Portsmouth Harbour to IOW

[johnchristie]

Chaps,

My names John, I've just bought a single engine 25ft Sport Boat and I'm looking to visit Cowes. I'm currently located at Gosport Marina and I plan to take a trip to Cowes with my son during the holidays.

How difficult is to to navigate to the Cowes or down the medina river to the folly inn? do I need to radio in at any stage to request a short term mooring or can I just park up?

Any guidance or tips to a newbie welcomed

 

[rafiki_]

John,

Welcome to the forum!!

Sorry can't help, but there must be many others on here who can, like Gary, but might miss this post if it slips down too far.

Good luck.

 

[STEVEDUNSTABLE]

Chaps,

My names John, I've just bought a single engine 25ft Sport Boat and I'm looking to visit Cowes. I'm currently located at Gosport Marina and I plan to take a trip to Cowes with my son during the holidays.

How difficult is to to navigate to the Cowes or down the medina river to the folly inn? do I need to radio in at any stage to request a short term mooring or can I just park up?

Any guidance or tips to a newbie welcomed

hi john....i asume you know about the regs for leaving portsmouth harbour (small boat channel, balast mark etc etc), ....when aproaching cowes from the east, it pays to to stay out just to miss bramble bank (to the south) and in effect go passed the entrance by a few boat lengths....this gives you ample time to checkout the traffic in the harbour red funnel ferries etc etc ...6kts in the harbour and the HM will bend your ear (or worse) if you transgress...ch69 is the vhf to listen on for info but you dont have to call in,...the redfunnels anounce their intentions but they all gabble and its hard to understand them !!!!!!! watch for the strobelight on the chain ferry its turned on just before it moves PASS ASTERN only....folly is about a mile inland on the port side....."BBBUUUTTT"......if you are going this weekend its the start of cowes week and ITS MAYHEM !!!!......you could,nt pay me to go there this week !!!!!...that should start you on the right track AND A LARGE WELCOME TO THE FORUM....regards steve

 

[gjgm]

Chaps,

My names John, I've just bought a single engine 25ft Sport Boat and I'm looking to visit Cowes. I'm currently located at Gosport Marina and I plan to take a trip to Cowes with my son during the holidays.

How difficult is to to navigate to the Cowes or down the medina river to the folly inn? do I need to radio in at any stage to request a short term mooring or can I just park up?

Any guidance or tips to a newbie welcomed

You should get a vhf radio especially as you are responsible for you son's life at sea. You are supposed to get a licence by taking a course...
I assume you are aware of all the traffic regulations in and out of Portsmouth, so I wont comment further there.
Cowes is straight forward, just watch out for the ferries, as the fast ones are 35 knots +. As a rough guide, drive on the right in the river, but it can be very busy. DOnt go anywhere near it for next week as its Cowes week!
In UK you normally phone or radio and ask where/if you can stop. At Folly, there will probably be the taxi boats directing, and they'll will either tell you where to go, or kick you off if you shouldnt be there !
Expect to pay everywhere, about £10 each time you stop !

 

[epervier]

The trip is relatively easy, but you need to be prepared, I don't want to tell you how to live your life, but prudence is needed especially from this Saturday, (the start of Cowes week) some estimated 8-10 thousand sailors will be racing on the Solent over the coming days, and navigating around this lot ain't for the faint hearted, it's akin to the M25 on a bank holiday Friday evening, but there's no lane markers. so make sure you have the necessary on board, vhf, flare pack, life jackets etc. etc. if this is your first trip, I'd go somewhere a little less busy this coming week.

Others will be along who probably won't agree with my synopsis and give better advice.

but enjoy your boating.

If you haven't got any charts, here's a link to see what you are into http://www.harbourguides.com/charts.php/River-Solent

 

[Solitaire]

Chaps,

My names John, I've just bought a single engine 25ft Sport Boat and I'm looking to visit Cowes. I'm currently located at Gosport Marina and I plan to take a trip to Cowes with my son during the holidays.

How difficult is to to navigate to the Cowes or down the medina river to the folly inn? do I need to radio in at any stage to request a short term mooring or can I just park up?

Any guidance or tips to a newbie welcomed

On leaving Gosport Marina, head towards the Harbour entrance. There is a red post just south of Gosport Marina called Ballast Beacon - pass this mark leaving it on your port (left) side then head towards the Harbour entrance and keep close to the red posts (port lateral marks) keep going and head towards a large red buoy - No 4 bar again leaving this on your port side, pass this buoy and then keep an eye out for the next red - No 2 - at this buoy turn onto a heading of 225T - your compass will probably be graduated in 5 degree sections so don't worry about trying to hold an exact course but 225 will do nicely!

Hold this course for 2 nautical miles and you will come across a North Cardinal called North Sturbridge. If you don't know what a cardinal is it is a black and yellow coloured buoy and will have two upward pointing marks on top. Basing your speed on 20 knots, it will take you 6 minutes to reach this mark.

On reaching N.Sturbridge turn onto a heading of 285 degrees T and travel for 4.9 nm. This will bring you to another cardinal mark - West Ryde Middle and it is a west cardinal - again yellow and black in colour but the black will be in the middle of the buoy and the two marks on top of the buoy will be pointing to each other.

From W.Ryde Middle head off on a new heading of 265 T and you will come to another cardinal, a North cardinal called Prince Consort, the distance is 1.2nm. So about 3 mins.

From Prince Consort take a heading of 220T and head for a green bouy which marks the entrance of Cowes Harbour. You then keep on the right and at 6 knots head up the Medina to the Folley. It will take around 20 mins to reach the Folley.


Your compass is magnetic and I have given you true headings - we have less than 2 degrees of Westerly variation now in the Solent so no correction is really required - if you did then you would add 2 degress to each of the true headings. Bit don't concern yourself with that at this time. Just keep a very good look out as both the exit from Portsmouth and entrance to Cowes can be very busy.The plan is based on what we refer to as buoy hopping and means that you can keep a reference point as to where you are - I would strongly suggest you go and buy a Solent chart so you can use it for visual reference. A plotter and divider set would also be a good investment.

The route keeps you in deep water and avoids the Bramble Bank which others have made reference to. You don't say if you have a plotter on your boat, but I'm guessing that you don't have a lot of knowledge on how to use it so a paper chart will be a good way of confirming when you reach a point and each buoy is actually named so you can check. I would suggest buying a chart by Imray - C15 is the number.

For the return trip just reverse the headings - in all cases here subtract 180 degrees, and you will then have your headings to go back.

Now on entering Portsmouth Harbour you must keep to the left hand side of the entrance - this is where it gets a bit tricky for the newbies - the small boat channel runs close to the western side and you have to keep in it - but it is not marked! It is very easy to be "pushed" into the main channel by other boats exiting so try and maintain your position by taking a visual check on the refuelling pier by the entrance to Gosport Marina. If you click on the link below it will take you to the QHM web page which gives a close up reference. And do take a VHF with you - an essential bit of kit. Good luck - but I suggest you look to do the RYA Powerboat Level 2 course which will help you with a lot of the basics. It can be done on your own boat as well.

http://www.qhmportsmouth.com/leisure

 

[Seahope]

On leaving Gosport Marina, head towards the Harbour entrance. There is a red post just south of Gosport Marina called Ballast Beacon - pass this mark leaving it on your port (left) side then head towards the Harbour entrance and keep close to the red posts (port lateral marks) keep going and head towards a large red buoy - No 4 bar again leaving this on your port side, pass this buoy and then keep an eye out for the next red - No 2 - at this buoy turn onto a heading of 225T - your compass will probably be graduated in 5 degree sections so don't worry about trying to hold an exact course but 225 will do nicely!

Hold this course for 2 nautical miles and you will come across a North Cardinal called North Sturbridge. If you don't know what a cardinal is it is a black and yellow coloured buoy and will have to upward pointing marks on top. Basing your speed on 20 knots, it will take you 6 minutes to reach this mark.

On reaching N.Sturbridge turn onto a heading of 285 degrees T and travel for 4.9 nm. This will bring you to another cardinal mark - West Ryde Middle and it is a west cardinal - again yellow and black in colour but the black will be in the middle of the buoy and the two marks on top of the buoy will be pointing to each other.

From W.Ryde Middle head off on a new heading of 265 T and you will come to another cardinal, a North cardinal called Prince Consort, the distance is 1.2nm. So about 3 mins.

From Prince Consort take a heading of 220T and head for a green bouy which marks the entrance of Cowes Harbour. You then keep on the right and at 6 knots head up the Medina to the Folley. It will take around 20 mins to reach the Folley.


Your compass is magnetic and I have given you true headings - we have less than 2 degrees of Westerly variation now in the Solent so no correction is really required - if you did then you would add 2 degress to each of the true headings. Bit don't concern yourself with that at this time. Just keep a very good look out as both the exit from Portsmouth and entrance to Cowes can be very busy.The plan is based on what we refer to as buoy hopping and means that you can keep a reference point as to where you are - I would strongly suggest you go and buy a Solent chart so you can use it for visual reference. A plotter and divider set would also be a good investment.

The route keeps you in deep water and avoids the Bramble Bank which others have made reference to. You don't say if you have a plotter on your boat, but I'm guessing that you don't have a lot of knowledge on how to use it so a paper chart will be a good way of confirming when you reach a point and each buoy is actually named so you can check. I would suggest buying a chart by Imray - C15 is the number.

For the return trip just reverse the headings - in all cases here subtract 180 degrees, and you will then have your headings to go back.

Now on entering Portsmouth Harbour you must keep to the left hand side of the entrance - this is where it gets a bit tricky for the newbies - the small boat channel runs close to the western side and you have to keep in it - but it is not marked! It is very easy to be "pushed" into the main channel by other boats exiting so try and maintain your position by taking a visual check on the refuelling pier by the entrance to Gosport Marina. If you click on the link below it will take you to the QHM web page which gives a close up reference. And do take a VHF with you - an essential bit of kit. Good luck - but I suggest you look to do the RYA Powerboat Level 2 course which will help you with a lot of the basics. It can be done on your won boat as well.

http://www.qhmportsmouth.com/leisure

Solitaire excellent instructions. Navigation by 'buoy hopping' is a simple and effective technique and it helps that most of the key ones have their names on in the Solent.

When leaving PH I generally proceed to close to the first sea fort (Spit Sand Fort) before turning right to Cowes so as not to have to worry about the depth of water over Hamilton bank (0.6m LAT). Only because I power up around there and get nervous if the depth is less than 20'

The OP should be ready for the fact that you can't really hold a bearing in the Solent for long without having to avoid sailing craft and boy there are often a lot of them! A chart plotter is very handy to have so that you can see where you are and where you intended to be quickly.

Once you have been in the Solent a few times and assuming you only go out in good weather (like me) then you will be able to navigate by land marks - especially in Western Solent. If all else fails then just follow another mobo heading west since most of them will be heading to Cowes or Lymington

If you miss Cowes entrance, which is difficult as the number of boats heading in or out of it rather gives it away, beware of the Restricted zone just after it where the pilot will give you a very hard time if you attempt to cross less than a mile in front of a big ship A chart would be a worth while investment.

 

[PRH]

Chaps,

My names John, I've just bought a single engine 25ft Sport Boat and I'm looking to visit Cowes. I'm currently located at Gosport Marina and I plan to take a trip to Cowes with my son during the holidays.

How difficult is to to navigate to the Cowes or down the medina river to the folly inn? do I need to radio in at any stage to request a short term mooring or can I just park up?

Any guidance or tips to a newbie welcomed

Lots of advice given above but didn't see anyone say don't go this week, it is Cowes week.....

Enjoy your trip and let us know how it goes.

 

[johnchristie]

Thanks everyone, the concept of buoy hopping seems to make sense.

I assume if I wanted to go to the hamble, I would do the following:

Bouy 4 to N.Sturbridge Cardinal
N.Sturbridge to E.Bramble Cardinal
E.Bramble Cardinal to Calshot Cardinal
Calshot Cardinal to Hamble Point cardinal (avoiding the shipping lane)

or Lymington

Bouy 4 to N.Sturbridge Cardinal
N.Sturbridge Cardinal to Prince Consort
Prince Consort to West Lepe
West Lepe to Lymington Spit
Lymington spit to north bound towards Lymington spit, with green lateral marker no1 to the right?

or is that too simple?

 

[johnchristie]

also..

* I don't have a chartplotter yet...
* I am due to go on my RYA PB2 course & VHF in 2 weeks time
* I went to buy a solent chart map but fully opened it is huge and not easily usuable on a boat my size. is it possible to get a smaller scaled down size chart like a a3 size?

 

[vandy]

Hi John,

Congratulations on your new boat purchase.

IF it is your first journey on the new boat I would not recommend you going to IOW although it seems to be very close BUT it is one of the busiest stretch of water. I always suggest people who have bought a new boat to spend at least 10-20hrs on a quiet water to GET TO KNOW THE BOAT and ENGINE!

You don;t know how reliable your engine is, how to switch it back on if it stalls after 1hr! etc. etc.. and you don't want to learn this in the middle of the channel with a 400ft ferry behind you!

Also, buying a Digital GPS/Chart plotter will make your life much easier. It is expensive BUT it does the job very well. NOT 100% reliable though but if you are planning a short journey it should be OK.


As other people have mentioned, Portsmouth harbour has some VERY important navigation information which you MUST be familiar with.

 

[Seahope]

also..

* I don't have a chartplotter yet...
* I am due to go on my RYA PB2 course & VHF in 2 weeks time
* I went to buy a solent chart map but fully opened it is huge and not easily usuable on a boat my size. is it possible to get a smaller scaled down size chart like a a3 size?

Taking the PB2 course is a good thing to do. You will be taught how to produce a passage plan from the big chart and create a representation of the plan which you can use on your boat. We used ours to successfully navigate a rib in quote rough weather across Hayling Bay to a specific buoy just off Southsea.

As you probably know the VHF course is necessary from a legal perspective and to ensure you know how to make a pan-pan or mayday call if ever necessary. Better safe than sorry!

 

[Solitaire]

also..

* I don't have a chartplotter yet...
* I am due to go on my RYA PB2 course & VHF in 2 weeks time
* I went to buy a solent chart map but fully opened it is huge and not easily usuable on a boat my size. is it possible to get a smaller scaled down size chart like a a3 size?

Buy the chart and you will see how to use it on your Level 2 course. You can get smaller portfolio charts, but the one I recommended will give you a broader overview of the area at this time On a small powerboat, learning to passage plan correctly is essential. Once you have done the course - you should be fine. All will be clearer.

Don't try and run before you can walk!

 

[henryf]

Hi there.

Welcome aboard. For most people Cowes and the Folly is their first venture into boating. There are no tides to worry about (in other words nothing dries out along the way) and the Bramble bank will be a fair bit off course so you would have to be doing something pretty wrong to hit it!!

Chart wise you need to get hold of something called an Admiralty tough chart and you want area 1. The Solent and Approaches. What that gets you is a flip folder of 22 charts printed on waterproof semi rigid plastic. Ideal for a sports boat as it won't blow away and is indestructible. You get coverage all round the isle of Wight including some more detailed charts for popular places such as Cowes. Lymington, Yarmouth and so on.

I would suggest you get a feel for the overall layout of the Solent. From Portsmouth to Cowes for instance there is no where to run aground mid way so see what the various bits of land look like, identify some notable places along the way and see where you are aiming for in terms of the headland around Cowes.

That chart set will be invaluable to you.

All he best

Henry

 

[grumpy_o_g]

also..

* I don't have a chartplotter yet...
* I am due to go on my RYA PB2 course & VHF in 2 weeks time
* I went to buy a solent chart map but fully opened it is huge and not easily usuable on a boat my size. is it possible to get a smaller scaled down size chart like a a3 size?

I think you can still get the Admiralty tough charts, which are A3 size spiral bound and water-proof.

I know it's difficult to wait sometimes but it only takes a moment to buy the charts and the plotter and you'll learn a lot about what you actually want to buy on the course so why not wait till then, especially for the plotter. I'd control your excitement by nipping in to your nearest chandlery and buying a couple of the RYA books or whatever seems to suit your style, maybe get some flash cards and spend some time with your son learning the basic col regs, shapes, lights, etc. and possibly a pilot guide called the Solent Cruising Companion.

I'd also highly recommend Sea-Start in your circumstances.

 

[Solitaire]

Hi there.


Chart wise you need to get hold of something called an Admiralty tough chart and you want area 1. The Solent and Approaches. What that gets you is a flip folder of 22 charts printed on waterproof semi rigid plastic. Ideal for a sports boat as it won't blow away and is indestructible. You get coverage all round the isle of Wight including some more detailed charts for popular places such as Cowes. Lymington, Yarmouth and so on.

Been discontinued. A good idea in principle, bad in execution, plus they were expensive. May still be around but will be out of date.

 

[henryf]

I agree that the tough charts are not ideal when compared to either full sized charts or the smaller Small Craft Folio chart packs which are easier to manage without a full sized chart table. The problem is this an open sports boat and so any paper based charts will get destroyed. As a general overview and aide memoir I still think the tough chart is useful in a sports boat. At circa £35 they are / were expensive compared to a Small Craft Folio of the same price but sometimes needs must.

I suspect the reason for their demise is that very few sports boats out in the Solent carry any form of charts. They rely solely on chartplotters and even then I would say the majority of smaller sports boats aren't even fitted with them! They do visual trips were they assume they know where to go.

To the OP we are also based in Gosport though actually out and about at the moment but would happily act as escort should you be unsure of you fist venture or ventures out. I'm also happy to talk you through the area using a larger scale chart on our boat. I'm sure others based in Gosport would be happy to do the same. It's a great marina full of people who actually use their boats and there is a collective wealth of knowledge.

It might be worth contacting the Gosport Yacht Club based in Haslar. A relatively new group within whom there some very experienced motor boaters. As a point of contact either go to the club website or get in touch with Brian (Tallulah on here).

Either way I'm sure you'll enjoy yourself and the fact you took the time to lost here shows a sensible approach.


Henry

 

[mjf]

Yep I hunted down one of the last edition 3 2009 copies for £20 on e bay

great on the F/B and I like the pencil notes you make for tides etc that will not wash off on the rain/ spray etc.

The other alternative is to copy bits of the chart you need and laminate same.



The tough chart would be my advice but quite why Taunton chose not to name buoys on some chartlets is silly = I've corrected mine.


The OP ought to ensure he has a working knowledge of the coll regs IMHO too before heading off and at the very least have a mobile telephone charged up!

 

[gjgm]

I would suggest to get the normal chart of the Solent.. probably about £15. You can photcopy some A4 parts of it and laminate a "front and back". A few laminates will give you plenty of coverage for a day, they are easy to hold and store, and you still have the full size chart to peer over at home.
I quite liked the "spiders web".. draw incremental one mile radius arcs from your home port, and then draw some compass lines, say every 30 degrees.
When you pass a bouy for example, you can look it up on your spiders web chart and see what course and how far it is to home.
There is no point in trying to read a chart on a sportsboat. Laminates as above, or maybe a second hand plotter. Actually, a £100 Garmin gps will do somethings I guess, or even a 3G phone.

 

[johnchristie]

Thanks Chaps

Every response has been top class, more than what I could have hoped for.
I feel I've been a bit naive in buying a boat and thinking I could just drive it into the solent.

My plan this week is to buy a chartplotter, get a chart of the solent, learn it, buy some safety gear, do the PB2 and VHF course and play around in the solent and get a feel for the boat.

When I mentioned to the training instructor I had bought a single engine boat his response was almost suggesting I'll have a fun time manoevering it in close quarters with any form of wind How windy does it need to be before my boats goes off course?

PS Henryf - I like your video. Your motor boat is lovely! totally dwarfs my boat