Charles started cruising by buying an elderly 16ft half-decker Zephyr shortly after the war and mentioned that burning off a badly leaking boat often results in a beautifully leaking boat! After a memorable first cruise, covering all of three miles on the River Blackwater, more lengthy cruises were made in the following summers along the east coast from MaIdon and down to the Solent.

When the time came to replace Zephyr, Charles had to take into consideration the problems of accommodating a family afloat, so he bought a Fairey Marine Falcon 16ft bare hull for building up to his own requirements. Shoal Waters is fitted with a small cabin, a comfortable cockpit, and gaff rig. Charles has been delighted by the use of the gaff rig which, in his opinion, is the most suitable type for small boat cruising. Shoal Waters is easy to handle and Charles finds that a weekend cruise of a hundred miles is a pleasure, not a marathon. Some excellent slides were shown of Shoal Waters and of the east coast area. Charles made a number of points in his talk, as follows :-

(1) Log details of all cruises, however small. (2) Never trust charts. Inside a river mouth, the shore is seen more easily, in which case, an Ordnance Survey map is more useful. (3) Never moor on top of the tide, wait until half an hour after high water to avoid neaping. (4) Dinghy cruising can be miserable — so make every effort to make life comfortable. The weakest link in a boat is often the crew, especially if cold and wet.