Uncharted obstruction, Pilsey sands, Chichester.

[FairweatherDave]

Just got an e mail from the Conservancy that there is an obstruction ....

1. An uncharted obstruction has been identified on Pilsey Sands located approximately 230 metres ENE of the North Pilsey Navigation Buoy centred on position 50°47.764'N, 000°56.139'W.
2. The obstruction comprises the remains of a scaffold structure, extending for 24 metres in an east/west alignment, with metal elements protruding above the sea bed.

I often sail right over this at HW cutting the corner from the Emsworth channel towards East Head. Loads of dinghies sail over there too (presumably that is how the structure was discovered).

Should it be bouyed? Can be nice to cut the corner and get out of the traffic and watch the depth sounder.

 

[Seajet]

It would be interesting on a historical level to find what the structure was, maybe a part of the WWII Starfish decoy system, RAF Thorney Island or the British World Air Speed Record flights by Neville Duke, Bill Waterton & co ?

Either way I've sailed dinghies over there many a time and seen lots of cruisers over there too, we were lucky and could well do without a scaffolding pole through the bilges .

Hopefully Chichester Conservancy's copious funds will be used to remove the danger.

 

[Benny257]

It is charted on Navionics

 

[XDC]

LNTM issued and Navionics updated by the Commission

https://www.conservancy.co.uk/page/no11-2019

 

[FairweatherDave]

Well I'm impressed it is on Navionics but I shall have to remember it is there as I don't have Navionics, and would not have my tablet on there as it's my home patch. On Navionics kind of implies no intention to remove it (or bouy it). Obviously it has been there a good long time.

 

[GHA]

Well I'm impressed it is on Navionics but I shall have to remember it is there as I don't have Navionics, and would not have my tablet on there as it's my home patch. On Navionics kind of implies no intention to remove it (or bouy it). Obviously it has been there a good long time.

Not quite navionics but 'crowdsourced', someone who uses navionics put it on there.

 

[prv]

Well I'm impressed it is on Navionics

The little green "plus" symbol means it's been added by a user rather than Navionics themselves - kind of a navigational Wikipedia.

XDC in post 4 suggests the user in question was the harbour Conservancy, which is nicely proactive of them.

Pete

 

[Teko]

How has this only been discovered in such a busy place?

 

[chrishscorp]

That patch dries out, so I would assume that a combination of wind tide and weather has scoured the top surface off leaving it exposed or someone may have found it with a boat/dinghy. As it is due south of Thorney I would suspect as Seajet has said it was part of the decoy system set up to protect Thorney Island airfield, in which case i wonder if there will be others following the stbd side of the Emsworth Channel ?

 

[Mark-1]

That patch dries out, so I would assume that a combination of wind tide and weather has scoured the top surface off leaving it exposed

That would be my guess. It's close to my standard route going round from Fishbourne Channel to Emsworth Channel. I do it at all states of tide and at that point I'm always watching that way for seals, I think it's unlikely that I would have missed it and impossible that nobody has ever noticed it before. Will have a poke around in the Kayak when I get a chance.

 

[FairweatherDave]

Yes, I think I might have seen it whilst looking for seals. I remember a row of seals rather neatly spaced out, before twigging / getting the binoculars out . This is somewhere quite a bit south of "Seal" rythe.....

 

[Mark-1]

Yes, I think I might have seen it whilst looking for seals. I remember a row of seals rather neatly spaced out, before twigging / getting the binoculars out .

Yes, I'm familiar with that feature. I'm pretty sure it's not the scaffolding we're talking about here and if it is it I can't see why the sudden fuss.

This is somewhere quite a bit south of "Seal" rythe.....

Yes, but you sometimes get lucky. The only photo I have of a seal feeding was taken there.

 

[FairweatherDave]

Yes, I'm familiar with that feature. I'm pretty sure it's not the scaffolding we're talking about here and if it is it I can't see why the sudden fuss.

Yes. I think what we have both seen is a bit further north up the the channel compared to the location of "Scaffoldhenge"

 

[Mark-1]

Yes. I think what we have both seen is a bit further north up the the channel compared to the location of "Scaffoldhenge"

Agree, and more inshore (I think).

Also hats off for the 'Scaffoldhenge' term, genius - also your "evenly spaced seals" description of the other thing. Certainly that's why it sticks in my mind.

 

[wombat88]

The 'Other Thing' you mention, is this the thing you can see from the beach at HISC?

 

[Mark-1]

The 'Other Thing' you mention, is this the thing you can see from the beach at HISC?

I can't be sure. If you can see a thing that looks like evenly spaced seals from the Beach at HISC on the SW end of Thorney island then yes! There certainly aren't two of them.

 

[wombat88]

That's it, I tried to convince members of the Tideway Association that it was a row of seals but it was pointed out to me that most seals had not been to Sandhurst.

 

[northwind]

This was found by the HYC's commitee boat.. left a big hole in the bottom of it which let the water in