It was my first visit to Cowes but after seeing it on the TV and in the press during Cowes week it seemed smaller and less glamorous than I expected, not at all crowded which I was very thankful for as Im still getting to grips with close quarter handling under engine. I had already made a basic mistake coming into Cowes, following the buoyed channel, motoring straight lines between the buoys I didn’t see one and cut a corner only to come to a halt in the soft mud. Fortunately it was soft and a quick reverse got us out and over to the deeper channel so no damage and cleaned up the bottom of the keels.
We had a quick walk around and out of the festival weeks it’s a nice town but crowded with boats and people it must seem another place. We eventually found a pub that’s served food, wasn’t too noisy and not smelly so had a fairly quick dinner and couldn’t even manage a second pint, we were knackered, it really is two old men in a boat, we were having coco and milk by 10:00.
Thursday morning start was to be leisurely thanks to the tide as we needed a outward tide through Hurst Narrows, unlike when we collected the boat and took 17 tacks against the tide. So no early start, sometimes it woks in your favour!
The sail out of the Solent was really nice, a good SW breeze but nothing too strenuous. The Ben Ainsley cat was out for a photo shoot and went past us up on its foils at about 20 kts with a helicopter following filming everything. It looked amazing all black carbon fibre and sailors in crash helmets, a bit too much for two old men.
Our sail was fast and with the tide we popped out through the narrows into the Needles channel, and off to Swanage. This two was a great sail, once we had tacked out of channel we tacked for Swanage, ghost Roger took over and we made it in a single tack “whizzing” along at 7kts over the ground on a pretty flat sea, again so different from last time we.
We were anchored in the bay by 18:30 and were able to sit with a cider watching the club dinghy racing. All very peaceful and satisfying near the end of our great adventure.
Off to Lyme orBeer tomorrow and from then hopefully in the Axe on the tide on Saturday.
Two Old Men In A Boat 