Does anybody know anything about the sunken boat in Ray Gut off Chalkwell?

MoodySabre

MoodySabre

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This morning I noticed for the first time two mast tops sticking up out of the water around HW'ish. I rang the coastguard and he said it had been there for a couple of weeks :o - well I've looked out of the window plenty of times and not seen it until today :confused:

Nearer low water you can see it is the size of a trip boat - a forecabin and two short masts - not a sailing vessel. Bigger than a local fishing boat.
 
I changed my mind at the entry to this 'unusual destination' on Saturday, mainly because of the shoal draft comment in the ECP....this is not encouraging!
 
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xyachtdave said:
I changed my mind at the entry to this 'unusual destination' on Saturday, mainly because of the shoal draft comment in the ECP....this is not encouraging!
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The Ray is great destination on a sunny day when LW is middle of the day. Loads of boats anchored up (the earlybirds get a buoy) - the sandbanks dry to hard dry sand - perfect for footie, kite flying, BBQ whatever. Take a dinghy of course or just swim to the sandbank.

Here we are waiting for the tide to drop
RaydayMay2007005.jpg
 
Great picture!
We'll be over when the next sunny Saturday occurs, with neap tides and light breeze...a lot to ask for I know!
 
I gather that it's some sort of heritage fishing boat that has only recently been renovated. It's been moored up out there for a few weeks.

In the strong southerlies in mid-April it went aground at an awkward angle and then didn't come up when the tide came in on the morning of 19 April. We were lifting the boats in on Bell Wharf that day - sad to see.

They got it back up a couple of days later, but then it went down again just over a week ago I think. I haven't found out what the problem is this time.

I can't recall a boat going down in the Ray in the last few years, let alone twice. Such a shame as, from a distance, it looked like a lovely boat.

Ian.
 
xyachtdave said:
Great picture!
We'll be over when the next sunny Saturday occurs, with neap tides and light breeze...a lot to ask for I know!
Click to expand...

Terrific place to watch the airshow from. Also quite amusing watching numerous big Medway boats touching the bottom (because they're in the wrong place - there's plenty of water in the Ray itself). Presumably distracted by the planes and not watching the depth!

There is quite a shallow spot just off Westcliff, but it gets deeper again as you head further up. Only a problem if you're coming in at LW.
 
irs101 said:
Also quite amusing watching numerous big Medway boats touching the bottom
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That's us, I thought it was shallow around here.....!

When test sailing a boat with a friend in Southampton water, (a quick check of the chart revealed a gently sloping shoreline) the skipper who watched over us, went ballistic when he noticed 'only' 8 m underneath the keel.

We smiled and told him to relax!

It's an East Coast thing....
 
She MAY be the cockle bawley Endeavour, built by Cole and Wiggins at Leigh on Sea in 1926. She was one of the Dunkirk Little Ships and for some years was at Chatham on the Medway, until being brought back to Leigh where she has recently been restored by the Endeavour Trust. I believe she was re launched in autumn last year so if it is her, it is a very sad sinking.
 
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