Last Sail of the Year – 21st -23rd November Hamble-Yarmouth-Cowes-Hamble
21st November – Hamble to ?
These 3 days had been set aside to go sailing with Alex Best who had managed to wrangle a few days off from his extremely busy and relentless job with the Met Police. The intent being to have a relaxing winter sail whilst a stable high was over the UK. Sadly the weather did not fully co-operate. The wind was howling from the North and it was freezing. The morning was spent picking Alex up from Southampton Railway Station which on a Sunday obviously does not have any trains just buses and then kitting him out with multiple layers of clothing to survive the artic winds! We were at last ready to leave and the question was do we go or do we make a dash to Cowes or perhaps brave it down to Yarmouth. It is always difficult to make a rational decision in the marina when the sound of the wind is amplified as it blows through the rigging and the boat is bouncing around on the pontoon. The wind forecast was not optimistic but it was from the NE and we were sailing to the SW if we went towards Yarmouth and we had tide with wind which should make for a smoother passage.
Leaving the pontoon was relatively easy with the strength of wind blowing; reverse out and just let the wind blow the bow around before gently reversing into the main channel. Main with a single reef was put in and then the foresail was hoisted. Alex kept helm expertly as we virtually flew down The Solent. A trip that usually takes around 3.5 hours with 3-4 tacks was completed in 2.5hrs and no tacks once we were around Calshot. As we went past Lepe Split, a radio check into Stonepoint NCI (National Coastwatch Institution). Having joined the NCI this is my main station with occasional watches at Calshot Tower.
We had departed at around 1330 and arrived at Yarmouth at 1600hrs just as it was both getting dark and the wind picking up. As we went through the entrance it was around 28kt-30kts. With a northerly wind through the entrance, the pontoons were moving around a considerable amount. The Yarmouth staff guided us to a finger pontoon tucked well inside the harbour and kindly took our lines.
Alex had not previously sailed so this was a bit of a baptism of fire but after the year he had had with the Met Police this probably seemed quite tame.
First port of call having tied up was the pub. There is something calming and relaxing sitting in a warm pub, pints of beer in front of you, as the wind batters the windows and you know you have been out there and sailed under your own power to arrive safely in port. It had got so bad that they shut the entrance to Yarmouth until the wind had calmed down a little just after we had fought our way through avoiding the ferry tied up alongside – almost unknown for this to happen.
So after a hard days sail you would expect a culinary delight for dinner. Well…….. For those of a certain age, the dinner will ring a familiar bell – Fray Bentos Pie in a tin!
You have to have baked beans with a FB pie and potatoes with lashings of butter. This is not a cholesterol free meal. We managed to lighten the boat by consuming various end of season bottles of wine before a bit of a fitful sleep with the wind still blowing hard.
22nd November – Yarmouth-Cowes
The wind had calmed down by the morning dropping to 20-22kts for the sail up to Cowes. A little rougher than the previous day as we now had wind against tide. There was also some foredeck work for Alex in getting sails up and down. It was as cold as the previous day so multiple layers were required. To add to the previous evenings stomach lining we kicked off the day with bacon, egg and bread, so there was little chance of hunger being a major problem. It did take a few tacks to get up to Cowes but again quite a quick trip.
We were going to berth in Cowes Yacht Haven which is in the centre of Cowes. But as we passed with the northerly still blowing, the pontoons looked very uninviting. So we motored up the River Medina to East Cowes Marina. Was a little tricky as one of the large ships carrying sand was making its was making its way down necessitating a move across to one side of the river with a sense of urgency. One of the staff came down to welcome us and take lines at the marina – help I never refuse. After 2 days of being blown from north to south it was very peaceful up river and felt relatively calm. There had been some challenging sailing so whilst Alex caught up on email and rest, I undertook to take on the arduous role of finding a pub and somewhere to eat that evening. Okay – so the pub was by the marina but nevertheless ensuring that their beer is neither too warm or cold is important before we committed to a meal there. After some sampling it got the thumbs up.
We did take the ferry across to Cowes for a late afternoon wander. Cowes was pretty deserted – partly time of year and partly weather.
Inevitably we found a pub to huddle in before taking ferry back across the river and having the evening meal in The Lifeboat Inn. Post dinner it was back to the boat to finish off the end of season whisky rather than wine, watching I’m a Celebrity Get me Out of Here.
23rd November – Cowes to Hamble
What a change in weather from Day 1 – 28kts, Day 2 – 22kts and now on Day 3 4kts! The water was still and the sky clear with the moon still visible. For ‘moon watchers’ it is a waning gibbous. If the right segment of the moon is in darkness the moon is waning – moving towards a ‘new moon’. If the left hand side of the moon is in darkness it is moving to a ‘full moon’. So why is this relevant. Well it tells you whether you are nearing a spring tide or a neaps tide which is also an indicator of the rate of flow of the tide. This becomes important when looking at time of arrival at a berth – is the tide with you or against you and how fast. The cycle of the moon is 4 weeks – new moon to 1st quarter – 1 week, 1st quarter to full moon – 1 week, full moon to 3rd quarter – 1 week and 3rd quarter to new moon – 1 week. Rough timings. So with a quick glance at the sky (moon) you can tell when high and low tide is going to be and the rate of flow without resorting to tide tables.
Enough of this diversionary train of thought. Before leaving we chatted to the boat behind us which was from the Joint Services Adventure Sail Training in Gosport where I had done most of my early sail training. They were out on a coastal skipper beat up and exam. Long days for them as they needed to get both daylight and nigh hours in. But the advantage to training at this time of year is that The Solent is empty.
We departed back to Hamble leaving around 1030 putting the mainsail up in the Channel. It was a short and uneventful trip taking a couple of hours – back into Mercury Marina at 1230. An hour’s clean up and I dropped Alex back the Railway Station – which being a weekday did actually have trains running this time!
I spent the evening on the boat undertaking reviews for the IET (Institute of Engineering and Technology) for applicants applying for Chartered and Incorporated Engineers. Completed over a couple of glasses of beer and fish pie at the Gaff Rigger.
Summary
So ends a year of sailing. Starting with Tom Cunliffe at the beginning, travels down to the West Country, solo sailing to Chichester and finally a winter sail with Alex in a very quiet Solent. The boat will stay in the water over winter and there may be the odd day in January when I can get out. But for now it is our winter staycation on the water.
Wishing you all a very happy Christmas and New Year. See you on the other side of midnight.
Purrfect Tale 