Land locked Midlander

[wully1]

Use the dinghy sailing to hone your skills while you ponder your options.

 

[Yellow Ballad]

As the title suggests I live in the midlands (Birmingham way) just about as far from the sea as you can get.

I work just off J10 of the M6 so tend to go down to the boat after work so not a million miles away from you. I sail out of Newport, South Wales (Newport Uskmouth Sailing Club), jumping on the M5 it's no more than a 2 hour drive normally. Membership and mooring fee is a fraction more than modest £200 a year. Although I've dinghy sailed before I wasn't fazed with keeping by first "big boat" in the Bristol Channel.

The Bristol Channel, especially the area between Cardiff and Newport (up to Portishead on the other side) isn't as scary as people make it out to be. If anything the big tides give you a lot of room for playing it safe, and it also helps get you from A2B that little bit quicker. Stick to the deep stuff and you're not going too far wrong. Getting in to Newport and Cardiff couldn't be easier.

I would be more than welcome to show you around once the lockdown has lifted but I'm sure if you got in touch then would be more than accommodating. Feel free to pm me if you want to know more.

 

[Kilo]

veradinz

I have similar issues (East Mids). I’m both a big boat and dinghy sailor. I charter a 34fter once a year, own an 18ft westerly nimrod mostly moored (on trailer) at a local lake and have a mirror dinghy under restoration for the kids.

Given when you live and and your experience level, consider a trailer sailer. Minimal capital expense, keeps your running costs way, way down and you then have multiple cruising grounds within 2 hours of you, including Welsh and English lakes. Give it a couple of years and you can upgrade - delay that decision a year and you‘ll be able to afford a charter somewhere warm, to figure out if you want to make the step up. I would add that I have youngish kids and a smaller boat means they can do far more of the tasks than when we sail on (chartered) bigger boats.

You“ll find plenty of 18 to 22 footers on the market. Enough that you can choose something of reasonable quality. If going down that route, my top tips are that 18fters typically ride on single axle trailers, tow behind regular saloons and are easily man-handled; 22fters typically ride on twin axle trailers, may push towing limits for standard family cars and can tend to require something with an engine to move. Also, the state of the trailer is as important as the state of the boat.

Whichever route you choose, it’s a fascinating sport / past time to get involved with and I wish you luck with it.

Steveberry,
Can you tell me which lake you have the Nimrod on please?
I'm the proud but inexperienced owner of a Manta 19 and I'd like to dunk it in a lake before venturing further afield, a sort of shake down season or at least a few weekends of fossicking and sorting. I'm based in Oxford and the dinghy sailing club/lake (not Farmoor) is pretty small and doesn't allow keel boats.
Any ideas gratefully recieved.
K

 

[oldmanofthehills]

The dinghy or not question always provokes controversy, but I will just say that a dinghy will allow you more experince for much less money and more quickly, even if it isn't your main target, just as a dry ski-slope will do the same for a potential skier.

A neighbour on our pontoon in Essex has driven there from South Wales for many years, so don't rule out anywhere just on the basis of distance. I think the trailer option is good advice, if not for everyone. For a more permanent choice, you will want a boat that you are happy to stay on for a few days, possibly in poor weather. In the past this would have meant 22' and upwards but I have noticed that modern ladies want something a bit bigger, say 30'.

Im not sure I would agree. A dinghy will hone racing skills but IMHO a dinghy is harder to sail than a yacht. A yacht is to to 10 times slower to react and thus better for cruising with children and maybe nervous partner

 

[johnalison]

Im not sure I would agree. A dinghy will hone racing skills but IMHO a dinghy is harder to sail than a yacht. A yacht is to to 10 times slower to react and thus better for cruising with children and maybe nervous partner

A dinghy is not only useful for racing but for learning the basics of sailing, and with luck, the ability to judge wind and wave, and build a sense of relating to one's surroundings. The point is not which is better but how to acquire the necessary skills in the least time and for the least money. You will learn more in a day's dinghy sailing than in a week on a yacht, probably shared with others and at vastly greater cost. I learned to sail, without instruction, on Cadets and Fireflies, admittedly with some racing, but a larger boat on the Broads presented no difficulty. Sailing a Broads boat, with no engine, is much more demanding than coastal sailing.

 

[david_bagshaw]

change tack slightly and have a motor boat.

then a club mooring. As an example the sea is only a good days travel from Worcester , as an example.

Has the great advantage of sensible mooring costs , less car miles yet some of the best quiet cruising in europe

 

[Nimrod18]

Steveberry,
Can you tell me which lake you have the Nimrod on please?
I'm the proud but inexperienced owner of a Manta 19 and I'd like to dunk it in a lake before venturing further afield, a sort of shake down season or at least a few weekends of fossicking and sorting. I'm based in Oxford and the dinghy sailing club/lake (not Farmoor) is pretty small and doesn't allow keel boats.
Any ideas gratefully recieved.
K

Kilo. Rutland (at Whitwell). PM me and we can discuss.

 

[fifer]

I do live to the West of Birmingham and North Wales sounds like a firm option I need to consider.

thanks

I came here to suggest this. A berth on the Menai or round the corner at Conwy would work for you from the sounds of things.

If you get a bilge keeler, you'll be able to get a cheaper mooring and lots more places for stops will open up. Its pretty easy to get over to the Isle of Man and Ireland and there's relatively sheltered coastal sailing as well. Tides are strong in this area but not as much as teh Bristol channel.

North west venturers YC would be a good bunch of people to join for sailing weekends in company over the summer.

Holyhead is another option and its better placed for longer trips, but is in a much more exposed location, even if the club/marina is protected by the sea wall.

 

[rafiki_]

Thank you for all the kind messages, I honestly didn't expect such a large response.

Several of the messages have given me a lot to think about. I guess I have the winter now to consider my options. I'm certainly looking at sailing on the sea rather than on a lake but as a complete beginner i guess some dingy sailing would be wise.

We live just south of you near Stratford on Avon, and have been boating (mainly motorboats) for years. Originally we were on the Norfolk Broads, but a mix of my daughter growing up, and the travel time caused us to sell up. After a few years hiatus we bought a 31 ft mobo and moored on the Severn at Tewkesbury. We were there for 5 years, but eventually tired of the river, so bought a bigger mobo (39 ft) and moored at Portishead. As others have said, the Bristol Channel is quite daunting, due to tides and tidal range. We were there for 3 years, then moved to the River Hamble on the Solent. Much greater range of boating opportunities. I have sailed around the Isle of Wight a few times as well. Travelling distance for us to Portishead was 2-4 hours depending on traffic. Getting past Bristol can be a nightmare. Distance was 85 miles. We moored at Deacons on the Hamble, only 5 mins off the M27. Distance 115 miles, but a pretty consistent 2 hour journey. We chose Deacons to minimise travel time, and it is a nice marina. Not too large. We left home at 7 ish on a Friday evening and would return late Sunday afternoon. This gave us plenty of opps to travel around. Plus of course longer weekends and holidays.

 

[colind3782]

I do live to the West of Birmingham and North Wales sounds like a firm option I need to consider.

thanks

I'm in North Shropshire and, if my boat wasn't in Spain, I would definitely be looking at North Wales and, probably, Conwy.

 

[Kilo]

Kilo. Rutland (at Whitwell). PM me and we can discuss.

Thanks Steveberry, I'll be in touch the moment I've figured out how to send a pm.

 

[Kilo]

Kilo. Rutland (at Whitwell). PM me and we can discuss.

Turns out I'm too new to be allowed pm privileges however you may be able to pm me?

 

[rafiki_]

Turns out I'm too new to be allowed pm privileges however you may be able to pm me?

Patience, it will happen in the next day or so when mods recognise you are not selling/trolling etc.

 

[steve yates]

oxford to southampton, 1.5 hrs, to bristol 2 hrs, to cardiff 2.5 hrs, to exeter, 2.5 hrs, to minehead, 3 hrs.

Daysailing is not a requirement to learn, work it so you have a few days and do little short trips. Or use the boat as a place to stay but go down for the w/e on a fri night and daysail sat & sun if you must to start with, then home sun eve. If your self employed, you can steal longer. Find a cheap club in one of those areas, berth it there to start with and your away. You could even change your sailing area each year by sticking it back on your trailer and bringing it home each winter. Forget lakes, you'll get bored on em. Go to sea young man, you know it makes sense.

 

[steve yates]

Or maldon is just over 2 hours away and you have the east coast rivers to explore then venture out to sea when ready. And I'll come and play

 

[steve yates]

Should point out my replies were aimed at Kilo, for the OP I would have thought North Wales around Conwy would be ideal.

 

[Kilo]

Should point out my replies were aimed at Kilo, for the OP I would have thought North Wales around Conwy would be ideal.

Yup thanks Steve, I'm not to bothered about the travelling time, an hr here or there isn't too much of an issue if I'm planning on 2 or three nights. Staying on the boat or in the van is definitely part of the plan. So my choices are based on suitability of the area.... Or at least the apparent suitability given that I've no experience and I'm reliant on what I've garnered from contributors here, from sailors that I've been able to quiz first hand and of course technical manuals like Swallows & Amazons.
All that leads to :-
Southampton/Portsmouth /IOW all too busy for novice in untried boat,
Chichester needs a special permit I think?
Bristol Channel, too much tide stuff going on.
Exeter's a real possibility as climbing buddy lives there & has easy access to a slipway.
Essex another possibility,
West Wales ditto,
Or a big lake where tides not an issue and I can concentrate on which corner of the sail is up.
Anyway, all that's on pause while I clear out of the workshop but once that's done I'll be hassling you to pilot me round your new mannor

 

[Kilo]

Thanks Steveberry, I'll be in touch the moment I've figured out how to send a pm.

Hi Steveberry, for some reason I'm still unable to send a pm, apologies. Would you be able to pm me please?
Thanks K