Bradwell to Shotley - Passage plan advice

[tangaroa]

Sorry to trouble you guys (and gals),

I'm planning my first trip as skipper this weekend from Bradwell to Shotley, leaving 3.30am'ish on Saturday to take advantage of the tides. I'm happy with my passage plan as far as the Medusa Buoy but as I'll be arriving there an hour or so before low water I'm uncertain whether to take a direct route towards the corner of the recommended yacht track close to the Pye End safewater mark (across Stone Banks) or take a more conservative route to the northeast picking up the recommended yacht track close to the Cork Sand yacht beacon.

My feeling is the direct route should be safe enough provided there isn't significant swell. My draft is 1.1m (bilge keel) and low water at Harwich is 0.7m.

Any advice from furumnites with local knowledge would be much appreciated.

Many thanks.

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[Gunfleet]

I've done this trip many times. If you leave before HW Bradwell and stem the flood for an hour or two you will have a much more comfortable passage across the Colne Bar area, because the confluence of the Colne and the Blackwater at that point can make the area a bit uncomfortable on the ebb. The purpose of the recommended yacht track is to keep yachts in a place where large vessels would expect to see them. It doesn't matter tuppence to Harwich Harbour if you go into shallower water because you are definitely not going to bump into a container ship there. So, with regard to Stone Banks with your draft and settled weather, what problem do you expect? Equally I don't know why someone coming from Bradwell would need to go out as far as the Medusa. Have a look at the chart between the Naze and Medusa and you'll see what I mean. The area you must not cut, however, is inside Guard, where it is possible to ground at LWS even with your draft. Have a nice trip.

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[nct1]

Make sure you can make the restricted depth out of Bradwell, I draw 1.8 M and assume a 2.5 hour window either side of high tide to be safe(ish).

Take care in Harwich, those big ships come in real fast.

Enjoy.

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[AlexL]

I've done this journey a number of times, I always follow a track from near medusa to Landguard Cardinal (I have 1.7 draft), i've never gone around the other way.
In fact my passage plan goes up the Wallet to Medusa, but in reality I usually cut off the corner following the coast around by walton pier and don't actually get to Medusa. I keep a plot on a chart and just make sure I stay outside the 2m contour around the coast.

The ideal time is to be just before landgaurd at low water as the ebb will carry you up the coast from Bradwell to about Landgaurd at which point you meet the tide coming out of the river, BUT, If you time it right and arrive nearby at low water then you can carry the flood into the river! Its very satisfying if you catch the reverse of the tide at the right point.

Once you are at landgaurd follow the channel in - watch out because there are alot of big ship movements - and at low water make sure you stay reasonably close to the channel especially by harwich shelf. (there is a little baby cardinal which you need to keep on the port of you as you go in). Make sure you cross the channel going into the stour where indicated (between one of the reds and the shotley spit cardinal) and as this is effectively a T-junction make sure there is no shipping about to turn in it! Once at shotley spit make for Ganges Green buoy and then radio Shotley on Channel 80, who will give you instructions for the lock. General procedure is to wait by the 2 posts until you are called on Ch 80.
As you will be in the first bit of the flood there will be a bit of cross tide in the channel to the lock so try and stay in the middle but with 1.1 draft and 0.7 tide you should be able to afford some pretty wild excursions from the channel.

Have fun, its a lovely sail and with the direction changes you can allways get a nice sail at some point whatever the wind is doing.

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[ianwright]

Leave Bradwell just before HW Then Bench Head and Colne Bar to port, North Eagle to starboard. Shape a course towards Medusa which will take you close to the shore, (avoid Clacton and Walton piers) Once past Walton pier head for a point midway between the Naze tower and Medusa.then Stone Banks.After that anywere between Landguard and the end of the breakwater at Dovercourt. Leave the small cardinal off the Shelf to port likewise Guard to port then direct to the two beacons marking the start of the Shotley dredged channel. Lines and fenders both sides for the lock. Make fast to the floating cleats which will be at about deck height,,,,,,,,, you're in.

IanW

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[sailorman]

Medusa channel o.k. @ low water, just dont go to close-in towards the "Naze" or Pye end spit.
Stone Bank to Languard By ( leave to stbd) then look for the "Harwich Ledge By",
this just keeps you away from a very shallow area just off the Pilot Stn.
perhaps see you out there


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[toad]

Watch out for lobster pots around stone banks

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[tangaroa]

Many thanks to all for setting my mind at rest.

Having taken note of the tidal streams from my Admiralty Tidal Stream atlas for the Thames Estuary (NP249), my plan had actually been to stay well offshore, taking the route from Knoll to Wallet No4 and on to Medusa, as the tidal stream is significantly stronger in the Wallet than closer to shore. I'll stay closer to shore now

See you out there!

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[AlexL]

you can go pretty mach anywhere in the wallet, wind permitting we tend to stay sort of in the middle, If we are coming back from crossing the spitway then obviously we start on the outside and gradually work up so we end up on the inshore side abeam walton pier. Last time we tacked all the way up so we just used the depth sounder to bounce from one side of the channel to the other.

I tend to put Medusa in the GPS as a waypoint as it makes a good aiming point when you are all the way down at the other end, but as has been mentioned there is no need to go that far over

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[squidge]

Keep a weather eye on the SeaCat , although its wash has never caused us a problem its worth knowing the times as its not slow when leaving the harbour.
The Lock is an experiance, its amazing how many boats they can get in. It was our first Lock too and stood us in good stead for our Dutch trips.I was a little dissapointed on my last arrival .At about 0200 we could not raise the lock on VHF or telephone so gave up and went to Suffolk yacht harbour for the rest of the night and came back the next morning . They didnt admit it but i think they were asleep.
Any way i am sure you will have a great time. Is it the Clacton air show this week?if so you will have ring side seats.

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[squidge]

Like this.(if this works)

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[Gunfleet]

let us know how it goes!

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[sailorman]

Hope u had plenty of fuel this w/e.
we got as far as clacton & went bact to Hamford Water

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