Two new lads - new buoy and new boy.

Reflecting in the after glow of an epic first surf of the year, I'm thawing out in front of the solid heat of a log fire, contemplating 2 trips, early start or lazy start.

Aching I decide on the later.

At noon the next day I find myself outside the Captain's Wife at Swanbridge, situated right next to Sully Island. The sun is out, fleetingly, and then decides to disappear for the duration behind the clouds of an overcast day.

My worries of being overdressed are put to rest as Hywel is intending to do some rescue practice for his up and coming 4 star assessment. We meet up with one of his regular paddling friends Rob who has 'volunteered' to get in the water for him.

Rob - wondering if this beats Sardinia as a location

It's neap tides and the intention first is to paddle up the channel to Lavernock Point and play on some rough water as the tide turns. A new play ground for me, so I'm looking forward to seeing what is on offer.

We arrive at the slab at Lavernock just in time, a little later and we would have sweated to get around. We sit and wait for the flow to build up.

Nothing exciting materialises.

We look out towards Flatholm and decide on one of the buoys out in the channel is fair game.

A nice ferry glide out. Seems to take no time to arrive, the flow has build up to just over 3 knots when we sit in the eddy behind the buoy.


This was a new buoy for me - so had to look it up on the charts when I got home (sad I know).

Special Mark Buoy

Special Mark - used to mark areas of no navigational significance but of a special nature. In this case it is the end of an unspecified discharge pipe. Does make you wonder what it is if they are not specifying it.

Rob reaches the buoy

You can just see the red Raine buoy in the distance.

Looking onto Barry - lovely innit

We paddle down with the tide, and in no time at all arrive at Sully Island ready for a little immersion - well Rob and Hywel are.

Hywel psyching himself up to roll. Flatholm in background.

I'm happy to stay in my boat and am satisfied with just a few left/right rolls.
Talk about ice cream head! That water is getting mighty chilly.

Best retreat to the Captain's Wife for refreshment. Various legends bound about this place, but it is said that before it became a pub, Sully House stood here, and was once tenanted by a ship's captain. He was in the habit of taking his wife to sea, for I'm sure he enjoyed a spot of home cooking. In them superstitious days it was considered unlucky to take a woman to sea and on one of his voyages she caught a fever and died on board. Having a corpse on board was also regarded as unlucky, so the captain stuffed her body doubled up in a lead-lined trunk in his cabin. On arriving at Sully the captain hid the trunk in the woods near the house while he could make arrangements for her coffin and burial. When he returned to collect the body, the trunk and body had gone. A ghost of a woman has haunted the site until during the 1970s when during some renovation work, underneath the area of the old stable block, a skelrton of a woman was found, doubled up. The remains were given proper burial, and the roaming captain's wife ghost was seen no more.

Not forgetting the apprés de-brief at the Captain's Wife!

Short trip today, but I'm glad we made the effort. No, really!

Not a huge trip, but nice to get out all the same

Traditionem

As one year ends a new one surely begins. Getting out for a paddle on New Years Day is stating to become a ritual neu a tradition. Needless to say I think it is a good one. Unlike the ritual that some other folk seem to partake – the annual New Year morning swim.


Well each to their own. It is after all, all good healthy fun, unless you have a dodgy ticker.

Having feasted over the festive season, I feel a little bit porky to say the least and try to rally up some souls to help me reduce my guilt and my girth - I find it necessary to open up the straps on my BA an alarmingly long way. Surely this is down to the extra layers necessary today as the water temp is heading a bit on the low side?
I’m joined by Chris and Hywel for a trip out to Tusker Rock as per last year. This time we have a beautiful sunny morning with millpond conditions.


We escape the utterly mad crowd on the beach and head out to sea for a little peace and tranquility.


It is not long before Tusker Rock appears and we land for a little walkabout.






The snow is still on the hill tops in the distance, but it is quite nice here in the sun . . . and three layers of gear!

I didn’t bother with the BBQ this year. Typical, it would have been a nice day for it, instead I shared out a few croissants with strawberry jam as a sort of continental breakfast to replace the fry-up. My excuse is that the diet starts today . . .

Take a Rest Bay Surf

My friends Mark and Maria came over from England for a few days to do a little exploration of the Glamorgan coast.

Today there was a little bit of a swell running and an offshore wind to hold up the face of the wave. Inevitably today, getting out and landing, would involve surf.

This was to be Maria's first time out through surf, and it was to be a baptism of fire. With the tide flooding we intended to ride the incoming tide from Rest Bay and head up the channel towards Southerndown, where a sandy landing could await us.

Rest Bay: Mixing it up with the boardies
(Photo: Maria)

Rest Bay is a prime surf beach. On arrival the surf looked manageable when we looked down on the beach. It just got bigger as we made ready to launch. Maria put on an exceptional show of determination but decided after being ejected a number of times that she would stay on the beach and take photos. This made me feel really rather guilty as Mark and I enjoyed ourselves out on the waves.

That little yellow thing on the left is Mark
(Photo: Maria)

Mark coming in to land. Phewww!

Mark about to catch the wave

Luuurverlee offshore wind

Bring on the next one then!

Out Beyond the Break

Yeee Haaa!
(Photo: Maria)

(Photo: Maria)

You'd never think he'd seen a boat before
(Photo: Maria)

Go Go Go!

Taking a breather

In the pocket?
(Photo: Maria)

Perhaps we should have gone for an ice cream? Next time.

Port Eynon Mumbles

May 1884 saw the first lifeboat at Port Eynon, ‘A Daughter’s Offering’, put to service.

By 1906, her 22 years of toil had seen her save 39 souls and she gracefully retired.

Her replacement, ‘Janet’, was not to be so lucky.

Her tragic story began on New Years Day 1916. ‘S.S. Dunvegan’, dragging her anchor in Oxwich Bay, was in danger of wrecking off Pennard Cliffs. Putting out through heavy seas and a gale the crew, together with the lifeboat from Mumbles, rowed out to offer their assistance, only to find it not required. Turning to head for home she was hit by a huge wave that capsized her. By design she self righted. One of the crew had managed to stay aboard while the remainder were thrown to the sea. One crew member never made it back aboard and was drowned. While the others scrambled aboard ‘Janet’ was caught broadside by another roller and went over again. Two more members of the crew were claimed by the storm. The crewmen aboard the Mumbles lifeboat passed by, but in the gale they were unaware of the unfolding tragedy. The ‘Janet’, now oar less, drifted with the wind. 30 hours after launching she arrived at Mumbles with the remnants of her crew suffering from exhaustion and exposure.

Following this tragedy, the RNLI closed the Port Eynon lifeboat station.

Copies of news articles on the Disaster can be seen on the wall of the fish and chip shop at the top of the beach.

Memorial in the graveyard of Port Eynon

Driving down into Port Eynon, you pass a church on the last bend towards the beach. It is very easy to miss the lifeboatman that looks outward from the graveyard.

By coincidence our trip today has the same start and end point as that of the tragic tale of 1916, Port Eynon along the coast, crossing Oxwich Bay to end at Mumbles lifeboat station.

Hywel, Adrian and Chris on Port Eynon beach

Horton across Port Eynon Bay

Heading out across Port Eynon Bay to Oxwich Point

Caswell Bay

Langland Bay

Mumbles Head Lighthouse

Mumbles lifeboat station

19/10/09