Paying a flying visit home

Practical: Bluewater Cruising

Fenton Hamlin shares his golden rules for making a flying visit home as angst-free as possible.

So you need to fly home to attend to business or family matters. It is something I hadn’t really considered much when I left NZ nearly five years ago but the reality is that unless you have a super-efficient “agent” looking after your affairs back home, you will probably have to make the trip more often than you would like. No matter how carefully you plan, there will always be situations that spring up unexpectedly, requiring that you be there. Unfortunately, you will find that no one really takes as much care of your interests as you would hope. At the end of the day, you are the one responsible and no one else will look after your property, business or family matters as well as you could.

Special deal

Browsing the numerous airline and travel sites on the internet will soon identify those companies who fly regularly and relatively cheaply to your home city. Then if your dates are flexible you might find a special deal to sweeten the pill. Usually the cheapest flights depart (or arrive) at some ungodly hour, so be prepared for logistical problems once you arrive — or depart. Credit cards and internet banking help smooth the path, so make sure you have all the details that most airline companies require before you start filling in those endless fields on the internet booking forms.

Baggage allowance

Most companies these days have a 20kg baggage allowance plus a cabin allowance of seven kilograms. However, there are companies who allow 30kg; handy if you are bring back a spare anchor as I did recently. On a previous trip I purchased a new loo and brought it back, carefully dismantled and packed in a suitcase. On arriving in Phuket and unpacking I was amused to find that the porcelain bowl was stamped “Made in Thailand”!

Check dates and times

Make sure you read the dates and times correctly. I was almost caught out recently with an 0300 hrs departure. Even though the departure was correctly identified on the ticket as being on Monday, I had foolishly imagined that I needed to turn up at the airport on Monday night whereas in reality I needed to be there on Sunday night for an early Monday morning departure! Luckily I realised my error just in time.

Leaving the boat

Where to leave the boat? Providing you are reasonably flush with funds a marina is of course, really the best bet. Usually there is good security and it is easy for friends to keep an eye on her. However, for those of us on a tighter budget the cost of two to three weeks in a marina, on top of the costs of renting a car back home, buying wine etc for friends and hosts, gifts for the grand kids etc, may be too much. Twice I have flown home leaving Pateke on her 40lb plough-type anchor with plenty of chain (a scope of at least five times the depth) and luckily she has been fine. Obviously choosing a sheltered anchorage with good holding and with someone close by to keep an eye on things is important. Set your anchor carefully. Make sure it is securely “dug-in” and rig a strong snubber.

Automatic dry-cell battery-powered anchor lights are useful, as are solar-powered garden lights which provide a modest light.

Don’t forget the important things like turning off the batteries, the gas and water intakes — and or course remembering to turn them on again when you come back.

Having a “witch hunt” for cockroaches before you leave and perhaps setting off a smoke bomb when you do depart, might be a good idea.

If you can, leave a port or similar, open, to allow some ventilation.

Regulations

Be careful to observe the customs and immigration rules of the country where you are leaving from and returning to. Some places, such as Brunei, have very strict rules concerning the amount of alcohol you are permitted to bring into the country.

Double check

Make sure that any arrangements you make regarding transport or to stay with friends/family, are clearly understood by both parties before you leave.