Humber images

The East Coast  light - especially when captured early or late in the day can be spectacular

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The mud banks move a littlre with every tide

Every time I leave the haven and move out into the river it looks different

The Humber silt will often make a liar of your echo-sounder - so a sounding pole is more reliable

Light, water and mud - a constantly changing delight

local boats are often deep keelers

the waters of the Humber are silty, but are now extremely clean and are teaming with wildlife

Boats, bridges, mud banks and birds

low spring tides reveal a whole new geography

in some parts the Humber is as beautiful as the Orwell or Stour

Tides run at up to four knots in the Ouse

sails make shadows on the water

in the right light the water looks like chocolate soup

channel markers  shaped like tugs

the river changes character up beyond the Humber bridge

Winteringham Haven where yachts rest among the reeds and float for just an hour or two a day

challenging navigation - although some parts of the charts are blank because the channel moves around so much

channels braid around mud banks

it feels as though the marks are steaming up the channel towards you

plenty of shipping - but also lots of room and shallows where a yacht can guarantee being well out of the shipping lanes

if you fancy seeing 10 knots on your GPS then the Humber is the place to try it

the Grimsby tower is a vital aid to navigation

the Humber offers some great sailing

Clee sands juts right out into the stream

the correct use of sounding dowell allows the shallow sailor to cheat the tides - very satisfying indeed

Essential navigation aids

Forts guard the entrance to the Humber

plenty to entertain the birdwatcher

some of the banks are firm enough to walk on - Tetney is a sand harbour at the entrance to the Humber. It offers excellent shelter in all conditions but the top of spring tides when the Easterly is blowing in waves from the North Sea

Tetney H arbour dries to a trickle revealing accres of firm sand

clean beaches for the kids to swim down around the mouth of the estuary

clean blue water and beautiful sand at the entrance to the Humber

bizarre shoreline architecture nwever fails to entertain

the Humber has a million moods

The mood of the river changes once you pass under the Humber Bridge

local yachtsmen love their deep keels

small ships pass under the bridge heading for the Trent and the Ouse

Early morning mists roll down off the banks across the Humber

Trent falls in winter under calm conditions

even Humber water can turn golden with the right light

well marked channel make it hard to get lost but easy to go aground

waiting for the early mist to clear