory. I eventually won this game as I was first to spot the massive Turbine Part Holding Bay at Alborg Docks… I think I won by thousands.

A small part of the turbine holding bay!

The joy of winning the turbine game was soon bettered by the feeling of job-done as we drove into the carpark of Royal Arctic Lines container port. They sorted out our papers in a jiffy (signing the container as Danish food to make export easier. We were then led by a floating container (our mini container on a forklift reversing away from us in a way that we could only see a flying container) to a open barn where we got to work unpacking the van and packing the container.

The flying container

And so started an excellent game of rugby pass practise with 2 tonnes of food! Amazingly our hands survived and we only dropped one tin. The Joy in Alun’s face as he finally shut the container door was worth every ounce of effort!

The food mountian

Aluns Joyous Moment

On goes the clip!

Then before we had time to breath we were off again heading to Copenhagen with only 18hrs till check in closed on our flight and 15 hours driving still to do. Before leaving Alborg we picked up a breakfast/lunch/dinner from a service station of Cheese, Danish Rye Bread, and Hotdogs. It was soooooooooo good.

Enroute we decided to try our luck in the town of Arhus for a ferry to cut the corner to the island with Copenhagen. On arrival we found the ferry not too dear, and one leaving that evening, added to that as a cargo ferry you got a Free Cup of Coffee, and so into Alun’s primordial soup of a thermos flask went 2 free coffee’s!

Cutting the corner on the ferry

(To be continued....)