Laser dinghy cruising.

[m25roundabout]

Hi, I have just joined this forum. Thanks for accepting me! I have a question please and would appreciate people's thoughts. I have just sailed my laser dinghy from Plymouth to Salcombe. It was fun. I learnt alot! My next leg is from Salcombe to Brixham and I am looking at the best time to leave Salcombe to get a good rounding of Start Point. At the moment I am looking to leave Friday 14th June. It is looking like SW winds and high tide at Prawle Point is at 12.43. I intend on keeping close to the headland. NCI Prawle Point suggested leaving Salcombe 3 hours either side of high tide...but this gives me a 6 hour choice of departure! If I left at about 11am I ought to miss the strongest part of incoming current and arrive at Start Point around high slack tide and then presumably would be able to take advantage of the Easterley moving current up to Brixham as the waters start to run towards a 5.55pm low water. Am I in the right ball park? Your experienced thoughts greaty appreciated.

 

[B27]

The tide turns at Start Point about 2 hours before HW Plymouth.
It is fairly neap tide on Friday, but quite windy so you want the tide with you and with the wind, to avoid the worst sea conditions.
Depending on the forecast, a sensible person might suggest waiting for a bit less wind?

 

[wombat88]

If not done so already, look up the Dinghy Cruising Association (DCA). They are also active on Facebook. Plenty of intrepid souls there.

 

[Mark-1]

Just saw this,hope you're OK, OP.

https://www.facebook.com/100063462076109/posts/pfbid02HXuoYzz4nPWxQyWEpd7VkruKQ47w5dJRM6wwViGTwJnAS9RvjVrTbZwUQTsPrnfql

 

[m25roundabout]

Just saw this,hope you're OK, OP.

https://www.facebook.com/100063462076109/posts/pfbid02HXuoYzz4nPWxQyWEpd7VkruKQ47w5dJRM6wwViGTwJnAS9RvjVrTbZwUQTsPrnfql

Hi, many thanks for your concern. Yes, all ok. Totally my fault. Shouldn't have gone to sea. Thankfully I was prepared. VHF, PLB, (didn't activate), wetsuit, bouancy aid, rescue orange deck. But stupid, yes, very stupid, and obviously very grateful for the calm and professional help of NCI Prawle Point, HM Coastguard Falmouth, Salcombe RNLI crew and charter boat 'Sailfunk' who dropped their itineray and came out to help. Thank you All. (My facebook account has been hacked so not able to look at replies on there. Probably a good thing!).

 

[dunedin]

Glad you are OK.

Perhaps a personal choice, but having owned a Laser since the late 1970s, it wouldn’t be my choice of boat to go coastal sailing without a support / second boat - because there are two many common points of mechanical failure that could result in being unable to get to safety.
Common breakage points are tillers (especially older boats), rudder stocks, booms, masts and mast support (again older boats). Almost all of which result in rescue boat needed, even for skilled sailors.

 

[m25roundabout]

Glad you are OK.

Perhaps a personal choice, but having owned a Laser since the late 1970s, it wouldn’t be my choice of boat to go coastal sailing without a support / second boat - because there are two many common points of mechanical failure that could result in being unable to get to safety.
Common breakage points are tillers (especially older boats), rudder stocks, booms, masts and mast support (again older boats). Almost all of which result in rescue boat needed, even for skilled sailors.

Many thanks.

 

[Mark-1]

Many thanks.

FWIW having owned and raced two Lasers I reckon a Laser is fine for the purpose. It's definately how I'd do it - Laser with kit in Kayak Bags strapped to the mast. They're not famously weak boats, far from it and something critical could break on any boat. If you're cruising you'll need less volunteer 'passer bys' to carry a Laser up a beach than a Wayfarer.

Gotta love the internet, diametrically opposed opinions!

 

[MADRIGAL]

The important thing is not to be discouraged. Many (most?) of us at one time or another have found ourselves out in conditions that were too much for ourselves or our boats, whether yachts or dinghies. The same rules of passage planning apply to both, including a contingency plan: what will you do if something breaks; what potential ports of refuge are available if conditions are different than expected, and how will you get there? Membership in the Dinghy Cruising Association and Roger Barnes' book The Dinghy Cruising Companion are both sources of valuable information on cruising dinghies at sea.

 

[m25roundabout]

FWIW having owned and raced two Lasers I reckon a Laser is fine for the purpose. It's definately how I'd do it - Laser with kit in Kayak Bags strapped to the mast. They're not famously weak boats, far from it and something critical could break on any boat. If you're cruising you'll need less volunteer 'passer bys' to carry a Laser up a beach than a Wayfarer.

Gotta love the internet, diametrically opposed opinions!

I do tend to agree with your take on things, (apologies to those that don't agree). Three people that I know of have circumnavigated the UK on lasers, and so long as you treat them as a crusier rather than a racer, and nurse practically your every move with them, then apart from the obvious appalling weathers, they are remarkably strong boats. My issue was inexperience and fear. I did actually sail all the way back to shore. It took a while, over an hour I think, and in bashing waves, but I had the RNLI boat shielding me the whole way-which reduced my fear levels to near zero and allowed me to concentrate on the sailing. Hats off to my laser, not so many hats off to me.

 

[m25roundabout]

The important thing is not to be discouraged. Many (most?) of us at one time or another have found ourselves out in conditions that were too much for ourselves or our boats, whether yachts or dinghies. The same rules of passage planning apply to both, including a contingency plan: what will you do if something breaks; what potential ports of refuge are available if conditions are different than expected, and how will you get there? Membership in the Dinghy Cruising Association and Roger Barnes' book The Dinghy Cruising Companion are both sources of valuable information on cruising dinghies at sea.

Many thanks for your kind words. I have had only positive comments to me so far, from friends, family and strangers. The RNLI were pleased that at least I was well prepared. They also passed no judgment on me-which was a blessing. Yes, I am a member of the DCA, and have watched several of Roger's videos. I must never let this happen again, so now I need the time to work out how to make that happen, lake sailing, sea sailing but no cruising, invest in serous sailing courses, or even stop sailing, but as you say, and thank you, I will not be discouraged, just become more alert, careful, humble!

 

[Mark-1]

I do tend to agree with your take on things, (apologies to those that don't agree). Three people that I know of have circumnavigated the UK on lasers, and so long as you treat them as a crusier rather than a racer, and nurse practically your every move with them, then apart from the obvious appalling weathers, they are remarkably strong boats. My issue was inexperience and fear. I did actually sail all the way back to shore. It took a while, over an hour I think, and in bashing waves, but I had the RNLI boat shielding me the whole way-which reduced my fear levels to near zero and allowed me to concentrate on the sailing. Hats off to my laser, not so many hats off to me.

You're out there doing it! Most of us are sitting in our chairs typing about it!

Glad you're not disheartened, good luck with the rest of the trip.

 

[m25roundabout]

You're out there doing it! Most of us are sitting in our chairs typing about it!

Glad you're not disheartened, good luck with the rest of the trip.

Ha! I am not disheartened but I definitely won't be continuing for some time yet, if at all! I could not face putting people through that again. I think I might just get my walking boots on, and go for quite a long walk.....!

 

[SaltIre]

This site might be of interest:

Andrew is sailing round the UK, from April 2023, solo and unsupported in a Laser dinghy. He is the 'Shrink in the Drink'​

Laser around the uk 3

 

[m25roundabout]

This site might be of interest:

Yes, thanks, I have watched all his videos! Stick Daring, (Neil Petters) also did it in 2019, a mad mad adventure that was. And also a gentleman did it quite a few years earlier, Ron Pattenden, 2004. I have read both of their books. Stick Daring wouldn't have called the RNLI. He would have bashed on regardless.

 

[ylop]

I don't want to feed an argument but:

I do tend to agree with your take on things, (apologies to those that don't agree). Three people that I know of have circumnavigated the UK on lasers,

My issue was inexperience and fear.

Hats off to my laser, not so many hats off to me.

My thoughts on doing it in a laser would not be so much about gear failure, but rather the choice of boat in general. Especially for two people! Just because others have done crazy stuff before doesn't make your trip less crazy, especially if you have less experience than they had.

I've done some dinghy cruising and the size/stability of the boat is a key factor for the fear. So is the amount of planning - your questions last week were exactly the soft of stuff that is covered on DS Theory. If that seems too crazy perhaps Navigation Essentials would be a more gentle into to that bit of the planning.

The RNLI were pleased that at least I was well prepared.

Whilst some, including me, might seem critical we would probably not have much bad to say about someone in a seakayak doing it with the same amount of kit. My one question would be - does two boats make it a more manageable situation? You already have a friend... just need to find them a boat too! (If Dunnedin is right and old lasers are waiting to break then two is possible worse than one!).

I must never let this happen again,

Be careful with that thinking. I know someone who was so embarrassed he had to call mountain rescue out that he refused to do it again, and very nearly didn't make it because of that delay. Do what you can to avoid it repeating.

lake sailing, sea sailing but no cruising,

Lakes aren't without their troubles, and often no rescue services. Cruising doesn't need to be epic, lots of options in moderately sheltered places without crazy tides.

 

[mjcoon]

I do tend to agree with your take on things, (apologies to those that don't agree). Three people that I know of have circumnavigated the UK on lasers, and so long as you treat them as a crusier rather than a racer, and nurse practically your every move with them, then apart from the obvious appalling weathers, they are remarkably strong boats. My issue was inexperience and fear. I did actually sail all the way back to shore. It took a while, over an hour I think, and in bashing waves, but I had the RNLI boat shielding me the whole way-which reduced my fear levels to near zero and allowed me to concentrate on the sailing. Hats off to my laser, not so many hats off to me.

My hat is off, certainly!

 

[PeterV]

I went out to watch an anniversary round Isle of Wight race (the Americas cup one, clockwise) off Hurst in my Laser and realised afterwards that it was the ideal boat. The seas were huge so in any other dinghy I’d have been swamped, but the Laser could just keep on sailing with a full cockpit. I’ve also cruised quite a bit in Lasers and had several gear failures, all of which have been fixed with a short length of 4mm line which I always carry. I’ve fixed a broken kicker attachment (tie the kicker to the boom and back to the mainsheet attachment), the gooseneck (the rivets failed so I lashed it round the mast and to the down haul eye) and various mainsheet block attachment failures.

 

[MADRIGAL]

(ROI race)...off Hurst in my Laser and realised afterwards that it was the ideal boat.

I could discourse at length on why I think the ideal boats for for dinghy cruising at sea are Wayfarers and similar craft, yet along come two forumites (Mark-1 and PeterV) who have actually sailed Lasers at sea, so I will defer to them.
From the photos in post no. 4, it looks like our intrepid Laser cruiser had the boat well under control as he sailed back. The lifeboat was no doubt providing a bit of a lee, but he was still handling a decent bit of wind and waves. Me, I'd have had two reefs in the main!

 

[m25roundabout]

I don't want to feed an argument but:



My thoughts on doing it in a laser would not be so much about gear failure, but rather the choice of boat in general. Especially for two people! Just because others have done crazy stuff before doesn't make your trip less crazy, especially if you have less experience than they had.

I've done some dinghy cruising and the size/stability of the boat is a key factor for the fear. So is the amount of planning - your questions last week were exactly the soft of stuff that is covered on DS Theory. If that seems too crazy perhaps Navigation Essentials would be a more gentle into to that bit of the planning.

Whilst some, including me, might seem critical we would probably not have much bad to say about someone in a seakayak doing it with the same amount of kit. My one question would be - does two boats make it a more manageable situation? You already have a friend... just need to find them a boat too! (If Dunnedin is right and old lasers are waiting to break then two is possible worse than one!).

Be careful with that thinking. I know someone who was so embarrassed he had to call mountain rescue out that he refused to do it again, and very nearly didn't make it because of that delay. Do what you can to avoid it repeating.

Lakes aren't without their troubles, and often no rescue services. Cruising doesn't need to be epic, lots of options in moderately sheltered places without crazy tides.

Many thanks for your detailed analysis and points raised.