Forethought Summer Holiday 2003

We decided to go west for a 2 week trip along with the children.
murky friday

As we pushed into the murk towards Yarmouth on the Friday afternoon, we could see it turning into a night out and a quick run back.

Yarmouth

Moored in Yarmouth, the children in bed, the sunset appeared from below the clouds. We did not realise that this was the start almost a fortnight of extremely hot and mostly windless weather. We didnt put up the sails because the wind was on the nose. At least there was some wind.
sunset

Weymouth

We anchored offshore and tried to row ashore. Unfortunately since the last time we were here the RNLI have equipped the local lifeguards with an inflatable boat. They pass most of their time stopping people from drifting away. In their spare time they enforce a bylaw which is actually written up on the notices facing the sea on the beach but nowhere else which does not permit 'launching' from the beach. This also means no landing on the beach from the sea.
I deliberately did not use an outboard (or go belting around in an orange RIB), to prevent any risk of hurting people, but they still wouldnt let us in.
PLEASE note this fact, compilers of pilot guides.
We were directed to a private pontoon on the north pier where we were allowed to tie up our dinghy, the alternative would have been a very long row into the harbour. If there had been any chop, we would have needed to moor inside the harbour. Apart from rolling a lot in Forethought at anchor , the landing stage is a polypropylene pontoon and a bit slippery.

Portland Bill

As the weather was pretty calm the next day we decided as usual to take the inshore track around Portland Bill. By the time we got there the tide was against us but with the engine smoking we managed to creep around before heading northwest for a while out of the strongest tide.
We motored across Lyme Bay on a direct heading for Brixham , meeting only the dive boats going out to the wreck that is halfway across. We could see the shore to the north of us and started looking forward to 2004 when the works at West Bay should be complete and there will be an all-tide pontoon behind the enlarged and re-positioned harbour arm.

About 10 miles out of Brixham we were visited by 'triangle' dolphins who went right around us about 500 metres away (Ashlings name for them as all you could see were triangles). Continued into the sunset and arrived in Brixham to be given a space on the events pontoon. This is a bare floating concrete rectangle. Next to it is the fishermens pontoon complete with water and electrical power.

Brixham

Late at night had to help a man and his son come alongside to raft up - they had fenders out but on the wrong side and were too tired to notice. They had done Hamble to Brixham in one day starting early and arriving at about 2200.

Spent a couple of days in Brixham , rock pooling and generally wandering about. We all remember the shrimp that we managed to catch, and the shore crab from the harbour.

Brixham to Dartmouth

Darthaven marina was the real destination of our trip. We had looked longingly at it six years before while anchored in the middle of the Dart.
Brixham trawler

But first of all we had to get round Berry Head. What started as a small swell in Brixham harbour entrance turned into a real rollercoaster ride. We had managed to get the main up in the calm, and we really needed it to stabilise the boat, along with using the engine.
A wave would try to roll the boat over, the main would fill and the boat would then surf off down the wave. There was very little wind, just breaking waves as the seabed shelved from 30 metres and spectacular views of white water up the cliffs to leeward. Moving out to sea reduced the size of the waves but things got worse towards the mouth of the Dart.
As we arrived off Dartmouth, we encountered several yachts which turned around after being thrown about for a bit. We were hit by a couple of gusts coming down side valleys : perhaps force 5 maximum.

Dartmouth and Dittisham

And so we arrived at Darthaven and stopped there for a total of 5 nights as we all chilled out with the fun of having a level crossing and steam railway between the pontoon and the showers. The shower block is just to the right of the locomotive and we were lucky to be allowed into one of the regular berths in the main marina.
When we called in, we reported we were a 24 foot boat. They let us in a small berth, and the nice marina staff member who helped us with our lines was rather surprised to see a 9 foot wide boat . We just squeezed in.
darthaven and train

While we were there, we went for a walk to Dartmouth Castle and realised that we were about a year too late for Dartmouth Pottery. Luxury Flats !! aargh not again.

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Page � Mike James 15 April 2004

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mike@hamble.demon.co.uk