East coast to the Solent - Summer trip

[shaunksb]

For the Dover to Eastbourne leg, aim to be passing Dungeness around HW Dover. That way you'll carry tide all the way. Same applies coming back.

I’m planning on the same journey in my 30 footer.

I’m sure you’re right but the tidal arrows on my Navionics app suggest it would be better getting there at Dover -3 to minimise the adverse stream. Not that I particularly trust them.

Has anyone published any kind of timing guide on what must be a fairly common passage?


_____________________

 

[saab96]

Ramsgate to Eastbourne is a long sail and like Rye takes you off your course. You might be struggling to make the marina. I always anchored the night in the shelter of Dungeness. Get in close. You will roll a bit but you can then make Brighton (if you must. I hate that entrance in a westerly) or sail on the till you make the Solent without losing time just to tie up in a marina. Short and warm summer nights. Well lit coast to follow. Avoid the headlands. Usually a lovely sail

 

[BabySharkDooDooDooDooDoo]

I’m planning on the same journey in my 30 footer.

I’m sure you’re right but the tidal arrows on my Navionics app suggest it would be better getting there at Dover -3 to minimise the adverse stream. Not that I particularly trust them.

Has anyone published any kind of timing guide on what must be a fairly common passage?


_____________________

The advice in Mark Fishwick's guide South Coast Cruising was to leave Dover as soon as the tide turned fair (HW +4?) which will take you past Dungeness and then push the foul tide where it is weaker as you head towards Eastbourne.

This also had the stated advantage that the tide should become fair again at Beachy Head if you wanted to push on further.

 

[shaunksb]

The advice in Mark Fishwick's guide South Coast Cruising was to leave Dover as soon as the tide turned fair (HW +4?) which will take you past Dungeness and then push the foul tide where it is weaker as you head towards Eastbourne.

This also had the stated advantage that the tide should become fair again at Beachy Head if you wanted to push on further.

Ahhh that's great thank you.

Playing about with the tidal flow arrows indicated that you needed to be at Dungeness at the very least 3 hours before HW Dover so setting off then would put me off it about HW Dover -4 which sounds perfect for a 30 footer making 5 knots SOG.

Many thanks.

______________________________

 

[BelleSerene]

Ahhh that's great thank you.

Playing about with the tidal flow arrows indicated that you needed to be at Dungeness at the very least 3 hours before HW Dover so setting off then would put me off it about HW Dover -4 which sounds perfect for a 30 footer making 5 knots SOG.

Many thanks.

______________________________

You're heading west, right? Shaun was right about departing Dover ~HW PLUS 4. Not MINUS 4. At HW Dover minus 4, the tide is screaming East in those parts.

 

[shaunksb]

You're heading west, right? Shaun was right about departing Dover ~HW PLUS 4. Not MINUS 4. At HW Dover minus 4, the tide is screaming East in those parts.

Yes got that, I meant that I’d then be passing Dungeness at around Dover -4.

Many thanks for the input.

_________________________

 

[simonfraser]

Trying to head towards the Solent from the East Coast in my experience can be very weather dependent so with this in mind my suggestion would be that if you have a weather window then exploit it to the maximum and keep going. Once you have been going for 12 hours, say 60 miles, if things look ok and the crew are up to it do another tide and see where you get to. Leaving Brightlingsea a couple of years ago we were planning to go to Ramsgate but instead did Brighton non stop, last year we made it from Ipswich to Roscoff non-stop as we kept going as long as the weather was reasonable.

As long as you are comfortable with passage making at night, and have a suitable crew of at least two people who know what they are doing, you can knock off much longer distances if you can just keep moving.

i paid a couple of guys to deliver a small catamaran from brightlingsea to emsworth a few years ago, during the summer.
they just motored 24/7 with extra fuel. got them night time hours for their certificate.
not suggesting you do this, but as Toutvabien says, keep your options open and motor on if needed.

 

[yerffoeg]

We did this in 2017. We took 6 weeks to get to Yarmouth and back from Tollesbury. Ha! But unlike a lot of yotties, who seem to be intoxicated by speeding from one place to the next, we actually enjoy visiting places and tarrying.

There is so much traffic in and out of Dover that I would recommend that you contact Port Control regardless of how far off you are. They will warn incoming and outgoing ferries of your presence. Consider rigging a second radar reflector, which is what we do.

We went from Tollesbury across the Thames Estuary via Southwest Sunk to Ramsgate. Then to Folkestone, anchoring in the outer harbour. From there we intended to go to Eastbourne but the seas were so bad we called into Rye and enjoyed the stay there. Thereafter, Eastbourne, Brighton, LIttlehampton (very pleasant but you need a decent engine) then Bembridge and Yarmouth. On the way back - Chichester Harbour, Shoreham, Eastbourne, Dover, Ramsgate and then home. The Lydd firing range boat requested us to stay further out on the way back. Feel free to contact me.

 

[LadyInBed]

Some additional interesting information of considerable relevance that Justine at Dover added ...

In choppy seas (not uncommon in the vicinity of Dover) even the shore based radars at either end of the port can have difficulty picking up small vessels and at night the general lighting around the port can again make small vessels difficult to pick up. AIS comes recommended here as it makes it easy for Port Control and other vessels to spot you and positively identify you. Because of the difficulties in picking up leisure vessels visually and at times by radar, they emphasise how important it is to contact Port Control when 2 miles off per the directions

Golly Gosh! Lets feed this into the 'Which is best for ships to see yachts Radar v AIS' debate :ambivalence:

 

[Bru]

Golly Gosh! Lets feed this into the 'Which is best for ships to see yachts Radar v AIS' debate :ambivalence:

The feedback came direct from operations at Dover Port Control. It is their recommendation, not mine, that AIS Class B is ideal. It is their operational experience that even with shore based radar at either end of the port they can lose small vessels in sea clutter. It is their operational experience that AIS Class B makes it much easier to positively identify vessels (not surprisingly)

There is no debate from the point of view of port operations at Dover, AIS Class B makes their job much easier. And that's what I was passing on

 

[LadyInBed]

There is no debate from the point of view of port operations at Dover, AIS Class B makes their job much easier. And that's what I was passing on

I'm with Dover, but there are those on the forum that believe Radar is better for ships to see yachts.

 

[Bru]

I'm with Dover, but there are those on the forum that believe Radar is better for ships to see yachts.

Depends on the ship