Kindred Spirit II sailing around the UK farewell tour

We left Shoreham with the early morning fishermen and having nervously surfed into the harbour about 12 hours previously we now chugged out onto a flat calm. The moon shimmered in the completely smooth sea and we were able to make beans with fried eggs and a cafetiere of strong coffee for breakfast as we pottered along. The atmosphere was surreal, with sunrise colouring the eastern horizon and the daytime moon shining to the south both reflected in the glassy sea surface. It is May 27th 2021. Our plan was to motor, and if possible, sail, against the tide to get round Selsey Bill just in time to pick up the strange late tidal flow that comes round the Isle of Wight and would push us along to our initial target of reaching Cowes. The wind started to pick up and we had some good sailing making headway against a south westerly breeze but with the tide working strongly in our favour. We pushed on past Cowes then switched to using the motor to scream along in the huge ebb flowing out of th

  I t was a lovely start to a day of sailing, puttering out of Studland Bay past the Old Harry sea stack. The predicted winds took a while to pick up but eventually we had some fair sailing with easterly winds blowing on our backs. We motor sailed against the tidal flow round three minor headlands before eventually reaching St Alban’s Head on the turn of the tide. We used the ‘inside’ route close in to the shore and then began to run with both the increasing wind and the developing tidal flow to reach the famous stretch of Dorset coastline that includes the tourist hotspot of Lulworth Cove and the famous sea arch Durdle Door. Although our next obvious port of call was Weymouth, we could not resist the opportunity to anchor for the night in Lulworth Cove. The forecast was for only modest winds from the east and then the north and this is ideal for conditions for a stay in the cove whereas a strong southerly wind apparently makes for an uncomfortable night and probably a difficult exit

  We began the day with a little boat tour of Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door but then set off for a carefully timed encounter with the infamous headland Portland Bill. It is May 30th 2021. We were aiming to arrive when there would be slack water round the Bill. This meant, as an alternative to going 3 miles offshore, that we could take the ‘inside track’ staying just 300 metres off the rocky shore but inside the white-water overfalls that are caused by the tidal flows going round the Bill. We calculated the time required to cover the ten miles to get to Portland Bill, taking into account the wind and tidal flows. It all worked out nicely and although we like our solitude it was reassuring to join other yachts clearly working to the same schedule that we had worked out. It was great to get close-up views of the lighthouse and cliffs as we sailed round. We took a bearing across Lyme Bay and set off on a 45 mile journey for Dartmouth. For a couple of hours we had good winds behind us but

The wind is from the east and it is very difficult to ignore that fact. Having arrived at Dartmouth tired and ready for bed, we woke early to enjour wonderful sunshine and calm across the river and town. We enjoyed poached duck eggs for breakfast and filled up with diesel and water. We decided that the east wind could not be left to its own devices and so we set out for a compromise rest day consisting of only 5 hours of sailing to get to the lovely haven of Salcombe. This 'little' trip round Start Point became the most exciting sailing we have had so far. Great big rolling waves and a bit of wind over tide chaos combined to make running down the wind a surfing experience. Start Point is so named because sailors when passing towards the west noticed the end of the channel 'chop' and the start of the Atlantic rollers. we did not dare to take the inside track on this headland and went out to sea but perhaps not far enough to avoid the race. Eventually we reached more reas

Today we left Salcombe and came to Fowey (pronounced Foy) and it is great. We had such a friendly welcome from the harbour patrol and then took a water taxi to a great harbour view pub terrace. Oh yes and I should probably talk about the sailing... We had a lie-in and patiently waited, mark produced a brillient duck egg omelette with onion and mushrooms. Then we left Salcombe to turn south round the Bolt Head in slack water and set off on the 34 mile journey to Fowey. It is 1st June 2021. Keen to get started we then had a problem raising the main sail. The clip on the second slider (technical stuff this) somehow got jammed and we mucked about turning into wind before eventually sorting that out. We sailed downwind but it did not last for long and soon we had to resort to motor sailing. To be honest the day turned into a calm motor boat trip. We were a bit fed up but took turns to have a sleep and then had a brilliant meeting with a school of porpoises who played around the boat for ten

  As quietly as possible we left our Fowey pontoon, tightly packed with visiting yachts, right before the dawn. We motored out onto yet another smooth sea surface. We wanted to be at Lizard Point at 1pm, give or take half an hour, in order to sail round the headland at slack water. Lizard Point, better known simply as The Lizard is supposedly the last significant headland of the south coast of England, actually there is still Gwennap Head to get around, which is basically the south west corner of Land’s End headland. It is exciting for us to pass The Lizard because it feels like a significant point in our journey round the UK. Newlyn, next door to Penzance, is the last stop before Land’s End. However, we hope to extend our journey westwards to reach the Isles of Scilly and spend a couple of days there before heading north towards the Irish Sea. In effect we will have 'done' one side of the UK and are ready to turn right. It is 2nd June 2021. It is difficult to pre-judge your pr

Wow, I can hardly believe it but we are sitting on a pub terrace overlooking St Mary's Bay in Hugh Town, the 'capital' of the Isles of Scilly. Our boat, Kindred Spirit II is moored on a visitor buoy and presumably as a side effect of the pandemic, basically with no foreign visitors, we have just managed to book a table for this evening at one of the best restaurants on the Isles. We seem to have managed one side of the UK, admittedly it is not the longest side but having decided to go clockwise it is the one that goes against the prevailing wind. It is 3rd June 2021. Having copped out yesterday due to the threat of thunder storms we faced steady westerly winds today and some 'wind over tide' for the first few hours. Our trip across was mainly motor sailing against the wind but once the Isles were clearly in view and the sun came out we started to sail properly and the engine was silenced. We arrived earlier than planned and so due to local tides decided to tackle th

  We enjoyed three days pottering around the Isles of Scilly and ended by anchoring in the Great Bay of St Martin’s on a fantastic beach with yellow sand and clear blue water. The Isles are a tourist hotspot and we enjoyed some great food, in particular we will give a shout for ‘catch of the day’ at the New Inn on Tresco, our best meal out so far on the trip and with excellent and friendly service as well.  It did occur to me, given the number of tourists here, that the reputation of the midge and rumours of relentless rain help to stop many Scottish islands from becoming tourist hotspots.                                                Great gardens big and small... We did the tourist walk round the Garrison above Hugh Town – lots of cannons and great views. We did the Tresco Abbey Gardens and they are very impressive, although we liked the garden of the little café on St Martin’s almost as much. On our last night we cooked on the boat and sat outside watching the sun go down, kept w

The harbour at Padstow is saved from drying out by a tidal gate, but that constrains your time of departure. To catch the flood tide heading up the Bristol Channel towards Lundy we left the harbour and just turned the corner to a lovely anchorage close to the cliffs in Port Quin bay. We slept and chilled until midday then set off for Lundy with the tidal flow and light southerly winds to help us on our way. We met more porpoises along the way and Mark took a turn to sit on the front of the boat. After some experimentation he was soon convinced that tapping on the side of the boat encouraged the porpoises to jump.     We arrived on Lundy in the early evening, it is 8th June 2021. We dropped anchor and pumped up our little dinghy to get to shore. It is a stiff climb up the path to the pub and we were too late for dinner so settled for a couple of quick pints before marching up the Island to catch the Devil’s Slide in the setting sun. Unfortunately, it is over 30 years since I visited Lun

After a foggy trip down the Milford Haven, the big oil tankers were all at terminals, w e had a lovely evening at Dale, near the exit of Milford Haven, in the very welcoming yacht club with excellent food and a visitor mooring that dried out but gave us a good start. We left our anchorage at Dale in Milford Haven on 10th June 2021. At our first night in Milford Haven we stayed at the Neyland Marina, where they have some fancy pods... in case you are in a Wayfarer.  We then moved to a mooring at Dale, to get a quick getaway from the Haven in the morning. We parked on the club pontoon in the morning once we the tide lifted the boat, to be ready for a prompt escape...   Milford Haven in the fog, is that a sh..., maybe, yes it is...   Leaving Milford Haven in the morning, some traffic as the fog clears... Our aim was to sail round St David’s Head, including passing through the gnarly Jack Sound and Ramsey Sound, referred to as ‘Jack and Ramsey’ by salty sea dogs. These fairly narrow gaps b

We went through Bardsey Sound at 7am without a problem but then had light winds and an urgent appointment with South and North Stacks on Holy Island. We had to do more motor-sailing but managed to be on schedule and went round the South Stack with just a bit of rough water. The biggest worry was that our Navionics app had already. for the previous hour, had a big blue westerly tidal flow arrow against us at North Stack. It is Sunday 13th June 2021. Distant views of Snowdonia and getting nearer to South Stack at last...   In terms of tidal flow we were kept guessing to the end, and as we approached North Stack I had in mind that we might need to turn back and get round to a safe bay on the south side of Anglesey to wait for a tide.   Castell Helen with its distinctive plumb vertical red wall but with one or two easier climbs on it. Then Gogarth itself with some harder but classic climbs. As we sailed close to the rocks of North Stack we were visited by two or three Pilot Wales swimmin