Round the Wight 2024

Of the 8 boats that attended the Beaulieu Rally, 2 were unable to continue on to the RTW rally and so Mandalay and Roussillon departed on the following morning to go their separate ways. The remainder, Niobe, Fairwind, Moody Moon, Osprey, Plover and Firebird all slipped from Bucklers Hard just before noon and headed down river and joined the Solent as the west going stream kicked in.

Heading off in the direction of Yarmouth it was inevitable that the F4 breeze would come from the south west but the fleet, apart from the party leader, and with all afternoon available if necessary, shook out their sails and enjoyed a lively beat to the shelter of a fairly busy harbour. The Yarmouth Berthmasters did a fine job of locating all 6 boats in a corner close to the facilities with 3 enjoying pontoon step ashore.

Dinner had been booked in advance at the King's Head, but before this, the obligatory session of convivial banter was hosted by Piers and Chris on board Moody Moon, the boat with the biggest cockpit. The eleven of us then went to eat at the pub, which, it transpires is owned by the same chain as The Bugle. For those thinking of eating there in the future, the service was excellent and the food for some was good, for others the seafood was a little disappointing.

Much of the chat concerned the weather forecasts for the following day. How unusual that we were confronted with a range of F4 to F6 winds from the south west. Ha ha! The lower end would suit all boats, the upper only the bigger ones and then it would be testing, especially off St Catherine's Point. By the end of the evening the bold and courageous sailors from Dell Quay had unanimously decided that the northerly passage back through the Solent to Bembridge was the correct choice. Younger readers of this article must bear in mind that nearly all the crews on their boats are of very mature years who have already demonstrated their bravery/stupidity in bygone years and don't need to do it again.

And so, at a leisurely departure time of 0900hrs (it would have been 0600hrs had we been going south of the island) the fleet exited the harbour and set sail eastwards. For some it only needed large genoas flying whereas the intrepid Shrimper and Crabber required the additional canvas of a reefed gaffer mainsail in order to keep up. A F4 wind plus the tide provided an impressive 6 to 7 knots over the ground and Cowes was soon whizzing by.

The wind speed gradually increased as Ryde and its sands were given a wide berth and then thankfully Bembridge was upon us. Plover, with Mike and Simon on board had decided that the safely of Chichester Harbour was beckoning and wisely continued on their way east, dowsing their mainsail whilst crossing Hayling Bay. Chris and Janet on board their Moody Osprey also had to return to their home mooring so the remaining fleet of 4 boats docked at Duver Marina soon after lunchtime on Wednesday. Unsurprisingly, we all congratulated ourselves on making the wise decision to avoid the south side route. What skilled sailors we all are!

An early booked dinner (necessary to avoid Quiz Night starting at 8pm) at The Vine was enjoyed by the 7 surviving ralliers.

The following morning arrived quietly with little sign of the promised F6. Perhaps the forecasters were being unnecessarily gloomy? A full English was enjoyed by most of the crews in the Baywatch.

The sea looked peaceful as far as the eye could see. However, we were keen to get over to the other side just in case the forecast, which so far during our rally had been 100% correct, maintained its accuracy record. As soon as the depth over the bar showed 1.5m we let go and made our way through the buoyed and winding channel watching the sounder closely. 1.8m was seen at one point which shows that the gauge is not over generous.

Again under headsails, a fast trip back home was enjoyed. Well, sort of. By the time the West Pole was reached, the promised F6 was creating a decidedly ugly sea. At least that is the opinion of the party leader in his 22ft boat who from letting go in Bembridge to reaching DQ took no more than 2.5 bouncing hours.

As another annual Round the Wight Rally comes to an end, perhaps it is time to reflect and wonder whether the name of this rally should be changed. Over recent years, it has probably been no more than 50% correct. Next year watch out for the Possibly Round the Wight Rally to feature on the Cruiser Programme. Any more succinct title suggestions please? And let's have a few more intrepid skippers sign up, especially the younger ones.