Any excuse to get a good view

Who's that fool up there?

I used to be terrified about climbing the mast, and had to take it incrementally (the psychological medicine) over a period of time.  Each small increase in height was an achievement.   Finally  I could race up the mast bare footed without a harness.  Now that was 17 years ago when we first purchased Wild Bird, and had less sense and a feeling of immortality.  Once I had reached the mast top that was.

We purchased a set of mast steps, made of aluminium and retractable.   You cannot see these in shops these days.  Is is because of liability if someone falls off?  They are brilliant.  These days, the Admiral takes me up clipped on, and with a harness seat that we make to fit my posterior.   It has special pockets for tools and a second hand car seat belt clips together at the front.   I can sit aloft and admire the view 17 metres up.

Lots of interesting things exist at the top of the mast, but today’s feature of interest is only a one metre bright yellow strip designed to warn ships in rough weather that something other than white caps of waves are out there.  Indeed, I once saw a freighter in a storm off the Australian coast many moons ago in our Wild Honey.   Its bright orange strip above the wheel house was first seen.    Also of interest was the spray orange dazzle that you get from the locked cabinets of hardware shops.  It very soon faded in sunlight.   Nothing permanent there for taggers.

Last year when the Admiral and I were putting up a new back stay (put together by me using the poured zinc cup terminals), we were grunting away lifting the heavy wire so I could slip the pin in and claim victory.  Nearby a young crew on a visiting boat were socialising in their cockpit, taking more than a cursory view of the proceedings.   When I loudly announced to the Admiral that we quinquaginarians had achieved our goal, our neighbours let rip a concerted cheer of congratulations.   Well!  Of course we would get it done kiddos.  Hey,we soon-to-be-sexagenarians must be called that for some reason.

By the way, I was also safety harnessed to the mast, so the fool had no way of falling at that stage.  Worse things have not happened at sea.