First London trip

I must admit I can't see any reason to sail up to London. If I want to sightsee (which I only do for the benefit of guests), I can do it far more conveniently by train from where I live, without the bother of threading my way through a muddy, busy and dirty estuary! And it's not even scenic; the lower Thames Valley is frankly boring; miles of mudflats before you get to a low-lying shore.

I did live in London for 5-6 years and my late first wife was a Londoner, so yes, I do know London and have visited St Katherine's dock and the surrounding attractions - by land!
 
AntarcticPilot said:
I must admit I can't see any reason to sail up to London. If I want to sightsee (which I only do for the benefit of guests), I can do it far more conveniently by train from where I live, without the bother of threading my way through a muddy, busy and dirty estuary! And it's not even scenic; the lower Thames Valley is frankly boring; miles of mudflats before you get to a low-lying shore.

I did live in London for 5-6 years and my late first wife was a Londoner, so yes, I do know London and have visited St Katherine's dock and the surrounding attractions - by land!
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I have a love-hate relationship with London, having studied there for five years, but there is always something rather special about taking your boat into a large city. I only once visited St Katts, which was in a friend’s boat, five of us in a Trapper 501, so I had no responsibilities. I have often visited Amsterdam and other cities on the Continent such as Copenhagen, and I always a frisson of excitement when going into a metropolis. If I can stay there for a tiny fraction of the cost of a hotel, so much the better, but that doesn’t seem to be the case in London, though £100-ish per night divided between maybe four people isn’t that bad I suppose.
 
johnalison said:
I have a love-hate relationship with London, having studied there for five years, but there is always something rather special about taking your boat into a large city. I only once visited St Katts, which was in a friend’s boat, five of us in a Trapper 501, so I had no responsibilities. I have often visited Amsterdam and other cities on the Continent such as Copenhagen, and I always a frisson of excitement when going into a metropolis. If I can stay there for a tiny fraction of the cost of a hotel, so much the better, but that doesn’t seem to be the case in London, though £100-ish per night divided between maybe four people isn’t that bad I suppose.
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A friend and his wife recently stayed in London in a basic 'hotel' and it was £250 per night for the 2 of them. Room was compact and no window.
 
Boathook said:
A friend and his wife recently stayed in London in a basic 'hotel' and it was £250 per night for the 2 of them. Room was compact and no window.
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Last year I stayed in a Premier Inn in Greenwich and I'm sure it was much less. It was basic of course, but clean and with friendly staff.
 
AntarcticPilot said:
I must admit I can't see any reason to sail up to London. If I want to sightsee (which I only do for the benefit of guests), I can do it far more conveniently by train from where I live, without the bother of threading my way through a muddy, busy and dirty estuary! And it's not even scenic; the lower Thames Valley is frankly boring; miles of mudflats before you get to a low-lying shore.

I did live in London for 5-6 years and my late first wife was a Londoner, so yes, I do know London and have visited St Katherine's dock and the surrounding attractions - by land!
Click to expand...
, without the bother of threading my way through a muddy, busy and dirty estuary! And it's not even scenic; the lower Thames Valley is frankly boring; miles of mudflats before you get to a low-lying shore.

Sums up nicely most of the East Coast in a single sentence" . and as it so happens our other club cruise being organised over Easter , is to Burnham on Mud.
Equal numbers of boats tagging along on both these "cruises" and for the less adventurous a few boats going up above the lock to Allington.
Hopefully we will have 30 or so boats taking part who enjoy boating in company along a couple of shiney new club members hoping to extend their boating horizons with the security of other club boats within view.

Many will have kids and grandkids aboard and any suggestions where you can accomodate 7 or 8 "crew" for £100 quid a night gratefully received. :)
 
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oldgit said:
, without the bother of threading my way through a muddy, busy and dirty estuary! And it's not even scenic; the lower Thames Valley is frankly boring; miles of mudflats before you get to a low-lying shore.

Sums up nicely most of the East Coast in a single sentence" . :) and as it so happens our other club cruise being organised over Easter , to Burnham on Crouch.
Have around equal numbers tagging along on both these "cruises", for the less adventurous a few boats going up above the lock to Allington.
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If I could figure out the logistics, I'd move Capricious back to Scotland like a shot (well, a 6 knot shot!) I even have one crew member lined up to relocate her! Sorry, but shallow muddy water with very little coastal scenery just doesn't do it for me.
 
AntarcticPilot said:
If I could figure out the logistics, I'd move Capricious back to Scotland like a shot (well, a 6 knot shot!) I even have one crew member lined up to relocate her! Sorry, but shallow muddy water with very little coastal scenery just doesn't do it for me.
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We have relatives on Orkney near Evie. Their opinion of the lowlanders cannot be repeated on here.
When it stopped raining at one point very briefly, a stunning view of Rousay though the mist and just love the ways the trees all lean in one direction.
On the drive back down the temperature rose from a bracing mid winter 14C to a heady summer 29C back in civilisation. :)
 
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AntarcticPilot said:
If I could figure out the logistics, I'd move Capricious back to Scotland like a shot (well, a 6 knot shot!) I even have one crew member lined up to relocate her! Sorry, but shallow muddy water with very little coastal scenery just doesn't do it for me.
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The creeks and rivers are great for those of us with small sailing dinghies though. Although I must confess that my favorite place to sail in the whole of East Anglia is Brancaster Staithe.
 
AntarcticPilot said:
If I could figure out the logistics, I'd move Capricious back to Scotland like a shot (well, a 6 knot shot!) I even have one crew member lined up to relocate her! Sorry, but shallow muddy water with very little coastal scenery just doesn't do it for me.
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Useful tides without extremes.
First to get the sea breeze
Protected from the worst of the south westerlies.
Nice springboard for going foreign.
Interesting sand banks to wiggle through.
Last place for the age of sail.

Ye canny deny the above Jimmy !

😁
 
Snowgoose-1 said:
Useful tides without extremes.
First to get the sea breeze
Protected from the worst of the south westerlies.
Nice springboard for going foreign.
Interesting sand banks to wiggle through.
Last place for the age of sail.

Ye canny deny the above Jimmy !

😁
Click to expand...
I could counter it, though, with

Low tides except in a few straits that make life interesting.
Generally a more equable climate than the East Coast.
Much of the area sheltered in every direction.
No need to go foreign to find interesting destinations.
Plenty of interesting rocks to avoid!.
Rarely any need to worry about depth.
Lots of history and it all includes boats; you really realize that the sea is the great highway!
Magnificent scenery!

Seriously, the West Coast of Scotland has a better climate than the East of England - they grow palm trees as far north as Ullapool, and at sea-level, winter temperatures are rarely extreme. It has a maritime climate moderated by the North Atlantic Drift. I speak as a long-standing resident of Cambridgeshire!

The West Coast gets a bad press about tides because there are a few places where you don't get it wrong (Corryvreckan, Doruis Mhor, etc.). But in vast areas, the tides are similar or even less than those on the East Coast. I never once even thought about tides when sailing on the Clyde (except when anchoring, to get the right scope).; the tidal currents are less than a knot almost everywhere.
 
Hi Clive,

I think you made a good choice - even better if you can round up a few grandchildren to join you. Particularly if you have some kids aboard, you can spice up your departure by giving 24 hours or more notice for a lift of Tower Bridge to let you pass through upriver into the upper pool and then down river. I still have photos of doing this with my own children in an Elizabeth an 31 in the 1980's. You need to co ordinate the booking of the lock out with St. Kats and the lift with the bridge people.

Peter.
 
AntarcticPilot said:
I could counter it, though, with

Low tides except in a few straits that make life interesting.
Generally a more equable climate than the East Coast.
Much of the area sheltered in every direction.
No need to go foreign to find interesting destinations.
Plenty of interesting rocks to avoid!.
Rarely any need to worry about depth.
Lots of history and it all includes boats; you really realize that the sea is the great highway!
Magnificent scenery!

Seriously, the West Coast of Scotland has a better climate than the East of England - they grow palm trees as far north as Ullapool, and at sea-level, winter temperatures are rarely extreme. It has a maritime climate moderated by the North Atlantic Drift. I speak as a long-standing resident of Cambridgeshire!

The West Coast gets a bad press about tides because there are a few places where you don't get it wrong (Corryvreckan, Doruis Mhor, etc.). But in vast areas, the tides are similar or even less than those on the East Coast. I never once even thought about tides when sailing on the Clyde (except when anchoring, to get the right scope).; the tidal currents are less than a knot almost everywhere.
Click to expand...
Just proves that to sail a boat anywhere in the UK, he/she has won the sailing lottery of life.

I do miss the hills and mountains, though Turner and Gainsborough liked to paint in East
Anglia. The big skies whether on land or sea can be dramatic.
 
Snowgoose-1 said:
Just proves that to sail a boat anywhere in the UK, he/she has won the sailing lottery of life.

I do miss the hills and mountains, though Turner and Gainsborough liked to paint in East
Anglia. The big skies whether on land or sea can be dramatic.
Click to expand...
As someone once told us: a lot of people think that Essex is flat and boring, whereas it is really slightly undulating and boring. My first exposure to the seaside was in Cornwall but my first sailing was on the Broads, so I have some emotional investment in both camps, big rocks or flat mud. I have greatly enjoyed cruising rocky coasts along our south coast as well as Normandy, North Brittany and Bornholm, but the sailing challenges around our coast are equally rewarding in their way and have as much variety and places of interest and wildlife, and by and large our errors tend to be embarrassing rather than expensive.
 
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