Cobra
Well-Known Member
Well at long last the day came for us to bring 'Huldra' our recently acquired Hurley 22 from Rainham back to her new home in Brightlingsea. To say that I won't miss the drive down to Kent to work on the boat is probably an understatement...the view from the Dartford Bridge does lose it's interest after a while!
We were put back in the water at just on 10.30 Friday morning and there were just a few very gentle zephyrs rippling the water in Half Acre Creek. The majority of Hurley 22's are 'gifted' with an outboard sitting in a well, and so the 'mighty' Mariner roared all of its 4hp into life and we set off back home. Passing the Medway Container port the reflections of the cranes were perfectly clear in the still water.
Out into Sea Reach and it was still like a mill pond. The Mariner continued to drone on and we passed Blacktail Spit. We were just clear of the West Swin when a faint breeze started to fill from the South East...sails up and the engine was silenced...after 3.5 hours of that blasted thing droning away the silence really was golden! Still we were making quite good time, and passing our North East Maplin waypoint the breeze had filled to a very pleasant 3 and 'Huldra' was chuckling along pleased to be back in her environment after having been laid up ashore for a year.
We crossed the Swin Spitway by my guess just about bottom end of tide, and the first of the new flood was under us heading into the Colne. All too soon sails down and the outboard was back on again taking us up to our mooring in Brightlingsea Creek. 40.9 Miles in 8 hours 17 minutes...OK so not record breaking, but a very pleasant trip and the first time of crossing the Thames for SWMBO (who as it happened was helming most of the way home!)
We were put back in the water at just on 10.30 Friday morning and there were just a few very gentle zephyrs rippling the water in Half Acre Creek. The majority of Hurley 22's are 'gifted' with an outboard sitting in a well, and so the 'mighty' Mariner roared all of its 4hp into life and we set off back home. Passing the Medway Container port the reflections of the cranes were perfectly clear in the still water.
Out into Sea Reach and it was still like a mill pond. The Mariner continued to drone on and we passed Blacktail Spit. We were just clear of the West Swin when a faint breeze started to fill from the South East...sails up and the engine was silenced...after 3.5 hours of that blasted thing droning away the silence really was golden! Still we were making quite good time, and passing our North East Maplin waypoint the breeze had filled to a very pleasant 3 and 'Huldra' was chuckling along pleased to be back in her environment after having been laid up ashore for a year.
We crossed the Swin Spitway by my guess just about bottom end of tide, and the first of the new flood was under us heading into the Colne. All too soon sails down and the outboard was back on again taking us up to our mooring in Brightlingsea Creek. 40.9 Miles in 8 hours 17 minutes...OK so not record breaking, but a very pleasant trip and the first time of crossing the Thames for SWMBO (who as it happened was helming most of the way home!)
) depleted 'brownie point' jar had a few credits added!