Recomended book for channel crossing?

[MissIsle]

I'm going to take our boat, Oceanis281, accross to France next spring.
Lymington - Cherbourg, then Brittany & possibly back via the Channel Islands.
First time as skipper, been accross several times as crew.
Anyone recomend any good reading that covers all the bases?

 

[capnsensible]

Shell Channel Pilot?

 

[sailorman]

I'm going to take our boat, Oceanis281, accross to France next spring.
Lymington - Cherbourg, then Brittany & possibly back via the Channel Islands.
First time as skipper, been accross several times as crew.
Anyone recomend any good reading that covers all the bases?

Tom Cunliffe The Channel Pilot

 

[capnsensible]

Tom Cunliffe The Channel Pilot

 

[sailorman]

I bet my copy is older than yours

 

[capnsensible]

I bet my copy is older than yours

I met Johnny Coote a few times! Mind you, been out drank (?) by Mr Cunliffe too.

Loved the style of Captain Coote!

 

[sailorman]

I met Johnny Coote a few times! Mind you, been out drank (?) by Mr Cunliffe too.

Loved the style of Captain Coote!

we saw old silver top in SPP last year. moaning about the berth he was allocated, ours was ok

 

[Twister_Ken]

A Piece of Cake by Derek Robinson. Nothing to do with sailing but a good read for what's often a tedious trip.

 

[lw395]

A lot is in the almanac.
The RCC pilot books are good, but possibly OTT for a first visit?
A tidal atlas that you can get your head around is a good investment.
Some of the ports publish useful visitors' guides, look on the interweb?

 

[MissIsle]

Shell Channel Pilot?

Edited by Tom Cunliffe, just ordered it from Amazon.
I've done the trip a few times, but wanted something a bit more "conversational" if you know what I mean.
Thanks.

 

[sailorman]

Edited by Tom Cunliffe, just ordered it from Amazon.
I've done the trip a few times, but wanted something a bit more "conversational" if you know what I mean.
Thanks.

I have North Brittany & CI By Peter Cumberlidge too but Cunliffe much easier to understand

 

[capnsensible]

Edited by Tom Cunliffe, just ordered it from Amazon.
I've done the trip a few times, but wanted something a bit more "conversational" if you know what I mean.
Thanks.

Hope you get as much pleasure out of using it as I did!

 

[jerrytug]

"The Narrow Sea" by Peter Unwin,a fascinating history of the channel. £0.01 on Amazon.

 

[DJE]

 

[henryf]

The Life of Pi by Yann Martel.

Henry

 

[guernseyman]

When I saw the thread title, I thought the undermentioned two were worth mentioning, both by Peter Cumberlidge:

Channel Crossings
Waypoint Directory

 

[Poignard]

This DVD by John Goode might help you.

http://www.johngoode.co.uk/product.php?id=4

He also wrote a well illustrated (by Dick Everitt) booklet describing how to plan and execute a Channel crossing. It was published by PBO but unfortunately it's no longer in print but if you can find or borrow a copy you'll find it very helpful.

 

[Twister_Ken]

Bilmey, it's gone colour! Mine's the brown and white version. Incidentally the staples used to bind it aren't stainless - rust marks down the centre or every spread.

 

[Sailfree]

I'm going to take our boat, Oceanis281, accross to France next spring.
Lymington - Cherbourg, then Brittany & possibly back via the Channel Islands.
First time as skipper, been accross several times as crew.
Anyone recomend any good reading that covers all the bases?

Look up threads on here - I think there is often more useful practical advice posted on this Forum than in some books - like pick neaps as you are likely to get wind over tide for 6hrs and waves are smaller on neaps and the sideways deviation from a straight line is less worrying!!

Set course for Cherbourg but don't try to offset tide by trying to sail the straight line. Final track will be an S curve.

I try to follow rules of the road but either some big ships don't or they are happy for me to pass in front of their bows closer than I am. If I am going to be closer than 1 ml in front of the bow i make an alteration of course and track their stern. At 27kts/30mph, 1 ml takes only 2 mins for the big ship (most travel about 18 to 24kts).

Don't go if fog forecast and no radar. I think I would hesitate even with radar. I sail on the principal that something might fail eg for that reason going around the rocks between Lazardrieux and Paimpol I have backup Navionics app on i pad.

We sail for fun so sail when weather is nice and not to a timetable I have come unstuck once with a broad reach and a quartering sea that resulted in me suffering severe seasickness - something i never thought I would suffer from. I am currently in St Quay Pontrieux and starting to study weather patterns for return trip sometime before or on Saturday 10th August.

Personally I also like the reasurance of having an ambassador rope cutter fitted as some years I have picked up ropes/fishing nets.

Sorry if its things you already know.

Scuttlebutt cruise to Cherbourg is weekend 14/15 September. Many use it for their first X channel as it enables you to check your passage planning with others and know that others will be somewhere in the vicinity.

I appreciate that many may consider me too cautious but at 67 and still riding a motorcycle 20k mls in a year travelling to London each day I think I am content with my standard of risk analysis.

 

[Twister_Ken]

I try to follow rules of the road but either some big ships don't or they are happy for me to pass in front of their bows closer than I am. AIS helps here. We crossed three eastbound ships' bows yesterday with a CPA of less than a mile. Without AIS I would have chickened out. And thanks to the westbound container ship Enforcer, that altered a little for me when I asked nicely. If I am going to be closer than 1 ml in front of the bow i make an alteration of course and track their stern. At 27kts/30mph, 1 ml takes only 2 mins for the big ship (most travel about 18 to 24kts).

Don't go if fog forecast and no radar. There was fog (patches) in yesterday's forecast. We saw nothing but a bit of high cloud and generally had a sun-drenched crossing. And the wind backed into the east a bit, rather than veering into the SW as per forecast. Forecasts are not all they're cracked-up to be! Make up your own mind on the basis of what you can see. And if you understand French, listen to their forecasts which are often at variance with the Meat Orifice's I think I would hesitate even with radar.

above