After a fairly sleepless night due to the wind getting up and provoking wobbly boat syndrome, squeaky fenderitis and a dose of the tappy halyards, we set off downriver about half past seven this morning
Given the plan to pop into Burnham, we left the main stowed and sailed it on the genoa alone. Even so, we were hitting over 5 knots at times over the ground (the log impeller was playing up again so our speed through the water was a mystery)
Into Burnham Yacht Harbour we duly popped. Five minutes in the chandlery later we gained a cheap but serviceable lifejacket and a cap to replace my sailing cap which mysteriously vanished without trace over the winter.
We touched base with fellow East Coast Forum member Nigel and family on Micaralee and followed them out into the river. Both boats hosted mainsails forthwith and off we set.
We had the novel experience of sailing past another boat. I hailed Nigel to remark upon the fact at which point he unfurled his genoa and reversed the situation! We kept in touch although not in close company (which was never the plan) until the Spitway.
Nigel decided to hit the motor whilst we went for tacking into the Blackwater. I conveyed the berthing details I'd been given by the Marina earlier via the VHF and we gradually lost sight of each other.
There was a decent working breeze and a fair tide so progress to windward was quite respectable. It was, though, a bit choppy (not unusually in our experiences of the Wallet channel and outer Blackwater).
Jane felt queasy and did the sensible thing by dozing it off in her berth and I have to confess I experienced a certain amount of discomfort myself in the stomach department. The conditions settled down as we got closer inshore and by the last couple of tacks were well nigh idyllic.
Having never visited Tollesbury before and with a lot of other boats of all shapes and sizes about, I decided discretion was the order of the day and got the motor on and the sails down on the approach to the Nass beacon. Following the channel in was a bit tricky this first time but we arrived safely in the marina perhaps an hour or so after we planned originally.
Nigel was on hand to take a line and make fast the bows so in no time at all we were happily berthed and stowing sails etc. It being a little early for the bar, we took a stroll in the glorious evening sunshine and even had to take off some clothes (some mind, don't get too excited) because it was actually warm
Repairing to the Tollesbury Cruising Club bar, we had an excellent meal, some inevitable beer and live blues guitar to round of the evening. It was good value for money too. I think we're going to like it here!
No comments:
Post a Comment