Thoughts on going from the Orwell to Falmouth?

[hennypenny]

I am thinking of making the trip one way next year in late May. How long should I expect it to take, I want to do it fairly quickly? I don't really want to do night sailing so is there anywhere to anchor or use a ball for night stops on the south coast? I would prefer it to a marinas and it would be less spenny.
Which way round the IOW is best to go?
I think I can average 5kts.

 

[Wansworth]

Mostly depends on wind direction and force.In May the nights will be quite short .Dungeness offers a lee then it’s a bit thin till you reach the IOW,onwards to Studland or Swanage or just off the harbour at Weymouth.Bit of a slog direct from Portland to Brixham and then lots of places including inside Plymouth at Cawsands.In fine settled weather you can anchour in shallow water ,resting and waiting out a foul tide.

 

[superheat6k]

Ipswich - Liverpool Street - Hammersmith & City to Paddington - GWR to Penzance. ~ 6 - 7 hours.

Or to be less flippant ...

Plenty of free stops along the route but some long legs.

Day 1 Ramsgate ~ 45m. Harbour fees moderate and a pontoon berth. Anchoring available e.g. Margate or Pegwell Bay subject to wind direction.

Day 2 Eastbourne - Sovereign Harbour ~ 55m Harbour fees higher for a swanky locked marina. If you want to anchor or find a cheap mooring possibly Newhaven.

Day 3 Brighton Marina or Shoreham ~ 25m

Day 4 The Solent - Bembridge Harbour pontoons or drying beach harbour dues only (if asked). Or buoys off Seaview near Ryde free.

A myriad other places to drop the hook.

Day 5 further up the Solent anchor off Newtown free but perhaps a bit rolly, free to anchor in side but not good if a Summer weekend.

On from the Solent

Christchurch
Swanage
Lulworth Cove
Weymouth or Portland
Lyme Regis
Brixham
Dartmouth
Newton Ferrers / Noss Mayo
Plymouth
Fowey
Looe
Falmouth

I reckon this is a good two week holiday but bear in mind the whole trip is against the prevailing south westerlies, so this could knock your 5 knots down to 3 or 4 knots course made good. Anything above a 4 is going to be a bumpy sail if on the nose.

Definitely recommend through the Solent. This would be a gem along the trip so a shame to miss it en route for a non Solent Sailor.

Do not overlook the north Coast of France route down to Cherbourg then back across to say Weymouth of even Dartmouth.

 

[Concerto]

Hennypenny, you have not mentioned what boat you have. This could affect your choices.

A couple of years ago I sailed my Fulmar from the Medway to the Isles of Scilly in 6 days in good weather, stopping every night. I usually have very long sailing days, 14 to 16 hours is normal. My first leg was Chatham to Brighton, a very long 17 hours mainly under engine due to lack of wind. The following day I sailed south of the Isle of Wight direct to Weymouth. Then on to Salcombe and then Falmouth. That part of the journey took 4 days and I was shattered.

Personally I would look to do the journey in 8 to 10 days. My suggestion would be Orwell to Dover (anchor in the harbour but very rolly). Dover to Brighton, have a short stay to minimise cost. Brighton to Keyhaven, West Solent to anchor. Keyhaven to Weymouth, moor in the harbour. Weymouth to Salcombe, pic up a buoy. Salcombe to Falmouth. You may need to add a few extra breaks or delays for weather.

Hope this is helpful.

Edit. All my trips were done singlehanded. Having crew will make things a lot easier.

 

[Independence]

I’d reconsider night sailing.

Get some competent crew, wait for the right weather take plenty of fuel (to help maintain a reasonable cruising speed of say 5 knots)

I’ve done Orwell to Plymouth (and back) a few times now in 2-3 days in a 30 footer

 

[jimi]

I agree with independence, I’ve done Orwell to Portsmouth in 36 hours non stop, then on to Brixham 18 hours, falmouth another 12 hours. I was bashing against the wind a fair bit.. with a good easterly it’d be a bit quicker!

 

[RupertW]

Me too on the night sailing - it’s not only exhilarating but it’s good experience for when you need to eat up miles. It’s also the best way to ride good weather or a favourable wind for as long as possible.

 

[PilotWolf]

Me too on the night sailing - it’s not only exhilarating but it’s good experience for when you need to eat up miles. It’s also the best way to ride good weather or a favourable wind for as long as possible.

Also some of the most beautiful sights out there. Especially if away from light pollution. Even here near the coast I had a passenger laid n her back on deck, I asked if she was OK. She asked me to lay down with her and look up - it was one of the most beautiful sights of the sky and stars I'd ever seen and within 10 miles of LA pollution. Also had a good few in the English Channel.

W.

 

[Seajet]

It can be a good idea to get to Studland then slant offshore to clear the gunnery range and go outside Portland Race, I'd definitely do this with crew.

Portland Inshore Passage is more weather restricted and strewn with lobster pots towed just underwater by the current, don't even think of it at night.

Depending on boat and conditions I usually find it best to ignore the dubious shelter of Lyme Regis and press on across the bay to Brixham.

 

[jwilson]

It can be a good idea to get to Studland then slant offshore to clear the gunnery range and go outside Portland Race, I'd definitely do this with crew.

Portland Inshore Passage is more weather restricted and strewn with lobster pots towed just underwater by the current, don't even think of it at night.

Depending on boat and conditions I usually find it best to ignore the dubious shelter of Lyme Regis and press on across the bay to Brixham.

Agree, especially about Lyme Regis. And I'd choose to stop at Dartmouth rather than Brixham, though both are OK. Brixham marina can sometimes get a bit of swell, inner harbour better. Dartmouth a nicer town and better facilities/food/drink and chandlery if you need anything.

 

[Seajet]

I used to go to and from Dartmouth, agree it's a nicer place, but now I use Brixham as it's that bit shorter across Lyme Bay - as long as it's a holiday not a rush it's a pleasant day sail between Dartmouth and Brixham, though I suppose in a hurry one might bypass Dartmouth from Brixam and go for Salcombe - but then one might leapfrog the lovely Yealm and have the major detour of Plymouth !

 

[KellysEye]

That trip is normally up wind and half the time up current so that can affect speed, we sailed at night to make the trip from Burnham-on-Crouch to Falmouht quicker.

 

[Daydream believer]

Thinking laterally.
More fun & feels a bit "foreign," if you go Orwell, Dover, Boulogne, Dieppe, Le Havre, Cherbourg, Then cross back over to UK

I actually went on to St Peter port then Falmouth & it took 12 days in all with 1 day stops for rest at Boulogne, Dieppe, Le Havre, Cherbourg & st Peter Port. I was single handed, hence the rest, & have done it to Falmouth twice( leaving mid May) & to StPP many times.

All 24 hour harbours & a longer way round. All day sails, except the Falmouth leg. Depends what you want from the trip. Berths are much cheaper as well.

Obviously St Pp to Falmouth is not in your list of to doo's as it is 100 miles. You would have to go NW from Cherbourg to a point on the UK coast.

 

[lw395]

If you want to sail, rather than motor, as much as possible, I think the best thing to do is ensure you have the books and charts for every palusible stop on the way, and study them.
Then each day is a matter of making what progess you can.
No point planning too much detail.
If there is a wind where you can reach along the coast, make what progress you can.
If you have to beat and only make good 30 miles in a day, that should be viewed as progress won, not losing against some 'plan' made ashore.
With the need to work the tides, and the desire to make best use of weather, not wanting to sail in the dark can be a big limitation.

Is this a singlehanded escapade? That makes a difference.
I've only done that corner with crew with minimal stops.

Personally, I'd feel that once you reach Chichester, it's all easy, every potential anchorage is well known and documented. Lyme Bay is a long hop of course.
But East of Chichester, personally I don't know it so well, not so sure of the anchorages where I might want to sleep over a foul tide.
The major ports are obvious, us Solent types tend not to know the lesser stopping places.
I would not entirely discount calling in on the French side. Keep your options as open as possible in order to make as much progess as possible the next day.

 

[PilotWolf]

Not criticizing the OP but isn't leisure sailing meant to be fun? Why rush it? Even trips with commercial pressures were always fun for me, just being at sea - especially with a good crew and hopefully a good chef! Some if not all of my best breakfasts were on the water. I ll try to add a picture later when the iPad is charged.

If you stop in Eastbourne go to Seamoors bar, right next to the lifting bridge and say hi from Sailor Jerry man!

W.

 

[lw395]

Not criticizing the OP but isn't leisure sailing meant to be fun? Why rush it? Even trips with commercial pressures were always fun for me, just being at sea - especially with a good crew and hopefully a good chef! Some if not all of my best breakfasts were on the water. I ll try to add a picture later when the iPad is charged.

If you stop in Eastbourne go to Seamoors bar, right next to the lifting bridge and say hi from Sailor Jerry man!

W.

It is fun, but Falmouth from the Orwell is a non-trivial goal.
Sometimes you need to take your fun seriously....

 

[flaming]

Used to do this trip fairly frequently being based on the East coast.
One year it was glorious, a strong northerly was in place for the whole trip and we just rocketed along. Was a bit cold but we did Harwich to Plymouth in under 2 days.
Another year it was complete purgatory, and we went upwind in 20+ for what felt like weeks.
Another year we were doing nicely, then on the approach to Brighton the wind went westerly, so we just eased sheets and went to Fecamp.

If the wind is in the west it may well be better to make progress along the french coast to Cherbourg, as there are plenty of decent harbours within an easy day sail, then strike out for Dartmouth on a reasonable wind angle.

 

[johnalison]

It is fun, but Falmouth from the Orwell is a non-trivial goal.
Sometimes you need to take your fun seriously....

I have done it a number of times from the East Coast, but only as part of a three month cruise, so time was not important. In the event, I have always got there within a couple of weeks of day sails but people often fail, as happened to two friends this year when got stuck in the Solent with bad weather and returned home.

If you want to get there fast, then an extended sail of maybe 48 hrs is possible, but we have always done better by doing day sails, followed by a night's rest and moving on the next day. The trouble with a single night night sail is that if you are anything like me you will need a day off to recover and the end result is no quicker. Because of the problem of meeting Channel weather on the way, even in May, it is worth having an alternative in mind, such as going to Cherbourg and visiting the Channel Isles or Normandy.

 

[LadyInBed]

Info on your boat and if you will be sailing with crew would be very helpful.
If bilge keel or Cat you can go up creeks to anchor in water depths that that a fin keel wouldn't consider.
If you are solo does the boat have auto steering so you can do longer legs.
Is the boat equipped and insured to do cross channel legs.
All the above helps to give informed suggestions.

 

[jimi]

Falmouth to the Orwell can be interesting. I turned right instead of left and had an interesting trip via Dublin, Ardglass, Belfast, Troon, Crinan, Ft William, Inverness, Lowestoft & Orwell ;-)