Chatham to London

Hi everyone,
Last Friday evening we trained down to Chatham.  At 0700 on Saturday we locked out from Chatham Maritime Marina for our passage towards St Katharine's Dock in London.

Here are the usual plots for the passage...

Zen Again Track

Zen Again Speed

And here are the usual statistics...

• Distances/Speeds

• Route Distance = 51nm

• GPS Distance = 53nm

• Duration = 9 hours

• Average ground speed = 5.9 kt

• Weather

• Minimum wind speed = 2 kt

• Average wind speed = 15 kt

• Maximum wind speed = 20 kt

• Apparent wind angle range = 0 to 120

• Seas up to 0.5m

• Initially sunny, then increasingly cloudy.

• Engine

• Total = 4 hours

• Driving = 4 hours

• Charging = 0 hours

Initially the weather was very pleasant with a mostly clear sky and a light southerly breeze.  We motor-sailed down the Medway in the early morning light.

Approaching the lock in Chatham Maritime Marina

Heading down the Medway River at dawn

As we approached Sheerness at the mouth of the Medway we could sail in the 10-15 knot southerly.  We sailed around the Montgomery wreck before gybing and heading west.  We had a very nice sail up the Thames Estuary.

As the river narrowed and its meanders took us directly into the veered SW wind we returned to motoring.  By then the tide was flooding and we had over 3 knots of current with us.

Approaching the M25 Dartford Bridge 

Approaching the Thames Barrier

As we approached central London the river's meanders became more frequent.  The SW wind was increasing a little and funnelling along the river when it was aligned.  We had to keep a close eye on the high-speed ferries which whizzed past.

Approaching Tower Bridge

On arrival off St Katharine's we had to wait while a group of boats locked-out.  That involved slow circles while keeping a close eye on traffic.  It was a bit weird going around in circles so close to iconic Tower Bridge.

Locking-in was fairly straight-forward.  We were allocated a berth in the Eastern Basin.  The OCC's Port Officer and his wife were there to take our lines.

Entering St Katharine's Dock

Since arriving we've been busy sorting out the gear we moved aboard from our apartment.  We're also gradually stripping off sails and deck gear in preparation for winter.  We're enjoying SKD and it's fantastic not having to commute by train every day!

Ramsgate to Chatham

Hi everyone,
Yesterday we had a fun sail from Ramsgate to Chatham.  We trained down from London on Friday evening.  During the week we remotely oversaw an engine service following our engine problems described in the preceding post.

Here are the usual plots for the passage...

Zen Again Track

Zen Again Speed

The speed shows we held the morning's flood tide well.  Then as the tide turned against us in the Medway the increased wind helped overcome it.

And here are the usual statistics...

• Distances/Speeds

• Route Distance = 45nm

• GPS Distance = 45nm

• Duration = 9 hours

• Average ground speed = 5.0 kt

• Weather

• Minimum wind speed = 2 kt

• Average wind speed = 12 kt

• Maximum wind speed = 22 kt

• Apparent wind angle range = 0 to 150

• Seas up to 1m

• Initially sunny, then foggy, then misty with rain.

• Engine

• Total = 4 hour

• Driving = 4 hours

• Charging = 0 hours

We departed Ramsgate at 0645 after an early morning engine check.  We were followed out of the harbour by HMS Puncher, an Archer class patrol vessel.

There was a very light NW wind so we motored north towards North Foreland, regularly checking the bilge!  It was a beautiful sunny morning and it was nice watching the sun rise and seeing the coast lit by the dawn light.

Just another sunrise (with HMS Puncher)

As we passed North Foreland the wind picked up a little and the visibility steadily degraded.  We motor-sailed into the gentle NW breeze as the fog reduced visibility to 200m.  We kept a sharp lookout in addition to monitoring AIS, hopping from bouy to bouy as we approached the Princes Channel.  We had our tricolour lit for the rest of the passage.

On entering the Princes Channel we "tacked" and were able to get some help from the wind.  Visibility improved to about 1nm.  The wind gradually increased and backed to NNW.  We passed several east-bound ships.  We talked with one of them on VHF to agree which side we'd pass - red to red in this case.

By the time we passed into the main channel we had killed the donk and we having a great sail.  It was a little chilly though!  Visibility had improved to 1-2nm.  A set of commercial traffic kept us busy, including a very large container vessel which had his very loud fog horn going regularly.  We had a quick chat on London VTS channel 69 with the pilot conning her.

Shivering Sand WW2 Forts

It was fun sailing past two of the WW2 forts we used to race to from the Medway when sailing with my uncle in the 1980s.

Red Sand WW2 Forts

In the main channel we had a nice 15-18 knot NNW breeze and were cracking off into the Medway approach channel.  We stayed just out of the channel, passing the famous sunken WW2 Liberty Ship Montgomery - still full of ammo!

It was great fun sailing back into the Medway and passing so many landmarks I remember from the "old days".  We had a great sail up the river, gradually shedding sail as the wind increased and it started to rain.  And rain.  And rain.

As we sailed further up the river we passed through several racing fleets.  Reminded me of sailing home to Fremantle Sailing Club after a weekend at Rottnest Island.  Except for the opaque water, muddy shore, poor visibility, rain and cold!!  Very cold.

We arrived at Chatham Maritime Marina at 1545.  We were lifted about 4 metres in the lock and they're not shy about pouring the water in!  The floating dock with many cleats and wood battens makes it a simple operation.

In the lock at Chatham Maritime Marina

In the pen

After drying off and tidying up we explored the surrounding area before in the rain.  The development around the marina has lots of apartments, shops and eateries.  We had dinner at the Ship and Trade pub/hotel/restaurant.

This morning dawned with clear sunny skies.  We spent the morning drying out our gear.  We then headed into Chatham and walked to Rochester to explore the area where I spent much of my childhood.  The Medway towns certainly seem a brighter and cleaner place than I recall - great to see.

Rochester

Rochester Cathedral

Rochester Castle

We had lunch at the Ye Arrow pub.  Their beer garden has a great view - see above photo!

The Pub

From there we walked down to the Medway river and across the bridge.  The bridge was reconstructed in 1914.  It is ornately decorated.

Rochester Bridge

We're now looking forward to the last leg to St Katharine's Dock in London.