Two for the price of one today!
We had all intended to head down to Heybridge basin for a couple of days but when Karen rang them she discovered that due to two party bookings the basin was full so we had a rethink
A quick glance at the tide tables confirmed my hunch that it would go and I therefore suggested Tollesbury. Turns out the Laurins have never been there before and after some discussion about the pilotage and tide times the plan meet with approval all round
Jane and the crew of Laurin caught the water taxi for a run ashore whilst I attempted to get the tiller pilot working. It's dead. Might be repairable but we'll have to manage without for now
Upon the return of the shore party , we made ready for departure and set off, hoisting the sails as soon as we cleared the harbour
After a while, we dropped the spray hood and Jane took over the helm. The Blackwater is an ideal stretch of water to learn to helm on, wide open spaces and lots of landmarks, navigation marks and racing buoys to use as steering marks
The training exercise went really well and bodes well for the future. It would be useful if we could sort out the means by which Jane could helm with the spray hood up (she can't see over it or under it, it's just the wrong height for her. It's the perfect height for me though!) as although dropping it isn't a major task, we prefer it up if there's any weather or spray about
As we tacked just off the Nass beacon, Laurin came up astern of us
After passing within hailing distance, we started the engine and took the lead into Tollesbury Fleet. The buoys are quite easy to follow once you know the way although I'm not sure I'd fancy it in the dark even though most of them are lit
We had some hanging about whilst a fleet of motor boats that were ahead of us got sorted out but in the virtually windless conditions it caused no problems and we were soon tied up in the berths I'd arranged by phone earlier in the day
Upon booking in I bumped into David, the broker who handled the sale of Erbas and learnt, not exactly to my surprise, the Brigantia is back up for sale. I took a walk down to see how she's looking...
And she's not looking bad at all. I'm not totally convinced about the grey blue colour of the fresh coat of paint on the topsides but it's an improvement on the shabby state the paint was in a year ago
A splash of paint on the cabin, a sand and varnish session on the woodwork and she'd be looking ship shape again. She has, of course, all of the new kit we added (engine, sails, rigging, electronics etc). The asking price is £1950 but I hear the owner will take a much lower offer
Enough of the sales pitch already!
It was a glorious evening, a precursor perhaps of the forecast horrible weather due in another twenty four hours or so, and the Laurins decided to have a barbecue on the "beach" by the Woodrup Pool (a swimming and boating lake that's replenished by the tide each day)
We elected to have a meal in the Cruising Club which was very enjoyable. Afterwards, we popped down to Laurin to day our goodbyes and have a nightcap.
They planned to stay in Tollesbury, which they'd found very much to their liking, for another day or two. The weather forecast over the weekend dictated an immediate run fur home waters for Erbas
So the eighth day of our Cruise had gone well. The ninth would bring be a little more dramatic...
We were up at half five in the morning to catch the tide. There is a cill at the entrance to the marina to hold back enough water for the moored boats to float in, the creek beyond it dries out completely at low water.
It was a glorious morning and we were under way before six. Once clear of the creeks and shoals in the vicinity of the Nass we hoisted the main but there was precious little wind so we kept the engine on
As we passed Sales Point the wind picked up and we soon had the engine off. Sailing pretty much downwind under mainsail alone and with a fair tide as well we were hitting over 7 knots over the ground and the Spitway
Coming around hard onto the wind and with the genoa now set as well as the main we stormed across the Spitway and I decided we'd gain a big advantage by holding the tack and sailing across the outer end of the Swallowtail Bank into the main Whitaker Channel
We did indeed save at least two boards on which we'd lose ground but it was a bit shallower than I expected and I won't be trying that again in a hurry!
It was getting quite exciting now with up to 20 knots of breeze. We put in a couple of tacks but with the tide foul it was slow going. We were making progress though and I needed the heads so after we tacked and with a few minutes in hand I asked Jane to take the tiller and keep her going as she was whilst I nipped below
They say it's never a single isolated event that leads to disaster and the near calamity I shall shortly relate starts with the failure of the tiller pilot.
It was then compounded by the zip sticking on my foul weather (foulies as us sailors call them) high waist trousers.
By the time I finally broke the zip (more expense) we were well over to the south side of the channel and at this point I made a very silly mistake and went below to the heads as I'd intended.
What I SHOULD have done was re-evaluate the situation given that the plan had gone awry. A moments thought and I'd have realised that we now needed to tack before I went to the heads
Jane did exactly what I told her to do and the blame for our coming to a bumpy landing on the Foulness Sands is entirely mine
Panic did not ensue, I'm pleased to say. Apart from an entirely justified squeak from the helm and one or two swear words from the skipper as I struggled to get my trousers belted up and get on deck we remained calm and focused on extracting ourselves from the situation
It was not a great situation to be in. We'd gone aground close by the Whitaker No.4 buoy in an area where I know the channel is quite steep sided. The tide was on the ebb and if we didn't get off pronto we'd be there for several hours in potentially rising winds.
To make matters more interesting still we were right on the edge of the Shoeburyness Range exclusion zone and we'd heard on the VHF that the range was active.
With the sheets let fly and the engine on I tried everything. Full ahead, full astern, helm hard over to port, then starboard. Pinned the sails in to try and heel her over... well you name it, I tried it and after several minutes it seemed clear we were well and truly stuck
Our only hope of not having to wait out the tide was a tow off from something shallow enough and powerful enough to get close to pick up a line and pull is off
A big RIB would be favourite and if it had to be a big red one with RNLI on the side so be it.
We were in no immediate danger of life or limb so I made a Pan Pan urgency call requesting assistance from any nearby vessels. If the Coastguard chose to request the lifeboat to launch so be it
I will reiterate and emphasise that in benign conditions, on a flat or flat-ish mud or sand bank and / or nearer the bottom of the tide I'd have just sat it out and waited for the water to come back
Aground, to all intents and purposes, over six miles out to sea (6.54 miles offshore if you want to be pedantic!) probably within a firing range safety zone, in rising winds, worsening sea conditions, a potentially steep to bottom and around two hours before low water, well suffice it to say that if there was a quick way out I was going to take it
However, there was no response to my radio transmission. Nothing, zilch, nada. Not so much as a squeak out of any of the dozen or more yachts, fishing vessels, motor boats and what have you within visual range and even more surprisingly no response from Thames Coastguard
In desperation, I had one last try and the gods decided to let one get away as she suddenly pivoted round on one keel and came off.
Making a beeline for the deep water, we breathed a very deep sigh of relief and got on with sorting ourselves and the boat out. No more messing about, away went the genoa, the main was centered and it was full speed ahead for safe harbour
I got back on the radio to try and contact the Coastguard and once again got no response. I was less than pleased to discover that the hand held VHF batteries were flat (I checked it at the start of the trip and they were fully charged. Did I leave it on? From now on it gets plugged in and stays plugged in)
A nearby yacht, "Pilgrim", called us up to say he could hear us loud and clear but if we weren't getting a response from the Coastguard he'd relay a message for us. This he did, for which we were grateful
Clearly we'd got a problem with our VHF. I wanted to know ASAP whether it's the set or the antenna so I plonked Jane back on the tiller with the Buxey No.1 buoy to aim at (just don't actually hit it and we'll be fine) whilst I dived below to disconnect the stern rail antenna from the AIS engine and connect it to the VHF
This done (and the antenna on the rail is intended to serve as an emergency replacement for the masthead unit) I called up Thames and asked for a radio check. Now they could hear me loud and clear! I reiterated the message Pilgrim had relayed for us and signed off
Fellow forumites and consumers of copious liquid refreshment Sirenia called us up and switching to a working channel we exchanged positions and planned a meet up in Burnham Yacht Harbour
I also got a text from another forumite Tomahawk to say they'd be around Burnham later too
Soon enough we were nailed to a nice solid pontoon in a nice sheltered marina. Making our number with the harbour master and in the course of the conversation I mentioned Sirenia's imminent arrival and arrangements were made for her to berth next to us which I relayed to Clive, her skipper, by VHF on my return to Erbas
They duly arrived, greetings were exchanged and bottle stores broken open
Then a message popped up on Facebook from Peter on Alchemist that he had also arrived in BYH! Party on :)
Beer, food, more beer, scotch, whisky and lots of yarns ensued. Unfortunately, the Tomahawks couldn't make it to the party on board Erbas (Tomahawk is a big catamaran that isn't marina friendly and the walk to and from the marina from the CYC pontoon on Burnham Quay was a bit far they felt)
A most enjoyable end to a slightly too exciting day!
We had all intended to head down to Heybridge basin for a couple of days but when Karen rang them she discovered that due to two party bookings the basin was full so we had a rethink
A quick glance at the tide tables confirmed my hunch that it would go and I therefore suggested Tollesbury. Turns out the Laurins have never been there before and after some discussion about the pilotage and tide times the plan meet with approval all round
Jane and the crew of Laurin caught the water taxi for a run ashore whilst I attempted to get the tiller pilot working. It's dead. Might be repairable but we'll have to manage without for now
Upon the return of the shore party , we made ready for departure and set off, hoisting the sails as soon as we cleared the harbour
After a while, we dropped the spray hood and Jane took over the helm. The Blackwater is an ideal stretch of water to learn to helm on, wide open spaces and lots of landmarks, navigation marks and racing buoys to use as steering marks
The training exercise went really well and bodes well for the future. It would be useful if we could sort out the means by which Jane could helm with the spray hood up (she can't see over it or under it, it's just the wrong height for her. It's the perfect height for me though!) as although dropping it isn't a major task, we prefer it up if there's any weather or spray about
As we tacked just off the Nass beacon, Laurin came up astern of us
After passing within hailing distance, we started the engine and took the lead into Tollesbury Fleet. The buoys are quite easy to follow once you know the way although I'm not sure I'd fancy it in the dark even though most of them are lit
We had some hanging about whilst a fleet of motor boats that were ahead of us got sorted out but in the virtually windless conditions it caused no problems and we were soon tied up in the berths I'd arranged by phone earlier in the day
Upon booking in I bumped into David, the broker who handled the sale of Erbas and learnt, not exactly to my surprise, the Brigantia is back up for sale. I took a walk down to see how she's looking...
And she's not looking bad at all. I'm not totally convinced about the grey blue colour of the fresh coat of paint on the topsides but it's an improvement on the shabby state the paint was in a year ago
A splash of paint on the cabin, a sand and varnish session on the woodwork and she'd be looking ship shape again. She has, of course, all of the new kit we added (engine, sails, rigging, electronics etc). The asking price is £1950 but I hear the owner will take a much lower offer
Enough of the sales pitch already!
It was a glorious evening, a precursor perhaps of the forecast horrible weather due in another twenty four hours or so, and the Laurins decided to have a barbecue on the "beach" by the Woodrup Pool (a swimming and boating lake that's replenished by the tide each day)
We elected to have a meal in the Cruising Club which was very enjoyable. Afterwards, we popped down to Laurin to day our goodbyes and have a nightcap.
They planned to stay in Tollesbury, which they'd found very much to their liking, for another day or two. The weather forecast over the weekend dictated an immediate run fur home waters for Erbas
So the eighth day of our Cruise had gone well. The ninth would bring be a little more dramatic...
We were up at half five in the morning to catch the tide. There is a cill at the entrance to the marina to hold back enough water for the moored boats to float in, the creek beyond it dries out completely at low water.
It was a glorious morning and we were under way before six. Once clear of the creeks and shoals in the vicinity of the Nass we hoisted the main but there was precious little wind so we kept the engine on
As we passed Sales Point the wind picked up and we soon had the engine off. Sailing pretty much downwind under mainsail alone and with a fair tide as well we were hitting over 7 knots over the ground and the Spitway
Coming around hard onto the wind and with the genoa now set as well as the main we stormed across the Spitway and I decided we'd gain a big advantage by holding the tack and sailing across the outer end of the Swallowtail Bank into the main Whitaker Channel
We did indeed save at least two boards on which we'd lose ground but it was a bit shallower than I expected and I won't be trying that again in a hurry!
It was getting quite exciting now with up to 20 knots of breeze. We put in a couple of tacks but with the tide foul it was slow going. We were making progress though and I needed the heads so after we tacked and with a few minutes in hand I asked Jane to take the tiller and keep her going as she was whilst I nipped below
They say it's never a single isolated event that leads to disaster and the near calamity I shall shortly relate starts with the failure of the tiller pilot.
It was then compounded by the zip sticking on my foul weather (foulies as us sailors call them) high waist trousers.
By the time I finally broke the zip (more expense) we were well over to the south side of the channel and at this point I made a very silly mistake and went below to the heads as I'd intended.
What I SHOULD have done was re-evaluate the situation given that the plan had gone awry. A moments thought and I'd have realised that we now needed to tack before I went to the heads
Jane did exactly what I told her to do and the blame for our coming to a bumpy landing on the Foulness Sands is entirely mine
Panic did not ensue, I'm pleased to say. Apart from an entirely justified squeak from the helm and one or two swear words from the skipper as I struggled to get my trousers belted up and get on deck we remained calm and focused on extracting ourselves from the situation
It was not a great situation to be in. We'd gone aground close by the Whitaker No.4 buoy in an area where I know the channel is quite steep sided. The tide was on the ebb and if we didn't get off pronto we'd be there for several hours in potentially rising winds.
To make matters more interesting still we were right on the edge of the Shoeburyness Range exclusion zone and we'd heard on the VHF that the range was active.
With the sheets let fly and the engine on I tried everything. Full ahead, full astern, helm hard over to port, then starboard. Pinned the sails in to try and heel her over... well you name it, I tried it and after several minutes it seemed clear we were well and truly stuck
Our only hope of not having to wait out the tide was a tow off from something shallow enough and powerful enough to get close to pick up a line and pull is off
A big RIB would be favourite and if it had to be a big red one with RNLI on the side so be it.
We were in no immediate danger of life or limb so I made a Pan Pan urgency call requesting assistance from any nearby vessels. If the Coastguard chose to request the lifeboat to launch so be it
I will reiterate and emphasise that in benign conditions, on a flat or flat-ish mud or sand bank and / or nearer the bottom of the tide I'd have just sat it out and waited for the water to come back
Aground, to all intents and purposes, over six miles out to sea (6.54 miles offshore if you want to be pedantic!) probably within a firing range safety zone, in rising winds, worsening sea conditions, a potentially steep to bottom and around two hours before low water, well suffice it to say that if there was a quick way out I was going to take it
However, there was no response to my radio transmission. Nothing, zilch, nada. Not so much as a squeak out of any of the dozen or more yachts, fishing vessels, motor boats and what have you within visual range and even more surprisingly no response from Thames Coastguard
In desperation, I had one last try and the gods decided to let one get away as she suddenly pivoted round on one keel and came off.
Making a beeline for the deep water, we breathed a very deep sigh of relief and got on with sorting ourselves and the boat out. No more messing about, away went the genoa, the main was centered and it was full speed ahead for safe harbour
I got back on the radio to try and contact the Coastguard and once again got no response. I was less than pleased to discover that the hand held VHF batteries were flat (I checked it at the start of the trip and they were fully charged. Did I leave it on? From now on it gets plugged in and stays plugged in)
A nearby yacht, "Pilgrim", called us up to say he could hear us loud and clear but if we weren't getting a response from the Coastguard he'd relay a message for us. This he did, for which we were grateful
Clearly we'd got a problem with our VHF. I wanted to know ASAP whether it's the set or the antenna so I plonked Jane back on the tiller with the Buxey No.1 buoy to aim at (just don't actually hit it and we'll be fine) whilst I dived below to disconnect the stern rail antenna from the AIS engine and connect it to the VHF
This done (and the antenna on the rail is intended to serve as an emergency replacement for the masthead unit) I called up Thames and asked for a radio check. Now they could hear me loud and clear! I reiterated the message Pilgrim had relayed for us and signed off
Fellow forumites and consumers of copious liquid refreshment Sirenia called us up and switching to a working channel we exchanged positions and planned a meet up in Burnham Yacht Harbour
I also got a text from another forumite Tomahawk to say they'd be around Burnham later too
Soon enough we were nailed to a nice solid pontoon in a nice sheltered marina. Making our number with the harbour master and in the course of the conversation I mentioned Sirenia's imminent arrival and arrangements were made for her to berth next to us which I relayed to Clive, her skipper, by VHF on my return to Erbas
They duly arrived, greetings were exchanged and bottle stores broken open
Then a message popped up on Facebook from Peter on Alchemist that he had also arrived in BYH! Party on :)
Beer, food, more beer, scotch, whisky and lots of yarns ensued. Unfortunately, the Tomahawks couldn't make it to the party on board Erbas (Tomahawk is a big catamaran that isn't marina friendly and the walk to and from the marina from the CYC pontoon on Burnham Quay was a bit far they felt)
A most enjoyable end to a slightly too exciting day!
Well done... I wouldn't ever judge the actions of another skipper as you never have the full facts but your PAN PAN sounds entirely valid to me.. nice end result too! :o)
ReplyDeleteCheers, I think we handled it right and we got away with it. On reflection, I think perhaps I've been getting a bit too relaxed and confident and needed a lesson in why it pays to be cautious!
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