The crew were up very early to a grey and damp morning, stowed and sorted me out for a day’s sailing, and were ready to weigh my anchor at 0630…except the engine refused to start again. Skipper applied his usual tickle and we were off, over the infamous Bar that I now realise is just as lumpy in the wrong conditions as the crew had been warned about, and East towards Brighton. Well, that’s what my compass was showing; visibility was about six boat lengths for most of the day – I couldn’t have told you if we were coastal cruising or crossing the Channel, but they seem to be able to navigate without any reference points. They took me far enough offshore that the water was a bit deeper and the waves less steep, but the Mate still suffered a little of the old mal-de-mer, which gave her an excuse for an extended nap.
A couple of racing pigeons hitch-hiked on my boom; one fell off soon after they arrived and returned to its usual method of passage, but the other remained almost all the way to Brighton – tenacious creature.
Need of another jump start of my engine resulted in us overshooting the entrance to the Marina, the lookout still hampered by poor visibility, and by the time the crew had the iron sail running and the white ones down, we had to motor 1.5M back in pretty big waves, the wind blowing straight onto the shoreline. Mate, on the helm, glanced back to see a wave the height of her shoulder bearing down on us, but of course I merely let it lift us up, slid over the top and on we went. She brought us very smoothly into the sheltered waters of the entrance channel, and as it turns out this is the easier way into Brighton Marina, from the East, as the Western Breakwater extends further into the sea to provide shelter from the prevailing wind, making the opening much easier to see. The visitors’ area was disguised by dredging vessels, so by chance we took a berth at the far end, away from the building work and the hubbub of entertainments.
After a little rest and a quick ‘happy hour’ tidy up I received two lovely ladies for a brief tour and visit, who then took the crew off along the Undercliff walk for fish and chips in Rottingdean. Sadly the chippy was closed, so after a refreshing thirst quencher and quick bus ride back, they were treated to an excellent Italian supper in Zizzi on the marina instead.