That was The Summer Cruise, that was...

Tuesday 3 September—Home  to Yarmouth.

 

It turned out that the extra wait in Brighton had been very worthwhile, as we had a very enjoyable cruise home. The conditions were near-perfect, with flat seas, no wind, good visibility, a following tide, and no incidents.

A slight course variation needed here

Extracts from the ship’s log:

Engines 984, water 1/2, Fuel full, All checks OK.

 Waypoints: Looe buoys, Horse Sand Fort, Cowes, Home.

A waypoint reached on a tranquil sea

This pot can be seen in most seas

0855 cast off.  Cloudy, dry, slight, F1. 2800 16.3 log 15.5 sog, AOK, ( port engine temp 200F, dropping to 90C)

1000 13nm@255T to Looe. Slight. Bright,

 

 

 

  

1030 5nm@257T to Looe. Diversion for  fishing fleet.

 

 

This one is completely invisible at any sea state 

1100 Smooth. Sun. Crew sunbathing aft. Ideal. 16.4 log 17.5 sog. Great conditions. AOK.

1120 Horse Sand Fort. 2800rpm 16.5=. Sunny. AOK.

1200 +3 kts of fair tide. Egypt Point. Flat. 18.5 sog.

1225 Yarmouth fuel dock. Fuel 197 lt, £156 plus vat.

Osborne House, Isle of Wight

 John & Sue, our “shore crew”, were standing by to welcome us and give a lift to pick up the car, which we did after a lunch and a rest. It is always great to get home, and to sit basking in the Yarmouth Harbour sunshine, being welcomed by familiar faces.

 

We took just the essentials home for the first run, and we enjoyed just being back again in “Westward”.

After a  few cups of tea, and a nap, we went out for dinner at “The Hut”, in Colwell Bay nearby, and we watched very contentedly as a magnificent Sun slowly sank into the Western sea, bringing a fabulous summer adventure to a lovely close.

The Sun goes down on "Summer 2013"

 

 

Monday 2 September -Ready for the last leg

Monday 2 September



Loitering with intent?

 This was a very tranquil day, and all the more so in contrast to the lively excitement of yesterday. Gill made a short pilgrimage to the Marks and Spencer shrine in town,

If only they all used such visible markers

 while the convalescing skipper sunbathed, snoozed, watched the traffic, and chuckled at the antics of a nosy seagull on the boat next door.

We had a very nice dinner at “Memories of India” on the boardwalk, and we were ready for the off.

 

Friday August30 to Sunday 1 September - Recuperating in Brighton, and a family party!

August 30 to 1 September in Brighton

The combination of post-viral effects and a hard day at sea had been too much for your blogger, and a period of enforced rest was necessary. Although feeling OK at rest, the short walk to and from the nearby “Asda” was enough to completely discharge all stored energy levels and reinvigorate all kinds of muscle pains and aches, so immediate onward travel plans were cancelled.



Built from scratch by hand 13 years ago

Friday August 30 remained much windier than forecast, although there were welcome sunny periods between showers. Brighton marina dues were £26.10 per night, with an underwhelming discount of 10% after 7 days. The resident nurse on “Middle Watch” removed the stitches from the biopsy of 10 days ago, and the rest of the day was taken up with communicating, resting and watching the ever-changing comings and goings of the marina. No outings.

Recuperating like this

 

Saturday 31 August was a very pleasant day, with ample sunbathing, and no excursions, except for Gill’s foraging trip to the supermarket, where she gathered up the ingredients for another superb dinner on board.

 

 

Pizza delivery

 

Sunday 1 September began rather earlier than hoped, at 6am, when an enthusiastically noisy party of Sunsailers arrived on the adjoining berth and had a lively meeting about the overnight sail they had had. The big event, however, began a few hours later with the arrival of of our family visitors for a boat party.  Michelle and Jason, with Dylan and Macy, and Nadine and Jeremy with Molly, plus ourselves, made a total of nine happy souls for most of the day.

Nadine does story-time

 

Always best to start young

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After a welcome drink and orientation, “the boys” were dispatched to the pizza shop, while all manner of party antics were carried out aboard. It was a great family day.

 

 



Tom, Gill, Macy, Jason, Michelle, Dylan, Nadine, Molly and Jeremy

 

 



 

 

29 August At Sea Ramsgate to Brighton

Thursday 29 August  Ship’s Log At sea, Ramsgate to Brighton

Approx 5 hrs at 15 Kts sog.

Engines 978, water 1/2, fuel full (196ltr, £165)

Waypoints: Ramsgate, Gull Stream S, S Sands Clg, Dover Ent, Dungenness Clg, Beachy Clg, Brighton Ent.

We meet a bigger cousin in Ramsgate

 

1115 Cast off. Clear port. Set at 2750 15.6 kts =. Flat. Bright haze. +0.4 kts tide. AOK

1150 Sea increased to moderate. 15 log, 15.3 sog. Bright haze, AOK, but port engine running at 200degF

Dodging Dover ferries

1215 Sea stronger at dover. Avoiding 3 ferries. Bright haze. Port engine now cooler at 195F

1300 7.5 nm to Dungenness. Lumpy sea (S/M). Wind F3 increasing (not forecast) Vis 3nm. AOK

1330 Sea now choppy. Waves 3-5 ft occ higher, but wavelength is the problem, giving slamming.

At Dungenness.

 

 

A welcome sight indeed

 

1400 Slamming continues. 13log, 14sog. AOK

1430 Fishing pots difficult to see in mounting seas.

1500 9nm to Beachy Head. Wind F4. AOK, but very uncomfortable  passage.

1530 Beachy Head. V.choppy. 17log, 14.5 sog. AOK

1630 Thankful arrival at Brighton Entrance.

1700 Fuelled up. 273 ltrs, £301.61 engines 984.

Sunset in Brighton
 

 

We arrived in Brighton after one of the most uncomfortable passages of recent years.  As an example of the strength of some of the slams, the bulb in an Anglepoise lamp came free from its bayonet fitting. Luckily, the crew (bless her) had done her usual great job of stowage for sea, so no other damage done, apart from seawater on the Basil plant.

When we had rested up and done our communications, we  walked up to the  bright lights of the Brighton Boardwalk, and treated ourselves to some posh Fish’n’Chips. On our travels, we chatted to the crew of a “traditional” gaffer, who had built the boat from scratch 13 years ago.

The Bright lights of Brighton Marina Boardwalk

 

 

 

 We will rest up and recover here for a few days.......

 

28 August At sea London to Ramsgate

Wednesday 28 August began with a 5am  alarm clock, and a fog so thick that we couldn’t see The Shard, but after a hasty breakfast and a very tricky manoeuvre out of berth, we were in and out of the lock and away from the nearby fuel dock by 6.30. On the river, visibility was OK, and we were on our way home...

Top bankers in the cloud

Wednesday 28 August  Ship’s Log At sea, Tower Bridge to Ramsgate

Engines 979, water 5/8, fuel full (196ltr, £165)

0545 Cast off. Tight extrication from mooring.

0600 In lock. Port navigation light out.

0630 Cast off from fuel dock.

Glorious Greenwich



 

 

0700 Greenwich.  9 knots, waiting fair flow. AOK

0730 Woolwich ferry. Tide now fair. 2500 13knots =.

0800 Flat calm. No wind. Chart 2650. 14.5 log, 15.5 sog, Erith Rands, thames 15 mile mark.

The flood barrier

0815 Chart 1186 1 B. Brightening. 2500 12.7 log, 15.1 sog ( tide of +2, ref says 1.8)

0840 Coalhouse Point. Chart 1186. AOK

0945 At Medway Entrance Dangerous Wreck. Cop peras 15.6 nm @106T. Bright haze. Flat.

1030 5.5nm@106T to Copperas. Slight. Vis 1nm.

1050 Copperas. Depth 3m below bottom. .

Graceful beauties
 

 

And scenic views
 

 

1130 Sea change at N. Foreland Pt. Choppy AOK

1140 Sea back to slight.1150 Ramsgate approach.

1200 On Ramsgate fuel dock. 247 ltr, £274.69.

 Berth fee £26-10.

Wednesday afternoon was taken very gently, in a berth very conveniently situated just across from the fuel dock.  As well as doing the next day’s navigation, we had lots of phone calls, texts, and messages from friends and family, many concerned for the well-being of the skipper. (Thank you all!). Ramsgate is as nice as ever, although we can’t figure out why it is so quiet and in places obviously run-down. We had a ramble around the town, calling in at the well-appointed Yacht Club, and we enjoyed a delicious Thai Curry on the picturesque Arcade which rises in a sweep over the scenic Harbour and marina.

Then back to Middle Watch for an early well-deserved bed.

 

 

Last day in London

Tuesday 27 August, our last day in London, was yet another fine day, and we had a visit from Jeremy, Nadine and, of course, Molly.

 

Molly entertains
 

 It was agentle day, since your blogger was still recovering from his hospital escapade, so a lunch on board was followed by a perusal of the Clipper yachts, which were “open house” on the pontoons. Nadine and Jeremy went on board while Molly entertained us ashore.

 

Goodbye, Taff

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We said our goodbyes to the neighbours, including Taff the dog, and decided that we would after all be able to extricate ourselves from a very tight berth next morning at 5.45am. It was an early night, and the evening was speeded along by the obligatory 2 episodes of “The West Wing”.

Nadine & Jeremy board "Derry"