Last sail of the year.

Route- EDSC - Wareham - EDSC and home.

Saturday 22nd Oct. This was to be the last chance to get out on Jelly this year. She has to be off the mooring before Nov 1st and I always like to give myself time for a second attempt in case things don’t go as planned.

We were having a new kitchen door fitted on Saturday so I could just disappear. As soon as the door fitter was finished I threw my bag in the car and made my way to the club.

Late start.. I was onboard by 3pm and the tide was flowing out quickly. I want to get off the mooring ASAP and put the sails in deeper water, so I threw my stuff in the cabin; fitted the engine; slipped the mooring and motored away…. Only to slither to a stop after about two foot.

I stopped the engine and decided to tidy the cabin and put the kettle on. While sat out with my cuppa a fella with a wind surfer walked past, he’d hit a sand bank which had knocked him off to land with some force. It seems that since the channel had been dredged last year a sandbank had started to appear. This probably explains the two or three occasions this year where I have not been able to get back to my mooring as the tide falls.

Where shall I go.. As the tide started to rise again I raised the sails with a single reef in the main. As the keels lifted the boat slid forward through the sand before breaking free and off into the harbour. Whilst sat in the cabin I decided to go to Wareham for the night, I was underway by 5:30pm so reckoned on being at Wareham by 9pm…. By which time it would be very dark.

The boat was beautifully balanced, I was able to set a course, then walk to the bow just for the view without upsetting the direction; I’ve never been able to do that before!

I had to beat up the harbour as the wind was blowing from the North. By the time I’d got to Hamworthy there was a distinct lack of light and I was having to thread my way through the myriad of moored yachts. I made my last tack near Rockley park and followed the well lite channel markers up towards the river Frome.

By now the Early wind which had dropped to a breeze had now gone to bed so I started the engine and aimed for the last lit channel markers. Once into the river the channel is marked by stakes, Red on the left and Green on the right,,, Fabulous except that at night I can’t tell them apart. To preserve my night vision I didn’t have any lights on. Unfortunately this meant that I also couldn’t see the Chart. As the river meandered I didn’t see the turn and gentle stopped on the mud in the entrance of a blind alley… I put the lantern on to check the chart and saw the error so put her in reverse and with a little prayer and a few extra revs she freed herself from the mud and I took the correct route up the river.. The African Queen never had this problem!

The Quay Inn

Wareham night life.. I tied up against the quay at Wareham by 9pm, put my glad rags on and headed for the chippy. Chilli Burger and Chip… Haut Cuisine it wasn’t but it definitely filled a gap. I spent the rest of the Evening in the Quay (Pub not water) where a charity Casino was been held. I didn’t win anything but the under 14’s Rugby team might get a pair of socks.

Cormorant

Sunday 23rd Oct: Another beautiful morning, the sun shinning through the mist; with not a breath of wind.  I motored away from Wareham at around 7:30am. Even at this early hour there was plenty of activity around ridge wharf, several boats were being readied for lifting out. I passed two long term moored up Fantasie 19’s. One is Barley 11 but I don’t know anything the other one.

Tidying up

Autumn Cobwebs

Lifting out at Ridge Wharf

Unknown Fantasie 19

Barley 11

The transition from river to harbour starts with reed beds, then wide open shallows before turning the corner to the busy moorings, marinas and other harbour activity.

Roman standard? ... or maybe the Comrmorant I displaced earlier.

Leaving the river Frome

The harbour was very busy, cruiser and dinghy races being held from Hamworthy to Parkstone. I took the less busy route and managed to brew up while under way.

It was time to turn my thoughts to getting the boat out of the water. I would have to get back to the club, drive home; pick up the trailer and push bike; drive back to Baiter park; push bike back to the club; row out to the boat and sail over to Baiter Park… All before the water disappeared.

Too late.. I anchored near the slip way and rowed ashore. I set the trailer up as quick as I could and pushed it down the slip way. I had painted lines on the docking arms to indicate when the trailer was deep enough. They were just covered with the trailer right at the end of the slip. I row back to the boat and motored towards the trailer, the lines where just being lapped by the water as I got there but the boat would not float onto it. I jumped off and tried to get a tiny bit more depth by pushing the trailer further in but the wheels dropped of the end of the slipway. I’d missed the tide so I dropped the anchor again; manhandled the trailer back onto the slipway and went back to the boat. With the tide going out I knew that I had plenty of time to brew up, heat up some beans a de-rig the boat long before the water came back.

She's on.. It was 8pm and pitch black by the time the boat was on the trailer. This was the first time I’d used this trailer at Baiter and hadn’t realised quite how heavy it was and how far down the slipway it would have to be. It’s much heavier and the deck is much higher than my old trailer. I didn’t have enough rope to reach the car to allow me to drag it back up the slipway so I would have to pull it up myself.

She’s in.. My first attempt let on of the wheels drop off the side of the slipway. There was no way I could pull it back onto the ramp and I felt there was a danger losing the trailer until the next low tide, about 2am! I looped a warp through an eye on the trailer and cleated it through the jib fairlead. This did the trick and helped lift the trailer as the tide came in, allowing me to pull it back onto the ramp. I was still about 10 metres short of getting a rope around the tow hitch. I had to draw on all my will to pull the boat and trailer up the ramp.

She’s out.. Eventually I got the rope around the tow bar and dragged her out and onto the car park. I was absolutely shattered and so glad that I’d de-rig while waiting for the tide. I was home with the boat on the garden by 9:30.

It had been a very long day and I was tuckered out. Despite this I had had a great weekend and cannot wait for April when it can all start again.

Sun set over Poole harbour