sailing to Scilly this summer

Scillypete

Scillypete

Well-Known Member
Joined
11 Jun 2003
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Isles of Scilly
www.peteandspamgosailing.blogspot.com
It would be a good idea if when you set off on the leg to the islands that you have full water tanks, the current dry spell is putting considerable pressure on supplies and with no significant rainfall forthcoming the situation is likely to get worse, particularly for the off islands. Also note there is only one working tap on St Mary's quay from which to fill up at so it can get congested as its only accessible when there is enough rise of tide.

Those with watermakers can ignore this request and sit back with a smug grin
 
Scillypete said:
It would be a good idea if when you set off on the leg to the islands that you have full water tanks, the current dry spell is putting considerable pressure on supplies and with no significant rainfall forthcoming the situation is likely to get worse, particularly for the off islands. Also note there is only one working tap on St Mary's quay from which to fill up at so it can get congested as its only accessible when there is enough rise of tide.

Those with watermakers can ignore this request and sit back with a smug grin
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St Mary's is the only place I have ever had to pay for water. And that includes visiting those parched Med Islands of Porquerolles and Port Cros.
 
Sybarite said:
St Mary's is the only place I have ever had to pay for water. And that includes visiting those parched Med Islands of Porquerolles and Port Cros.
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I think you find now more and more places in the Med you have to pay for water , in Greece there lot of coin meters now , so I understand €2 will get you about 100 lits
As for us , we once that sit back and enjoy good quality water we made ourself .
 
Appledore said:
Are you 'in residence' next week Pete? Might end up using the mechanical topsail for most of the journey - if I do get away. Plenty of bottled water in the shops I assume?

Geoff
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Certainly will be no great escape for me. There should be bottled water but no guarantee that it'll be on the shelf when you go in. The staff struggle to fill up before the shelves are stripped at this time of year
 
Thread Hijack!

Looking to go to Scilly in a couple of weeks and am looking for advise
on good anchoring / drying spots for a catamaran.
I am sure Pete has a few he wants to keep quiet but any recomendations
would be good since will be our first visit :)
 
stephen_h said:
Thread Hijack!

Looking to go to Scilly in a couple of weeks and am looking for advise
on good anchoring / drying spots for a catamaran.
I am sure Pete has a few he wants to keep quiet but any recomendations
would be good since will be our first visit :)
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Loads of places just use the islands to shelter you from the weather and move around accordingly and tuck yourself in close, the list is very long. Get Admiralty chart 883 and study it if you haven't already, that will give you a good starting point.

Tean, east and west porth, sheltered from WSW through to East.
Green bay, Bryher, near enough all wind directions, not ideal in southerly gale though.
Great porth, Bryher, Northerly through east to southerly.
Higher town St Martins, westerly to NE.
off the beach at lower town end of St Martins, NW to NE
Little Arthur, eastern isles. North through east to south. get in the small bay early before other boats turn up and you may get it to yourself.
Rushy Bay Bryher, NW to NE.
on SE side bar point Samson in NW or northerly.
Loads around Tresco but they don't like boats on their beaches but once dried out you can't go anywhere. Pentle Bay for SW to NW, Borough beach SW to W, Appletree bay east or NE.

Many more anchorages where you will be sharing with metronome half-boats, please yourself and enjoy.
 
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Scillypete said:
Loads of places just use the islands to shelter you from the weather and move around accordingly and tuck yourself in close, the list is very long. Get Admiralty chart 883 and study it if you haven't already, that will give you a good starting point.

Tean, east and west porth, sheltered from WSW through to East.
Green bay, Bryher, near enough all wind directions, not ideal in southerly gale though.
Great porth, Bryher, Northerly through east to southerly.
Higher town St Martins, westerly to NE.
off the beach at lower town end of St Martins, NW to NE
Little Arthur, eastern isles. North through east to south. get in the small bay early before other boats turn up and you may get it to yourself.
Rushy Bay Bryher, NW to NE.
on SE side bar point Samson in NW or northerly.
Loads around Tresco but they don't like boats on their beaches but once dried out you can't go anywhere. Pentle Bay for SW to NW, Borough beach SW to W, Appletree bay east or NE.

Many more anchorages where you will be sharing with metronome half-boats, please yourself and enjoy.
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I've just returned from Scillies - had a great time, but stayed on a buoy in St Mary's.
If you want to get to a mooring buoy in Tresco Sound (between Tresco and Bryer) can you cut directly across (rather than going around the islands and in from the top) and if so is it straightforward at high tide using chartplotter, or do you need edge along slowly keeping a visual look for rocks (harder if you're single handed) ?

many thanks !
 
Yealm said:
I've just returned from Scillies - had a great time, but stayed on a buoy in St Mary's.
If you want to get to a mooring buoy in Tresco Sound (between Tresco and Bryer) can you cut directly across (rather than going around the islands and in from the top) and if so is it straightforward at high tide using chartplotter, or do you need edge along slowly keeping a visual look for rocks (harder if you're single handed) ?

many thanks !
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What a shame you just hung on to that buoy, with the weather we have been having you have missed out on some fantastic opportunities to explore and sail amongst the islands. As I said to Stephen H, get the Admiralty chart if you haven't already, there are lots of green bits on it but when the tide is in they are covered with lots of water some more than others so study it carefully. Pilot books are useful to give you the transits to stay of the lumps and bumps. Chartplotter is ok for showing that you are in clear water but not so good for showing what's ahead without constantly playing with it. With enough rise of tide you can get up and down all the channels between the islands, the Scillonian ferry has been up to New Grimsby and back down again a long while ago now though.


if your boat has the draft of the Titanic you may want to ignore everything I have said.
 
Scillypete said:
What a shame you just hung on to that buoy, with the weather we have been having you have missed out on some fantastic opportunities to explore and sail amongst the islands. As I said to Stephen H, get the Admiralty chart if you haven't already, there are lots of green bits on it but when the tide is in they are covered with lots of water some more than others so study it carefully. Pilot books are useful to give you the transits to stay of the lumps and bumps. Chartplotter is ok for showing that you are in clear water but not so good for showing what's ahead without constantly playing with it. With enough rise of tide you can get up and down all the channels between the islands, the Scillonian ferry has been up to New Grimsby and back down again a long while ago now though.


if your boat has the draft of the Titanic you may want to ignore everything I have said.
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Thanks - looking forward to coming next year - amazing place :)
 
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We normally sail down to Scilly from Falmouth in May or June and stay for a week, 10 days or a fortnight if the weather is kind. This year work commitments have pushed that back to the last 2 weeks in August.

As it happens I took the family over on the ferry and had our annual week on Bryher in mid June so I've had a bit of a 'fix' anyway :)

Because of the wonderful weather the anchorages were rammed full by the look of it and I suspect August may be even worse. If there genuinely is no space are you allowed to raft up on the moorings in Hughtown and New Grimsby I wonder?

My oppo is suggesting Brittany: L'Aber, Camaret, Douarnenez (Falmouth's twin town) instead. It would be our first time and I suppose that area will be rammed too anyway... Dilemmas, dilemmas...

Plan for both and see what the weather is like I suppose.
 
KevO said:
Because of the wonderful weather the anchorages were rammed full by the look of it and I suspect August may be even worse. If there genuinely is no space are you allowed to raft up on the moorings in Hughtown and New Grimsby I wonder?

.
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Hi Kev,

Not seen you since Russell's meeting in fowey!

This from the St Mary's Harbour site:

"We have 38 large visitor mooring buoys, 10 of which are suitable for vessels from 40ft to 60ft and are GREEN in colour. The remaining YELLOW buoys are suitable for vessels up to 40ft in length. Vessels may raft up on any of our moorings."

I'm hoping for a chance of passage from Plymouth this coming week even if I have to motor into the light (??) winds!.

Geoff
 
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