Shrimper Association website

The article about the trip from the Solent to the Dart and back again has been published on the Shrimper Association website and I have received several very impressed comments about the journey and the small boats that undertook it.
Now the problem is what to do next year.
Personally I fancy France and then a week or so in the Channel Islands before crossing back for the Dart Rally and then back along the coast to the Solent. Need a crew for each crossing and unlikely to attract much interest as a little too far for most I suspect.
Other options include the Scillies or Falmouth for a week or so and then Dart - Poole etc. The trouble is having to get the boat out of the water and trail her down to the start point - I'd prefer to sail but it doubles the trip duration so not likely to go down well at home????
Oh well lots to ponder......

Winter Projects

Although some sailing may be possible over the next few months it is time to look at some improvements that could be made for the next season.

Top of the list is a spray hood but that will have to be made for me.

Next is a folding seat (Richard Goldsmith proudly demonstrates his at any opportunity and it is very comfortable).

At a more basic and DIY level I want to make a grating or similar for the floor of the cockpit and a similar fitting for the area over the fuel tank. This would mean the rear seating area would be level and much more useful than it is now.

Another woodwork project would be to make up a seat/table that would fit over the engine cover. The slope on this is quite annoying and a surface that was strong enough to stand on but with cut outs for pens, cups, beer cans etc. would be much more useful.

So a busy winter ahead - but need to get down to the boat with a tape measure first before I can get started.

Meanwhile - to remind me of the summer

Is winter here?

Afraid so. Went down to Chichester on Friday to attend a Drascombe end of season dinner organised by Richard Goldsmith which was well attended. Strange to see people in a different environment, without sailing clothes and life jackets on . The ladies had skirts on and some of the men even had a collar and tie - very formal for Drascombers.

I spent the night on Daislebee,which meant I could have a few beers - whether this contributed to the feeling of warm well being I don't know, but my fears about shivering away in the cabin where quite unfounded. I had a very comfortable night and enjoyed the shower facilities at the marina before adjourning to Tesco for breakfast.

There was no wind, it was grey and overcast and England had promised to storm the Samoans later that afternoon so plans to go sailing were cancelled and I cleared the boat out of cushions, food and electrical kit and set off for home by about lunchtime. (Getting home early also earned me some bonus brownie points.....)

Hamble Rally - Saturday 9th - Monday 11th October 2010

Due to various commitments I wasn't able to escape into the Solent with those that were able to make a week of it. Instead, leaving home early on the Saturday and stocking up in Tesco outside Chichester, I was on the water by about 10.30, heading down the harbour towards East Head.

The weather wasn't great, it was dry but prudence suggested full wet weather gear and a reef.

The pics of the waves at East Winner don't do them justice they were quite spectacular.

However once out of the harbour and turned right for Southampton the sun came out and I was soon in T shirt and shorts. The tide and wind were in my favour so I made pretty short time to the entrance to the Hamble, passing though the submarine barrier off Portsmouth at quite a speed.

I met up with the fleet coming down Southampton Water, but only after being tricked by Stewart who managed to sneak right past in his Coaster using white sails - wasn't expecting that.

We made our way up the Hamble to Swanick Marina. The spring tide was fierce, creating whirlpools and steps in the water, quite fun looking for the slacker water and dodging in and out of the stream.

The rally gathered in between two pontoons at the marina and beer and nibbles were duly broken out of stores.

We then adjourned to the restaurant for a a dinner which went very well but we failed to persuade the waitresses to stand on a chair and sing a song, in spite of presenting one of them with a cake complete with lit candle.

The following day, Sunday, many had to leave early or hang around locally to haul out, but an intrepid bunch crossed Southampton Water and headed into Ashlett Creek.

Here the tide was so high the quay and car park had flooded.

Stewart, Andy and John hauled out at the sailing club whilst the rest of us had lunch in old Mill house, who made us very welcome. The rest of us set sail for home, with some returning up the Hamble. I left them and headed out into the Solent to see what the conditions were like before making a final decision about my overnight mooring location.

As it was I found the easterly wind had gone slightly north and the tide was quite slack, even more so when I picked up the inshore eddy - so I set sail for Portsmouth and made it all the way on a single tack.

As I past Gilkicker I couldn't make the entrance so furled the sails and motored across towards the entrance. I could see boats struggling to make ground over the tide so I hugged the coast and popped into the entrance channel as close in as I could, gaining a huge amount of ground over the yachts how were in the fairway. In fact one lady came up to me later in the marina and asked what engine I had, assuming it was al least 20hp - very surprised when she found out it was only 9.

My route into Portsmouth

I tied up in Gosport marina and after a meal and a wander around the town turned in for the night.

The following morning I set sail in bright skies and a warm NE wind for Chichester. The entrance to the harbour was quite rough by apart from that the sail was great. I stopped in Mengham Rithe for lunch and then made my way with the tide up the harbour home.

Probably the last sail of the season, but what a great season for a first one with a new boat - lots of adventures and fun, in great company - I have learnt such alot and had a great time.

Many of the figures below have been reset at some stage - the only one I have strived to preserve is the total 723Nm. Not bad since June 17th........

Next year ?? France, Channel Islands, Scillies, cruising in Falmouth and the West Country - they all beckon - some more tenable than others and some more inclusive of other sailors we'll see.

What is planned in the Chichester Marina rally - details will be published in the DAN and I will elaborate here and on the forum in the New Year but keep the dates of 29th April - 2nd May free.

Itchenor Rally24th-26th Sept 2010

Having dived into the marina with Adrian for some respite from the wind, he and I drove to Itchenor to attend the dinner at the club. We met up with Adrian's wife and daughter and spent a very pleasant evening with the other Drascombers attending the rally.

Stewart Brown announced his intention to resign from the committee and his post of South Coast area rep but made some very complimentary remarks about the Solent Cruising Group I have set up. I should hasten to add this is not in competition to the Drascombe Association but is simply a collection of email addresses of sailors, based loosely (very loosely) on those who tend to sail in the Solent, in an effort to provide opportunities for joining up to sail in company.

The next day dawned bright and sunny - so much better than the day before. Having set out form the marina we r/v'd with the main rally group at the Visitors pontoon at Itchenor. Chris Meade-Briggs had asked Adrian to be the Sailing Master and in view of the weather forecast and wind direction it was decided to abandon the original plan to sail to Mengham Rithe and instead have a sail down to the Camber mark at the entrance to the Thorney Channel and then make our way up to Dell Quay for lunch. In spite of this being a repeat of an earlier rally sail plan it was readily agreed and the fleet set off in usual Drascombe style.

The wind was just right for a sail down to Camber and then back up through the moorings to Dell Quay. With it being the top of springs it was possible to get right up to the top of the harbour, before coming back down to the wooded shore on the northern side that offered shelter from the wind. In the sun it was pretty warm and a very pleasant lunch was had at anchor.

The fleet departed for the pontoon and having sailed back down with them Adrian and I returned to the comfort of the marina before being collected this time, again by his wife and daughter, who took us to the village hall for the BBQ.

Here Richard G embarrassed me by making a presentation of framed photos with messages on the back from the participants of the Solent Dart dash (see earlier posts). It was a lovely thought and brought back great memories of the early summer. (- it now has pride of place in my studio.)

I got my own back to some extent, with grateful help from Miles and Lizzie, who had managed to buy a birthday cake and candles in Emsworth. Unfortunately somewhere on the journey the candles had fallen out of the back but luckily I had 4 green cylume sticks with me, in case children needed entertaining, which made very good, if somewhat oversized candles. The cake was presented to Adrian whose 72 birthday it was, together with a card signed by all the rally attendees.

(Cylume sticks are plastic tubes about 4 inches long and a bit thicker than a pencil, that contain chemicals, that when cracked, mix and produce light)

The usual suspects provided musical accompaniment to the evening and our 'taxi' delivered two tired but happy Drascombers back to the marina - not so tired that we didn't finish off the 3 litres of white wine I had taken - but that's another story ( sorry Adrian .......)

The Sunday dawned bright and windy but the rally drew to an early close as the need to haul out at the right state of the tide meant an early departure for most.

I mooched around the top of the harbour, anchoring to watch what turned out to be some form of championship racing - very spectacular and very wet for quite a few.... before retruning to the marina and home in time to earn some brownie points.

Wednesday 22nd September - Friday 24th - Itchenor Feeder Cruise

Scampered down the the boat early today - motored down to East Head to r/v with Richard (Egret) and Adrian (Torridon) before departure to Isle of Wight - Bembridge - bright and sunny but wind right on the nose so motored all the way.

Tied up at Duver Marina and booked in for a meal at Baywatch on the Beach. Had a great meal and bumped into an ex colleague having a pint outside (small world).

The next day after a morning of showers we caught the tide acro

ss to Southsea.

We got into Langstone Harbour before the tide started to run too fast and had lunch in the lagoon round the back of Hayling Island.

It was a different story after lunch. We suddenly realised that time had run away with us and we had a matter of minutes to get across the harbour and into the marina before the cill level would be too high. As we crossed the harbour entrance we were facing north, full throttle just to keep still and being swept across the mouth towards the marina channel.

We got in with minutes to spare - almost before lines were secure we could hear the mechanism engage and the cill move into position.

Later that afternoon Jim, Andy and Anne together with David arrived following a swift passage from Ashlett.

We adjourned for drinks and then into the curry restaurant at the marina for a good meal.

The following day the fleet split in two with Jim, Andy and David heading up the harbour, lowering their masts and going under the low bridge into the top end of Chichester harbour.

Adrian, Richard and I elected to sail round via the Solent. There were a few dramatic waves but nothing as bad as the wind over tide that greeted us once were in the harbour.

Adrian and I retired to the marina to gather ourselves before going down to the dinner at Itchenor Sailing Club.

Sunday 20th - Steve's first time

Honoured a long standing promise to take a friend of mine, Steve, for a sail today. Picked him up early from home and drove to the marina. Bright and sunny and F5 Westerly - got the boat ready and explained the motor controls to Steve and then shocked him by going to untie, asking him to motor Daislebee away from the pontoon. Trust indeed....

We motored down the harbour admiring the many different types of yachts and motor boats moored up.

Made our way up the Bosham Channel and picked up a mooring for a coffee and then got the sails up, putting in a reef to keep things relatively calm. Nice sail up to the main channel and then down the harbour. Popped out to sea and then back into East Head for lunch. Steve was particularly fascinated by the Moths that were buzzing around the harbour - are they sailing or flying......

We launched the dinghy and had a wind swept walk around the head before setting sail back to the marina.

A good day - next time try for less wind and more sun.

Southampton Boat Show

I used the Premier marina offer to get to the Boat Show by coach and met up with Brad and Bob, who were trying out the Cape Cutter for size. Isn't it annoying that as soon as you buy a boat you see another one that has some, but not all, of the shortcomings of your own boat sorted. In this case it is the huge amount of storage that the Cutter has opposed to the Shrimper - c'est la vie.

We had the obligatory visit to Wetherspoons - the second one of the days for the lads.......

We saw Stewart on his stand, enjoying a good show and bumped into Steve Hill and Simon Farley as we walked around. We managed to get onto a huge motor cruiser, will full standing room throughout the engine room.....

Following the show, stopping off for supper en route I spent a comfortable night on Daislebee, in spite of the rain and wind.

Poole Rally - 26th to 31st August

Thursday - Friday

The forecasts for the days before the Poole rally included strong wind warnings and heavy rain. Reports from the fleet that was already out in the Solent weren't good, with many and varied changes of plans being proposed to get from the Solent to Poole, including trailing. However the situation improved sufficiently for me to leave the marina and sail to East Head where I met with Richard Goldsmith at about 20.00. He had tales of setting out from Cowes earlier but being forced back by the weather!!! The wind and tide had calmed down to give him a reasonable passage back to Chichester, having decided that his engine problems ruled out a trip to Poole.Richard departed to get to his mooring on the tide and I got my head down for a few hours.Waking at 00.30 to heavy rain I decided to leave it awhile, only to find as I got comfy again, the rain had stopped.The passage down the Solent was unremarkable, the rain mainly petered out and I only saw two ferries, apart from them I had the Solent to myself.

I arrived at Keyhaven at about 05.30 and tied up to a buoy.

Waking at 09.00 I moved up to the quay, joining Barry, Jim, Nick, Adrian and Marcus, together with Steve and Vi Hill in their NAD and Josh in the Scaffie.

The launching of a trawler inches ahead of my boat caused some palpitations

but all went well and at 13.00 we were passing through the narrows at Hurst en route to Poole where we arrived at about 16.00, anchoring in Blood Alley.

The raft soon dried out and Brad and Bob proudly showed off their large bass they had caught - I don't think Pauline's measured up somehow.....

There were many conversations going on - but I can't imagine what Nick and Marcus were discussing......

The sunset in a magnificent red glow as we settled down for the night.

Saturday -

Dry sunny and blustery. After a leisurely breakfast I took Bob to Town Quay so he could watch his beloved Bournemouth (draw as it turned out) v. Notts County. Having tied up at the Yacht Haven he disappeared to buy ice and replenish beer stocks.

Chris and Adam arrived at the quay, having caught an early train from Maidenhead and we nipped into the Tesco Extra, just behind the haven, to stock up ourselves.

We then set off and motored past the Sunseeker quay - patio doors on the sides as well as the back ......

We set sail across the harbour and joined the rest of the fleet that had come round Browsea Island from the east and made our way round to Cleave Point for the lunch r/v. It was Chris's first proper sail on Daislebee and he was disappointed to see a reef in her mainsail. Round the south of Brownsea we duly raised full sail and were soon creaming along South Deep.

We touched bottom during the lunch raft but were soon afloat again on the second high and the fleet departed for the planned overnight anchorage in Arne Bay.

On arrival it was decided that it was too shallow and we wouldn't be afloat again until late the next day so we de-camped to Shipstal Point where the Coasters and others went in close, others with deeper draughts stayed out nearer the channel.

Sunday -

Another blustery day, but with bright sunny intervals and the odd very light shower during the morning.

Much discussion took place amongst the fleet due to head back to the Solent and the general consensus, in view of the forecast, was leave the main rally early and set off mid afternoon to make the best of the tides and weather.

From Shipstal we navigated a route between Round Island and the southern shore of the harbour - the chart plotter providing very useful at identifying the thin ribbon of blue cutting through the green.

We made our way by a variety of routes to the lee of Goathorn Point for lunch where much further discussion took place as a new forecast had placed some doubt over the original plan.

Sat in the sunny lee of the woods it was hard to imagine but a glance at the trees tops confirmed the option to delay and leave the following morning.

Pauline had brought a small kite with her and not to be out done, Brad and Bob had bought a Winnie the Pooh version ( very military...) and spent many happy hours with match sticks and fishing weights until it was fit to fly. The result was a win to Pauline but it set the tone for next year where kites will form an obligatory item of equipment.

Brad persuaded the boys to try and 'catch' some razor clams so to much amusement, a shore party was convened, complete with salt to persuade the clams out of their holes.

Brad nearly entertained us all by falling in the mud but managed to save himself.

A very convivial evening set in and Adrian got out his keyboard to accompany some 'singing'

(surely all Coasters come with one as standard....)

Monday -

Brad and Bob had to depart at 05.00 am for work and did so very quietly. The rest of us had breakfast and as the boats floated those that were sailing to the Solent made our way towards the harbour mouth. the decision to wait was vindicated and we had a great sail across the bay. The fleet split at Hurst with Nick joining Barry at Keyhaven, Jim and Vernon pressed on to Ashlett, Marcus to his home port and Adrian to Cowes. Steve sailed the Scaffie back from Hurst with Josh helming the bigger boat. We dropped in to Yarmouth but finding it full plugged away against the tide to join Adrian at Shepards Wharf. After a very good curry at the Saffron we turned in for the night.

Tuesday -

We set out with Adrian in lovely conditions - following the north coast of the Isle of Wight we dropped into Wootton for a quick look round and then across to Chichester were we arrived mid afternoon. After a short break we sailed up the harbour to the marina and packed up for the journey home.

Drascombe rally to Selsey Bill - Tuesday 2nd August

Jeff Lander organised a day trip to Selsey Bill and having never turned left out of the harbour it seems a good idea. So Adam did his paper round in a record time and I made the sandwiches

before setting off to get to the boat and then down to East Head for the 10.30 briefing.We managed it and set off with the rest of the fleet out though the harbour entrance.

We arrived and moored up under the direction of John who then kindly ferried us to the shore.

Jeff had laid on a feast at a local friends house where the rally participants enjoyed catching up with each other whilst enjoying smoked salmon sandwiches and a cream tea.

The fleet then set sailed back to Chichester. We paused at East Head before continuing on up the channel where we r/v'd with Stewart to spend the night at anchor.

The next day dawned fine and bright and we returned to the marina before driving to Southampton to collect Adams new drum kit.

Tuesday/Wednesday 20th/21st July

Grabbed a couple of days on the boat on the pretext of tidying up after Adam's trip....

Motored down to East Head for lunch and then had a superb sail up to Emsworth and back. It was obviously Shrimper week in the harbour, I passed 6 or 7 going each way. They must have been confused as they obviously assumed I was part of their rally.

Down at East Head overnight - watched a seal catch and eat his supper lying on his back before settling down to a quiet night. It is amazing how quiet it is midweek.

Woke up the next morning to glorious sunshine and decided to sail up to Northney, garb a pasty from the garage and then have a leisurely sail back up to the marina.

The houses and the pubs at the top of the harbour looked lovely, not so good at Northney marina though. Called them on VHF - no response, phoned them up and they wouldn't let me tie up for 2o minutes whilst I visited the garage to get some supplies. They wanted to charge me short term berthing and put me in a empty slot even though I only wanted to nip and get a pasty and some milk - I ask you......

I explored the top end of the harbour and could see the garage 50 yds from the bridge but on a falling tide the water there disappears very rapidly so I played safe and went off back down the channel.

All in all, apart from the inflexibility of Northney, it was a lovely couple of days.