LOA: 12' 0" Beam: 4' 10" Sail Area: 85 sq. ft. Weight, excluding cruising gear, 315 lbs. approx. Construction: Clinker. Rig: Gunter or Bermudan. Designer/Builder: L.H. Walker & Co., West Street, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex.

Introduction The Tideway first appeared in the early 1950's and was known simply as the 'Walker 12'. Nearly 500 of these craft have been built, most of which are used for day sailing, although the Thames Estuary Y.C. does provide class racing. Incidentally, the Tideway has a very generous handicap, so that menagerie group racing can be rewarding! A Class Association was formed about six years ago, and the name 'Tideway' was adopted at that time.

Why I chose the Tideway Previously, I had owned a 25' clinker-built double-sculling camping skiff (as in J K Jerome's “Three Men in a Boat”). This boat had been rowed up and down the Thames from Old Windsor to Lechlade, providing immense enjoyment. Gradually, my crews 'swallowed the hook' and I found myself with a magnificent camping craft which was definitely too large for my needs. However, the experiences with this boat had convinced me that small craft could be successfully adapted for camping or cruising, providing the comforts of the Ritz were not expected.

I now wanted a smaller boat, powered by sail instead of oars, and to explore estuaries as well as inland waters. Although I had crewed in a variety of sailing boats previously, I now wanted to re-learn to sail but this time as the skipper.

The Tideway seemed to fit my needs in all respects: - - it sailed well - it was very stable (I can stand on any part of the side benches or thwarts, without being tipped into the water) - it had plenty of useful stowage space, relative to its size - it was gunter rigged (good for low bridges and moorings in high winds) - the boat’s size did not present great problems trailing and launching - 12 feet of mahogany clinker would take half the time to maintain, compared with the camping skiff (a good theory anyway) - a DCA member, living locally, had adapted a Tideway for solo sailing, fitting some useful modifications. Then in addition, he had amply proved the boat's sea worthiness. The boat was for sale.........

Fitting the 'mod. cons' The following paragraphs describe the simple changes and additions I have made to make the Tideway suitable for cruising with a crew of two. The remarks are applicable to any similar length boat. Dinghy racing enthusiasts should stop reading immediately; the rest of the article is about adding weight!

Stowage As the obvious stowage spaces under the side benches were already filled with buoyancy bags, I was restricted to the space under the foredeck, and in the stern locker for gear and food stowage. This was a good restriction because it stopped me from loading too much gear aboard and thus reducing safety margins.

A layout of the boat follows:

Bow Storage Space Sleeping bags, spare clothes and oilskins are stowed under the foredeck. The overnight gear is wrapped in plastic or kept in a Thomas Foulkes rubber bag (alas, no longer available). The storage shelf is set low down, enabling the gear to be removed very easily. I would like to fit a canvas flap from the end of the foredeck back to the forward thwart to prevent spray creeping back inside and also to prevent the gear from floating away in a capsize.

Stern Locker This is a full width locker with a top-opening lid. Food and the stove are kept here in plastic boxes, all bought at Woolworth's. The lid fits very loosely, allowing spray and rain to seep in from above, so everything has to be “containerised”. Next season I will stow the camping cover on top of the locker to keep some of the water out.

Pouches I bought a couple of ex - W.D. pouches, approx. 9" x 5" x 5", which I fitted to the front of the locker. Although small, these bags are very useful and are very accessible. One is used for the bosun's bag and outboard spares etc. The other is used as a temporary storage space for a thermos flask, can of beer, or 'Instamatic' camera.

Camping cover I do not like the idea of being dependent on finding campsites ashore when I am sailing. Staying afloat has had many advantages, not least being that part of the tent (i.e. the boat) is draughtproof and waterproof. Weathertex of Winkfield made up a cover for the Tideway, which fits over the boom (kept up by topping lifts). The cover is tied down to lacing hooks along the hull. Two shock cords are rigged to prevent the usual caving-in antics of a ridge tent. The only snag with this cover is that the material was proofed with a blue dye. Every time the cover is used, the crew always get the blues. The cover weighs about five pounds, and is stowed under the starboard side of the centre thwart.

Certainly, there is plenty of windage. If it really blows hard, then I drop the boom down a notch on the topping lifts. Cruising with a very small dinghy is a marginal activity, in my opinion, so I must be prepared for some uncomfortable nights, when the cover has to be well reefed down. Anyway, in high winds, I would not sleep very soundly, even with the most aerodynamic cover over me.

The Outboard A 3 H.P. motor is very suitable. I bought an Anzani Pilot, because the 360º pivot facility was very handy for the Thames. The motor fits alongside the centre-board case on the port side. A kitbag and bits of canvas are used to prevent oil getting over the boat and also to keep the ‘electrics' dry.

Rigging Changes Throat and peak halyards are led aft onto jamb-cleats, fitted on the centre-board case. Sliding jamb-cleats have been fitted for the foresail sheets. Incidentally, before putting up the cover, I reverse the jamb-cleats, so that the swivel parts are outboard of the hull, by about 3" on either side. A shock-cord line is then led over the boom and the ends tensioned in the cleats. The line prevents the cover from caving in at this point. Twin topping lifts are fitted, led to a stainless steel Y piece on the end of the boom. These two lines make the handling of the gunter yard extremely easy. I am quite sure that the provision of topping lifts as standard fittings on gunter boats would overcome the one objection to this rig, namely the control of the yard.

Sleeping arrangements The floorboards are in four pieces. These are placed on top of the thwarts and side benches. Then groundsheets and the sleeping bags are unrolled. The sleeping area is thus 8' by 4'6", quite spacious in fact. As the boat is very stable, raising the centre of gravity to thwart level does not cause any problems. I do admit that stowing all the gear off the floor and off the thwarts and benches call for agility on the part of the crew but practise makes perfect. The boards could do with some strips of rubber slipped over the edges to stop them sliding about during the night. It is a bit of a shock to wake up, sleeping half on the thwarts and half in the bilges, when one of the boards has fallen through.

Conclusion I have sailed the Tideway for five seasons, and the boat has fulfilled all my expectations. As a small dinghy, suitable for cruising in sheltered waters, it is ideal.