We're home!

With strong easterly winds in the forecast for the next few days, we set off from Dover at 0600 to make the most of them. We expected favourable tide for the first 4 hours or so of our trip to Eastbourne, after which we'd get adverse tides of about a knot. We could have made better time if we'd got up earlier to get the full 6(ish) hours of favourable tide, but we needed the rest!

The forecast had been for winds of up to gale F8 during the night, although that had thankfully been revised down to F5-F7 for our trip. The strong winds and tides had certainly churned up the sea in the exit from Dover and we had to hang on tight as poor old Cyclone was thrown around as if in a washing machine. Jo remembered to put her hood up after water was thrown down her neck and I wished I'd reached for my sailing boots after the same wave deposited sea over my deck shoes!

Thankfully we soon left the the confused sea of the exit behind and made rapid progress in the fairly substantial, but not uncomfortable, swell that followed.

The wind stayed astern of us the whole way and, with apparent winds gusting from 14 to 24 knots (equating to true wind speeds in the 20 to 30 knot range), we only needed the headsail to get close to our hull speed. Pevensey Bay provided some quite large rollers from astern which lifted us like a surf board and hurled us forward. This is the only time that I've ever seen more than 10 knots through the water. Yes, you read that right! 10+ knots through the water on a 33' yacht!! (OK, it only lasted for 4 or 5 seconds, but even so!!).

Surfing across Pevensey Bay

Approach to Sovereign Harbour, Eastbourne

I was nervous about the conditions we might face in the entrance to Sovereign Harbour and at the lock, given the wind strength and  the 2m waves we were surfing in the Bay. I needn't have worried though as the entrance wasn't too bad and all was calm in the lock. Phew!

Our intention was to stay in Eastbourne for a couple of nights before moving around the corner to Brighton. In the event, the forecast suggested that our run of easterly winds might come to an end before we got home if we did that, so we set off for Brighton the following afternoon.

The forecast was for easterly or north easterly winds of F5 to F6 - a little less than had been forecast previously. We were therefore a bit surprised to leave the shelter of the lock and head into apparent wind gusts in excess of 30 knots and some really quite steep waves at the exit from the harbour itself. The 40' yacht that had locked out with us quickly radioed the harbour requesting a lock in as it was "too rough to continue". Frankly we didn't blame them as they were only going out for a couple of hours sailing around the bay and the conditions really didn't favour that. They also had a labrador on board and the crew sported blow dried hair and immaculate make up!

Cyclone battled the waves to clear the harbour entrance under motor, managing just 2 knots over the ground with quite a few more revs than I usually use. Thankfully, as soon as we were clear and able to turn south under sail, everything calmed down and we were once more making great progress.

Eastbourne

Photographs never make waves look big and, whilst they certainly weren't exceptionally so, they were large enough for me to expect a rough passage around Beachy Head - a headland that is notorious for its overfalls. We'd timed our departure to arrive there at around slack water to avoid the worst of the overfalls and, as it happened, rounding the Head turned out to be a bit of a non event. I'm not complaining though!

Beachy Head from the east

Beachy Head from the south

Once around the Head, the sea smoothed out as the land sheltered us from the breeze that had now backed to the north. It was really quite pleasant!

We called Brighton marina as we approached and were allocated a berth on no. 12 pontoon after we'd been asked for information about out draft (1.7m). We were advised that one of the starboard hand channel markers was out of position and I learned later that a port hand marker was missing altogether.

Brighton marina seems to be the poor relation in the Premier Marinas family. It all looks a bit tired, but the worst part is that it's silting up. I'd already planned for a minimum of 2m height of tide to ensure I had sufficient depth to enter and exit but, having been asked my draft before being allocated a berth, I hadn't expected to sit on the bottom for an hour and a half either side of low water (a 0.8m tide on this occasion).

Brighton Marina. Note mud.

Brighton Marina development

After a slap up meal at Wetherspoons (well it was our wedding anniversary - more about that later) we set off the following day for Chichester marina as soon as the mud would let us.

Leaving Brighton

With forecast easterly winds of F4 to F5, decreasing to F3 later, it was like sailing in the summer. Lovely! Unfortunately this didn't last and we had to resort to motor sailing and then plain motoring as the wind deserted us.

We soon started to see the familiar sights of home.....

Bar beacon in Chichester Harbour entrance channel

Itchenor, Chichester Harbour

Itchenor reach

Chichester Marina's entrance channel

We'd forgotten just how beautiful Chichester Harbour is; truly the match of anywhere we'd been in its own way, with the possible exception of the Stockholm Archipelago. What we'd also forgotten was just how many boats there are here. We were amazed by the forest of masts that greeted us!

Our entry to the marina was aided by catching the last of the freeflow through the lock, which ceased the instant we were inside. Having refuelled, we motored happily to the same berth we'd vacated just over 6 months ago.

And relax!!

Just before I finish, I should perhaps mention a couple of landmarks that had occurred in the previous few days.

First of all, Jo had celebrated a birthday (by being dragged out of bed at 0500 (French summer time) in Dunkerque and sailing in strong(ish) winds to Dover - I spoil that girl...). Obviously I can't say which birthday it was, as it wouldn't be proper to give away a lady's age...

Happy Birthday Jo!

And secondly, we celebrated our 27th wedding anniversary in Brighton. Now we don't live in a blame culture, so let's just say that one of us was rather perplexed when the other presented him them with an envelope on the morning of the 1st October. It was only on opening it that that person realised they'd completely forgotten about their anniversary. In fairness, this was the first time since the very first one, when both parties had forgotten! This oversight was swiftly corrected by a minor alteration to the card and all was well again. Looking on the bright side, we've now decided to make do with just the one card in the future, reducing our expenditure by 50%!

Happy Anniversary too!!

And finally, I can't finish a blog entry about our homecoming without saying a huge thank you to our neighbours Janet and Geoff.

Geoff has been checking our house regularly, as required by our insurers, and forwarding post as necessary to my sister for attention. Before we left, he had also offered to cut our grass.

On our return, we found our gardens - front and back - looking far neater than they ever do when we're here. We've got stripes on our lawn, the flower border has been weeded, the hedges cut back, the paths swept and weeded and I think our car may even have been washed!

What fabulous neighbours.

Janet and Geoff, thank you very much. We owe you.