Yacht Seaduction 2023

Sunday 2nd  & 3rd July

Ramsgate to Sovereign Harbour

Passage time 10 hrs
Distance 49.25
Wind av 13 knot
Gusts. 22.5 knot
Sea State Moderate

When we awoke, our plan was to go to Dover, hopefully, for one night. Chris had called Dover on Saturday to check the availability of a berth, as Dover is undergoing work to build a new marina. We were warned that piling works was going on daily from 09:00 -16:00. However, as the weather looked good we decided to go straight to Eastbourne. We showered, dressed and had breakfast and left Ramsgate at 10:30. As usual, Carole quickly tidied away the fenders and lines as we headed out of Ramsgate harbour. We then turned south towards Dover with just the genoa sail out as the wind was directly behind us. Soon the wind direction changed and we were able to get out the main sail. The sun was shining and the breeze was warm and building in strength.

As we started to round the cliffs at South Foreland we could see the eastern entrance, busy with ferries. We were not entering the port so we kept about 1 mile off and started the engine to get us past Dover as quickly as we could. As we got closer, we were called up on VHF radio by Dover Port Control to make us aware of the imminent departure of a ferry and requested to maintain our course and speed. They had identified us from our AIS transmission which gives our boat name, position and speed. There was another sailing boat just ahead of us, without AIS, but we were unable to identify it to Dover Port Control. We then increased our speed to avoid causing any problems to another ferry departing from the western entrance. Dover is definitely a busy port and controlled very efficiently by its Port Controllers.

The wind was fairly strong and constant and we were making good speed assisted by a couple of knots of tide, so the engine was switched off. We could see Dungeness in the distance, but it was a couple of hours before we passed it. Chris was just saying what a lovely sail we were having when the wind direction changed to dead on the nose. The engine had to come back on and the genoa put away and before long the main sail was brought in, too, and this was done from the cockpit as the sea state had deteriorated and the boat was bouncing and slamming a bit through the water. Any weed on the bottom of the boat was most definitely gone.

The rest of the journey to Sovereign Harbour was a bit of a slog. We made quite a bit of use of the auto helm and kept ourselves occupied dodging the sea spray and playing ‘I Spy’. Eventually and gratefully we spotted the safe water buoy just outside Sovereign Harbour. Carole went below to radio in to advise our arrival and request permission to lock-in. Permission was granted, so Carole then wobbled as quickly as she could round the deck putting out the fenders and spring lines just in time to make the 20.30 lock-in. By 21.00 we were nicely settled in on our berth and preparing a very quick and tasty, well deserved supper. Carole washed and tidied up straight after while Chris had a doze and was very nicely interrupted by a phone call from Anita with the latest news on little William, our great-nephew, who was born last month 16 weeks premature. Soon after we took to our bunks as it had been a long day.

3rd July

Staying an extra night in Sovereign Harbour meant we could get a crab from the fish shop in Eastbourne, so as soon as we had showered and had breakfast, we headed off into Eastbourne. We found the bus stop and asked a seated older lady when the next bus was due. We were treated to a scathing appraisal of the bus service in Eastbourne and the local council, which we were not expecting. Apparently, she lives in one of the flats right by the lock gates and she complained about the sound of the lock pontoons going up and down and the noise the boats made in the marina. We were going to ask her why she had chosen to live there as these were the normal sounds associated with a working marina, but we decided it wasn’t worth the effort. We had met Eastbourne’s female version of Victor Meldrew! Luckily, a bus finally showed up, some 20 or so minutes late and we got on, purchasing rover tickets as we were going to be travelling around a bit today. Unluckily, the bus route didn’t take us along the sea front, so we jumped off in town and walked back to the fish shop. With crab, prawns and rollmops bought, we caught a return bus to the big Asda where we bought some crusty bread to go with our fish. Before we headed out again, Chris “dressed” the crab ready for dinner and we had lunch and left the boat clean and tidy.

We walked back to the Asda bus stop and got on the next bus heading into Hastings. We decided if we spotted anything that caught our eye, we would jump off and take a look. It was warm and we were sitting on the top deck at the front, wishing it was a topless, open air bus. The bus pulled in at Hastings bus station, turned round and then a few streets away it came to a halt, to change driver. We were chucked off here and walked round the corner to catch the next bus going back to Eastbourne. On the way back, we jumped off in Bexhill for a stretch, refreshments and a comfort break. Carole then spotted a sign for “senior” hair cuts for £5.50 (for Chris) and so while Carole did some window shopping, Chris had a hair cut. Smart boy! We caught the next bus back and got back to the boat just after 6 o’clock. We had a nice quiet evening after our crab supper and a good night’s sleep.