Yacht Seaduction
Chris and Carole’s Sail Log 2012
Email: skipper@yachtseaduction.co.uk
The Final Push
Eastbourne/Dover/Ramsgate/Ipswich
20th – 22nd August 2012
We slipped our lines at about 11:45 to catch the 12:00 lockout. This did not take
long and soon we were out of the lock with Carole busy putting the fenders away before
we got out of the harbour approach. The sea was a bit lumpy outside just as expected
and so we headed out to sea to get clear of the swell. Soon the sails were up and
filling. The forecast was SE F4-
I decided to try and catch some more fish. I checked several times by bringing the line in but nothing again. Then for some reason I let the line out and it all got in a tangle. I tried to sort this out without success. Having more patience than I, Carole offered to do it. Before long, I was offering Carole what I considered to be sound advice in sorting it out quicker. After a brief discussion Carole passed me the line and disappeared down below, reappearing moments later with a pair of scissors. Seconds later my hooks and lead weight disappeared over the side, leaving me with just the handle! I think that’s the end of my fishing – at least for now.
Soon we were past Dungeness and the tide was pushing us towards Dover in the far
distance. Our ground speed was 9 knots and before long we were at the western entrance
of Dover. Here you must gain permission to enter Dover due to the fast-
Next morning we set off to Ramsgate for a gentle sail. The trip only takes about 3 hours, but enables us to use the tide to get us to Ipswich the next day. The sail was nice and relaxing being carried by the tide all the way. Just as we were approaching Ramsgate a large ferry was also due to arrive and we could see this in the distance. We had to wait for him to enter and turn around before we could go in. Once he was in we found a berth for the night and went out for a walk to get our last fish and chip supper of the trip.
The next morning the forecast was SE F4/5 which would have the wind slightly on our
starboard quarter. As always the Ramsgate approach was a bit lumpy but once out we
got the sails up with a small reef in the main sail. The sea did not settle that
much but we were making good progress. There were two other yachts going our way.
One was a sailing school which was on the pontoon next to us at Ramsgate. The wind
had gone to an easterly which meant that we were beating to wind. The seas were getting
a bit choppy with the bow dipping through the waves causing the sea to break over
the bow and white sea foam over the deck. We decided to cut through Fishermans Gat,
as this route was slightly shorter. We made good progress and soon we had picked
up the buoys which marked the entrance to the Gat. From here we could see the new
London Array Wind Farm under construction by Foulgers Gat which has blocked another
route used by yachts. The wind was still blowing as we reached the NE Gunfleet. I
decided to head off via the Medusa channel so we could increase the boat speed then
cut into Harwich. The plan worked very well and soon we could see the welcome familiar
sight of the tall cranes at Felixstowe. As we approached Felixstowe the wind increased
to over 30 knots. The wind always blows hard here. We call it ‘The Harwich Blow’.
Once in the Orwell the wind calmed down and we gently sailed back home into Ipswich.
We had spoken to the Marina earlier in the day and been allocated a different berth
on a pontoon around the corner from our usual place. We had no trouble tying-
