Harwich to the Crouch

[jimi]

on Sat (weather permitting) I'm thinking we'll aim to be off Harwich at slack water (c 15:00) and catch the southerly stream down the wallet to the Spitway where we should get there about 2 hours after LW with about 1.5m rise of tide. We draw 2m and if its a bit lumpy will this be a bit too little margin of safety for crossing .. in which cas we'd be better taking the longer route down the Swin. All advice welcomed as this is a new area to us!

 

[MoodySabre]

If you're not leaving Harwich until 1500 you will be very late for dinner! Either leave at first light or crank up the car.

There should be plenty of water across the Spitway, even enough at LW given that it is neapy. Last survey here http://www.crossingthethamesestuary.com/Spitway 2012 Final V3.pdf

 

[jimi]

If you're not leaving Harwich until 1500 you will be very late for dinner! Either leave at first light or crank up the car.

There should be plenty of water across the Spitway, even enough at LW given that it is neapy. Last survey here http://www.crossingthethamesestuary.com/Spitway 2012 Final V3.pdf

Och .. yer awfie bossie ;-)

Cannie leave at first light so options will be bashing the tide, be late or car!

 

[FullCircle]

Swin should be no problem, you can cut the corner a bit coming into it, then line up the 2 buoys about 1/3 of the way in. Heading South, the shallow bit is on your starboard side, don't take a short cut coming out by very much.
Then go down Swallowtail channel.

Ermm, you need to adjust your passage plan or miss dinner, as has been pointed out. I usually have an Oh Christ Hundred hours start when I do that trip, but you do get a good tug along by the tide.

Tide should only account for 25% of your total speed if bashing it.

 

[jimi]

Latest passage plan:

Leave Harwich c 13:30, head across tide to the start of the Swin .. if looks **** turn round and get the car to Burnham, if OK carry on. Either way get to Burnham c 18:30+ ish ;-)

 

[FullCircle]

Latest passage plan:

Leave Harwich c 13:30, head across tide to the start of the Swin .. if looks **** turn round and get the car to Burnham, if OK carry on. Either way get to Burnham c 18:30+ ish ;-)

At that motoring speed, you will be towing skiers...... look forward to seeing you guys again!

 

[ianfr]

Crikey!

I make it about 33nm from Shotley to BYH. Whatever your boat is on I want some!

Regards

Ian

 

[Colvic Watson]

I bet he makes it in time for last orders - just!

 

[jimi]

well I've got a route showing 35 NM.. so 6 knots boatspeed + 1 knot of tide gives me 5 hours .. assuming higher tidal speed in Crouch offsets slight adverse at start ;-)


What speed do you guys passage plan at ;-)

I averaged 6.5 knots on passage from Inverness to Lowestoft.

 

[CPD]

Be very














very

















careful

 

[ex-Gladys]

Through the Spitway at pretty much local LW on Sunday coming Burnham to Mersea... My view is that the character of the crossing has changed a lot compared with the last few years. The same steep rise of the Buxey occurs, but rahter than reaching a peak shortly onto the Eastern/Southern side and gradually deepening, this year it appears to stay at a less challenging depth but is flatter for further. I saw a minimum of 0.8 under my 1.5 keel, which is probably 0.3 better than last year...

 

[wingdiver]

well I've got a route showing 35 NM.. so 6 knots boatspeed + 1 knot of tide gives me 5 hours .. assuming higher tidal speed in Crouch offsets slight adverse at start ;-)


What speed do you guys passage plan at ;-)

I averaged 6.5 knots on passage from Inverness to Lowestoft.

We take around 5 hours Foxs to BYH with the tide on the Wallet.
We can happily chug along at 7kts all day.
More if I up the revs beyond 1300 or add a sail or four

 

[Bru]

Latest passage plan:

Leave Harwich c 13:30, head across tide to the start of the Swin .. if looks **** turn round and get the car to Burnham, if OK carry on. Either way get to Burnham c 18:30+ ish ;-)

Looks alright to me if you can do 6 knots ... ran it through PC Plotter using my waypoint library and get

Route 1
Leg to WP Latitude Longitude Bearing Distance Fuel Leg time (no tides) Leg time (incl.tides) CTS ETA (incl. Tides) ETA (incl. Tides)
Guard 51° 57'.060N 001° 17'.800E Start 12:30 Thursday, May 08, 2014
1 Harwich Shelf 51° 56'.850N 001° 18'.120E 136.8° 0.29 0.06 02 mins 02 mins 137° 12:32 Thursday, May 08, 2014
2 Harwich N Shelf 51° 56'.450N 001° 18'.320E 162.9° 0.42 0.08 04 mins 04 mins 162° 12:36 Thursday, May 08, 2014
3 Harwich Approach 51° 55'.230N 001° 18'.390E 178.0° 1.22 0.24 12 mins 12 mins 175° 12:48 Thursday, May 08, 2014
4 off The Naze 51° 52'.000N 001° 19'.000E 173.4° 3.25 0.65 32 mins 32 mins 169° 13:20 Thursday, May 08, 2014
5 Spitway East 51° 43'.300N 001° 08'.900E 215.7° 10.71 2.14 01 hours 47 mins 01 hours 30 mins 215° 14:50 Thursday, May 08, 2014
6 Swin Spitway 51° 41'.951N 001° 08'.360E 193.9° 1.39 0.28 13 mins 12 mins 185° 15:02 Thursday, May 08, 2014
7 Buxey Edge 51° 40'.631N 001° 03'.514E 246.3° 3.28 0.66 32 mins 26 mins 246° 15:28 Thursday, May 08, 2014
8 Swallowtail West 51° 40'.019N 001° 02'.649E 221.2° 0.81 0.16 08 mins 06 mins 216° 15:34 Thursday, May 08, 2014
9 Sunken Buxey 51° 39'.620N 001° 00'.770E 251.1° 1.23 0.25 12 mins 10 mins 251° 15:44 Thursday, May 08, 2014
10 Raysand 51° 38'.970N 000° 59'.530E 229.8° 1.01 0.20 10 mins 08 mins 226° 15:52 Thursday, May 08, 2014
11 Outer Crouch No3 51° 38'.084N 000° 57'.848E 229.7° 1.37 0.27 13 mins 10 mins 226° 16:02 Thursday, May 08, 2014
12 Crouch 51° 37'.630N 000° 56'.590E 239.8° 0.90 0.18 09 mins 06 mins 239° 16:08 Thursday, May 08, 2014
13 Inner Crouch 51° 37'.180N 000° 55'.086E 244.3° 1.04 0.21 10 mins 08 mins 246° 16:16 Thursday, May 08, 2014
14 Branklet 51° 37'.120N 000° 52'.360E 268.0° 1.69 0.34 16 mins 14 mins 274° 16:30 Thursday, May 08, 2014
15 Fairway No1 51° 37'.083N 000° 51'.074E 267.3° 0.80 0.16 07 mins 06 mins 273° 16:36 Thursday, May 08, 2014
16 Burnham on Crouch 51° 37'.430N 000° 48'.240E 281.2° 1.79 0.36 17 mins 14 mins 287° 16:50 Thursday, May 08, 2014
17 Burnham Yacht Harbour 51° 37'.590N 000° 48'.220E 355.6° 0.16 0.03 01 mins 6° 16:50 Thursday, May 08, 2014
______ ______ _____________ _____________
Totals 31.37 6.27 05 hours 13 mins 04 hours 20 mins
Nm Litres using 6.0 knots using 6.0 knots
(Plan speed) (Plan speed)

Note times are UTC, add 1hr for BST

It's a fair tide all the way once you're out of Harwich

Even at 4.5 knots your ETA in Burnham Yacht Harbour would be 19:08BST, just in time for a drink before dinner!

Mind you, with a Sou'Westerly F6 gusting F8 forecast for Saturday afternoon I would personally be reaching for the car keys! That does NOT sound like my idea of fun

 

[jimi]

Yes, I thought the weather forecast was heading in the right direction .. but its taken a turn for the worse .. will take a view tomorrow afternoon I think .. could cope with a F5 on the nose for a couple of hours but F6+ is just misery

 

[Sixpence]

Cripes, last time I hit that kind of speed was in a mobo coming out of Felixstowe, lumpy as hell and very unpleasant. Best of luck Jimi, we turned around and used the car

 

[ex-Gladys]

Yes, I thought the weather forecast was heading in the right direction .. but its taken a turn for the worse .. will take a view tomorrow afternoon I think .. could cope with a F5 on the nose for a couple of hours but F6+ is just misery

...especially wind over down the Wallet....

 

[Bru]

...especially wind over down the Vomit ....

There you go, I've corrected that for you

 

[ex-Gladys]

 

[johnalison]

Excuse me, but going south is "up" the Wallet round here.

 

[Vara]

That's a very tight schedule very little time to bathe and change for dinner...it is a black tie do isn't it?