An Autumn Cruise Around The West Solent

Autumn is one of the best times to spend a week in the Solent, it's usually a time when you can enjoy the places that are normally crowded, when it's less busy and when people have time to chat.
This year we left a bit earlier than we have done, at the end of September, with eight days to spend in favourite places. We chose to stay in the Western Solent to have shorter trips in the hope of more sailing and planned on having several lay days for some good walks.

When the day arrived, the weather had been unsettled for a while and the forecast was not good; our first day was windy and wet so we decided to stay in Gosport for the night and leave the following morning. We sorted the boat out, had a leisurely lunch and gradually the rain eased up so a trip across to Portsmouth was on the cards. Old Portsmouth is always attractive even though you have to pass through Gun wharf Quay so we made out way there to Spice Island. It's not easy to pass by the Camber without seeing the fishing fleet and stopping at Viviers, where they always have wonderful fresh fish. After stocking up, a walk and a pint at the Bridge we headed back for a quiet evening on board.

The following morning the weather was much better with sunshine and a fresh Westerly. Once clear of the Hamilton Bank the sails were up and the engine was off, that magical moment! Our first tack took us over to Ryde then another across towards Lee On Solent, we seemed to have the sea to ourselves. That is until we neared Ryde Middle when we got tangled up with some Challenge Yachts, all reefed down, racing towards a mark. The only boats out there but they had to cross just where we were going and completely took our wind away for a while; we just hoped that as it was probably a Corporate Event it made some money for them. We held on to the wind and had a glorious beat right up to Cowes Roads where we dropped the sails and went in past the new barrier to moor at West Cowes Marina.  With more rain forecast for the next day and arriving early we took the opportunity of walking into Newport along the track of the old railway taking the bus back as there wasn't enough time to make it into a circular trip. It's always good to see the Medina as it meanders past Island Harbour ending up by the quay and then finish up with a welcome cup of tea at the Arts Centre in the old Mill at the end of the creek.

It did rain the following day and it was windy, so we stayed put in Cowes High Street for the morning existing on coffee until it cheered up after lunch. There was enough time to take the bus to visit Niton and St Catherine's Point lighthouse which we'd seen so many times from the sea but never close up.  Lighthouses are fascinating places and this was no exception, it may not be that high but has some impressive optics as well as great views east and west. Niton is a pretty place too with an attractive walk down to to the

lighthouse where there is a particularly good pub, the Buddle Inn where we just had to sample some of their excellent beer.

The forecast was for the next day, a Friday to be fine but with more wind and rain for Saturday so we planned to go to Lymington. Naturally we were aghast to find that on calling to reserve a berth we found both marinas fully booked for the
weekend! It seemed that every club in the vicinity wanted to organise a cruise to mark the end of the season this weekend. A call to Yarmouth Harbour found that there was still some space there providing we got there quickly, because 60 boats from Christchurch were expected shortly. Despite the wind and tide being against us we set off straight away and motored there as fast as we were able to.  How nice it would have been to sail in a more leisurely fashion, but the thought of being stuck outside all weekend spurred us on at full speed. We did get there in time and did get a good inside berth on one of the walk ashore pontoons although within a few hours we were well and truly blocked in with boats rafted all around us.


There was time in the afternoon for a walk around the Yar valley out across the fields almost as far as Freshwater Bay and back along the track of another old railway. It's one of our favourite walks and made particularly enjoyable when the sun came out together with plenty of wildlife; what was particularly notable was a large pack of wigeon that had recently arrived. In the evening we visited the Royal Solent YC and, once again, had a splendid meal at this fine club. It was the first yacht club we joined such a long time ago in the eighties where we had some very memorable evenings; it was good to see that it was still in such good form.

As forecast, the weather the following morning was miserable, but it passed through sooner than expected so we took the "Needles Breezer" Bus out to see the Margaret Cameron museum in Freshwater as there wasn't enough time to walk. It's pleasant to see the countryside from an open bus but the museum was a bit underwhelming, maybe we'd expected too much.
The bus passes the Needles on the way back so we stopped off there to see the fortifications and rocket  engine testing site; which is such an impressive location. There's a stunning view of the Needles from up there and with gale force winds we were glad we weren't going past the Bridge where the sea was particularly rough.

Sunday was better weather wise but as it was so busy we thought we'd limit our sail to a trip to Lymington after lunch, hoping to be able to get out of Yarmouth and into a free berth by then. The morning was spent wondering around the coast to Fort Victoria where Hurst castle looked stunning in the morning sunshine. The wind had gone from one extreme to another so with hardly a breath to take us forward and a strong tide to contend with we had to motor over to Berthon Marina where we had a pleasant, relaxing afternoon and evening whilst everyone else rushed home.

Monday was a good day for walking so we went round the old salt pans and marshes to Keyhaven which is a haven for birds. We saw the first Brent Geese of the season as well as a host of waders and

many duck taking advantage of the good weather to have a feed. It's mandatory to stop off at the Gun Inn which was a haunt of  Col. Peter Hawker, the great wildfowl, who shot the marshes there; they're more interested in promoting Whiskey nowadays but still do some great crab sandwiches. Thus fortified we set off to Hurst to see the lighthouse exhibition we'd been told about at St Catherine's and find out about the Association Of Lighthouse Keepers. This didn't disappoint and was made especially interesting by having a long chat with some of the volunteers who are still enhancing the exhibits. By the time we'd returned to the boat we'd covered about ten miles and really appreciated a few beers at the Kings Head.

The weather then changed with a blocking high pressure system delivering strong winds from the east, just where we needed to go. That morning we we had 25 knot winds to contend with and as there was a strong desire on the part of the crew to avoid any foredeck activity we had to motor again to Beaulieu which was as far as we could go before the tide changed to become west going. Not too bad a trip and once in Bucklers Hard it was soon forgotten, it only took three hours to get there.

Plenty of time for a walk in the afternoon to Beaulieu along the river path which is such a joy, even when the wind is whistling overhead. A quiet evening followed as we contemplated the final return leg the next day when even stronger winds were forecast.

In the morning it seemed better but the reality was the wind had gone a little to the north blowing across rather than down the river. We had to leave despite the forecast or 6-7 with 8 off headlands but consoled ourselves that we could always divert to Swanwick or even Cowes if it got really bad. Unfortunately it did, as soon as we cleared the river we had a solid 28 knot easterly which rose to 32 knots off Cowes. The sea was particularly rough but also short,  leading to a rather violent sea saw motion despite the magnificent stability of the Contessa. There wasn't enough time to rise over the waves so the bow tended to dig into at the wave ahead, one rogue wave was enough to tear off the bow navigation light. Eventually we did get through it into the lee of the mainland then around Gilkicker and into the harbour; progress however was slow, it took nearly five hours. Not a trip to be repeated.

So that was it, bit like the curates egg, good in parts. It was enjoyable staying on the boat and we had some good walks. Overall, however, we spent about 17 hours passage making  but only 3 of these were without the motor on, some sailing holiday!

Round The Island On Our Own

The tides for Thursday and Friday, when we wanted to go for a sail, were ideal for a trip around the Island. High Water was at 16:30 then 17:30 on Friday so the plan was to get over to Yarmouth in the afternoon on Thursday and leave at the civilised hour of 9am on Friday to pass the Needles at Low water on Friday. We would then have six hours of east going tide to take us back to Gosport the long way.  All we needed was some favourable weather and, amazingly, that's what we got for a change; sun all the way and a good breeze on Thursday dropping off a bit on Friday.

After lunch at the Boathouse we set off from Gosport and motored out into the Solent to 10 knots of wind from the south west. We soon had the full sails up and were close reaching off to Cowes. We

thought we'd have to go over the bramble bank but in the event were able to cross well south of the stake. The only difficulty we had was when a fleet of Clipper yachts having a race came past and blanketed out the wind for a while; they all had well reefed sails clearly a day for beginners!

In Cowes Roads the wind built up nicely to 15 knots and although it was on the nose we could make good progress with the tide building up under us. A long tack took us to the entrance of Beaulieu River then another across to Newtown River where the wind built up to 18 knots although as the water was quite smooth we didn't feel the need to reef. Sailing closer to the wind and faster than other boats always feels good, the Contessa was performing well, although the competition was not that challenging we still sped past many other yachts.

All too soon we were approaching the Pier at Yarmouth at 6pm and had to get the sails down sharply for fear of being swept past by the tide which was really ripping out to Hurst. The harbourmaster not only directed us to a berth but got onto the pontoon to welcome us and take out lines, we were being spoilt! A few drinks and banter with some friends in the Kings Head followed by dinner at the curry house opposite finished off a splendid day's sail.

After a cup of tea and tidying up the boat we set off at 9am in Bright sunlight fearful that the wind has disappeared. Hurst looked magnificent in the sunshine as we cooked up the traditional breakfast of bacon sandwiches and coffee. By the time we'd reached the Needles the wind had built up a bit although only a fitful 5 knots south westerly, but just enough to switch the engine off and put the cruising chute up. The Needles  and Tennison Down looked magnificent in the sunshine.

As forecast the wind did build up and swung round first to the south then to the south east so that as we approached St Catherine's Point we had white sails up and were close reaching. Still not that strong but enough to take us along at 4 knots over the ground thanks to the tide. After a very short spell of turbulence as we past the lighthouse we were on our way to Ventnor and Dunose on a pleasant reach, all very stable and just right for a spot of lunch. This stretch is always interesting to sail along with so much interest on the hills and cliffs, Ventnor is a pleasant spot with it's haven and victorian archetecure.

Once clear of Dunose we were off the wind so up with the kite again for a splendid reach to the

brilliantly lit Culver Cliff and Princessa shoals. We were soon able to trace the footpaths we knew so well from Bembridge as we drifted by at a steady 4 knots; I'd almost forgotten how peaceful and relaxing sailing can be! This was like the memories of sailing years ago, before we had been subject to all the wind of the past few years.

Once past Bembridge Ledge it was dead down wind to the Forts and Portsmouth Harbour. Fortunately our luck still held and there were no ships that got in the way, we were still on out own as we had been for most of the trip. Approaching the harbour we had a close up view of the new navigational aids and works in preparation for the arrival of the new aircraft carriers; I still couldn't fathom out how they would work!

We tied up once again at Gosport just before 6pm, it may have taken 9 hours to cover the 35 miles but we did sail for most of the time and had time to enjoy the journey. It was particularly memorable as we were the only boat around for the majority of the sail and were able to appreciate such an interesting coastline. A sharp contrast to the Round The Island Race where you have 1500 or so other boats around you and plenty of other things on your mind!

Solent And Beyond Cruise

2016 has been the year we joined in the organised cruising run by the Chichester Yacht Club. It's the mainstay of what they do so although we don't really like being organised we thought we'd join in and give it a try.

The Solent & Beyond cruise was led by Graham and Helen Jupp who have a Westerly Storm and had put a good plan together making the most of the tides to go to Poole via Yarmouth, stay for a couple of nights then return via Beaulieu over a period of five days.

The first leg was to Yarmouth which was an easy sail for us from Gosport; most of the other participants came from Chichester which was a bit further away and limited by tides. We set off with a leisurely departure at 12 o'clock, just after high water. To start off there wasn't much wind so we motored over to Wooton Creek, found a bit and hugged the coast to avoid what was left of the tide. The 8 knots of wind we'd found nearly disappeared as we closed on Norris Castle but once in Cowes Roads built up to a steady 10 knots, enough for an splendid sail even though it was right on the nose. With the tide helping us along we were soon off the pretty little pier at Yarmouth with the sails down at 15:30.

We were booked in to Harold Hayes and were surprised to find the whole pontoon empty; we were the first ones there in sharp contrast to the previous cruise when they were worried if we'd get there at all when we finally turned up last. Naturally the fleet soon arrived to moor, we had "Coco" another Contessa 32 along side, with "First Light" on the outside of them. It was interesting to see that we sat a full inch further down in the water than Coco who didn't have all of the weight of the mod cons we'd installed; it proved to be quite a handicap later on. Every cruise has to have a pontoon party and this was no exception, the pontoon just about survived although it did go underwater in places. Everyone then retired to the Wheatsheaf for dinner where we had a particularly good (and very reasonably priced) plaice and chips.

The tide wasn't going to turn until 2pm so we had the morning to ourselves which is always pleasant in Yarmouth; as usual the bookshop did rather well from our visit! The plan for the evening had been to anchor in Studland bay but the forecast was for the wind to strengthen and go around to the South East; the crew was not in favour of a disturbed night so we broke ranks and arranged to stay overnight in the Royal Motor Yacht Club haven. Soon afterwards Graham announced that the plan had been changed (by popular request!) and everyone was going to be able to go directly to Poole Quay; we felt we should stick to our plan.

With a light south westerly our strategy was to motor out to the Bridge by the Needles then head off towards Poole hoping to get to the Looe channel before it was too shallow for us. Unfortunately progress was slow and although we set off with Coco they were able to steadily gain a lead and were way ahead by the time we'd crossed the bay. We tried hard but a combination of extra weight, a fouled bottom together and new Vs old sails was too much to compete with; they squeezed though the channel, we took the safe route through the fairway with the tide falling fast.

The RMYC is a delightful place to stay if you can persuade them to let you in and we had a particularly
pleasant time. Drinks on deck in the evening, interesting chats with some of the members a first class three course meal, and a walk around Sandbanks with coffee in the Haven Hotel made it a memorable stay.

After lunch in the sunshine we made our way over to the Quay Yacht Haven to join the other members of the cruise and attempt to answer a quiz the organisers had set to infuriate us all. After a few drinks at the Plymouth Hoe, a meal on board and a review of the quiz results in the pub, the evening slipped by. For the first time we'd got to know some of the CYC membership and enjoy a few drinks in the style of other clubs we've been with although it has to be said there's a marked reluctance to take down ensigns at sunset; despite that they were a really good crowd.

The forecast for the following day (Thursday) was for quite strong winds (20-30kn) but from the south west so a fast passage was in prospect with an early start to catch the tide.

Leaving at 8:30,

just before low water, we didn't follow some of the (even earlier) participants with shallow keels through the Looe channel but made our way out through the main fairway accompanied by Coco. It was a brisk sail across the bay, with the wind on the starboard quarter and steadily increasing. This time in more lively conditions we kept up with Coco just ahead and were joined by other boats who had sailed across from the Looe channel. Many had made the wise decision to stick to the North Channel in view of the weather with it's easier approach despite the lack of tide.

By the time we were off the Bridge it was blowing 25 knots and were facing some quite mountainous seas as is usually the case there. A rather "interesting" gybe later we were past the Needles and storming towards Hurst with wind and tide pushing us along at 8 knots or more, an exciting sail!

Once in the Solent we felt able to have a cup of tea but still kept up the same speed as the wind continued to rise. Downwind it had been comfortable but as soon as we turned into the wind we felt the full force with a bumpy time getting into the Beaulieu River; we were registering 28 knots motoring upstream just past the lighthouse. Fortunately it was soon over and mooring up at Ginns was relatively easy if a little protracted with so many yachts arriving at the same time.

It had been such a fast sail that we were moored up in time for lunch and had the afternoon to relax before drinks at the bar at 6pm followed by dinner, if we could remember what we'd ordered. It was good to be back at Ginns where we'd spent so many wonderful times in the past on Alize but a little disappointing that things were not quite up to the standard we'd had before; Robert (the former steward) had set a difficult act to follow.

Fortunately it was a neap tide so, although we wanted to leave at low water we were able to get over the bar without difficulty despite many who thought they'd be seeing us aground later on. At the bar we found we had 3 metres, more than a predicted 2.5, proving them quite wrong; the tide seemed to have turned early too making an early departure a good move. Regrettably we'd had a recurrence of the furling problems the day before so did not risk opening the genoa and motored past Cowes to Gosport in just over two hours. Frustrating in such strong winds, but we'd had some great sailing earlier and got back in good time for lunch.

Overall a great trip, generally considered more favorable than many CYC organised cruises as it was a bit longer. According to Graham this allowed the crews to get to know each other better which certainly seemed to be the case, the extra couple of days seems to have made a significant difference and something to be repeated next year. From our perspective it seemed that good weather, favourable tides and good company had set us all up for an excellent week.  Our thanks have to go to Graham and Helen for organising the cruise; its not surprising that this well proven format is the mainstay of the Club's yachting activities.

Making The Most Of The West Country, Despite The Weather

With the Brexit referendum coming up and lots of unrest in France we decided to go to the west country again and, hopefully, get a bit further than Dartmouth as in the previous year. The cruise plan was to get to Fowey and see all the places like the Yealm and Salcombe that we'd missed out on the previous year. Unfortunately right from the start the weather was uncooperative; we'd had a week of complex lows with lots of occluded fronts that had turned a trip planned for a week earlier to Fecamp into a 12 hour windward slog back to Chichester from Brighton. It was a weather pattern that was to prove very resistant to change.

Lymington

The tides were not ideal, the west going stream only kicked in after midday on the first day and
naturally became later during the week.  The plan, therefore, was to go to Lymington on the first day, then on to Portland, Brixham and Plymouth. The forecast was ok to go, westerly force five, but not likely to deliver much sailing even though it was only 20 miles from our home port of Gosport. We tried putting the sails up  but with the evening coming closer we ended up using some engine power to get us there in reasonable time. Lymington Yacht Haven had recently been improved and proved to be a good choice as we didn't have time to go into the town; we were impressed with the new bar and showers.

Portland

It's just over 40 miles from Lymington to Portland so by leaving at midday to get to Hurst as the tide turns meant that we were due to arrive at about 7pm assuming the tide did it's bit to help us. Another strong westerly was forecast so we'd be motoring again through some potentially challenging waters.

In the event only the area around the Bridge (off the Needles) was rough and where we experienced 25 knots, not ideal! Once out into Poole Bay things got a little better especially when the wind changed direction putting us on a (very) close reach instead of bashing directly into it.

 As the tide increased in strength we were flying along with a speed over the ground of up to ten knots; this and the bright sunshine made it much easier to tolerate the rather rough sea. On listening to the Range Control Boat it seemed that restrictions were only inshore, a quick call confirmed that as long as we stayed three miles offshore we'd be fine. This saved a considerable detour and with a veer we were able to stay on the wind all the way to Portland arriving at the marina at a very respectable 6pm. Plenty of time to sort out the boat, have a drink, a good meal and be ready for the trip across the bay the following day. As it happened this was not to be, there was a lot of fog about that didn't clear so we had a lay day to top up stores and attend to some annoying leaks.

Brixham

It was now Thursday and the tide didn't turn at the Bill until 13:30 but careful examination of the tidal charts indicated that we should be able to sneak through the inside passage after 12:30 so we left at 11am.  This time we took the East rather than the North entrance which, we found out, is quite ok provided you take care and ask Portland Harbour Radio for permission when it's busy. All went to plan and to our surprise about 12 yachts of varying types left just after us and followed us round, quite a fleet! Yet again we had a strong westerly, right on the nose this time so it was quite a slog across the bay in relatively poor visibility, motor sailing all the way.

With little to see trips easily become boring and with poor weather, hard work, as this one did. We kept

station with several other yachts as we crossed the bay, all motoring; bit of a procession really. However, eventually the South Hams appeared, Torbay became clear and we gradually made our way in to Brixham where we tied up at 8pm. The boredom was sharply interrupted when we dropped sails, with the engine oil pressure alarm intermittently sounding! It turned out that with the unprecedented amount of motoring we'd burned more oil than ever before and that the pressure was sensitive to oil level; checks would be made every trip from now on, not just from time to time!

We'd planned to have a lay day which was just as well as there was a strong wind warning in force the next day but it was sunny, ideal for lunch at the yacht club and a walk up to Berry Head in the afternoon.

Plymouth

The forecast for Saturday was Westerly, force 4 or 5, occasionally 6; not ideal but we wanted to meet some friends in Plymouth and still hoped to be able to stop off at Salcombe, if not Newton Ferriers. The plan was to reach down to Start Point, getting there as the tide turned, bash past Prawle Point and Bolt head then reach across Bigbury Bay to Plymouth. Naturally that's not how it turned out; we had to motor down to Start Point to catch the tide, motor sail directly into the wind for a while, then follow the wind as it veered to the north west all the way to Plymouth. The wind picked up to 25 knots as it veered making the leg across Bigbury Bay particularly uncomfortable and tiring. We arrived just after 8pm, too late to join our friends Tim & Sue for dinner and not feeling like it anyway; 9 hours of slog had taken its toll...

After a splendid breakfast chatting with friends all this discomfort had been forgotten. Tim had sailed his Contessa from Fowey and planned to go back that afternoon; down wind had been fine, upwind would take longer and an early start advised! The weather still refused to cooperate even though it was Forces Day with lots going on at the Hoe; the forces certainly were there in force, shame about the crowds. A few stalwarts braved the drizzle, wind and cold to see the displays and demonstrations many of which were interesting such as the bomb disposal team. After a quick look around we left to return to the boat and then on to an excellent meal at the Glasshouse, where we'd had breakfast.

Dartmouth

Monday brought a window of marginally better weather and more accommodating tides, a morning
sail was on the cards, to Dartmouth. The next two days were forecast to be very wet and windy so if we were to be stuck, we'd like to be stuck in a place we enjoyed. With over 40 miles to go and soft winds, we didn't have time to sail so on went the banger, yet again. There's a world of difference motoring downwind in light airs, it was a relatively pleasant experience to rapidly tick off all the landmarks we'd seen two days earlier as we struggled slowly past them. It's a lovely stretch of coast to cover and we enjoyed watching the Yealm, Burgh Island, Salcombe and the NCI outpost at Prawle Point slip past, such a shame we couldn't see more of these lovely places.

The sea flattened off as we rounded Start Point and the wind lost the little power it had; all very
peaceful for a change with Slapton sands as the backdrop. The entrance to Dartmouth is always memorable, it seemed to be like coming home with all the familiar houses reaching up the hillside, the castle, and the Royal Dart YC in turn coming into view. Our first priority was to replenish the fuel tanks then moor up on the visitors pontoon at Darthaven Marina which was not particularly busy, not many folk were out on the water with such variable weather.

That evening was the start of two pleasant lay days which were enjoyable despite some very wet

patches; it's a relaxing place to stay, much better than Paignton which we won't bother to visit again even by train.

Portland (Again)

Thursday brought clearer weather but some brisk winds, south westerly force 5-6, so we headed off at about 9am. We didn't fancy setting off at 5am so that we might be able to take the inshore passage. Instead we'd plug the tide for a while, go 2 miles offshore when it was flooding to miss the worst of the race and (hopefully) be in time to get set north towards Grove Point. Naturally once clear of the coastline the wind was right on the stern some had to motor sail in a series of gybes to cross the bay. This time the visibility was better so we did see some of the features as well as several tankers and a fishing boat that were intent on using the same bit of sea as we wanted to; with so little traffic about it's amazing how we ended up having to take avoiding action three times!

The race was a bit rough but we missed most of it and were able to take a short cut heading north over the Shambles which was surprisingly calm. Once in the lee of the island life became much more pleasant, we could have turned the engine off for a few minutes but it had been a long day and the attractions of the bar beckoned so we made best speed for a rather splendid berth we'd managed to secure over the radio. Not the most pleasurable of experiences but we were back in reasonably good time and without incident.

Strong wind warnings greeted us the next day and would continue for another day so the plan to get straight back to Lymington was abandoned.  Another couple of lay days were substituted, fortunately it was sunny much of the time (with a few showers to keep us on our toes) so this was not too onerous. We had one day on Chesil Beach including an exceptional lunch at the Crab Shack Cafe then one in Weymouth going around the fascinating Nothe Fort with lunch at the Royal Dorset


Poole

Sunday brought a break from the force 7-8 winds, they'd dropped to a very fickle and variable force 3; no sailing but at least a bright day to motor close inshore as the range would not be active. By setting off just after lunch and cheating the tide inshore we hoped to be at St Aldenhams head just as the tide was turning then let it assist us to get round Anvil point and the old Harry rocks into Poole. For a change, that's exactly what happened.

We approached the coast just before Durdle Door and had fine views of the Jurassic coast, close up, all the way until we had to head out to avoid the ledges at Kimmeridge.  As we'd timed it just right there was hardly any race to contend with and soon past the NCI lookout where we were greeted by a bazar of gullets,  to use the correct collective noun. They were delightful company for several miles,
such attractive and agile birds!

The tide soon whisked us past the Old Harry Rocks and into Poole bay, motorboat land, the home of the Birmingham navy which was out in force on this sunny Sunday evening.  It may have been tempting to go straight on to the Solent on such a favourable tide but that would have meant a late arrival and we wanted to enjoy some evenings on the boat. We chose to stay in Salterns Marina which would be a trip down memory lane as it was where we started out yachting on a little Sadler 25; it lived up to expectations and was just how we'd remembered it all those years ago in the mid 80's.





Lymington and Home

On the 15th day of our holiday finally the weather gods relented and gave us some reasonable (force 3-4) winds from a direction (North West) that would at last allow us to sail without the engine. Again, the tides were only east going either early in the morning or later in the afternoon so after lunch we set off with the intention (once more) of cheating the tide across the bay  in order to arrive at Hurst as the tide was turning. Although it was a falling tide we managed to sneak out of the north channel and headed inshore to Bournemouth. It was such a pleasure to turn the engine off once the sails were hoisted, even more enjoyable than usual as we'd hardly had the engine off for the previous two weeks. It was one reach all the way apart from a short period close to Hurst when we had to go goose winged, a good speed too, five knots most of the time (over the ground!)

This day, Monday was the hight of spring tides and low water occurred just as we entered the river at 5:30pm. We waited for a ferry until it became clear that it was waiting for another to come out, then went into the channel on the right hand side. I'd always thought that there was plenty of water in the river as long as you didn't stray outside the channel and the chart in the almanac seemed to back that up showing 3.4 metres about chart datum in most places. I should have looked at the proper chart, there were some very low spots preventing me from keeping to one side out of the way of the ferry; fortunately the ferry went very slowly so it was not difficult to stay ahead. Moral of the story, check your depths at low water Springs!

After an enjoyable evening at Lymington Yacht Haven, a good nights sleep and a splendid breakfast

of Eggs Benedict we set off to catch the last of the east going tide back to Gosport. Once more the winds were kind, even if a bit fickle, and with only 20 miles to go on a fair tide we could afford to sail gracefully along a three knots through the water but nearly twice that over the ground. We managed to be well clear of Cowes Roads before the tide lost its easterly force and turned slack, so with a steadily increasing breeze we were able to sail all the way past Gilkicker until we had to drop sails and enter the busy harbour of Portsmouth and our home berth at Gosport marina.

It had been enjoyable living on Lively Levante and we felt we'd finally got her into good cruising shape; everything worked with little on the to do list. We may have had to suffer 65 hours of motoring (a record) but we did make it to Plymouth and to some extent that's the price you pay for squeezing in a West Country cruise into two weeks. June and so far, into July, had been warmer and wetter than ever before; It's difficult not to connect this with global warming and accept that stronger winds are associated with this increase in activity. After two years of strong winds maybe this is going to be the new norm for the future and we'll just have to accept it planning appropriately.