London to Hamble trip-pics on the way!

[thejonesey]

Well, we did it! Left Windsor at 11am on Sunday planning a quiet trip to Penton Hook with the family. Imagine my horror when I got to the first lock and, after waiting on the wall, the port engine failed to start! A quick look in the engine bay revealed that the port starter battery had blown it's top! After a hunt around for a replacement and Ross coming to my rescue, I "borrowed" the service battery and continued to Penton Hook and getting nicely sunburned on the way. After an overnight pit stop and a drink in PHYC we filled up with fuel and continued down to Teddington. A nice steady pace allowed me to ring around for a new battery which was delivered to the boat by CPC of Sunbury..... Great service! After a very sweaty half hour I got the 180ah battery into place....(why do they always make these things so awkward?) put the family on the train and settled down to await the lads for phase two.

6.30am start saw us pass through Teddington lock and catch the tide down through London. I am glad we had our PLA pass as we were buzzed by the police twice but, otherwise, saw virtually no other boats until we neared Ramsgate at 1.30pm. It was amazing to potter through London on such a great day.

After a good night in Ramsgate we headed off for the Hamble. A flat sea and blue sky made the horizon almost non-existant... Wonderful! 11am saw us turn off the engines and "bob about " at Beachy Head for an hour and then another blast to the Solent saw us arrive at Port Hamble by 2.30pm.

Thoughts....
Day one 6nm, day two 8nm, day three 99.8nm, day four 130nm!
Good planning was fun, saved fuel and made it easier, especially when the plotter started to play up giving me the chance to revert to trusted paper charts!
Great crews... The family were very patient when the battery went pop and then the lads were great and highly competent.
It is cheaper to go by sea... Just!
Pick the best four days of the year... Yes, I am a jammy b'stard!

Thanks to all for advice and support. Just the journey back now!

 

[lisilou]

Good job Rob. Nice to meet you today btw.
L

 

[andy59]

Welcome to the solent , thanks for bringing some exellent weather with you
See you out there one day .

 

[volvopaul]

I will look out for you, what Marina are you staying in ? Come up to Yarmouth if in the Solent.

 

[thejonesey]

A few pics

Shooting Tower Bridge

Floating around a Beachy Head

Richmond

The battery in question

Obligatory wake shot with hard-working crew six miles out!

Moored up for the night in one our favourite spots - Alum Bay

 

[lisilou]

Just lovely pics.

 

[teddington_lock]

. A nice steady pace allowed me to ring around for a new battery which was delivered to the boat by CPC of Sunbury..... Great service!

Ah , that was for you !!

The CPC man stopped me in Ferry Road and asked the way to the lock as his sat nav had taken him to the wrong side of the river ( as every sat nav does when you put in the locks postcode !! )

 

[volvopaul]

Nice pic of alum bay........ Keeping my dad company.

 

[thejonesey]

Teddington lock - thanks for pointing him in the right direction! I will say a proper hello next time!!

Paul, what's your Dad's boat? I hope to catch up with you soon for that beer.

 

[ARA]

Teddington lock - thanks for pointing him in the right direction! I will say a proper hello next time!!

Paul, what's your Dad's boat? I hope to catch up with you soon for that beer.

Oooh I think I know what Paul's answer is going to be, probably the same if you moor near Hillhead, Stubbington/Lee On Solent.... you can say hello to my Grandma

 

[PRH]

Strange thing - mine was the same make and did exactly the same but blew the whole top off and part of the side of the battery and included blowing the lid off of the battery box!

I washed the whole area with fresh water and put what ever powder (?) neutralises it down there but after some months the bilge pump under the battery (by the stern glands) stopped and I found that the connector terminals had been eaten away.

I guess your's was the same battery so may be worth pulling the connector apart, washing and get some vasaline or whatever on it if you got any acid leaking.

 

[volvopaul]

Oooh I think I know what Paul's answer is going to be, probably the same if you moor near Hillhead, Stubbington/Lee On Solent.... you can say hello to my Grandma

Yes you got it ara, we laid his ashes there in the spring of 2000, it was one of his favourite places we used to go together.

 

[ARA]

VP, I will say Hi next time that I am there.

Thejonesey...... That battery failure looks very scary indeed, is that classed as normal ?

 

[Wavey]

Thames Transit

Rob,

Not sure when you're coming back but you may want to factor in extra time for your inbound Thames leg. When we came back from Chatham we were stopped and boarded off Canvey by the Border Agency who spent about 10 - 15 minutes on board. Then exactly the same thing a few miles further on by the police who went through the same questions. Before the QE2 Bridge we were stopped but not boarded by a harbourmaster launch who wanted to check our PLA transit pass. Between there and Tower Bridge we were stopped again by a Border Agency boat and another three times by the police, all of these because the communication between boats/agencies was so bad no one was radioing ahead to say we'd already been checked All made for an unnecessarily protracted return leg.

And of all the checks made no one asked for any paperwork on us or the boat. They simply accepted what we said as correct which to my mind made a bit of a mockery of the whole security thing.

Jim

 

[bradtarga34]

Great, photo's, the weather couldn't have been better for you!