St Peter Port and back to the Solent

Enjoying the sunshine

Stopping in St Peter Port, Guernsey, again was very pleasant. It turned out that we had several days before the funeral and so would be able to get BV back to her normal mooring in the UK. It also meant we had time to catch up with family and friends on Guernsey over some really nice meals including a barbecue to which we cycled. I think Nicky’s ‘scenic route’ there took us up and down every steep hill on the island. Great views across the west coast though, so the extra pedalling was worth it. That pedalling, along with another run along the coastal path, were a small waistline-reducing token gesture to try and compensate for the fabulous meals out.

Castle Cornet

The tide crossing the sill at Victoria Marina

On Tuesday 18 September it was an early start with our alarm going off at 0515hrs, just as the water was starting to come over the sill into Victoria Marina. It was a spring tide and so, with a tidal range of 8.6 metres, the water really rushed in. Amazingly just 45 minutes later the water level had risen by 2 metres and we were able to slip out of the marina at 0610hrs.

The tide ran strongly pushing us north and then north-east through the Alderney Race. Between Alderney and Cap de la Hague we turned north. With the wind from the west-north-west, and being so strongly pushed east by the tide, we ended up close hauled with 2 reefs in punching north through a very lumpy sea with, at one point, 15 knots speed over the ground on the GPS! The cockpit stayed dry but a lot of water came over the deck on several occasions in some confused seas. We discovered that we have a slight leak on one window in the saloon plus some water came in through a hatch we had not tightened down enough; lesson hopefully learnt on closing hatches properly plus and extra sealing job on the list for when we are back home.  The sea didn’t really calm down until we were about 10 miles north of Cap de la Hague but BV took the brisk wind and confused sea in her stride; she is a very confidence inspiring yacht. The ideal heading for our passage back to the Needles was about 010 deg Mag but the wind was forecast to veer more north-westerly and we were anticipating arriving at the Needles as the tide turned to the west.  Given that, it made sense to maintain a close-hauled course, which took us up to weather, and, if we slowed at all, would put us up-tide of the Needles too. Inevitably, the expected veer did not occur, nor did the wind reduce, so we ended up bearing away to about 040 deg Mag for the last 3 hours of the passage. This made for some very fast and entertaining sailing at the end of what was still a quick passage; we came in through the Needles Channel 12 hours after leaving St Peter Port.

Entering the Solent past the Needles Lighthouse

Once back into the Solent we moored up in Yarmouth and after a quick dinner crashed out for the night. In the morning of Wednesday 19 September, we made a short hop east and anchored in Newtown River for a maintenance day. By fluke there was a chap I knew from work on a yacht anchoring near to us. We’d sailed together in Croatia and, suitably enthused, he was now in the middle of taking his Competent Crew course. He and two of the other guys on the course rowed over to say hello and take a look at BV.

Despite the blue skies it was distinctly chillier in England and we missed the warmer temperatures to which we had become used. Nicky cleaned the grabrails and the teak in the cockpit and then gave it all a coat of teak oil. She had done the cap rails whilst we were in Guernsey so all of the teak has now had enough TLC for a few months. I pickled the watermaker and serviced the aft shower-sump pump; another job where an extra joint or two in my arm would have been very handy to help reach the screws and connectors.

The next step would be a trip up Southampton Water so that we could spend a day at the Southampton Boat Show. Then, in the evening, attend the Rustler Owners Association annual dinner at the Royal Southampton Yacht Club. After a month away finding a smart shirt without creases could prove to be tricky.