mhatherall
New member
Hi there, does anybody know if a cruise from Cardiff up and around swansea is doable in a 21ft 60hp Cruiser ? Giving giid weather and all, are there many places to port on the way ?
Cardiff to Swansea
- Thread starter mhatherall
- Start date
paulm299
New member
If I can do it in my Oldenburg 17 I am sure you can . Have you any experience on your new boat yet ? I would do it in one go if the weather is good , If it turns bad , You only have Porthcawl But read the pilotage and its only a small harbour . Once past there , If the weather turns REAL nasty , You could dive into the Tidal Harbour at Port Talbot with permission from Harbour control but by then you are so close to Swansea you can see the Pierhead .
mhatherall
New member
Looks like I may be getting a different boat, this time with a 170 hpo engine, maybe I could follow you up from cardiff to swansea one day ,.
Mike
Mike
Csail
N/A
Easily done but watch Nash sands, if its rough either go inside if your nav is good or very offshore. Swansea bay gets pretty rough so choose good weather.
Gwylan
Well-known member
Sailed it regularly, but if it gets bad you are a bit stuffed for places to hide.
Lavernock Point can be stimulating on a good day. Also tends to give a misleading impression of conditions in the Channel as you travel out past Penarth to the point
Barry is OK to sneak into, but the pilot boats tend to come and go at great speed - Oh and it dries in places.
You can hide in Watchet, if the tides are right - phone ahead and see what the score it
Nash Sands are to be treated with respect unless it is very gentle and you are confident.
Swansea Bay can be bumpy, well the whole trip can be a load of laughs if the wind is over the tide
Swansea is nice and the food in the Yacht Club used to be reasonable.
Good luck.
Lavernock Point can be stimulating on a good day. Also tends to give a misleading impression of conditions in the Channel as you travel out past Penarth to the point
Barry is OK to sneak into, but the pilot boats tend to come and go at great speed - Oh and it dries in places.
You can hide in Watchet, if the tides are right - phone ahead and see what the score it
Nash Sands are to be treated with respect unless it is very gentle and you are confident.
Swansea Bay can be bumpy, well the whole trip can be a load of laughs if the wind is over the tide
Swansea is nice and the food in the Yacht Club used to be reasonable.
Good luck.
BrendanS
Well-known member
As I've said before about other trips you'd like to do, it's doable in a small boat, but only if the conditions are good, and very likely to stay that way long enough for you to get there and back.
A good start would be to find some forumites here that will take you out locally, and get some experience of Nash, and Swansea, before trying the voyage.
You'll have enough locally to keep you going for this season.
A good start would be to find some forumites here that will take you out locally, and get some experience of Nash, and Swansea, before trying the voyage.
You'll have enough locally to keep you going for this season.
Elza_Skip
New member
We did that a couple of weeks ago on our way to and from Milford in our 25 foot Sealine
If you cannot pick a calm day then look for a northerly or easterlie wind leaving Cardiff on the top of the tide so you have an easbound wind and tide.
On our way out there was a fair tide running so we went well out to see and could see the rough water near Nash Sands. Although a long way round this enabled us to keep a better speed up.
On ther return the wind was picking up and there was a strong flood. We went inland of the sands finding they gave us good protection from the swell that was breaking on the sands. The passage is narrow and needs a careful eye on GPS, charts and depth sounder, however there are good landmarks to help you. It was a bit hairy then as we came out around the headland for a couple of hundred yards.
We did the return leg in about 2.5-3 hours lock to lock that time
So quite doable in the kind of boat you are thiking of bu I would suggest you get more confidence in your boat first, especially as the weather this summer has been so changeable and difficult to forecast.
One consolation is that once you have made it to Swansea the return is typically easier as the probability is you will have a westerly behind you
If you cannot pick a calm day then look for a northerly or easterlie wind leaving Cardiff on the top of the tide so you have an easbound wind and tide.
On our way out there was a fair tide running so we went well out to see and could see the rough water near Nash Sands. Although a long way round this enabled us to keep a better speed up.
On ther return the wind was picking up and there was a strong flood. We went inland of the sands finding they gave us good protection from the swell that was breaking on the sands. The passage is narrow and needs a careful eye on GPS, charts and depth sounder, however there are good landmarks to help you. It was a bit hairy then as we came out around the headland for a couple of hundred yards.
We did the return leg in about 2.5-3 hours lock to lock that time
So quite doable in the kind of boat you are thiking of bu I would suggest you get more confidence in your boat first, especially as the weather this summer has been so changeable and difficult to forecast.
One consolation is that once you have made it to Swansea the return is typically easier as the probability is you will have a westerly behind you
Elza_Skip
New member
Sorry, should be WEST bound wind and tide leaving Cardiff!
Sneds
Well-known member
Interesting reply as this is a trip we would like to do.
Our Sealine 215 is about to be replaced with a Mustang 2800, roll on some good weather!
Our Sealine 215 is about to be replaced with a Mustang 2800, roll on some good weather!
Elza_Skip
New member
Iain,
You should be fine, however you could take a day trip to Nash point and back one day and then you know you have gone over halfway there and back.
Also, ask around on here and elsewhere and see if you can get someone to tag along. I suspect there are quite a few who are going that way or just need an excuse!
You should be fine, however you could take a day trip to Nash point and back one day and then you know you have gone over halfway there and back.
Also, ask around on here and elsewhere and see if you can get someone to tag along. I suspect there are quite a few who are going that way or just need an excuse!
BrendanS
Well-known member
Always a good idea to tag along with someone that knows the route first time.
