Brightlingsea 23rd-24th August

As the high tides for this weekend were at about 1630 it was difficult to find a place to dry out overnight so the plan was to meet up at East Mersea, Stone Point, just opposite Brightlingsea, at 6pm on the Saturday evening and then decide where to spent the night. Three people had let me know that they were coming, so the rally was:- myself in Rebell coming from Heybridge Basin; Nick Reckert in Piglet, a West Wight Potter from Woodrolfe Creek, Tollesbury; Charles Proudfoot in Tai Tai II, a Roamer, from the Walton Backwaters; and Peter Bick in an Orkney Shoreliner from Bradwell.

Peter, Charles and I met at Stone Point at 2pm after some very good sailing in F2-4 winds and warm weather; Charles after a long beat down the Wallet from Walton-on-the-Naze. Although a popular place on a Bank Holiday Saturday with water skiers etc. it was so pleasant that we stopped for some time for a natter, a swim and scraping barnacles off Rebell and Tai Tai II. Charles Stock’s idea of using an empty Fray Bentos individual steak dumpling tin really does work for cleaning the bottom of a boat.

Eventually we dragged ourselves away to sail up the Colne with the tide to explore Alresford Creek which was new to the three of us. It is a lovely creek, about a mile long, with 2-3 metres of water right up to the head of the creek (at just after spring tides). Returning with the tide to East Mersea Stone Point we met Nick with impeccable timing at 1800 and sailed into Pyefleet to anchor for the night. There were many yachts in the creek but still plenty of room for us and we rafted up for drinks and natter until the sun went down. It was a beautiful evening with a lovely sunset.

I had an unusual experience on three occasions during the night and if anyone could give me an explanation I should be grateful. I heard the sound of a twin engined motorboat very loudly in the cabin of Rebell but when I went into the cockpit the sound was barely audible. There was no boat motoring in the creek and the nearest one could have been was in the Colne well over a mile away and I thought it possibly came from the Blackwater estuary over two miles away as the crow flies. The sound went on for several minutes with a fluctuation in volume. A similar occurrence two weeks later makes me think that this sound is wind in the rigging resonating in a particular wind condition.

Charles was off by 0430 to take the tide back to Walton and Nick left soon after. The creek had become rather choppy at the turn of the tide but it settled down again so I was able to get back to sleep again. Peter and I left Pyefleet sometime after 1000, just before low tide, to head for Tollesbury Creek which Peter wanted to explore. On the way we met John Perry cruising in company with a Wayfarer. Beating out of the Colne I was catching a sailing barge and wondering how I was going to pass her, as they normally have the right of way in these restricted waters, when she very kindly went aground and allowed me to get clear of her before eventually freeing herself from the mud with much churning from her propeller! Peter (with a 15 HP outboard on the back of his Shoreliner!!!) was able to explore Woodrolfe Creek and Old Hall Creek whilst I was able to reach the mouth of the creek in time to listen to the Belgian Grand Prix and have lunch before we returned to Bradwell and Heybridge Basin respectively.

The weather for the rally was ideal with warm winds from the south or southwest force 3-4 maximum and dying away at night.

The Alde 6th-7th September

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