Longish distance motorboating

[tcm]

I was sortof pooopoohed (sp?) recenty when suggesting that a trip to the med was actually not at all hard. Oooh, well done, what an achievement said many. Yet i received no such plaudits for sitting on my arse watching tv for hours on end, which is about as tough.

I think that in the uk, the main Big Trip is cross-channel, which is about the most worrisome trip imaginable, far worse than any other leg to (or in) the med, all the solent stuff at one end, all the fishing boats at the other, plus loads of ships in between and lots of tide and often a bit blimmin cold. By contrast, 200mile+ stretches from Biscay onwards have almost no tide and are warmer and have almost nothing else on water. Set a guard on the radar, travel at doodle speeds (16-22knots) and you can read a book, move around the boat, have a nice chat, or have a snooze if enough crew, and in reasonalbe weather almost everything appears on radar 12+miles off.

Most of all, i am beginning to realise how the lack of running on these big diesels is perhaps their biggest problem. After a few hours they are just warmed up, yet they're almost always stopped by then.

Has anyone else done a trip of say 150miles plus and afterwards thought er well, so what is the big deal?...

 

[powerskipper]

Re: Longish distance motor boating

Yes,
But with doing things , they become familiar, and then do not make the same kind of impression as they first did.

who remembers the first time they stepped on a small boat and it tipped a bit, how un safe you felt.
now you step on it and unless you get your feet wet, it is not remembered.

 

[hlb]

Every one in the pub used to be always asking. Whats the furtherest yerv bin. So I used to say Birmingham!! Well Stourport actually. From Plymouth it's quite away, but also the most torcherous if youve not been before. Took us months to get back, with umpteen aborted trips, then big train jurneys to retrieve the car.

On the other hand we have done many 600-700 mile round trips in a three or four week holiday and all very easy. I dont think I've ever seen it rough, well not uncomforable, ypu just seem to glide over quite enormous waves in the middle of the sea. It's always round the edges where it gets lumpy.

 

[Bergman]

Re: Longish distance motor boating

Don't think its just familiarity - more a sort of mind set thing - with rag & stick anyway - suppose mobos similar really.

A day sail your always either doing something or thinking about doing something or wondering what you should have done but havn't.

A 2 or 3 day trip you sort of set off in general direction and put feet up.

Certainly best if your skipper cos then delegate all important tasks like cup of coffee bacon butty etc while you look nautical and think deeply around chart table.

I usually read a book. One advantage of slower speed is you can read while on watch - quick look round every page end and away you go. I completed Tinker Tailor etc between Tyne and Peterhead, and had 2 good nights sleep.

Sailing is such a strain.

 

[masaccio]

As you know, it's no big deal really. The first time can be a bit scary, but once you've done it and realised that it's not anything to be frightened of, then you wonder what all the fuss was about. I was pretty nervous the first time I crossed the Channel from Hamble to Honfleur in a little 21 footer, but now I get more nervous mooring up at the end of a trip than actually setting out on it.

Agree with you about big diesels...these things are capable of chugging away hour after hour, day after day, and generally respond better to it than stop-start use. Did a trip from Cuba to the Bahamas to Provo in the Turks & Caicos islands (around 800 miles), stopping only for fuel, and the engines never missed a beat the whole trip. The limiting factor is the size of one's wallet rather than limitations of boat or crew.

 

[tetleys]

Last april brought my boat over from jersey to deganwy, north wales (opposite conway marina ). Did st helier to falmouth on the first day in 4.5 hours. the following day left falmouth at 7am and arrived in pwhelli north wales some 245 miles and 9.5 hours later. the following morning a gentle run round bardsey sound and up the menai straits to deganwy.
have subsequently done several trips to isle of man and ireland but nothing touches the satisfaction of that first trip over the channel and up the west coast. the weather was perfect and the sea flat calm. who needs the med???

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

I think the comforting thing about a cross Channel trip is that you're never more than 30-40 miles from a port of refuge and the fact that there are so many vessels about means that, in an emergency, somebody could get to you in a short time. Then you've got the security of having an all round coastguard watch, a comforting voice at the end of a VHF in a minor situation or a helicopter in a major one. Basically if something goes wrong on a cross Channel trip there's somebody around to pick up the pieces
The thing about what you did was that you went outside this comfort zone. My thought on a similar trip, perhaps a partly irrational one, would always be what would I do if both engines went bang 100 miles offshore, outside VHF range and with no other vessels within 50 miles. You're on your own and you'd have to deal with it yourself. Now thats scary

 

[Micky]

Would like to take my boat across, but it Rolls around so much just 3 miles out in pretty calm water and can roll up to 40 degrees with a bow wave from a ship, so i think i will stick to keeping land insight.

 

[BrendanS]

Don't usually aim at 150 miles, as that's pretty much the extreme limit of my range, and I find Solent to Salcombe (about 115 miles) about the sensible limit on one tank, though I carry large reserves). In a 21' foot boat tho, many people think that's pretty nuts.

Once done, it's quite easy to repeat as long as weather forecast is good, and cruising at 30knts you don't actually need much of a weather window. And at 4 hrs, it doesn't even take that long - could do there and back in a day if you wanted. I know a couple of club members that went to Channel Islands and back in a day from Chichester both single handed in a smallish ribs - only problem was they did it on a Sunday, and everything was closed!

Solent to Cherbourg is a very easy run in a small fast boat, about the same distance as going around the Isle of Wight, and well under 2 hours

 

[powerskipper]

I have done poole to st Vasst /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif for lunch , round to chebo for afternoon tea and shopping and back to poole for supper.
great day! tiring but great.

 

[Chas25]

Will be doing Gosport to Falmouth in a couple of weeks in a 21ft, plan is to leave Friday afternoon, cruise to Weymouth then do the rest (subject to weather) on Saturday, looking forward to it a lot, but do feel I've been planning and worrying about it for ages, will be very glad when I've done it and (Hopefully!!) will be able to look back and think that wasn't so bad!! Then it'll just be a case of enjoying the holiday and looking forward to the trip home!! /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

If anyone is going to be around Weymouth in the evening on Fri 17th or Falmouth from the following Saturday (for a week) and fancies meeting up send me a PM! Would be nice to put some names to faces /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[Divemaster1]

Not sure if it counts as "longish", but did Chichester - Newcastle in a long WE.

Not big really, but new to us (older) boat, so things did need to be looked after ... such as hoses clamps etc.... but passed between the crew, these taks became routine underway and at re-fuel times. Would not hesitate to do a 150 NM journey at all.

 

[compie1]

Brixham to Ostend Belgium
First part was heavy sea to Poole then Poole - Eastbourne was great and the best part was Eastbourne to Ostend 5hrs nice crossing ideal to me for weekend (Ostend - Eastbourne - Ostend) starting on friday noon and back on Sunday would do it again maybe this summer... if we ever get a summer this year...

Would like to take the boat to La Rochelle with trucktransport and then come back with it to Ostend sailing only 2 weeks summerholiday...

 

[kindredspirit]

Have done two longish trips outside VHF coverage and that's the worrying bit.

(They were Cork to the Scillies and Cork to Wales.)

An EPIRB is on my shopping list.

Have done longer trips of 200 miles but they were within VHF coverage.

 

[hlb]

Once went down the Irish sea from IOM, only to discover that the GPS did not work. Then discovered that the VHF only had a range of 9 miles. Figured that I'd either hit Holly Head, Ireland... Or America!!

 

[Peppermint]

Re: Rag & stick

it's a question of getting into it really. If your used to short trips you have to get into the rhythm of the boat, get used to a watch system and forget the destination cos it's only crawling towards you. The difference is for the sailing man it's trickey to dodge a weather system. So you have to trust your kit and your crew. I brought my 25ft sailing boat from Ipswich to Southampton and to be honest it was more relaxing than a Solent day sail. As to whether your within VHF range or not hasn't ever bothered me. I started sailing 30 years ago and you had to be very rich indeed to have bothered to fit VHF at all. As to Radar well I know it's useful but it'd be an indulgence. I quite like me little chart plotter though.