The other day we pottered down with the last of the ebb and anchored off Higham Flats … I promptly abandoned the mate, to an anchor watch, while I went ‘ashore’ for an amble across the mud flats – hard clay mostly – to look at two old spritties that have lurked here for a…

A little earlier than planned and it was the mate who said. “Let’s go today…” before the bacon had had a chance to begin sizzling under the grill… So, that was that, we up anchored from our overnight berth in Stangate a little after low water and high tailed it out of the Thames’s largest…

Well, yes, we did in a way: we berthed well before breakfast, at least the time we’ve become accustomed to having the first repast of the day… The mate called the marina at the top of the creek as we chugged up, fortunately catching an early bird. I’d spied a berth by then: there’s nearly…

The second part of our summer cruising has got underway… After a quiet crossing from Smallgains Creek we had an equally quiet evening in the delightful and historic port of Queenborough, enjoying our supper at the town’s yacht club. On the hammerhead, going ashore, we were met by Max, one of the harbour trust’s staff, and…

The other day at Queenborough, upon our arrival from the Blackwater, I found that the much vaunted new pontoon was still not in place … however the first section has arrived with the other two pieces awaiting a tow from Dover. Once these are positioned, the harbour office will be placed upon the deck. With…

Ah yes, a couple of days ago we took advantage of tide times and a reasonable wind direction to head back down to ‘home’ waters. The boat has been away for six weeks cruising around North Essex and the Suffolk rivers – time for a change. Beautiful as those northern rivers are they all, apart…

Wandering around the yard surrounding the Tide Mill Yacht Harbour I stumbled upon a little treasure. Behind a tent I discerned the friendly thwack of a mallet on a good sized chisel. Rounding a corner I found a chap hard at work… After a short chat: I had no wish to stop the work flow I was…

The entrance to the Deben, as stated in East Coast Pilot navigation news, has had an additional buoy added. This is a round mooring buoy with a red bucket ‘lashed’ to its upper body – it is relatively small but very effective. Speaking to an owner who moors in the river, he said its been…

A season or so back I visited and wrote about the work being carried out at Harwich’s old Town Station goods yard. At the time the project were engaged in converting a building into a useable space creating work experience and training programmes in sundry trades in the process.: many of these are directly transferable…

Whether or not it is complacency with one’s surroundings or just a little bit of bad luck, nothing can excuse the person in charge for going aground: it is the skipper’s fault… Here I have to take full responsibility for a little happening that overtook us upon tacking back down from Manningtree today: I sit,…

Last week I was bumbling around the Deben with a crew other than my mate … visiting Robertson’s, because it is a traditional yard catering for traditional vessels, I was able to look round two Finesse yachts sitting awaiting new owners. These are, firstly, the Finesse 27 Tugela, sail number 101, built it is thought in…

Taken from a face book post… Been away for 9 days now …175 miles sailed .. first dose of showers, experienced over night and now clearing away, but blustery. Sitting under woods at Pin Mill. Clutching a mug of coffee, under my boom tent, I watched intrepid bargemen make timed dashes for the line for…

Ah yes … we left Pin Mill in an absolute calm. There was the faintest of something or other stirring the bobs on several spritsail barges sleeping on the hard, but nothing like we needed to make it to the Deben bar a little after low water. Pin Mill reflecting… Our mooring was close to another classic,…

Leaving my good mate at home I broke free of the Lower Thames and made passage down the Swin with my brother crewing … it was a partial darkness sail, well, light is relative and the dawn wasn’t far off for we could see the first signs lighting the tops of the low cloud that hung…

Upon visiting both of these places recently I found some changes: For the Queenborough All Tide Landing, the charge for craft up to 27 feet is now £10, larger craft remain at £12. The trot boat is thrown in… The boat does finish running relatively early though and it is prudent to use own tender…

Smallgains Creek at the eastern end of Canvey Island has recently gained a new addition to the small fleet of craft fishing commercially from here. The boat, a clinker wood ‘Hastings’ type, is something of an oddity in the area. She’s a functional, neat and smart looking thing with a pole mast that is possibly designed…

A little job: Out recently I looked aloft and spotted a wee problem developing to a batten pocket on Whimbrel’s mainsail. I’d gazed upwards to check the sail’s set –  a little after putting a reef in the main on the day we sailed across the Thames to watch some of the Medway Barge Match. I…

Well, it had to be done … the night before I’d been at the Oval cricket ground watching Essex dismantle Surrey, though reading the report in The Times, I was clearly at a different match, however… In the Medway barge match and the others that take place during the season, reporting tends to of a more…

I’ve mentioned the Finesse Rally at Chatham Marina over the recent Bank Holiday weekend, but that was just the first part of our mini cruise covering six days. The mate was in raptures: in the past ‘school reports’ have hung like the sword of Damocles over her head taking up the largest portion of a…

Wow, did we ever have a fantastic rally again with weather that was, for a Bank Holiday weekend, reasonable. The weather controls so much of our lives and we had a good share of the sunshine around. Mariette joins Whimbrel in Stangate Creek… We had three boats collecting in Stangate Creek – Whimbrel, Mariette, both F24s, and…