Have you ever turned back ?

[Uricanejack]

Aye,
Once or twice,
Occasionally what might have been a good idea in the pub the night before turns out not to be such a great idea halfway into the next morning.

 

[JumbleDuck]

Once left An Caolas (aka "west end of the sound of Erraid") heading for West Loch Tarbert on Jura overnight. Started off nicely, friend took us through the Torran rocks then I took over. Wind increased and headed me. Big waves. Tried my best but couldn't get round the north of Colonsay and going round the south of Oronsay would have meant a beat directly to windward. After a couple of hours bouncing around off Colonsay thought "Bollocks to this", turned round and had a very pleasant, fast downwind ride back to the Torran Rocks.

Where my crew woke up, came on deck and asked "Where are we?" "Exactly where we were when you handed over to me seven hours ago", I replied.

 

[mjcoon]

Once left An Caolas (aka "west end of the sound of Erraid" heading for West Loch Tarbert overnight. Started off nicely, friend took us through the Torran rocks then I took over. Wind increased and headed me. Big waves. Tried my best but couldn't get round the north of Colonsay and going round the south of Oronsay would have meant a beat directly to windward. After a couple of hours bouncing around off Colonsay thought "Bollocks to this", turned round and had a very pleasant, fast downwind ride back to the Torran Rocks.

Where my crew woke up, came on deck and asked "Where are we?" "Exactly where we were when you handed over to me seven hours ago", I replied.

Maybe there's a "waterhog day" legend?

 

[johnalison]

Not often. In our first year cruising in our Cirrus 22’ we tried to tackle the Wallet, which is a bit like trying to round the Horn in a coracle. With a stiff nor-easterly on the nose and the tide turning against we reckoned that we had been staring at the Frinton flats for long enough and legged it home.

Sometimes it pays to press on. We were returning from Ostend after a short break and set out in company with friends, them in a Sadler 32 and us 29, after several days of near gales. In the ‘90s, all we had as a forecast was a phone call from home suggesting that the wind might moderate and back from NW. After a couple of hours motor-sailing over the banks our companions radioed us and asked what our plans were, clearly hoping that we planned to turn back in the uncomfortable conditions. I replied, with an optimism that was hard to justify, that I was planning to continue to some unpronounceable buoy, then turn west to get a slant on the wind, sail for a couple of hours and then head north for home when the wind veered and lightened. This was exactly what occurred, and what reputation I had was preserved.

 

[Zagato]

YEP! The worst ever and it has happened three times... similar conditions each time.... awful!

Leaving Chichester Harbour entrance in a nasty F3, putting up the mainsail in a horrendous mild sea state and was throwing up each time within 10 minutes before I even got to West Pole. Thank god I have since discovered STUGERON...?

 

[dom]

Once arrived off Brighton in a SW F9 - Harbourmaster counselled caution but the entrance looked positively wild.

Seen enough hair raising vids of Ozzies etc. tackling big bars and lacking their beach-surfing skills decided to abort to Eastbourne

Got a bit too close to Beachy Head for comfort but that's another story - save to say those overfalls are serious!!

 

[Dan Tribe]

A few times trying to leave the Crouch on the ebb in a freshening easterly. After a period of hobby horse pitching, we ask, why are we doing this when we could be anchored and drinking wine?
This happened often when we had a Stuart Turner.

 

[Stemar]

This happened often when we had a Stuart Turner.

I've heard a few people suggest that a Stuart Turner is more adept at driving the unlucky owner to drink than at driving the boat along. I sailed a few times with someone who had one in a Snapdragon. It was always we'll see if the engine will start rather than we'll start the engine.

 

[mattonthesea]

Left Cherbourg one evening for an overnight sail to the IoW, ran into a peasouper. Decided discretion was the better part of valour; turned round and was tied up by 2300. Got underway again at first light for a very pleasant crossing.

Similar: leaving Cherbourg towards west entrance we met a coaster. Going port to port we saw (or stopped seeing) it disappear into thick fog on our beam. Our companion boat with radar called us as they were worried about us. Twenty seconds discussion and we let them lead us back into the inner harbour and marina.

Time I wished I had turned back: we left Povoa de Nazim the day after a storm. The waves outside were huge. We motored out a way in light winds, I went forward to hoist the sail, felt myself turn green, we turned south and I felt ill. I felt that way for most of the two days to Nazare where we were soaked for two days by a gale. I felt for my crew. Her boyfriend had joined me to sail the Bristol Channel down to St Ives in lovely conditions. She was supposed to join me for Lisbon to Madeira. Instead she had two days at sea on the Portuguese coast and four more on land. All in horrible conditions.

 

[Adios]

Yup

Sailed out little 21 footer all the way from Lowestoft to about 12 miles away from Wells next the Sea overnight. The forecast was most promising when we set out but by the time we got to within spitting distance the wind speed had got up to F5 and rising and the direction had gone round into the North West. To cap it all, this had slowed us down and we were going to really struggle to make the tide

Had to turn around in the early hours of the morning and sail (actually motor) all the ruddy way back to Lowestoft. It was, to date, the only time I've ever really really wanted to get off and give up!

Maybe not if ideal if you've never been and it was dark that time but have you tried anchoring in the bays between the breakwaters off Sea Palling? I've used it a few times for overnighting and anchoring while waiting for the tide to turn back in favour. Great for single handing around the corner there. It was one of the northern most bays that had the most water still last time in 2018 but they seem to be filling in a bit over the years.

 

[Adios]

I went over the Deben bar in an open boat that wasn't up to the sea state, can be hard to judge just from looking at whats happening on the bar as its never as rough at sea once over it, except this time. I spent a fair bit of time promising to turn myself in at an insane asylum if I ever managed to fight my way back over against the ebb.

 

[duncan99210]

More times than I’d care to remember!
There was the time we sat in Barbate trying to get to Gib through an easterly. Set out, got beaten back with a ripper genoa. Tried again after we got it fixed, gave up again after some hours trying to get to windward.
Then when we left San Carles after a winter there, got a few hours out and found the motion of the boat in a cross wind so uncomfortable the crew were all heaving, so came back.
And so on and so forth. There’s no point being uncomfortable, risking gear failure or injury: turn round and wait for the weather to sort itself out.

 

[RupertW]

I've heard a few people suggest that a Stuart Turner is more adept at driving the unlucky owner to drink than at driving the boat along. I sailed a few times with someone who had one in a Snapdragon. It was always we'll see if the engine will start rather than we'll start the engine.

Their special viciousness was that they would almost always start when cold but often would not when warm. So they endlessly tricked you into venturing out for a sail then made sure you would have a terrible time trying to get back in. We dumped our first and last one and got an outboard and after that I‘ve always bought boats with diesel engines.

 

[Biggles Wader]

Crewing on someone elses boat about 50 years ago when the forecasts were not so good we left Dunkirk headed for Dover and found things were a bit rougher than expected. The owner decided that it was too much for a teenager, me, so we turned back to await better weather. It was about F6 and I was keen to carry on. As it turned out we could have got to Dover that day but we missed the window and by the next tide it was F9 we ended up leaving the boat and getting the ferry as the owner was required back in London for work. The upside was I got invited onto the bridge of one of those 1930s train ferries and had a grandstand view of the trip across in a F9 including putting it into the railway dock at Dover. No tugs----amazing. I also had no passport which mattered not a jot to the French yachty douannes but didnt impress the Dover official at all.

 

[Adios]

I also had no passport which mattered not a jot to the French yachty douannes but didnt impress the Dover official at all.

Same here in the 90s arrived in Holland on a friends boat having realised half way across i'd forgotten my passport for the ferry ride home. Was no problem at all. I wonder if since 9/11 and refugees etc if it would be no problem today

 

[JumbleDuck]

Their special viciousness was that they would almost always start when cold but often would not when warm. So they endlessly tricked you into venturing out for a sail then made sure you would have a terrible time trying to get back in. We dumped our first and last one and got an outboard and after that I‘ve always bought boats with diesel engines.

The way to get a Seagull started - it might also work for Stuart-Turners - is to say very loudly "Let's try starting the engine now. Of course we don't need it, but we need to be to be sure because it will be essential later". The engine's malevolent little mind will then decide to burst into life in order to let you down with a thud the next time, but as soon as it fires you say "Got you", open the throttle, engage the clutch and away you go. Luckily the engine is stupid as well as malevolent and will fall for this time after time.

 

[Gary Fox]

Same here in the 90s arrived in Holland on a friends boat having realised half way across i'd forgotten my passport for the ferry ride home. Was no problem at all. I wonder if since 9/11 and refugees etc if it would be no problem today

Passport control can't do anything about it when you arrive in the UK, but the problem might be getting on a ferry without a passport.

 

[Adios]

Passport control can't do anything about it when you arrive in the UK, but the problem might be getting on a ferry without a passport.

That was the easiest bit back then, they said "well we don't care but you might have a problem when you arrive in the UK". But now for security reasons I hope they won't let just anyone on a ferry.

 

[Biggles Wader]

My recollection from the early 1970s was that on a small boat no one cared about passports and the like in France Holland or Belgium and customs clearance often never happened. Getting on a ferry was stupidly easy without documents and even a ticket was voluntary if you knew the score. Every lorry had a ticket for two drivers but there was only ever one so-----? Only in Britain was there ever an issue. When I turned up in Dover from Dunkirk with no passport I had to give an address and was told I would be hearing from the authorities. Never did

 

[stevie69p]

Out of Loch Tarbert on the western side of Jura, in a new to me boat... me and a pal. After negotiating the leading lines of a tricky exit from the inner loch, we peeked our noses out into the main entrance to the loch with the intention of turning left down into the sound of Islay. The wind quickly built to over 30 knots and flipped the dinghy we were towing. It was quickly decided "stuff that" and we turned tail back in again. I think if it hadn't been a new boat, we would have gone for it after retrieving the dinghy, as I was certainly out in worse than that later on in my ownership.