And yes, once again the track log has failed. Buggy software really really really annoys me!
Hey ho.
My plan was simple - plug the tide out of Brightlingsea, blat across the outer Blackwater and catch the last of the flood down the Ray Sand Channel.
And that's what we did. It was engine all the way with F5 on the nose though.
Approaching the Raysand North buoy, I decided to take advantage of the top of the tide and try out a theory by cutting straight across to the Outer Crouch No.3 buoy. There is a definite channel as per the admiralty chart with at least 4.5m and crossing the drying sands we saw a long flat area of 3.0m on the sounder and never less.
By my rough reckoning, there is a channel most of the way to a flat bank that barely dries on average tides. It'd be interesting to head down there on a flat calm day and so some surveying
Anyway, once into the outer Crouch we were able to set sail and switch off the engine. As the river twisted and turned and the wind shifted we went from close hauled to broad reaching but we were never quite headed
We even managed to overtake another boat under sail!
Dropping the sails just shy of the moorings we stopped alongside the inside of the river pontoon for the night.
The exterior of Erbas was treated to a rare freshwater wash. I don't normally do this, fresh water is an expensive commodity on a metered supply, but after over a fortnight and a fair bit of hard sailing she needed it
Pub grub and beer beckoned. Tomorrow is time to go home
Our sister ship "Apogee" in Brightlingsea Waterside Marina
No comments:
Post a Comment