RAMSGATE to RYE BAY 50:53.6N 0:42.8E
Callidus Harwich and Beyond
Richard Wells
Wed 11 Jun 2008 09:00
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RYE BAY June 11th 2008
Hello All Landlubbers and Seafarers
Ashore,
We anchored off Rye, having been let down by our
favourable wind which died at 1800, leaving Eastbourne a
vague prospect for after midnight. So we slung the 'ook and got
the fishing tackle out. Our scaley friends were hiding or something, as usual,
and Callidus maintained her fish-free record which Dick, at least, is determined
to break!
Ramsgate - last night's stopover, is a
great little yacht harbour but with pontoons so wobbly that it reminded me of
the occasion I fell out of a sea kayak off Portree and had to be towed in. That
was the second time Tim saved my life and Chris had a hand in it too - their
fault anyway for playing around surfing through gaps in the rocks whilst I
waited in the cross swells after an 18 mile paddle against a force 5. No
wonder I sold Tim the 'Legend' or 'Leg-End' as Mike called
it).
The Royal Trinity Yacht Club bar was very welcome
and the pontoons got even more wobbly!
In the morning we were under pressure to get
the shopping done for an early off but unwisely chose Wilkinsons which doesn't
sell proper food that you can eat so we ended up at Waitrose and were late.
Setting off at 10 we had to refuel and drew lots of derision when we did a tour
of the berths searching for the fuel pontoon. Being trained as sailors can
be tiresome. The attendant had seen it all before. Richard was in full teaching
mode which was odd as we all know how to moor up now and
also that boathooks are lethal to plastic boats. After telling us that we
were 'in charge' he spent the day charging up on deck at the slightest
threat to take over. The book about Capt Cook I gave him to take his
mind off it didn't get much read!
The white cliffs were resplendent in the sunshine -
who couldn't admire them and think of England and Spitfires! We dutifully asked
if it was safe to cross in front of Dover's busy ferry base and got across
between the departure of the 12 o'clocks and the arrival of their ex-Calais
counterparts - six ferries in the space of 45 minutes cutting across our
track!
The sail past Dungeness inside the buoy was
interesting and we had nice views of Englands white elephants (grey concrete
reactor-shaped elephants in fact) but we hit the tide anyway and clawed our way
round. A nice sea breeze (land breeze?) had us batting along at 7 kt in Rye
Bay but fell away at teatime and we anchored in 25' with plenty of chain
out. We ate a tasty dinner of chicken cooked to the sound of Hank Wangford and The Lost Cowboys with a fancy sauce,
spuds, broccoli spears and sweet pots followed by peaches and hot custard.
Yummy! I liked it anyway.
Dick
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