Bit late with the Cefas news!

Cefas Endeavour is now on the 12th day of her two week June 2012 survey off the souht coats of England. Day one of the trip was recorded on the Cefas blog and clicking on each of the subsequent days on the calendar section will reveal how the boat fared in the less than pleasant weather that hit home waters at the end of last week and over the weekend.

At the same time as the Cefas survey, the RRS James Cook is in the middle of her current survey off the west coast of Scotland - including a cruise past the legendary, and according to some, most isolated rock in the world - Rockall.....

Photo courtesy of Laura's post aboard the James Cook.

and for those familair with this part of the planet, a rather typical view of the rock shrouded in mist!

Falmouth Coastgurad gets a thank you from Sarah Outen in the Pacific Ocean

Listen to the last broadcast from Sarah Outen using iPadio aboard her rowing boat before she was picked up in a rescue coordinated by Falmouth Coastguard over 6,000 miles away.

"Sarah is now safe aboard the recovery vessel sent by the Japanese Coastguard. Sarah is now making her way to back to Japan. Thank you for all your messages of support and a huge thanks to the Coastguards in Falmouth and Japan for such a swift response and for getting Sarah aboard the recovery vessel safe and sound in difficult sea conditions. We are awaiting final confirmation of details of Sarah’s arrival in Japan and will let you know more once we have further information. All the best The London2London Team"

 Japanese Translation セーラは海上保安庁の巡視船によって無事救助されました 2012年6月8日 セーラは海上保安庁の巡視船によって無事救助され、現在日本に向って航行中です。 温かいサポートメッセージをお寄せくださった皆様、そして非常に迅速に対応し悪天候の中セーラを保護するために尽力を尽くして下さった日本の海上保安庁およびファルマスの湾岸警備隊の皆様に心より御礼申し上げます。 セーラの日本到着日時などの詳細につきましても、最終確認が取れ次第お伝えさせていただきます。 The London2London Team

Here is the post on round-the-world Sarah Outen's London2London blog just after the news broke that she had been succssfully picked up by a Japanese Coastguard vessel. Typhoon Mawar proved too much for both Sarah and Charlie Martell who has also had to be rescued. Both rower's boats were subjected to 30-50 foot waves which proved their undoing as damage to the hulls ensued.

Sainsbury's supports sustainable fishing fleets

Sainsbury’s is making progress to ensure the most popular fish eaten now can still be enjoyed in years to come. Our plans have been in place following claims from marine experts¹ that half of the world’s fish stocks are still at risk of depletion. Sainsbury's is proud to be the largest UK retailer of MSC-certified sustainable fish and seafood products, with over 80 products which carry the MSC ecolabel. Our aim is to offer MSC-certified fish where it is available and where the product meets our strict quality standards. We've plans to significantly increase our certified offer in the next 12 months. 


 The ‘Big 5’ species (cod, haddock, salmon, tuna and prawns) remain the most popular fish eaten in the UK, accounting for 80% of all fish sold every week. Sainsbury’s is working to convert the 'Big 5' species to green rated (green rated is ‘sustainable’, red rated means 'major concern’, according to the Sainsbury’s decision tree; developed with key stakeholders within the fish industry). 


This means moving cod, haddock, salmon, tuna and prawns to 100% sustainable sources, ensuring that the fish are caught or reared with minimal impact on stocks, eco-systems, and the wider environment. 


The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is the world’s leading independent certification and eco-labelling scheme for sustainable wild caught seafood. It works to promote the best environmental choice in seafood. When you see the MSC eco-label, you can be sure that you have found a product that’s been independently certified as being sustainable. We are proud to say that Sainsbury’s is the UK’s largest retailer of MSC certified sustainable fish. We have over 75 MSC labelled fish products spanning all areas selling fish.


Sourced from Sainsbury's web site.

Meva in season

Non-partisan flags in the car park at Mevagissey suggest all Celts are welcome.....

and top of the perennial visitor favourites is good old local ice cream......

with the stormy weather in full swing the tiny harbour is packed with the local fishing fleet.....

time to visit Mevagissey's famous museum - free as well - but feel better by making a donation on the way out.......

St Ives artist Borlase Smart at work in this pen and in wash depiction of Mevagissey's harbour.......

the museum's collection is drawn from all aspects of Cornish fishing community life......

and it seems foreign fleets in local waters are nothing new.......

in those old pipe smoking days......

there's a good example of a basket of lines - these are still used by a handful of boats when fishing for conger eel today......

there's an example of a net making machine, for many years in the homes of Cornish pilchard fishermen their children would be expected to 'make' so many rows of mesh before they were allowed out to play - here's more information provided by Nick Howell, curator of the now sadly closed Pilchard Museum.....

"Thought you'd like to know that the "net making machine" photo that you have in Meva is in fact a Norsel making machine or as the Cornish often called it, " an 'orsel maker" .

Norsels, 'orsels etc were the twine that separated a pilchard/herring net from the head rope. The head rope itself would consist of a left and a right turned rope tied back to back with their twists opposite to each other and with the cork floats in between. This was to stop the net curving, due to the natural twist of a rope, when in the water.

The Norsel machine twisted a few pairs of smaller twine in one hit, each pair only 12" to 18" long, back to back so that, again the natural twist of the twine would not curve in the water".........

next to the Museum is John Moore's boat builders,  Britannia IV and Britannia V were built by the yard.......

Mevagissey is world famous in angling circles for the killer bass lure, the Red Gill invented by Alex Gill in 1968 and more bizarrely for being the first conurbation in the Britain with electric street lights.......

perfect for baking pasties, a Cornish version of the pizza oven known as a 'clone' oven, which were set into the wall of the large granite fireplaces found in most Cornish cottages.......

out in the harbour the age-old seaside pastime of crab catching continues.......

even though it is low water.......

which means the boats are dried out.......

looks like the red mullet are going to be on local menus soon......

gales mean the Mevagissey Ferry is not able to do its Fowey run today......... 

all hands make light work when it comes to scrubbing off below the waterline and anti-fouling the hull......

once a sea of masts........

though there's no sign of fins on the menu.......

another trawler with a voracious appetite for fish.......

the Still Waters is taking advantage of the bad weather to go through her gear......

the fish market at Meva caters for a fleet of much diversity.......

one of many in the village........

the cliff road heads straight out to sea.

French trawler Maranello towed by Plymouth lifeboat

After suffering engine failure the French trawler Maranello was toed into Plymouth by the local lifeboat.

Rescue footage courtesy of the RNLI.

New Newlyn Harbour commissioner Rob Salvidge gives his view of the harbour's future

HAVING spent a lifetime in communications, Newlyn Harbour commissioner Rob Salvidge admits that's one thing the port authority does not do so well. But sat on his replica sail ship, the Matthew, the former broadcast journalist, who played a key role in the regeneration of Bristol's harbour, said it's something he and the commission are determined to change. 


 One of a new raft of members to join the authority after a turbulent year, which saw it oust three of its commissioners and become the subject of BBC investigative programme Inside Out, the Bristolian is hoping to use his experience to engender change. ​ Replica of Cabot's 15th-century sailing ship the Matthew revisits Fowey on its way to London for the Queen's jubilee celebrations. 

The Matthew leaving Newlyn for the IOS World Gig Championships.

He already has a string of ideas on how to improve links with the community, which at times has said it feels disenfranchised from the running of the commission, but concedes it may not happen overnight. "The question is, how do we bring everyone together with mutual understanding?" said Mr Salvidge. "We need to understand the problems of the past. It's really old fashioned talking to people. It's really important we should never be too busy to do so. "We have got to listen to people, we need to make it possible for them to understand the day-to-day issues." 


 But Mr Salvidge's ambitions for the commission aren't just limited to establishing better links to the community. Improved signage, a better infrastructure and the development of the port's ability to cater for the tourist sector are all part of his wish list. And he aims to use his experience of promoting the historical aspect of his home city's harbour to aid him. 


 He said: "I really think it (improved signage) sends out the right message. It's something that needs to be done quickly." Mr Salvidge added that improving the ice plant, doing something about the buildings on North Quay and sorting out decommissioned trawlers were next on the agenda for the harbour trust.  


Aside from his work for the port authority, he spends most of his days onboard the Matthew, which his father, Bill, was involved in building in 1997. The replica sail ship mimics the vessel belonging to intrepid explorer John Cabot, who, contrary to popular opinion, discovered North America when he landed in Newfoundland in 1497. The ship, often found moored in Falmouth, visits ports up and down the country providing an educational and historical interest for communities, as well as a challenge for sailing enthusiasts. It also took part in the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations on the River Thames. 


But readers from Penzance may be familiar with the Matthew for the role it played in landing the Pirate World Record last June. Mr Salvidge explained that it was through his work with the Matthew that he became familiar with Newlyn, and ultimately appointed to the commission. 


 He said: "I have always been aware of how important Newyln is as a harbour. "I got chatting to the Newlyn Harbour Master, Andrew Munson, and few other people I know and just seemed like an obvious mix. "I've been involved in the regeneration of Bristol harbour. No one can just stand still. Newlyn is a valuable fishing port but there's lots of other things a good harbour needs to be with different people working together. "Newlyn is the most strategic harbour between Falmouth, North France, the Isles of Scilly and the Bristol Channel for serious pleasure boats, it's important to make plans." 


Story courtesy of the Cornishman.


 Mr Salvidge said it was vital that progress was made on all fronts when it came to the future of the commission. "I would hate to be here in six months and nothing's been done," he added.

Blue skies over Newlyn as lifeboat arrives.

Despite the strong winds sending clouds scudding across the Bay there's patches of blue sky appearing over Newlyn this morning......

though the boys aboard the St Mary's lifeboat will have had a pretty uncomfortable ride across in order to have their radar systems looked at in the comfort of the harbour.......

and looking at the chart recording wind speed at the Sevenstones Lightship where gusts have topped 45mph in the last 24 hours.