A dose of vitamin sea
General Practitioner Nick Leather prescribes himself, his son and his father-in-law a sailing trip east from Dorset to Suffolk
Morale was at its lowest ebb at our surgery, for patients and staff alike, as the effects of lockdown started to bite. Like so many, Ben, my son, was preparing for school exams with constantly changing goal posts. I certainly felt for all the students trying to complete their studies.
Ben and I were yearning to be back at sea and exploring pastures new. We normally sail west along Devon and Cornish coasts and to France, but how about going east from Portland to Ipswich and the River Orwell in Suffolk? My father-in-law Keith, now in his 80s, was also keen to join us.
This led, initially, to armchair passage planning, pilotage and looking at the logistics. Even at such an early stage of preparation I could feel the shackles of stress loosening and realised what a profound positive effect sailing has on one’s mental health. It was to prove a great tonic.
With favourable south-westerly winds we departed Portland Harbour in early August in Musketeer, a 33ft Westerly Storm, using the easterly currents to sail past multiple dormant cruise ships at anchor in Weymouth Bay.
The white chalk cliffs offered a dramatic backdrop as we sailed parallel to Lulworth Cove and St Alban’s Head, Swanage. We ran down the western approaches of the Solent and, as darkness descended, we rested overnight at East Cowes Marina.
Departing early in fine weather, we continued east, passing No Man’s Land and Horse Sands forts, and keeping clear of the shipping lanes. The sense of adventure grew as, with Chichester Harbour abeam, we moved into new sailing grounds.
We needed to motor-sail through Looe Channel until the wind freshened and the vast Rampion windfarm appeared. We were surprised by the sheer size of the turbines.
Turning towards the Seven Sisters cliffs, we rounded Beachy Head before approaching the safe water mark off Eastbourne Harbour.
On day three we progressed on to Dover, experiencing a relatively shallow sea for the first 10 miles. The area grew busy with ships and we entered Dover Harbour entrance through a swell. Following a night in the tidal
harbour, we left to the sobering sight of a Border Force vessel carrying migrants wrapped in foil blankets.
Having rounded South Foreland, we negotiated the shoals around Goodwin and followed the Gull Stream into Ramsgate. This section was only 15 miles but we felt glad to explore a new harbour, especially when the wind blew Force 8 that night while we berthed. The final push north-west to Harwich held the navigational challenges of multiple shoals, tides, shipping and windfarms.
To add to the adventure another low pressure system was about to move through but there was a forecast of quite reasonable winds beforehand, so we set sail, passing North Foreland and shoal dodging around cardinal markers.
Half way across this passage from Dover one could clearly see the gantry cranes of Felixstowe which is adjacent to Harwich. Taking the northern route in, to avoid the busy traffic, we moored up at Shotley Point Marina. We were just five miles from our River Orwell destination but weather conditions delayed us a further two days.
After the fierce wind abated, and a brief stop for supplies, we enjoyed an exhilarating six-mile beat up to Wolverton. The stunning, meandering Orwell is skirted by deciduous woodland. One passes through gems such as Pin Mill, so closely associated with Arthur Ransom, who once kept a boat here and based one of his novels We Didn’t Mean To Go To Sea. We had finally arrived and went alongside a berth which gave splendid views of the imposing Orwell Bridge.
Our easterly trip had many charms and did so much to knock any low mood or anxiety regarding the COVID-19 pandemic for six.