scilly isles

[Johnboy2004]

hey folks,
am planning my sailing already for this season. im thinking of heading to the scilly isle's , spend a few days there, can anyone give me some info, on what mooring/ berthing facilities there are in the scillys.?

i am planning to sail from dublin, to rosslare then cross the irish sea at rosslare accross to ramsey, then cross bristol channel then along the cost and the final
hop accross to the scillys from pendeen.
i measured this distance from dublin at approx 300 miles.

or i could cut straight down the irish sea, straight to the scillys on a non stop trip from rosslare and it would only be 154 miles.
sailing at an average speed of say 5kts , it would take approx, 31 hours.

my boat is a bene 211, any advice/ ideas, information on the scillys and also making this trip greatly appreciated.

im planning it for July this year.

cheers.....

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[AndCur]

I take it you have sailed long distances before in small boats. I know from my own
experince that any more that 6hrs in a small boat can be long enough.
What sort of self steering are you using,ifs its an autopilot will you have enough battery power to run it along with Nav lights etc. If you are going single handed
how will you keep watch while you get some sleep

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[Johnboy2004]

hi well going to sea in small boats doesent scare me at all. i do a lot of scuba diving off the west coast of ireland , and normally use a 6.5 M rib....i have a good bit of experience of boating.

im kinda new to sailing, and geting training as i speak.
i got a raymarine st1000+ autohelm.
i am going to get a high capacity battery, so it will last longer... the outboard can charge the battery. also i am going to get a C.A.R.D system. and a high capacity solar charger, if the wind is low, i will motor sail. i most likely will have one other person with me so can get a bit of sleep.
if i am sailing solo and going direct then i will make sure i got lots of coffee and have a good sleep when i arrive in the scillys.

of course all this is dependent on good weather.

i intend on sailing down to wicklow to see the start of the round ireland race on 26june and then might go on to the scillys from there............

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[jeanne]

The Scilly Isles are wonderful. There are three places where there are moorings, St Mary's [about 70], St Martins[ don't know how many] and New Grimsby, about 10. New Grimsby has the best all round shelter of the whole group. Everywhere else one anchors, but there is nowhere that has shelter from every direction [including the expensive moorings]. The locals recommend fisherman anchors, which are good on weedy bottoms.
The only handy port on the way there is Padstow, which is worth visiting on its own merits, and St. Ives is a possible anchorage in southerly winds. Don't go to the Scillies without a good large scale chart, and/ or a good pilot book.

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[AndCur]

Being based in Dublin have you though about heading to the Cylde. You could head north say to Ardglass,Bangor(where i am from) Glenarm the across the Irish
sea to Cambletown. The Clyde is a great cruising area with loads of places to go and see.

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[starboard]

I can concur with that being based at Troon. So many nice places to visit with small distances involved. By the way I visited Glenarm 2 years ago and what a great little Marina, a nice sail across the North Channel from Campletown.

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[ashanta]

Hi Johnboy,

For those of us who sail on the south coast of England the Scillies can be difficult to reach due to the prevailing soutwest/westerly winds and that is why we often take advantage when the wind is from the East. I am sorry to say that I do not know what a Bene 211 is ? Power or Sail or how big and heavy your boat is? However, coming from Ireland you should have plenty of opportunity, Wind wise, if you have a sailing boat.
Please consider that you are in effect ocean sailing and the swell within St Georges Channel can be considerable for a small craft.
Consider how you want moor in the Scillies. Shaol draft have obvious advantages over deep keeled vessels. There are anchorages for all wind directions and I would suggest you obtain suitable up to date pilotage.
Anchors, chains and rope are the most important and I would suggest that you have at least two suitable anchors or even three. Certainly in addition to a main bower anchor, I take a fishermans anchor, recommended by local fisherman due to the amount of sea weed covered rocks.
It's a quiet place, although St Mary's can be very busy in school holiday time. Go to Tresco and enjoy the beautiful gardens or go and anchor in Porth Conger or the Cove and enjoy a beer in the Turks head.
It's a great place to be. Good luck!

Peter.

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[philip_stevens]

Give Saint Ives a thought as a jump-off for the trip across to the Scillies. I have lived here all my life (so far) and if the weather is accepatable, anchoring off the harbour until an hour before high tide will give you a good run to the Scillies.

Consider leaving an hour before high water local, and then keeping within half mile of the shore until the Western Carracks/Seal Island, heading half mile off Gurnards Head, heading for Pendeen Watch, and then put in a course for Crow Sound, Isles of Scilly.

By leaving an hour before HW, and keeping within half mile of shore, you will get the "first of the ebb" to Gurnards Head/Pendeen. You will then pick up the west-going tide for another five hours.

How do I know?? I ran trips to Seal Island for many years with my cousins ex-lifeboat, Three Sisters, from Coverack - one of the first LB's on scene with the Flying Enterprise.

We used to "cheat" the tide by either coming back from Seal Island by going deep for the first of the flood, of staying in very close (and I mean CLOSE) for the last of the ebb. Conversely, we did the opposite when going to Seal Island on the first of the flood.

If you want any more info on Saint Ives, I will give you the best of my knowledge. If it gets real sh177y (in morse "nine dits and a dah") weather with southerly's, you can get into Hayle. One thing though, don't leave any valuables on board!!

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Philip

 

[Johnboy2004]

hi folks thanks for all the useful info, these forums are a wealth of knowledge,

very helpful,

i got some good pointers, and more destinations to add to my list.

have a look at http://www.xs4all.nl/~blvrd/html/salmon_article.html

very interesting reading, now thats something id like to do.

cheers

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[Jules]

John,
Another option without all the deep sea sailing in a small boat which can be a bit of an ordeal and expensive for backup gear would be coast hopping to Cork/ Kinsale/ Kerry. Very similar climate to Scillies and you can always get the train home! You wouldn't get to see the Round Ireland boats go past, though, as they go clockwise!
Beware wind over tide at Tuskar!
Good luck

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[Birdseye]

Dont just sail past the Bristol channel. Milford Haven is a great sailing area in its own right, the ports of the S Wales coast are interesting as is North Somerset? Devon and Cornwall (Porlock, Ilfracombe, Watchet, Appledore, Padstow to name a few). And best of all, there are few visiting boats, moorings are cheap or free outside the marinas, and the area is not infested by the French as is the Scillies. Oh, and its a bit more interesting than the Scillies as it hasnt had the dead hand of the Duchy of Cornwall and its tree hugging owner making it look like the Isle of Man on a wet Monday.

Just a personal view you understand.

<hr width=100% size=1>this post is a personal opinion, and you should not base your actions on it.

 

[danera]

Hi John,

I was in the Scilly Isles last September in my First 211 & had a great time. Towed the boat down to Penzance from Essex. We based ourselves in St Marys and did day sails from there (my sister + family were camping ashore). St Mary's visitor moorings are a long row out & rolly, though you might be able to pick up a mooring closer in if you check with the harbour master. We used to nip to the quay to get the 1 & 3yr old onboard. The moorings at New Grimsby were again quite far out, so we anchored closer in. My favourite anchorage was between Eday & Gogh, close in to the spit (keel up everytime). I would recommend considering getting the yacht legs option as there were some beautiful looking drying anchorages (eg east of Bryer). Also a second anchor just in case...

Feel free to contact me,

Ivan

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[Ocean Hound]

Great place place to visit-just leave yourself plenty of time to enjoy what it has to offer. As most anchorages, particularly St Marys, are open to the Atlantic swell, make yourself a pair of flopper stoppers to reduce the roll(Hiscocks-Cruising Under Sail Page 427 for full instructions)- cheap & they work! If you can't find the book send me a pm and I'll forward instructions how to make-v easy.
Enjoy
edward

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[BrendanChandler]

Think about Dublin to Milford Haven which can be approached in all weathers with a little care. Stay in Ships Channel in bad weather. I have been in there in 50 knots.

It is about 100 miles from there to Scillies. If you get bad weather on this crossing, I would return to Milford Haven or stay at sea rather than approach the Cornish coast.

Excellent moorings between Bryer and Tresco, approachable from the west in all tides. Good moorings, sheltered from almost everything. Spent 2 days there in a severe westerly gale in comfort.

Beautiful place. Enjoy

Brendan

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