We finally managed to get going on tuesday morning after a failed start due to the bow thruster prop falling off! We left Fox`s yard Ipswich at about 1030 and slid our way down the Orwell towards the mayhem which could have been Folkestone docks…… not to be, they were very quiet, so out we slipped into the Thames estuary.
The visibility was less than a mile so it was a good time to try out the new radar system on the boat, well that works, the HD images were different to what I am used to but spotting gert big ships was a breeze…….. a small,pod of dolphins came to play a few hundred yards off the bow! It is a good job those guys use sonar as the water is so mucky there.
About 9 hours later we slipped into Ramsgate harbour at the end of an interesting daysnavigation of the Thames estuary……. it has changed a bit since the 3 years since I was last there, windfarms everywhere……….
Day 2
We set off from Ramsgate with little wind again but superb visibility….. made a change! Dodging the ferries round Dover then the long motor to Eastbourne was done……
Blog soon as an early start tomorrow.