Weather watching has become a compulsive hobby. The week leading up to our proposed second practice journey to Brighton was one of varied weather and very strong winds. Luckily, on two of the three days we had set aside for a journey, there were windows of good weather in the mornings. We decided to "turn left" instead of our usual right coming out of the Solent, and set a course for Brighton Marina. Having just purchased Homeport software, which enables you to plot your course at home on the computer and then transfer that route to your Garmin via a card reader, we were keen to test the new method on this journey. However, once again we didn't get off to a good start, as the route hadn't been saved onto the Garmin card, and we ended up having to manually enter our waypoints into the Garmin on arrival at Southampton Dry Stack. Again, our departure was nearly an hour later than planned. However, once we got going, the conditions provided a pleasant surprise. Having been expecting mild-moderate seas after the recent unsettled weather, we were greeted with flat calm, and were able to get ConTTentment moving along at a very happy 30 kts, quickly making up for our late departure. Lessons learnt from our previous trip regarding rehydrating, the water was so calm that we were able to stop mid-ocean and enjoy a cup of tea!
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| Brighton Marina |
Brighton Marina provided another very pleasant surprise. Tucked in behind a serious sea wall, the Marina is apparently the largest marina in Europe and run by incredibly efficient and friendly staff. Our first task was to refuel ConTTentment, and then we ventured into Brighton itself on the tiny electric train. Brighton was surprisingly busy, but we finally managed to find ourselves a bed for the night through the Visitors Centre. We loved our evening in Brighton, and enjoyed one of the town's best seafood restaurants for supper.
Bearing in mind our recent track record at getting away from the mooring (not good!), and the fact that our window of good weather was quite small, we set off before breakfast the following day and made the 20 minute walk back to the Marina, admiring what looked like glass like sea from the shore. Once underway, we learnt that these observations from the shore can be deceptive. By no means rough, but once out of the Marina entrance there was a definite swell, and at some points a short choppy sea made keeping on course quite challenging. Once past Selsey Bill the seas calmed down a little and we were able to make good headway, averaging 20kts.
However, the expression "calm before the storm" was definitely crossing our minds as we headed towards the Solent under a leaden sky with flat seas beneath us. Inevitably, the wind picked up and the seas became much more unsettled, a good force 4-5, and a steady downpour of rain for the last 45 minutes of the journey.
VERDICT:
Brighton: Fantastic marina, and fun town to visit.
Crew: Learning fast, but still need to get our departures better organised.
Navigation: Need to sort out glitch with Homeport, but otherwise very happy with Garmin.
Boat: Great opportunity to test her out at higher speeds in good conditions. Fantastic handling in choppy conditions.
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