Solent impressions

The solent is the UK's most populous sailing location - and it is all down to geography.

It is a slice of water about 36 miles long and three to five miles wide. There are around 23,000 mooring and marina places in its many harbours and creeks. It is well bouyed and well marked and almost impossible to get lost. There are a couple of banks you can bump imnto but it is generally an astonishingly benign place to sail and of course it is close to the money generating metropolis of London - as William Cobbett called it.... "The Great Wen".

I have just spent the past five days seeking out the quiet spots - I went into four little spots - Newtown Creek, The Buleigh River, Keyhaven and Christchurch. It was wonderful - then I ran back down the entire length of the Solent on a sunny Saturday in April. Despite being far from the busiest time of year there were moments when I could see over 100 sails without using the binocs.

There are also a lot of big planing mobos and supercharged ribs. I am starting to re-learn my unhealthy relationship with mobos. As I have bneen sailing North there are fewer of themĀ  and I am able to get a bit more Zen about their occasional presence - but when a twassock wizzes past you every two minutes - or they use you as a turning mark then I can feel myself slowly losing my equanimity - I fear that come this Easter weekend it is going to become a crazy place and I will not go sailing.

D

along with all the acres of plastic AWBs (like Harmony) there are also lots of wonderful wooden boats - such as these X One Designs from Itchener sailing club

http://xodiscnews.wordpress.com/

This is about Dylan Winter's Blog, Sailing around Britain.

4 Responses to “Solent impressions”

  1. 14 April, 2014 at 9:42 amRon says:

    Agree about the mobos.
    Shame really.
    There are some great, mostly old, mobos about, and even a rib with a 100+hp engine can be good (I’ve even ‘driven’ one).
    But it’s the inconsiderate and brutish way some are handled that creates the hate within us.
    I guess some people have to work out their frustrations on the water in the same way as they do on the roads.
    Certain makes of car seem to appeal to certain types of owners in the same way as certain types of boat.

    Ho hum.
    Thank goodness, in West Cork everyone waves at everyone else – mobos, sailors, fishermen, whatever.

    I even saw a sail yesterday :)

  2. 14 April, 2014 at 11:17 amBarry says:

    Forget going anywhere near chichester and the solent this easter weekend. It really doesn’t make for a pleasant time. I will probably be sitting on my mooring up at the top of the creek enjoying the peace and quiet as it too shallow and restricted for any hooligans to bother me. That is of course if the boat gets put into the water at all!

  3. 14 April, 2014 at 11:17 pmWarren Mangan says:

    Same problem in the USA but it’s better to let them all concentrate in the popular areas and leave the quite places for the nice people .
    The west side of the Chesapeake bay can be a real zoo but sneak up some of the smaller creeks on the eastern shore and you can have a wonderfully peaceful time……
    Warren

  4. 15 April, 2014 at 12:21 amMark the Skint Sailor says:

    Last weekend was the time when most boats get launched from the hard in Langstone. I spent most of the Weekend watching the Eastney Cruising Association launching their boats and trotting round to their pontoons.

    The same must have happened at the top of Langstone because within 2 days most of the moorings you can see from the Eastern Rd were occupied.

    If there is good weather this weekend will be manic I suspect. The Solent will be filled with the London Yahoos and Chi harbour will be swarming with dinghies. If the weather holds I’m off out on Thursday afternoon as I’ve booked half a day off work so I can have a pootle round Langstone and get used to how Sprite II handles.

    Then the weekend is reserved mostly for land-based activities.

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