New "East Coast Pilot" Book

[Santana379]

New \"East Coast Pilot\" Book

I don’t suppose I should be extolling the virtues on this forum of a book written by a team from “Sailing Today”, but I’m going to anyway. We have just returned from a week’s cruise in the Thames Estuary in our Golden Hind with a dog-eared copy of the new “East Coast Pilot”. The pilot was brand new at the start of the week, and its condition seven days later is a reflection of how much use it was put to. In particular it spent a great deal of time in the cockpit where it proved invaluable guiding us in and back out of places new to us like Paglesham and Faversham. We have for some years used “East Coast Rivers” and “The East Coast”, but we found the clear format and content of this new pilot book extremely user friendly. The others are great for research and planning, but I can’t recommend the “East Coast Pilot” enough for use under way. If I could only have one pilot, it would win hands down.

Incidentally, the cruise finished somewhere not in any of the books – we sailed into Ipswich Wet Dock to visit Portman Road stadium, (home of Ipswich Town FC), for stunning performance by REM – it made up for Ramsgate to the Swale with a westerly 5/6 (wind against tide) on the nose, and the next day the Swale to the Wallet with northerly 4 on the nose. Quite a contrast to the more usual waterside concerts in East Anglia at Britten’s Snape Maltings.

 

[Mirelle]

Re: New \"East Coast Pilot\" Book

Thank you; will look out for it.

I have been underwhelmed by a few recent pilot books and had not bothered to look at this.

If it tells you what to look for in the offing rather than which the best restaurant is then it deserves the name of a pilot book.

 

[Santana379]

Re: New \"East Coast Pilot\" Book

Precisely - that's why I rate it so highly.

Francis Fletcher

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

Re: New \"East Coast Pilot\" Book

Thanks for that.....

Sounds like a good investment... I'll look out for a copy....

Heard REM were v good.... friends went.... we should have, as our boat is in the wet dock, so would have been a doddle to get there... but didn't get our act together /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[alldownwind]

Re: New \"East Coast Pilot\" Book

I've never looked at this particular forum until today, let alone posted on it.....but I must also give unbounded praise to 'East Coast Pilot'. Just got back from 2 weeks on the East Coast having bought the book just before we left. Although I already knew a lot of the area quite well, I have to say that this book is utterly excellent, far far better that the old 'East Coast' Imray book, and knocks 'East Coast Rivers' for six as well.

 

[Santana379]

Re: New \"East Coast Pilot\" Book

Very pleased indeed to to read your views alldownwind, mainly because it is reassuring to know I'm not the only skipper who thinks its great! You're the only other user/reader of the pilot I've encountered so far. To be fair though, SWMBO, the first mate and co-owner of Francis Fletcher, also thought it extremely good.

We have not been influenced at all by the excellent photo of a(nother) Golden Hind on the front cover!

I had the pleasure of chatting to one of the three authors a week ago, Dick Holness from Hollowshore CC who wrote the Kent bit. He seemed pleased that he'd got us up to Faversham without difficulty. (That is unless you define 30cm under the keel on two occassions as difficulty!)

We met at the very splendid West Mersea YC, and spoke because I wished to show my crew the Maurice Griffiths bench, presented by the Eventide Owners' Association, upon which and his wife were seated. Dick was amused that on FF we doff hats and dip the ensign whenever we pass the Bench Head buoy where MG's ashes are scattered. (Perhaps bemused rather than amused - certainly my crew that weekend, whilst politely removing his hat at the buoy, was surprised that no fast motor boat appeared with men in white coats to take me away).

It would be interesting to read the views of other forumites in due course when they've seen or used the pilot.

Francis Fletcher