Brixham - sitting out the gales!
The Voyages of Richard and Amanda
Fri 16 Jul 2010 09:08
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Anyone watching the weather for the English Channel
will know that this Wed/Thu are not good days to be out sailing. The shipping
forecast for Plymouth gave SW F6 to severe gale F9 decreasing to F8 then
increasing to severe gale F9. When you get forecasts like that the best place to
be is in a lovely sheltered marina with easy access to good showers, toilets
etc. and close to shops where you can stock up without any long treks. So we are
really happy to be safely in Brixham where all the above apply. When I also
realised that if we had gone all the way to the Azores, we would be on the way
home now, and probably just about where the strongest winds are
blowing in the western approaches, so we have been doubly lucky.
One thing we are realising is just how much there
is to see without going major distances away from our base in Chichester. With
northern France, Brittany, SW England and Ireland all within striking
distance,we have enough for years of cruising; its just such a shame that
the weather is so unpredictable that you cannot guarantee whether you will be
able to get to where you wanted to go. This cruise has changed our view of the
sort of sailing we want to do away from long distance ocean trips into more
manageable chunks where we can get better weather forecasts and not spend so
much time at sea. Having said that, we both
have a love of the open ocean and love the times when we are out of sight
of land with only the rolling seas around us, but now appreciate that the
distances we cover should be more realistic and fall within the range limited by
reliable weather forecasts.
So today has been a day of relaxation enjoying the
comfort of the boat while all around us wind and rain howl through the rigging.
A brief break in the weather encouraged us to get off our butts and explore the
coastal path to Berry Head. Climbing through the woods the view opened up
to show us Tor Bay on the left and the English Channel on the right
and despite the horizons being limited by mist and rain it was still an
impressive sight. On the way in to Brixham we were photographing the
spectacular coastline that makes up Berry Head.
 But on our climb we realised that there was an even
more impressive history. Over the last 400 miilion years it has moved from the
equator to here and been raised up over 60 metres. In more recent years, the end
of the headland has been fortified, I believe from Napoleonic times
when it was protecting the English Channel fleet that used to anchor in the
waters off Tor Bay. There were some truely spectacular views to be had, but
unfortunately the best were held back from us because of the weather, which
means we will have to return to get the full picture.
 At this point the weather really closed in and
despite seeking temporary cover in an 1802 sentry box, and taking a break
in the cafe at the top of the cliff for tea and treacle flapjacks we had in the
end just to brave the weather and walk back down to the marina in the rain,
where soaking wet we took advantage of the luxury showers to warm up and change
into dry clothes. It was a great experience and totally worth it.
Tonight we are eating on board, there is a
marvellous on board chef called Amanda who on just a small two burner stove is
creating a kedgeree that is out of this world. (so she tells me).
Currently the weather is looking good for Saturday,
so we will stay here tomorrow and leave early on Saturday morning to head for
Poole. This is about 60 miles away so is a good days sail.
Hopefully with a following
breeze......
PS: Just for Geoff
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