The Last leg
As predicted following a wet windy afternoon the August gale blew itself out and after a quiet night we set off at a respectable 10:30am for the short trip to Ramsgate. As we were heading north towards Ramsgate we wanted to leave Dover via the east entrance which is also the one used by all of the cross channel ferry traffic. Dover port control are very pleasant and after a radio chat with them we were given permission to follow the DFDS vessel out of the harbour with strict instructions to then head north for at least half a mile - once outside of the protective walls of the harbour we could see why - there was a queue of ferries heading across the channel, presumably getting themselves back in sync after the delays of the previous day.
The weather was lovely, blue sky, white fluffy clouds and a nice SW 3-4 plus a big spring tide meaning that we were scooting along the coast at a very respectable 6 knots! After a couple of hours I contacted Ramsgate Port Control on VHF to ask permission to enter the harbour. Ramsgate is nowhere near as busy as Dover and the ferry and jetfoil traffic that we used to be wary of many years ago has long since gone, but the harbour is now home to the high speed catamaran craft that look after the large wind farms built on the sands several miles offshore. I have mixed feelings about these wind farms. Sometimes they look majestic with the blades slowly turning and with the knowledge that the energy they are producing is doing no damage to our beautiful planet I can see the beauty in them. On the other hand once there used to be a time when crossing the Thames Estuary the horizon was empty and you could feel truly alone even though only a few miles off shore but now the windmills are always there and somehow that sense of being alone at sea is lost.
After obtaining permission to enter Ramsgate Harbour we found a berth in the western marina with the help of the friendly staff and tucked ourselves up for a nice lunch and a look at the weather forecast. It seemed that the strong winds had not quite gone away and the forecast winds for the following day had increased from 4-5 occasionally 6 to 5-6 occasionally 7 in the six hours between forecasts! This was more like the English summer weather we were accustomed to! The wind gradually picked up during the afternoon and by the evening it was clear that the forecast was spot on!
The Thames Estuary is a navigational challenge for sailors, not only can the tides be vicious - and we were going to do the crossing on a spring tide which has some of the strongest currents - but the estuary is made up of shallow sandbanks and deep channels. The sandbanks often have no more than a metre of water over them at low tide, some even dry completely meaning an unwary sailor can end up high and dry in a very dangerous place. The other problem is that with the rapidly changing depths of water a strong wind, and strong currents short steep seas can whip up quite quickly making for a very uncomfortable passage. With all of that in mind and also having worked out the time we needed to be at the shallowest point of our crossing - a small gutway across the Sunk Sands - we decided to spend another night in Ramsgate.
The following morning the wind had died back to a nice WSW 3/4 and although a bit chilly the sun was out and the skies clear. At just about 6:30am we left Ramsgate heading for Bradwell and the end of our journey. The passage across the estuary was uneventful and we were able to make good time the previous days chop had died down and we were able to make about 4.5knots under sail. Soon we were passing the familiar bouys in our home waters. By 11:20 am we had crossed the Sunk Sand and shaping a course to take us past the Gunfleet Sands wind farm and through the narrow spitway into the Wallet - a channel that runs parallel to the Essex Coast from the mouth of the River Colne to Harwich Harbour.
By one o'clock the two "sugar cubes" of Bradwell Power station just came into view and we knew we would be home in the next couple of hours. The lunchtime forecast had mentioned isolated thunderstorms accompanied by gusty winds and as we approached Bradwell we could see the skies darkening with the promise of rain and the wind was picking up with an accompanying short sharp chop on the sea, we had also turned into the wind so we decided - sadly- that we wouldn't sail the last few miles but motor in as quickly as possible to avoid the inevitable soaking! So at about 2:15 we were motoring up the approach channel to Bradwell Marina for the first time since our departure on 1st May 2017!
For those of you that like numbers:
We logged 1994 Nautical Miles
We were on the boat in total for 152 days and we were at sea for 89 of those days.
My final reflections are that we are truly blessed and lucky to live on such a fantastic collection of islands and that no matter how long you take exploring them there is always something new to see or find. Folks have asked us what our favourite bit was and honestly I can't really say - the West of Scotland is spectacular (it would have been better without the rain!) as was the East of Ireland and the coasts of Wales and Cornwall. I think my biggest disappointment was the famous southern sailing grounds in England (the Solent and Eastern English Channel) not only were they crowded but our fellow yachtsmen were generally unfriendly and preoccupied with their own agenda - there were few friendly chats in yacht club bars and no advise for the stranger to the waters. The racing fraternity charged headlong at any boat in their way with protest flags fluttering and it all felt generally unfriendly - in fact we avoided sailing these waters at the weekends when things were at their worst!
I still believe that the best rivers for sailors are our own East Coast rivers with their quiet anchorages, lovely green rolling river banks and busy friendly marinas although the Falmouth River comes close to these. The most challenging passage for us was from Oban to Crinan passing the Fladda lighthouse and then the sleigh ride through Dorus Mor - not because the navigation was particularly difficult but we had never before sailed in water that moved so fast and gave us so little opportunity to actually steer! We met some really lovely people and shared our journey with them for a few days before parting with good memories and after plenty of laughs!
So what next? Well at the moment we are getting used to the idea of a shore based life again with maybe a week or so on the boat when the weather is good - but who knows. Once we have cast off the shore lines there is nothing to stop us !!!
Thank you for reading this - I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did writing it and it gave you a flavour of some of our adventure.
The weather was lovely, blue sky, white fluffy clouds and a nice SW 3-4 plus a big spring tide meaning that we were scooting along the coast at a very respectable 6 knots! After a couple of hours I contacted Ramsgate Port Control on VHF to ask permission to enter the harbour. Ramsgate is nowhere near as busy as Dover and the ferry and jetfoil traffic that we used to be wary of many years ago has long since gone, but the harbour is now home to the high speed catamaran craft that look after the large wind farms built on the sands several miles offshore. I have mixed feelings about these wind farms. Sometimes they look majestic with the blades slowly turning and with the knowledge that the energy they are producing is doing no damage to our beautiful planet I can see the beauty in them. On the other hand once there used to be a time when crossing the Thames Estuary the horizon was empty and you could feel truly alone even though only a few miles off shore but now the windmills are always there and somehow that sense of being alone at sea is lost.
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| The "London Array" Wind Farm |
The Thames Estuary is a navigational challenge for sailors, not only can the tides be vicious - and we were going to do the crossing on a spring tide which has some of the strongest currents - but the estuary is made up of shallow sandbanks and deep channels. The sandbanks often have no more than a metre of water over them at low tide, some even dry completely meaning an unwary sailor can end up high and dry in a very dangerous place. The other problem is that with the rapidly changing depths of water a strong wind, and strong currents short steep seas can whip up quite quickly making for a very uncomfortable passage. With all of that in mind and also having worked out the time we needed to be at the shallowest point of our crossing - a small gutway across the Sunk Sands - we decided to spend another night in Ramsgate.
The following morning the wind had died back to a nice WSW 3/4 and although a bit chilly the sun was out and the skies clear. At just about 6:30am we left Ramsgate heading for Bradwell and the end of our journey. The passage across the estuary was uneventful and we were able to make good time the previous days chop had died down and we were able to make about 4.5knots under sail. Soon we were passing the familiar bouys in our home waters. By 11:20 am we had crossed the Sunk Sand and shaping a course to take us past the Gunfleet Sands wind farm and through the narrow spitway into the Wallet - a channel that runs parallel to the Essex Coast from the mouth of the River Colne to Harwich Harbour.
 |
| Bradwell Power Station |
By one o'clock the two "sugar cubes" of Bradwell Power station just came into view and we knew we would be home in the next couple of hours. The lunchtime forecast had mentioned isolated thunderstorms accompanied by gusty winds and as we approached Bradwell we could see the skies darkening with the promise of rain and the wind was picking up with an accompanying short sharp chop on the sea, we had also turned into the wind so we decided - sadly- that we wouldn't sail the last few miles but motor in as quickly as possible to avoid the inevitable soaking! So at about 2:15 we were motoring up the approach channel to Bradwell Marina for the first time since our departure on 1st May 2017!
 |
| Approaching Bradwell |
We logged 1994 Nautical Miles
We were on the boat in total for 152 days and we were at sea for 89 of those days.
My final reflections are that we are truly blessed and lucky to live on such a fantastic collection of islands and that no matter how long you take exploring them there is always something new to see or find. Folks have asked us what our favourite bit was and honestly I can't really say - the West of Scotland is spectacular (it would have been better without the rain!) as was the East of Ireland and the coasts of Wales and Cornwall. I think my biggest disappointment was the famous southern sailing grounds in England (the Solent and Eastern English Channel) not only were they crowded but our fellow yachtsmen were generally unfriendly and preoccupied with their own agenda - there were few friendly chats in yacht club bars and no advise for the stranger to the waters. The racing fraternity charged headlong at any boat in their way with protest flags fluttering and it all felt generally unfriendly - in fact we avoided sailing these waters at the weekends when things were at their worst!
I still believe that the best rivers for sailors are our own East Coast rivers with their quiet anchorages, lovely green rolling river banks and busy friendly marinas although the Falmouth River comes close to these. The most challenging passage for us was from Oban to Crinan passing the Fladda lighthouse and then the sleigh ride through Dorus Mor - not because the navigation was particularly difficult but we had never before sailed in water that moved so fast and gave us so little opportunity to actually steer! We met some really lovely people and shared our journey with them for a few days before parting with good memories and after plenty of laughs!
So what next? Well at the moment we are getting used to the idea of a shore based life again with maybe a week or so on the boat when the weather is good - but who knows. Once we have cast off the shore lines there is nothing to stop us !!!
Thank you for reading this - I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did writing it and it gave you a flavour of some of our adventure.
 |
| Back Home again |
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