Cross your legs while crossing . . . Relief

A nice forecast loomed for the weekend. A quick barter for a free pass in exchange for a day of shopping sans children was made and Friday evening had me hastily putting together the plan to revisit the Bristol Channel Crossing. Hywel made a not too dissimilar transaction. It may have been hasty but it was thorough. Getting there was sorted, but our return the same day, to fulfill “the bargain”, posed a problem with tide times producing lack of daylight and at 2am with my brain going to sleep, my vectors were not checking out and I still needed to pack. Too many lemons and not enough oranges. One way trip it had to be.

Goodbye Nash

Setting off at 8.30 into the fog there was no sight of the other side and before long after seeing the last of Nash Lighthouse, there was no sight of land to our rear.


The fog heightened our awareness of crossing a shipping lane with this sort of viz. Every chug of a motor seemed to be coming directly towards us and those dark silhouettes of large vessels were appearing out of the fog in my mind at every turn. It made me feel very small and vulnerable indeed.

3 hours after departure the first sight of land . . . just

Then the sun breaks out as we cross Porlock Bay

4 hrs since leaving Welsh soil we enter Porlock Weir and are soon supping Somerset Cider in the glorious sunshine.

Entrance to Porlock Weir

14.4 Nm in just about 4 hrs would have been reduced
had I not needed to . . . well you know

There is a stark deviation to the very nice curve of the crossing near the English coastline at Hurlstone Point. Well I learnt that it is one thing to be prepared with a bottle for ones relief when away from landfall but without a zip or the means to gain access . . . well I put it off for as long as I could, and when I came close to the first bit of land I paddled like a man possessed against the tide and deviated for my own relief.

Don't give a 'Fig if a Swig turns to a 'Bender

Spring tides and Jim wants a run for his money, he fancies doing some buoys down Swansea way, starting off at the end of the Mumbles Mile. He asks me and Steve if we want to join in.

This is not up for a fight drinking talk, or an ecclesiastical past time. (Although the trip does have a definite cardinal tone).

We are heading out across Swansea Bay to end up at Ogmore-by-Sea, taking in a few navigational marks on the way.

Swig

First one up is the Swig South Cardinal

Cabenda

Followed closely by Cabenda South Cardinal

Kenfig

And then via Kenfig East Cardinal towards Porthcawl.

Before you know it we are landing at Ogmore and our 15.6 Nm trip is over having clocked up an impressive 7 knots in parts. This goes a long way to explain our speedy 3 and a half hour trip.

Eddystone Lighthouse Challenge

Although feeling chuffed after the successful completion of the Bristol Channel project I must confess to being more than slightly disappointed at not paddling back the next day. Two of us had decided to make the return trip. Sadly my paddling partner felt a bit under the weather in the morning. The Eddystone Lighthouse Challenge seemed an appropriate penance.

I managed to complete the challenge just before my shoulders and arms parted from my torso!

The organisation of the event was top class as was the provided buffet.

40km 6hrs 17mins