Home at last!

We got there eventually - our home port that is!

We left our berth at Weymouth at exactly 11.30 BST, Bella's first time at the helm of the new boat whilst I brought in the fenders etc. Not enough wind again for the sails initially but about 1/2 hr out we were out of the lee enough for the north westerly to reach us. Only about 10kts over the deck so about 15 over the water but enough to fill the genoa and with the mizzen enough to improve the motion. Our CTS (course to steer) was 99 and the COG (course over the ground) was averaging about 92 - the tidal set was more than a match for our leeway from the wind. Cloud cover was about 35% and mostly high and thin but in the distance we could see occasional low, heavy rain showers.

We headed for the inshore route around St Aldhem's head with a view to arriving at 13.30 BST but I failed to take account of the range firing. It is not normally a factor for us because we tend to travel at weekends or in the summer when the range is closed. We got as far as Durdle Door, about .75nm off shore when we were intercepted by the range patrol boat. He told us they had just reduced the restricted area to 1.5nm off shore so we headed slightly east of south on 75 for about 1nm.

At 12.50 BST we were able to head east again on 110 for the next 50 mins. At 13.40 St Aldhelm's head bore 15 degrees at a range of about 3nm and we turned further north onto 53 degrees with the tide still pushing us east and heading for Durlston Head. Thus far the tide had improved our SOG by about 2kts.

We could see a big squall following us but always heading in land slightly more quickly than it was heading east. The low cloud and rain could be seen obscuring the view of the shore - working its way from Lulworth to about half way between St. Aldhem's and Anvil Point. As we turned round Durlston head it seemed to get lost behind the land, the sun came out and stayed out for the rest of the journey home.

Staying just to the east of Peverill Ledge buoy and then close to Old Harry we still got a boost from an increasing westerly wind so that over the deck the wind rose to about 25kts on a broad reach. This meant the approach to and passage down the Swash Channel were much more fun and we only luffed up just outside the entrance to get the genoa down because it would have flogged unhappily as we turned towards the west to pass the chain ferry. We passed through the entrance at about 15.25 BST just 5 minutes short of 4 hrs from harbour mouth to harbour mouth - 30nm or so, just about 8kts avge - logging 6kts but plus 2kts of tide.

The familiar run through the harbour is of course similar for both Crosswinds and MonArk because of the harbour speed limits - about 1hr from mouth to mooring. Bella helmed part of the way to let me tidy the sails and put out the fenders. At Ridge our mooring is full of boats passing from launching crane to their swinging moorings in Poole Harbour so we have a temporary berth alongside the yard office's catwalk.

A great day for me, first voyage for Bella and all in all a very pleasing journey for Crosswinds.

Now we MUST get that name sorted so that I can get on with registrations etc.

Looking lonely in Weymouth

Crosswinds is on the far side, courtesy of Weymouth outer harbour webcam.

From Dartmouth to Weymouth - second attempt a week later

Crosswinds moored at the quay in Weymouth

All in all the contrast with last week's aborted journey couldn't be starker. I collected David at just after 11pm. We reached Noss on Dart Marina at 0100 and squeezed ourselves and various bits of "stuff" into the dinghy for a single trip. Crosswinds was cold. Rather than do jobs straightaway, David and I tried to sleep. Up again at 0400, coffee, hot cross buns and jobs in preparation. Many of the jobs were associated with battening down things that aren't supposed to be mobile but managed it the previous week. At one time, last week, David was juggling my laptop in his left hand, the wheel in his right and trying to retain his balance on one foot whilst I was holding the sliding door from the wheelhouse that shouldn't have come off its runners. This time I put the laptop on one of those non-slip lattice mats and it proved to work very well. I velcroed various other objects.

At 0525 we started to try and cast off. Unfortunately the tide was so strong and it had dragged us over the line between the two mooring buoys. We tried everything that we could including climbing down to the water's edge and trying to grapple it with a boat hook. In the end I had to take the risk and edge slowly forward with the wheel hard over and slowly we edged clear.

The next 40nms or so were pretty uneventful. We couldn't sail on this leg because the wind was dead astern - almost a true westerly - and its speed over the deck didn't even disturb the ensign let alone fill a sail. There was a slight swell coming from our Starboard quarter passing under us and coming out at the port bow. This created a small corkscrew effect but not enough to turn us green.
We were a bit too close to the Bill (2.79nms) 6 hrs later but bang on time. The race bubbled up a bit around us but we edged further out to sea as we passed and at 5nms we turned North East towards the East Shambles buoy.
As we edged round the East Shambles it became clear just how much our own speed through the water in the same direction as the wind had reduced the apparent wind speed. Now our Nor' Nor' Westerly course turned our forward motion into an advantage increasing the speed of the wind over the surface of the sail and making the sails profile much better than they would on wind alone.

This reach showed the strong stabilising effect of wind on sails.

Throughout the journey the autopilot has functioned well in the long term ie it followed the course to steer but it did so to an accompaniment of far too much yaw.

(David looking steely at the helm as we crept out of the mouth of the Dart, wary of a repeat of last week's swell.)

Just east of Weymouth harbour pier we luffed up and dropped the sails.

Coming alongside in the outer harbour basin went perfectly, David jumped ashore and after I had called home asking for a lift we spent a final hour tidying our lines and sorting out below decks.

I am hoping to do the final leg to Ridge, Wareham this coming Wednesday.

...... back to Dartmouth

Well that's it really. It was clear that the ENE wind F5 gusting to F6 over night had set up these waves. The Devon coast being at the wrong end of Lyme Bay for such a wind and though the wind had eased to F3 to F4 the waves hadn't and were at odds with the flooding tide. The wind was due to ease further in the afternoon but I didn't think it likely the sea would flatten much and we were on a tight schedule to do the whole journey to Wareham. Even if we cut the journey short at Portland or Weymouth it would still mean 6 hours and it was unlikely to improve much unless in the lee of "The Bill". Making an executive decision, I took the helm back and turned the boat to reverse her course, doing a bit of surfing as we did so.

Creeping back into the river mouth the sea calmed and we were back in the idyllic and tranquil setting that belied completely the soaking we had just received. After a brief stop at the ferry pontoon we returned to our "trot" mooring up river opposite the Noss Marina.

To finish with another literary allusion - we licked our wounds and prepared to fight another day.

Dartmouth to..... oh dear!

The best laid plans......may have lost the battle but not the war.... not a retreat, just an advance in the opposite direction and other literary allusions can not change the facts - we bottled it, within sight of the Mewstone, let alone the Day Mark. To be fair though, it was 'orrible.

We tiptoed past Dartmouth as she cooked breakfast, sauntered home from early Communion, started listening to Steve Wright's "Sunday Love Songs". Opposite the Castle Hotel, favourite haunt of Midshipmen and their girlfriends, Bella took a webcam picture and posted it on my facebook page. Given such an idyllic start we were ill-prepared for the next bit. The first portent was the size of the swell as we rounded "One Gun Point" to starboard. I was thinking, "is this just the funnelling effect of the river mouth in an easterly, or what". It was an "or what"! Once clear of the shelter of Froward point to port the swell turned to waves, not breaking waves in fact very few white caps which is why Bella's photo on my Facebook page looks so benign, just deep troughs with high peaks.

I am no Atlantic sailor and have only done the channel a few times so I know my limitations and this was hammering right on that particular door. We rapidly left the outside helm position and transferred to the pilothouse where David took over. I crawled around on deck battening down the few things that were loose for our casual jaunt in the sun across Lyme Bay. I got soaked all that way aft. I then went to the starboard pilothouse door meaning to shut it whilst I finished off on deck. I peered in to see Dave at the helm, feet planted firmly on the pilothouse sole (that's the floor) well over a meter apart, when he wasn't being thrown sharply to one side or the other, looking just the sort of helm you want in these conditions. Unfortunately, not knowing my own strength, somehow I lifted the door off its runners. I sat back on the deck, back to the rail, with the flaming door braced in my hands wondering what to do with it whilst bloody great waves broke over the bow showering me with water. As I said earlier, I know my limitations and I knew in David Cuff I had the right man to re-hang a sliding door in a seaway. I took the helm again and David did his "F Cuff & Sons" professional trick of re-hanging a sliding door.

I should add a bit of detail and again emphasise that my ocean going sailing has been limited but the waves were about 10 to 12 feet from peak to trough and very short wavelength between the peaks. As a result the bow of our sterling Finnish moggie was digging deep into every other wave. Dave called out "is it always like this?", fair question, on the whole, and not matching the image I had conjured up for him. I had said that between a few jobs and a bit of helming he should bring a good book to idle away the sunshine hours on the aft deck in his deck chair - honestly! We had already got a pair of the collapsible chairs out on the deck and I had even been helming from one whilst going down river. (got to break off now - my son has cooked fajitas)

Dartmouth to Wareham

Going across the mouth of the Dart with Start Point in the distance

Passing the Royal Castle Hotel, Dartmouth (courtesy of their webcam)

Leaving our mooring, 30 minutes late, Naval College on our starboard bows

The River Dart just after dawn