Fog in Solent now - some not coping

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AHoy2

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Very foggy now in the Solent and there seem to be several "leisure" boats not coping - causing a lot of work for CG and VTS. Bearing in mind that the forecasts were for fog/poor vis there seem to be several skippers who are not prepared and don't know their accurate position or route to harbour/safety.

By way of balance there have been several leisure skippers calling in their location and progress to VTS who seem to have it all under control - and being very cautious.

Me - I am moored up and out of the way. Can't see across Southampton Water though.

What category above do you fit in? Or is that a redundant question for members of this forum ;>)
 
If at all possible, I'd fit into the "make the most of my 3-foot draught and get where a tanker would need wheels to follow me" category.

Pete
 
It has been very localised. In Yarmouth this morning couldn't see the end of the pier at one point then 10 minutes later it was sun all the way to Lymington but couldn't see half a mile towards Cowes. An hour later it was back again. Cowes was clear lunchtime, could see across to Portsmouth, now in Newport vis is about 50 yards.
 
we had our previous boat in Hythe, and were lucky enough not to get caught in thick fog in the 3 years there. I always planned on keeping west of the channel PHM's, so if anything went wrong I was out of the way and could drop the hook in shallow water. Did this once in the dark, when the donk overheated and not enough wind to sail.
 
Who are VTS?

I wouldn't be too phased by fog in the Solent as long as I had my lead line on board with a chart and compass.
 
AHoy2 said:
Very foggy now in the Solent and there seem to be several "leisure" boats not coping - causing a lot of work for CG and VTS. Bearing in mind that the forecasts were for fog/poor vis there seem to be several skippers who are not prepared and don't know their accurate position or route to harbour/safety.

By way of balance there have been several leisure skippers calling in their location and progress to VTS who seem to have it all under control - and being very cautious.

Me - I am moored up and out of the way. Can't see across Southampton Water though.

What category above do you fit in? Or is that a redundant question for members of this forum ;>)
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been out in fog only 3 times in the last year or 2.

Once in Portsmouth, they did their fog drill and locked everything down. Had to be home that night so locked the boat up and was heading for the train, but we heard it was localised, and 4 other boats wanted to go back to Southampton and wanted to follow me - only I had radar. So they persuaded me to go.
Got permission from QHM but thereafter did not contact VTS - just stayed on the 2m contour as has already been suggested. I would have contacted VTS if I'd needed to cross Southampton water though - no the fog wasn't localised.

2nd time was crossing the channel in the shipping lane. No drama with radar. Did fog signals because it made me feel better but they were probably pointless as a ship wouldn't hear them. A small boat might I suppose.

3rd time was the most recent and the worst by far. Night trip to the hamble a trip I know very well so am complacent - I just drive the boat with no planning. The fog came down thickly half way down Southampton water.
Got to the south cardinal saw the 6 flashes plus long flash very late, other lights moving around that I couldn't make out. It's a boat. It's coming towards me. There's another boat. Avoid them. The tide seemed really strong and I'm being swept towards the south cardinal now. Really fast - far too fast a tide for here. What's going on? Then I see the compass......

The lights were 2 yachts circling the cardinal as they were too nervous to go up the river. The fog was so thick it wasn't possible to see the east cardinal, or the lights on the chimney or anything except the south cardinal and the 2 yachts. My mind told me they were moving straight so I kept my boat straight relative to them - so I thought I was going straight but I was going in a circle. Thus the cardinal was "moving". I was completely and utterly disoriented with the lack of any external references.
Very frightening, I came too close to hitting something and learned a big lesson.

Went up the river on the radar - when getting to a green pole it wasn't possible to see the next or the last, when it's like that with lit buoys at night it's certainly foggy.

So I think I've been in both categories, much to my shame.
 
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Some years ago, on the way back fro Cowes to Chi, I got fog bound.No radar.

Stuck close to the Island till I reached the forts then stayed close to the fort till QHM gave me a green light to cross to the mainland shore. Went something like "Cross, cross now and don't hang about, Sir"

They were professional and reassuring. There were some right plonkers around though when listening to the VHF.
 
Had a couple of fog experiences over the years. One was a club cruise with 12 boats. Only 5 set off, 2 retired, 3 arrived at the destination, but the other two went on somewhere else instead! On setting out I had to cross the River Dee & there is no accurate tidal data there. I crossed the river (about 5 miles) & turned on to the correct heading, but wasn't sure quite where I was until we came across a bouy. Once I had that I knew the tide strength & was able to bouy hop out of the river & round the Point of Air at which point the sun came out. No GPS or Radar then.

One should always know roughly where one is & the depth sounder is the key tool if you don't have GPS or Radar. I probably wouldn't set out in such stuff these days, but if I did, I would expect the GPS to be very reassuring and would expect it to confirm my echosounder & D/R. The old timers always recommend following a depth contour round into harbour.
 
Foggy recollections

Had a couple of fog experiences and wouldn't knock anyone who felt anxious when the pea-souper arrives.

One recollection..........

After crossing Cardigan Bay with my late dad about 25 years ago in very rough weather, he proposed that we go into the Menai Strts for shelter. I reminded him that we didn't have the right chart but he was keen to get out of the weather. His boat, his decision.

Anyway, as we came in towards the first of the channel marker buoys, the fog/mist decended in banks and just wiped out all visibility. We were disorientated and soon ran aground with waves breaking over the stern of the boat. My dad froze, but I managed to reverse us off the beach, turn round and get us headed out to sea. We eventually made it round to Holyhead, and went to the pub till we were thrown out!

Our lesson was that just when you don't need it, something else always happens. For us it was fog. Very frightening.

So, I have some sympathy with those guys in the Solent who were a bit discomposed. Fog does that.

Cheers

Garold
 
Garold said:
Had a couple of fog experiences and wouldn't knock anyone who felt anxious when the pea-souper arrives.

One recollection..........

After crossing Cardigan Bay with my late dad about 25 years ago in very rough weather, he proposed that we go into the Menai Strts for shelter. I reminded him that we didn't have the right chart but he was keen to get out of the weather. His boat, his decision.

Anyway, as we came in towards the first of the channel marker buoys, the fog/mist decended in banks and just wiped out all visibility. We were disorientated and soon ran aground with waves breaking over the stern of the boat. My dad froze, but I managed to reverse us off the beach, turn round and get us headed out to sea. We eventually made it round to Holyhead, and went to the pub till we were thrown out!

Our lesson was that just when you don't need it, something else always happens. For us it was fog. Very frightening.

So, I have some sympathy with those guys in the Solent who were a bit discomposed. Fog does that.

Cheers

Garold
Click to expand...

Crossing Caernarfon bar can be difficult even in clear weather - especially in SW F5+ over the ebb.
 
A couple of months ago, returning from Cherbourg to the Solent, we ran into a pea-souper just as we got into the SW shipping lane.

No radar, no AIS.

All I could think of was to put on our lifejackets, unclip safety lines, unleash the mighty power of the BUKH 10hp and alter course to cross the lane at right angles, so as to shorten the distance exposed to danger.

We sat there blind, feeling like clay pipes in a shooting gallery and trying to console ourselves with the thought that very few people ever hit anything in a shooting gallery.

Not fun :eek:
 
Several years ago and bound for Cherbourg from Amsterdam, after a super sail finally entered the rade but could by the life of me spot the entrance to the marina. All I could see was a granite wall right in front of me. I called up Cherbourg on VHF and they could see me and they insisted that the entrance was right in front of me but not lit. So I hung around and waited, it was about 3 am....

My wife put the kettle on and broke out cups of tea all round...:D

Presently I heard an engine and observed this little Gaff Cutter heading straight for the wall. Suddenly its bowsprit disappeared and then the bow and then the whole boat, like a magic trick.:o... Only then was I able to detect the entrance. So we just followed him in and tied up. Then suddenly the most awful pea souper descended. Gosh ! Were we not happy and relieved at that outcome.! The Gaff Cutter was the last boat in that morning.:eek:
 
parsifal said:
I'd be more interested to know what category you fit in.
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Such an invitation - best I give an answer.

Hopefully in the variant "all under control - but somewhat concerned" category.

I can only recall encountering really poor visibility on four occasions, the last time was about three years ago when I was anchored doing a spot of fishing off of Dancing Ledge. Coped ok with that, hook came up sharpish then standard fog practice plus the benefit of a chartplotter to ease the work load finding my way back to Poole. I had crew that day so had a designated "lookout", still got within hailing distance of a lifeboat heading the opposite way before we had visual contact. It was that event that convinced me radar was my next purchase for that boat! Also made radar a requirement for my current boat.

My earlier fog experiences were all on boats with basic (standard for the day) nav kit of compass, depth sounder, log and charts backed up with pre-compiled list of marks, courses and running distances for the local area I was in. Must admit that a chartplotter has caused me to neglect the last item these days, something I must correct.

For me the standard was set by my father who was a coaster skipper in the days before anything more sophisticated than a compass and charts for navigation. As a lad I recall being with him on a regular short trip from Portsmouth to Cowes, mist thickened to fog after leaving Pompey. Out came his card with nav marks, sounds, distances, bearings all noted, two crew deployed as lookouts (plus muggins at a wheelhouse door) and we buoy hoped into Cowes. Was fairly routine for a commercial operation then, mind you he had years of local experience and tidal knowledge. Like to think he would approve of my capabilities.

The OP was prompted by hearing the CG trying to sort out a "skipper" with no firm idea of position or direction headed in - no chart, no compass and no VHF skills. That is a category nobody should belong to.

After thought, it is surprising the number of skippers who are not aware that harbours impose fog routines - as QHM did for Portsmouth today.
 
parsifal said:
A couple of months ago, returning from Cherbourg to the Solent, we ran into a pea-souper just as we got into the SW shipping lane.

No radar, no AIS.

All I could think of was to put on our lifejackets, unclip safety lines, unleash the mighty power of the BUKH 10hp and alter course to cross the lane at right angles, so as to shorten the distance exposed to danger.

We sat there blind, feeling like clay pipes in a shooting gallery and trying to console ourselves with the thought that very few people ever hit anything in a shooting gallery.

Not fun :eek:
Click to expand...

Think I might have chickened out and turned back, out of the traffic lane, with no radar...
 
VO5 said:
Presently I heard an engine and observed this little Gaff Cutter heading straight for the wall. Suddenly its bowsprit disappeared and then the bow and then the whole boat, like a magic trick.:o... Only then was I able to detect the entrance. So we just followed him in and tied up.
Click to expand...

what's the nautical equivalent of platform 9 3/4 :) Hope you had an owl to inform the CG of your arrival.
 
2 major fog experiences for me: 1st time on passage to Weymouth round St Albans, as we cleared the race, the vis closed right down to around 30 yards. No hassle, the only problem was working out the tidal rate as it slowed away from the race. Course set for the Worbarrow buoy. In due course we sited a buoy, but according to the chart it was DZ buoy further out and further west. DR said it was Worbarrow, chart said no. Chart has to be right, so I laid off a course into Weymouth, styill a bit puzzled that my DR was so far adrift - must have calculated tidal drift wrong, thinks I. 20 - 30 minutes later, with apparently about 4 miles to go to Weymouth, a cliff loomed out of the fog. Emergency reverse course, then a much slower approach until it was just visible.

Yes, reconginised the unique formation of the petrified forest cliff just East of Lulworth, so followed it West in to the cove. What went wrong? My DR was spot on - the chart was, unbelievably, wrong. Returning a few days later we checked it out in good vis, and yes I was right. Mt DR had been spot on.

The second occasion was crossing from Priory Bay to Chi some years ago. Fog Banks around, and predictably one closed right down to around 50 yards as we came up to the lanes. I knew there was a VLCC coming in but that it was clear after it passed. Sure enough, a big ship foghorn could be heard approaching: the bows loomed in the fog, but the vis was so poor that all I could see was a small section of the high steel side passing. It semed to take an age before it cleared. Several other foggy passages over the years, but nothing spectacular, except a duff RDF bearing in thick weather Cardigan Bay once meant I nearly missed Fishguard, and was heading out into the Atlantic. Once again DR saved the day, confirming that familiar bits of Wales were not appearing when they should.
 
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