Cardiff to milford

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Pwhg

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I've recently bought a hustler 25.5 ,its at Cardiff marina. I want to sail her to Milford haven some time over the next month or two. Any advice would be very useful. I've done a lot of crewing but this will be my first trip skippering.
 
Pwhg said:
I've recently bought a hustler 25.5 ,its at Cardiff marina. I want to sail her to Milford haven some time over the next month or two. Any advice would be very useful. I've done a lot of crewing but this will be my first trip skippering.
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Check the tides & only go when its in your favour, a foul tide on that route will get you nowhere.
If you need to stop & await a while, so you get a lift on another tide, you can anchor between Swansea & Oxwich assuming weather ok, otherwise go into Swansea.
 
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I would say you are best to leave it until the end of March when the weather is better. Your first trip skippering should preferably be somewhere else, but if it has to be on the bristol channel out of cardiff then it should be a day trip around flat holm island at slack water.

I would then try swansea and back over a weekend.

If that is a success, then this will have opened your eyes to what potential strategies you could adopt to get the boat to Milford.

Do you know how to navigate, tidal calculations etc. Is the boat sea worthy? will the mast stay up? sails? engine? do you have the necessary safety gear etc, does everything work on the boat. What state is the rig in?

If you break up the trip into two sections where will you stop, is your anchoring gear good enough? If the engine conks out are the sails fit for purpose? When you get to Castlemartin, have you thought about the shooting range?

What time will you leave cardiff to get around lavernock point?




Your looking at the best part of 24 hours to do it in a one go.
 
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better off staying in cardiff for the next 3 months and getting familiaer with things sailing around the bay with the odd day out on the channel in good conditions. Getting the boat kitted up, getting some skippering instruction on seamanship and navigation (if you need it).

The earliest I would be looking to do it would be early April provided you have a decent weather window in all honesty.
 
steveej said:
I would say you are best to leave it until the end of March when the weather is better. Your first trip skippering should preferably be somewhere else, but if it has to be on the bristol channel out of cardiff then it should be a day trip around flat holm island at slack water.

I would then try swansea and back over a weekend.

If that is a success, then this will have opened your eyes to what potential strategies you could adopt to get the boat to Milford.

Do you know how to navigate, tidal calculations etc. Is the boat sea worthy? will the mast stay up? sails? engine? do you have the necessary safety gear etc, does everything work on the boat. What state is the rig in?

If you break up the trip into two sections where will you stop, is your anchoring gear good enough? If the engine conks out are the sails fit for purpose? When you get to Castlemartin, have you thought about the shooting range?

What time will you leave cardiff to get around lavernock point?




Your looking at the best part of 24 hours to do it in a one go.
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He's got 6 hours of good tide, to get him to Swansea, approx 46 Nm, starting at around 4.5 hrs before HW Dover, so might just make it on one tide. All the way to Milford Haven, is 92 Nm, which is pushing it for someone inexperienced & why fight tide, when you can take a stop halfway, until next day, leaving about 6 hrs before HW Dover, unless he wants to leave earlier & do a night run.
 
Its a 25ft boat and will be a push to get to Swansea in one tide, but it is possible (not guarenteed) on springs leaving before HW cardiff and catching the inshore back eddy to Lavernock point. Swansea marina lock is operational at most states of tide but is not 24 hour as they go home in the evening which restricts things.

He could anchor in Swansea bay but that brings its own considerations re weather and anchoring gear available.

The OP needs to be thinking all these things through before contemplating the passage. The bristol channel is not the solent. He will be the only boat out there at this time of year with safe harbours few and far between.

Porthcawl is about half way and will take the best part of 4 hours to get to in a 25 footer leaving Cardiff at HW, longer if hes only ever crewed and he's a newbie skipper. Potential draft issues getting in, only possible 3 hours either side of high tide and not 24 hour in any case. In bad weather certainly not a safe harbour, more like certain ship wreck.

not much daylight this time of year either
 
Thanks for all the advice ,I'm not rushing the trip,having only just bought the boat I'll have to do a few trials. Thanks
 
Pwhg said:
Thanks for all the advice ,I'm not rushing the trip,having only just bought the boat I'll have to do a few trials. Thanks
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Have you thought of joining a club to get to know some people who know the area? With modern weather forecasting at least you can now be sure of enough good weather before leaving.
Allan
 
steveej said:
Its a 25ft boat and will be a push to get to Swansea in one tide, but it is possible (not guarenteed) on springs leaving before HW cardiff and catching the inshore back eddy to Lavernock point.
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Its more sheltered going inside Nash Passage which itself is surprisingly easy even at low water but navigation is an issue though once at the far end of Swansea bay one can punch the tide and if too late moor up on the waiting pontoon outside Swansea locks. Was no trouble in our v slow ancient Macwester. Portcawl is no use as the tide will have dropped to far.

Its the sailor not the boat thats the usual limitation so be aware that sitting in small boats for 8 or 10 hours is freezing cold even in March. My advice is be ready to use engine and have a reliable one, also have reliable GPS and charts if inside the grounds (and a good crew is useful) Once you have reached Swansea then Oxwich Bay is a short hop and good anchorage and its not to far to go on Tenby to await the rising tide and congenial yacht club.
 
In a small yacht at this time of the year the wind chill will be viscous even under power with a fair tide. Thermals, mid layers and heavy weight oilies will be essential, together with access to easily obtainable hot food in such things as thermoses. I’ve been nearly hypothermic on May 1st, let alone late January or early February..
 
Kurrawong_Kid said:
In a small yacht at this time of the year the wind chill will be viscous even under power with a fair tide. Thermals, mid layers and heavy weight oilies will be essential, together with access to easily obtainable hot food in such things as thermoses. I’ve been nearly hypothermic on May 1st, let alone late January or early February..
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With the amount of rain we have been experiencing, yes you could refer to it as viscous.;)
 
There is a danger that the above posts will frighten you. In a slightly bigger boat, I have several times made the Milford to Cardiff trip in one, because the tides at the Milford end arent that bad - its Cardiff where they are difficult.

I race my boat in winter ( when I can get crew) . I wouldnt be keen on your trip simply because the days are short and the temperature is low. But the temperature will get worse - I had the coldest trip ever delivering a pals boat to Famouth from Cardiff last April. In that month the water temperature is really low and that more than air temperature governs comfort. 2am off north cornwall was apalling.

So, I suggest thorough sea trials of the new boat. Some previous owners are honest but many just want rid and lie through their teeth about condition. Then split the journey into daylight sails stopping at Swansea. Make sure you have some way of generating heat on board and a decent anchor in case of breakdown and because you likely will arrive off Swansea near low water when you cant get in. A nice spring tide will help flush you down there quickly. Its a straightforward trip.
 
Am a newbie to boats (and mobo, not raggie), so apologies if this is already known or not applicable...

If I was to be exposed for 12 hours, I'd definitely keep a Whitby Warmer in my pocket... just to have some constant small source of heat to keep my hands from numbing up. They can run for 12 hours straight per fill. Gave one to a friend for xmas, he thinks it's a miracle. Wife claims it's what "got us through the war".
 
wotayottie said:
There is a danger that the above posts will frighten you. In a slightly bigger boat, I have several times made the Milford to Cardiff trip in one, because the tides at the Milford end arent that bad - its Cardiff where they are difficult..
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The OP should not be frightened at all. The trip can be broken down into manageable stages with safe and indeed pleasant stopping points. I and others were just warning of the risk of exposure combining with fatigue or hunger. I wear my thermals probably half the summer season passages except when gloriously further south - which is about the same as my usage in snow covered winter Scottish hills - and in earlier years I gave myself and my navigator a few needlessly unpleasant longer passages by neglecting creature comforts.
 
vodzurk said:
Am a newbie to boats (and mobo, not raggie), so apologies if this is already known or not applicable...

If I was to be exposed for 12 hours, I'd definitely keep a Whitby Warmer in my pocket... just to have some constant small source of heat to keep my hands from numbing up. They can run for 12 hours straight per fill. Gave one to a friend for xmas, he thinks it's a miracle. Wife claims it's what "got us through the war".
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Exposed for 12 hrs affect your whole body, not just hands, even a 4 hr watch can find people falling asleep from cold & going into deep shut down.
 
Pwhg said:
I've recently bought a hustler 25.5 ,its at Cardiff marina. I want to sail her to Milford haven some time over the next month or two. Any advice would be very useful. I've done a lot of crewing but this will be my first trip skippering.
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Is your insurance company agreeable with the trip?
 
Pwhg said:
I've recently bought a hustler 25.5 ,its at Cardiff marina. I want to sail her to Milford haven some time over the next month or two. Any advice would be very useful. I've done a lot of crewing but this will be my first trip skippering.
Click to expand...

What is the furthest you have sailed as crew? And at what time of year
 
Pwhg said:
I've recently bought a hustler 25.5 ,its at Cardiff marina. I want to sail her to Milford haven some time over the next month or two. Any advice would be very useful. I've done a lot of crewing but this will be my first trip skippering.
Click to expand...

Give it a go.

There are at least 5 RNLI stations on the route if it goes wrong
 
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