Round The Lizard For The First Time

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dewent

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Planning on heading north from Falmouth into the Irish Sea for the first time in a few weeks. Would welcome any advice on getting round the Lizard. There is plenty of advice on timings for Lands End in Reeds but not for the Lizard. What state of the tide is best for rounding this headland?
 
be careful of all the scaremongerers. During our 3 year trip round the Uk we have passed round all of the headlands that some folk want to scare the hide off you. however if you chose your weather & tides you will be fine. We did the trip with no bother at all in April 2011, we chose neaps, just happend there was very little wind so we motored, dont go close in we were about a couple of miles out. We then stopped off at Newlyn which you can get in at all states, very helpful harbour master, can get a bit noisy as its a working fishing harbour. We eventually went to Milford as our point of departure for Ireland.
PM if you want any more info.
 
Horrible headland for me on about half of my passages east or west - so I would probably err on the side of the cautious and always treat the Lizard as both a major tidal gate and a headland to steer well clear off in poor vis or bad weather. From Falmouth you are stuck with rounding it as opposed to blowing a raspberry at it as you cruise past far offshore. Take the south going ebb out from Falmouth so leave three hours after local HW - that will give you a lift from favourable tide all the way round the Longships and on up north. Keep a good lookout for pots off the Manacles. Minimum clearance of 3 miles S of Lizard Point.The clearing bearing from East of the Manacles is 220T but I prefer to give it 5 miles if there is any sea running. A big west going tide will kick up a rotten chop if the wind is fresh from the west - in that case I would run well to the south and go for the raspberry blowing option.
Beware ships - they come in quite close and small freighters might not see you if there is a big swell. I like to get west and round the Longships before I can relax - so if on passage I never loiter in Mounts Bay.
Fair winds and tides.
Robin
Pleiades of Birdham
MXWQ5
 
baggypipes said:
be careful of all the scaremongerers.
Click to expand...

Agreed, we have been round it loads of times, never really been a problem, I always tried to hit it a low water as we where normally transiting Swansea - Falmouth or vice versa. Had a rough time once in 6 to 7 but it was late October! Like so many places there are a lot of 'experts' that have never actually been there!
 
Robin of 'Pleiades' has it about right. When there's no problem, there's no problem...

When wind/seafog/tide stream is other than helpful, give yourself the important blessing of a GOOD OFFING right around that coast. Every last nook, cranny, and sticky-up bit of granite has the bones of someone's ship to its name. Every last one of those lost masters thought they were all right - until they weren't. Pick up a lobster-string line around your prop and rudder on any of the picturesque inshore shortcuts and, with any westerly sea running or half-gale, you'll be on the rocks and breaking up before anyone can get to you. It's happened to better seamen than you or I.

How long would it take from your first Emergency Message to MRCC Falmouth, through assembly of the LB crew and briefing, to launch and to get to you, and then pass and secure a line, then make way to seaward.... Half-an-hour? An hour? Longer....? That's how far off you need to be, and then a margin.

Around there, there's no substitute for searoom.
 
oldbilbo said:
Robin of 'Pleiades' has it about right. When there's no problem, there's no problem...

When wind/seafog/tide stream is other than helpful, give yourself the important blessing of a GOOD OFFING right around that coast. Every last nook, cranny, and sticky-up bit of granite has the bones of someone's ship to its name. Every last one of those lost masters thought they were all right - until they weren't. Pick up a lobster-string line around your prop and rudder on any of the picturesque inshore shortcuts and, with any westerly sea running or half-gale, you'll be on the rocks and breaking up before anyone can get to you. It's happened to better seamen than you or I.

How long would it take from your first Emergency Message to MRCC Falmouth, through assembly of the LB crew and briefing, to launch and to get to you, and then pass and secure a line, then make way to seaward.... Half-an-hour? An hour? Longer....? That's how far off you need to be, and then a margin.

Around there, there's no substitute for searoom.
Click to expand...

Very helpful! why bother with such a reply?
 
baggypipes said:
be careful of all the scaremongerers. During our 3 year trip round the Uk we have passed round all of the headlands that some folk want to scare the hide off you. . . . . .
Click to expand...

You must watch out for the tongue! The Lizard has a very sticky tongue which it will flick out and snare your sails and drag you onto land to devour you and turn you into someone who has swallowed the anchor.

Be afraid, very afraid !!!

:D

.
 
Baddox said:
Oldbilbo’s reply seems pretty well reasoned to me. So a better question is why do you feel the need to post such a reply?
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Because he is a novice/newcomer and is trying to make his mark.

He does not know that Bilbo has been on this forum, under various names, since Noah was a member with his Ark, which interesting he ran aground somewhere near Turkey before they introduced the Blue Card System! :D



.
 
I'll be rounding the Lizard at approx 21:00 on Sunday night on route from Cardiff to Falmouth.
Looks like we'll have a f5 to F6 from the SE give latest forecast.
Way point is set 5 miles south of the Lizard and I'll still be erring on being South of it.
Once well past we'll tack onto Starboard and reach into Falmouth.

In daylight I'd be happy at 3nm south but in the dark, in a blow, 5nm south is my min.
 
Have done the Fastnet a few times, with good record maller/snoeren.
The best way is just to take a heading 1 mile south straight line heading for fastnet and set those for your way points.
It does not matter, high or low, which time you hit the mark, stay 1 mile out + compensating for the tide.
Obviously in this chat we do not know what you are sailing... I gues you can do a close reaching 7knts +.
If less then 7, put your south mark at 1.3, no matter what the time is , the most interesting one is that you get stuck there and enjoy the sights.
 
Sunday HW PZ is 1548, 16ft 4 tide. E, say 20kts wind according to metcheck now. There will be ebb tide until 0100, so should be fairly smooth, but it will get mucky on the flood. You won't, hopefully, be inshore between Lizard and Mullion, that will be vile to dangerous from 2 hours before LW PZ when the early flood runs along the shore. A line from Lizard to Newlyn is good until HW + 9hrs. I would pass fairly close to, even through the rocks, but then I know the place, and not in the dark. 49 deg 56 min N is fine but not in any flood. The ebb runs SW off the end and turns NW by about 5 deg 20 minW.
I would be looking for a long long tack to the SE until I got a slant for Falmouth.
 
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Depends on weather, I've been round a few times in utterly benign conditions. Also going from Scilly to Falmouth SSE 5/6 with a big westerly swell when there were some big lumps of water around but OK as the lumps were travelling in the same direction as me. Worst seastate was going west when there had a been a prolonged westerly 5/6 blow which had calmed to a 4 but the wind against tide effect led to a fairly sustained crashing and banging, I had gone in to about 1.5 miles off as I thought it would be OK but we had 15ft + waves for a period. If I did it again I would have gone quite a bit further out.
 
Portland Bill, Lizard, Lands End, St Davids Head, Skomer, Bardsey - they're all tidal gates, so one should always ensure you've got a stream with you when you go past.
Otherwise the more sea running the more offing you need and expect to get bashed by wind against stream.
Treated with a little respect they're no problem, even in the 22' I first did them in.
 
lenseman said:
Because he is a novice/newcomer and is trying to make his mark.

He does not know that Bilbo has been on this forum, under various names, since Noah was a member with his Ark, which interesting he ran aground somewhere near Turkey before they introduced the Blue Card System! :D.
Click to expand...

Flippant comments are the preserve of the 'old hands' and not for relative newcomers............D'OH! :rolleyes:

Andy
 
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