Crossing Foulness Sand at HW

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D&T

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I will be making my way from Burnham on Crouch to the Thames and onto the Medway on Saturday, turning at the Whitaker. But I am unable to leave at a time which would give me favourable tides. I will be pushing the tide the whole way, i.e. I will arrive at the Whitaker at HW. My question is can I safely cross the Foulness sands beforehand? The charts seem to suggest I can, but I do not expect them to have been surveyed anytime recently. I draw 1.7m . This Saturday we have a Spring tide of 5.09m predicted. Thanks for any advise
 
No you can't, because the whole area of Foulness sands out to the Whitaker Beacon is within the Shoeburyness firing range. Should be marked on your chart, bordered with a broken red line.
 
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I thought that would not be an issue if the range was not active, the MOD website does not mention any firing over the weekend, only smoke.
 
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Maybe so, but do check with them first - they do use it at weekend sometimes.
I had a good look at it through bins last year when we were running past near LW. It's all pretty flat, we thought, though you never know what the military may have left there last week....
You sure you want to go with tide against you? Heck of an ebb current at Springs in the Middle Deep and West Swin, the trip will take forever. Unless you are a mobo?
 
Cantata said:
Maybe so, but do check with them first - they do use it at weekend sometimes.
I had a good look at it through bins last year when we were running past near LW. It's all pretty flat, we thought, though you never know what the military may have left there last week....
You sure you want to go with tide against you? Heck of an ebb current at Springs in the Middle Deep and West Swin, the trip will take forever. Unless you are a mobo?
Click to expand...

I am a yacht. You are of course absolutely right regarding timing. Work means I can't leave earlier. The other option is to leave at 5am on the Sunday , but will still have unfavourable tides up the Thames until the tide turns, somewhere around Southend Pier. The destination is St Kats, but by going on Sat, I could split the journey and the current forecast is naff all wind Sunday, but a WNW 3/4 on Saturday which will help a bit.
 
Well the drying heights on my chart state 3.4 metres just outside Havengore. The approaches by Rushley Island have a drying height of about 2.5 metres. I remember going through in a friend's Centaur (0.9 metres draft) and the helmsman repeatedly catching the bottom just after we got through at HW. I wouldn't take anything over a metre in draft through there.
 
When I've been through with 1.2m draught, on Springs, I've never seen enough water over the Broomway for 1.7m draught. If there can be enough I would guess it's only for a very short time.
 
Personally I wouldn't risk crossing Foulness Sands. They've been chucking all sorts of stuff onto it for decades and there's who knows what lurking out there by way of old targets etc. Not only that but sands shift and according to the UKHO chart it was last surveyed in 1973!

And the warning on the chart for the Foulness and Maplin sands reads "Numerous posts and stakes, sometimes submerged, may be encountered. Beacons of no navigational significance, some with lights at night, may be erected in this area" :eek:

OK, so I'm a bit of a cowardy custard when it comes to flirting with the sands and infinitely prefer to play it safe and stay in the deep water channels especially now that I'm sailing a fin keeler with a 1.65m draught rather than a bilgey with a 1m draft.. Others are braver (Tomahawk of this parish does it regularly for example) and good luck to 'em!

By the by, the Shoeburyness range is usually closed on a Saturday. Whether it's active or not is normally announced at the end of the MSI broadcast and you can also check for a red flag about half way along the North shore of Foulness Island (if the flag is flying, the range is active). If they're banging stuff out to sea the guard boat will be out there and they'll shout at you if you stray into the range area (don't ask me how I know this :o). You can also call Shoe Radar on Ch.72
 
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