Felixstowe to London
We refuelled at Suffolk Yacht Harbour before heading back out to sea. Lucy had made sandwiches, and she and Peter sat down to eat and chat, leaving me to helm, navigate and keep a lookout while struggling to keep my sandwich in one piece. Peter simply said, “You know what you are doing, so I may as well enjoy talking to Lucy.” So much for the crew! Two miles out to sea the GPS gave up on us again.
Our course took us past Clacton and then out past Foulness and Maplin Sands. By 4.00 pm we were approaching the Thames estuary, out of sight of land, navigating by compass and sighting the shipping buoys as they appeared over the horizon. The mist had increased slightly as the temperature had dropped in the afternoon. Visibility was now around one mile. On one occasion we deviated from course by a mile or so, to close in and positively identify one buoy and verify our position. The water was a little choppier, but the wind had remained at around force 3 all day. We entered the ‘official’ mouth of the Thames at Sea Reach beacon at around 4.30. By now we had used some of the fuel in the tanks and the boat speed had crept up to over 15 knots. I phoned Limehouse with an ETA of 7.30.
We passed several ships leaving the Thames. We knew we would be punching up against the tide on our way in. We were able to maintain our speed throughout, passing Southend to starboard, the Medway to port and into the sheltered water of the tidal Thames. Soon, the water became millpond smooth. The GPS burst into life to tell us where we were! Under the QE2 road bridge, through the Barrier, past Greenwich, Canary Wharf, and the Dome and into Limehouse lock at exactly 7.30!
As we moored up in the marina, Peter said “Congratulations, that was a great trip. I enjoyed being on your boat. You clearly know about navigating and boat safety and can handle your boat. You meet all the requirements for the International Certificate of Competence, so I will send you the paperwork to apply to the RYA for certification”
What a marvellous trip, in perfect conditions -
The next morning with the whole family on board we left Limehouse at 5.00 am, two hours before high water, and cruised through London on the flood tide. An early morning mist hung over the glassy water and the rising sun lit up the buildings as we approached. Our own personal daytime ‘Son et Lumiere’. Pure magic!
I phoned Broom on the Monday to thank them for arranging a genial skipper and to tell them about the GPS. Apparently they had had several calls from Broom owners who were unable to obtain a GPS signal that weekend. Perhaps the Americans were busy carrying out maintenance work on their satellites!