The Eddystone lighthouse and back ... by Tavi Murray

Out to the Eddystone lighthouse and back …

29^th August 2015

It’d been blowing hard for a week, stopping Zoe and me finishing the Plymouth to Mumbles trip, but the weekend was August bank holiday, spring tides and at last a pretty decent forecast at least in the south. Unfortunately, though, I had to be back in South Wales for Tuesday morning so couldn’t plan anything big.

Where to go? Well I was keen on another crossing … and I’ve been spending quite a bit of time this summer looking at the South West Sea Kayak Guide. With the forecast a trip out to the Eddystone lighthouse together with some south Devon coastline seemed the obvious target. The lighthouse is 20 km out to sea south of Plymouth, so there and back it’s not dissimilar in length to the Scilly’s crossing but the tides are relatively weak, and there isn’t too much shipping.

Zoe was wavering between longer trips to Scotland or Ireland and joining me … so I was contemplating another solo trip … but to my delight she decided to brave the long slog south and we were on!

Zoe and I met and spent a happy Friday evening eating, drinking and plotting/planning. Although I have since decided beer and charts don’t mix well as mine now have some interesting new brown stains!

The first lighthouse on the Eddystone Rocks was lit in 1698. The current lighthouse is the fourth incarnation and has warned shipping of the reef since 1882. The previous lighthouse had been in place since 1759 and its stumpy foundations are still in place on the rocks.

Given the tides would be flowing westward most of the day we decided to paddle from Wembury to the east of Plymouth to gain maximum assistance. We set off paddling past the Great Mewstone and stopped to call the coastguard on the VHF. Visibility was good and we could see the lighthouse off in the distance as soon as we set off, there was a very light wind and a gentle 1 m rolling surf, making a big contrast to my Lundy crossing earlier in the summer.

After nearly 3 hours my GPS told me I was still a km away, and I was convinced I must have the location wrong – it must be closer than that! But my location was spot on, it’s just that the 49 m high lighthouse is massive! 3 hours and 3 minutes paddling and we were there. It’s an incredibly impressive place. The tower reminded me of Tolkein’s tower at Isengard. Next to the current lighthouse is the stump of the third (previous) lighthouse. The swell was crashing against the rocks of the reef despite the lack of wind – there was certainly no possibility of landing. The reef is also clearly a popular fishing spot and there were some 5 or so small boats out trying their luck. A floating lunch followed with us simply staring upward in awe at the lighthouse.

The breeze had dropped and the water was now oily calm despite the swell. It was time to paddle back … and for the porpoises to start their show which continued all afternoon. I counted nine, but it could easily have been more. As usual we stopped every hour for a snack and a drink. And when we did we could hear the porpoises breathing even when we couldn’t see them. It made me wonder if there were always this many around but they are usually just hidden and their sound is masked by the waves.

Six and a half hours for the 41.2 km trip. Although we paddled some very nice coastline during the rest of the weekend this crossing was definitely the highlight. The Eddystone lighthouse is a totally inspiring structure, truly awesome … and the trip is highly recommended.

I think I’m getting a taste for these offshore trips and there’s a few more on my paddling dream list! Fancy a trip?

Tavi Murray

Foot note - The above Blog, is about an independent journey that both Tavi and Zoe made and aims to highlight and provide a snap shot of what others are doing, who are part of the mentoring programme.  Through coaching, support and encouragement from Coastal Spirit - well done girls!!  Thanks, Roger

Lundy Island Solo, by Tavi Murray

Lee Bay to Lundy Island and back, solo. 2^nd July 2015. - 76km.  By Tavi Murray

The northern track is out, southern back, the trip home took  4 hours 9 minutes.

I’ve been wanting to do the Scilly Isles crossing for more than a year now, but the right weather window and tides have not coincided, at least not at a time when me and my friends were free. The ambition to paddle to the Scilly’s lead me and two friends to do an Open Water Navigation and Tidal Planning course with Roger last spring to ensure we had the skills to plan the trip. Since then I’ve also done 5* training, and the OWNTP course is a prerequisite for a 5* assessment. Somehow it seems wrong that those skills should be theoretical at assessment time, so planning and doing an open crossing went on my 5* action plan, providing an extra reason to want to do the trip.

Research on the internet lead me to an article Roger wrote about his own solo crossing to the Scilly’s (can be seen here)  ... I found it a really inspiring read and … hang on … he paddled it solo! Yeah, but that’s Roger, he’s a Level 5 coach, he’s had his 5* for years and he’s light-years beyond my kayaking abilities even in my wildest dreams. But just there a little seed of a dream was planted. Then sometime on our way round the Roof this spring, no idea how it came up, there we were having a conversation about the Scilly’s crossing and the possibility of me paddling it solo. And not only was Roger not laughing at the possibility, he seemed supportive of the idea …

So since we’ve come back I’ve been waiting for the weather and the tides to coincide for the Scilly’s crossing. But the weather has been really unsettled and the only window so far I was tied up at work. So that dream remains at the top of my “to do” list. However last week Thursday looked fairly settled in the forecast and it was spring tides. I’d bought the chart for Lundy, and I’d stuck that crossing on my list too, but I hadn’t looked at it any further. Tuesday evening I didn’t go surfing, I spread out the chart and got my protractor, ruler and tide tables and started planning. Yes, even though it’s an 80 km round trip it looked possible to do there and back in a single day and the tide times made sense.

Who else wanted to come? And there was the problem, everyone I knew was busy. Perhaps I could do this one solo? I’ll be honest, I wasn’t sure I wanted to. The crossing has tideraces at each end and the Bristol Channel tides are fast flowing, in my experience even ferocious. Even though it’s shorter each way than the Scilly’s crossing it’s quite possibly a more committing trip. I was really apprehensive … not committing to a decision. But I also put my boat on my car, and got all my kit ready. Then on Wednesday morning I looked again at the forecast, and it seemed pretty perfect, W F1-2 and sunshine, with 1.1 m swell. How, I asked myself, was I pretending I was going to paddle to the Scilly’s solo if I couldn’t commit to this solo trip? I developed a new test for myself: I imagined trying to explain to a friend why we weren’t going to do the trip together. There was no explanation – I should go! So I booked a hostel in Ilfracombe for the night and emailed Roger to ask if he’d be my shore contact. The answer was a supportive yes.

Driving through north Devon I was dismayed to find it was foggy, with visibility down to a few 10s of metres in places. That was one thing Roger had driven home on the OWNTP course … don’t do crossings in fog! I went to find the put in a Lee Bay and suss out parking and then headed to the hostel. There I checked the forecast again. It was now W/NW F2-3, with occasional F4 and rain all morning, possibly thundery. I set my alarm for 5 am, as I wanted to be on the water at 7 am, but without conviction I’d actually be paddling in the morning.

The forecast hadn’t changed the next morning, and although it wasn’t the perfect conditions I’d planned on I thought it was ok, head wind out, following wind back. I headed for Lee Bay listening to my car radio warning of violent thunder storms … On arrival there was low cloud wafting through the valley and visibility seemed poor. OK I thought, best not. I looked at my map and decided to head for Woolacombe to look at conditions, I texted Roger and said it was no go. I thought I’d do a short coastal trip or have a surf before heading home. Driving up the hill towards Woolacombe I thought about how I was feeling. Was I secretly relieved at calling it off? No, my only feeling was deep disappointment.

What! There’s Lundy! From the top of the hill looking over Morte Bay the island was clearly visible and conditions looked a lot better. Arrrrgh! Was there still time to go? Rapid thought and I decided so long as I could be on the water at 7.45 am I was happy my navigation would still be good. Hey, I could paddle fast too and make up some time. I texted Roger again (poor man!).

I was on the water by 7.30 am and phoned Roger and Swansea coastguard just before Bull Point. I was finally on my way! The tide race between Bull Point and Morte Point was a bit bumpier than I’d expected, it was wind and swell against tide and my bow bounced over the breaking waves. Out of the tiderace, things settled down a bit, but the 1 m swell meant Lundy kept vanishing. It’s really hard trying to keep on a compass bearing in these conditions! I used the clouds to steer by, but the wind moved these rapidly meaning I had to stay alert. Birds soared over the waves checking me out as I paddled. I stopped every hour for a few minutes and for a food and drink break. After a couple of hours the rain started!

It was clear I was heading further north than I needed to, but I was unsure when to let my angle off. I’ve experienced Bristol Channel tides round Flatholm and Steepholm, and they require real caution. I compromised, I’d aim to end up at the north end of the island which would give me a trip down the east coast and 4 km of safety as the Landing Beach is at the south of the island.

Arriving at the lighthouse at the north of the island gave me a few minutes of hard work as there was a north going current there I still don’t understand. But once on the east coast, the rain stopped temporarily and I paddled slowly along, surrounded by singing and playful seals. There really are hundreds! Lundy seems honeycombed by caves and I really look forward to heading back for a proper exploration.

Lunch in the rain on the Landing Beach was pretty miserable. I’d worn my drysuit and my thin top underneath was soaking from sweat. I changed it and put on a woolly hat. From being too hot whilst paddling I was now pretty cold. And it was raining heavily. My flask of ginger tea was really welcome.

When my boat was in danger of floating again, it was clear the tide had turned. Time to go! But there was no sign of England … I headed off on my compass bearing. Conditions cleared from the west and after 90 minutes land appeared in front, exactly where I expected it. The trip home took 4 hours and 9 minutes (my nav was for 4 hours 20 minutes so that’s pretty spot on!). Two thirds of the way over a porpoise arched up and stayed a few minutes.

Shipping isn’t really a problem on this crossing, but this sinister vessel was moving very fast!

Landing at Lee Bay was interesting – surf onto concrete and no beach visible in a place where I could access either slip from. I went in rather cautiously with my spray deck off, paddling backwards and I carried my now seaweed-festooned boat out of the surf as quickly as I could. I headed back to Ilfracombe with an enormous smile, for a much needed shower, and then pizza and a beer.

It was an amazing, awesome day and the trip felt like a real achievement. I really loved it and I am so glad I paddled solo. I felt completely at one with the environment and I have deep memories of many sounds and sights. Lots of firsts for me too: first real tidal open crossing; first real test of my navigation skills; first offshore solo paddle. I learnt an enormous amount both about crossings and myself. So a really big thanks to Roger for being my shore contact for the trip and for his support for my paddling aspirations – I’ve still got that big smile! Here’s hoping the weather window for the Scilly’s appears soon!

By Tavi Murray


Thanks for the Blog Tavi and a HUGE well done.  I'm really very chuffed for you .... Roger

Crossing the Irish Sea - a personal paddle

A few months back I was talking with Steve about paddling across to Ireland and the Isle of Man ... he was interested.   While I sat in the car, a few weeks later, close to Sheffield, I was looking at weather forecasts and noticed a big high pressure arriving.  I wonder I thought, as I had a few days off.  I texted Steve about his availability in the next few days ... he soon got back and he was clear!

A few days after the original text, James of www.adventure elements.com and David a friend of Steve's were both keen ... we had a team of four.  Time for some planning.  In brief we planned to leave at 0200, expecting about 16 hours of paddling and hopefully arriving in the light ... after about 55nm.  

However, that wasn't to be and all in all it turned into an epic day!!

Leaving my house at 0100, 15 minutes into my 30 minute drive my PH Cetus HV came off the roof and bounced down the A55.  I found out latter the end of the strap had passed through the buckle.  I hadn't tied the end off as I normally do as it was too short.  (Since then i have been driving around with a bow tie down, which I've only tended to use on longer journeys).  I phoned James and Steve and after a short discussion, they were sure they could get a kayak off Grant who runs www.angleseyadventure.co.uk  20 minutes latter, i had an explorer to paddle.  We were an hour later on leaving, but what a magic paddle it was and the stress of the morning soon slipped away.

3 hours into our paddle and about 20nm out from Holyhead Mountain, with the sun rising over it ...

One of the Irish Ferries, with David in the foreground ...

At about 11 we hit a fog bank, after about 5 hours previous paddling in good visibility.  We hadn't picked the risk of fog up on a forecast, so it was a big surprise and my/our worst nightmare!  Even more so when we heard the reality of a fog horn from a close ferry.  I say close, because we could hear the thud, thud, thud of the engine, feel the vibrations through the seats of our kayaks and smell the diesel fumes.  But we could not see it.  For a moment, which seemed much longer than that, the situation was very scary.

Thankfully we didn't see the ferry and a very long 3 hours latter after heading South,  (we decided to change our direction from West, to avoid the ferries) we paddled into beautiful sunshine and a calm silky sea ...  We had been in contact with the coastguard on the hour, throughout the journey.

Starting in the dark was magic, preparing to paddle into darkness, I found difficult.  It was clear that due to the fog, ferries and our decision to paddle S/SW (GPS track below) on an ebbing tide, we now had more miles to paddle which would mean a much latter arrival .....

As we picked up the lights of Dublin, the coastguard who we had been in communication with throughout,  our journey on the hour started to get more frequent.  I'm not sure whether it was a staffing shift change, or due to the time we had been on the water  or our course overall, or a combination of all of these, but now they wanted us to check in every 30 minutes.  This meant we couldn't get into any rhythm and as we were tired, we were now getting cold.  We never called it out.   Why would we when we could see the lights and coastline of Ireland, we were all OK, tired but still working well and we were so close to finishing.  The lifeboat soon located us and asked us aboard .... which we declined.  After an open discussion, the fact we had not called them out and also I think their realisation we had paddled from Anglesey, they guided us into a small harbour, with a massive spot light, highlighting the quay.  We thanked them on the vhf radio and approached our landing, smiling.

We finally paddled in to Dublin just after 2300, after 19 hours in our boats, and 74nm.  We were welcomed by Des and Connor.  Des partner Sonja joined us latter and together they run www.deepblueseakayaking.com.  They did a super job of moving boats and providing us with mugs of tea as we repacked boats and loaded them on to roofs of vehicles.  We now had a 0200 ferry to catch!!

They dropped us off just after 0100 and we were soon on the Stenna Line ferry on the way back home, with a big fried breakfast before a couple of hours sleep.  Janice picked us up at Holyhead and dropped us back at Rhoscolyn and we headed on our separate ways (BIG thanks for that).

I surprised my self with how long I could keep going for, not at a rapid pace, but a reasonable one and it was good paddling with the guys.  I was pleased i wasn't solo. There was lots of learning, that I feel on a shorter crossing can be managed and overall has less impact, while on the longer crossings early decision and there implications need to be carefully considered.  For me, I had to experience and feel what a longer crossing was about and I know this will make me a better paddler and allow me to share what I have gained from personal experience.  But i now know I do need to do another crossing, but next time no fog and it will be the planned 16 hours!!


Roger
www.coastalspirit.com

Open crossing to Ireland
by sea kayak - Holy Head to Dublin

Getting the window .... paddling the English Channel

Crossing the English Channel by sea kayak, was to be the beginning of Alice, Erin and Marks three month paddle to reach Finland.  A challenge that stands alone as it is and is sort after by swimmers, SUP, rowers, kite surfers and basically any craft, these days!  Being the busiest shipping lane in the world makes the paddle more complicated and hence expensive, as a safety boat is required.

Up at 0630, breakfast, last sort of kit and then 2 hour drive to Dungeness.  Forecast was looking great after our 3 days wait. Erin, Alice and Mark had used their time well, in checking kit and pre boat pack, padding out sea kayaks, additional specfic food and essential haircuts (except 4 Erin).  Big thanks to Alice's parents, for looking after us and feeding us so well ...

Erin in the van on the way, studying the map ...left of her head!!

It was an interesting landscape, with poppies and loads of these tall blue flowers and grasses, mixed in with pebbles and wooded shacks and houses ...

and electric pylons, nuclear power station, a disused lighthouse  .... and packed Ikea bags ...

and a new light house (apparently built because the other was obstructed by the power station). This board walk was great and eased the 40 minute carry, of kit and kayaks to the sea.

 Yep, and then the mist rolled in and the fog horn blew ...eh, we hadn't booked this!!

Kayaks loaded in good time (left at 1100) and off we slowly went, as the mist began to rise and we looked out for the safety boat ... Alice above

Mark calling up Will on the safety boat to check their progress ....

The first of 7 during the day .... and to be honest, their seemed to be far more while we were packing.  Must be the 0830/0900 rush hour thing!

This is what we booked, an oily swell .... although Alice who had been setting the pace and course to paddle (so looking down at the compass) was now feeling sea sick :(

Into the 5th hour and after both Erin and Mark had done a couple of sessions on point, Alice was sick and probably for the best ... they were all tired but had been well prepared for the sun, mmmm I wish I had!!

It was also about this time when the main 7 mt ribs engine cut out ... thankfully Will had a 2nd smaller boat, so he could set up a tow ...more later ....

The last 40 minutes or so and the current had turned against us, producing some rougher water and meaning all had to be on their mark, to ferry glide into the bay.  We were soon through and as Id left my passport behind, I said my goodbyes in the shallows.

Mark, Erin and Alice ... it says something of Alice's determination and working through being sea sick. I never been sea sick but have had a number of clients who have been and ive had to tow them and find  land.  Being towed or the safety boat was an option, but one Alice wouldn't consider  ... fair play to her.  They paddled into the beach, just south of Cap Griz Nez, after 6 hours and 40 minutes and a distance of 25nm, about 50k!

I paddled back out of the shallows towards the safety boat and balanced, actually wobbled my self into the speed boat, grabbed some food and water and snuggled into the bucket seat!

The current now was flowing strongly against us and we were only pulling 4knots, with the broken boat under tow as we headed towards Calais.  Plan was to leave the broken boat so we could whizz back to the UK, happy days ... but, the marina has a tidal sill, that meant we couldn't get in until 1230/0100 ... 2nd problem was that they didn't have enough fuel in the working boat (due to towing).

Well the guys explored a number of options, while I sipped a celebratory beer (thanks Will) and they decided to syphon the petrol out of the broken boat, into a canister and transfer into our working boat and then continue to tow back across the Channel, to leave the broken boat in the marina at Dover ....

Photo above is 1 hour into the crossing, looking towards England, with a ferry on the right and what looked like Manhattan travelling along (the upright columns to the left are are a huge tanker) ... 3.5 hours latter, cold and damp, yep it rained ... we reached Dover ...

With some creative packing my kayak sone fitted well into the boat ...15 minutes latter ...wow, that was quick .... I was back at the start, it was 0100, and another 20 minutes saw all of my kit in the van, kayak on the roof and me curled up in a sleeping bag on the back seats, tired but content!

roger chandler
www.coastalspirit.com

expedition support and sea kayak training
plus
sea kayak courses north wales

Silky seas & porpoises

The paddle challenge guys were now on there last training two days and as there such a lovely bunch and as a contribution to their cause, I threw in my time for an overnight camp free.  The plan involved a fair amount of driving to get vehicles in place, as the starting point was llandudno Bay, past the Great Orme and then a 30k open crossing to Point Lynas and then on to the brick works for our camp.  Day two was too Carmell Head, rescues and crossing to Holyhead Harbour, avoiding ferries and other crafts along the way (they would pass many BIG ports along there journey, so I wanted to give them an insight into it all).  All my photos were taken on my SLR, so no rough water hots, sorry! 

Perfect sea kayak open crossing weather, with Anglesey and Point Lynas in the distance.

There was four large tankers mored up ... they will see many more of these on their journey ...

We paddled past a number of sea birds just enjoying the calm of the day, this one was having a splash and a bath ... and then we came across a super sized bloom of Moon Jellyfish.  Sitting in my kayak looking down at the moving shapes was really beautiful ...yep I was glad I was in my kayak!

Just under 5 hours and we were rounding Point Lynas and the tide had just turned ...phew ...

Within moments of paddling past the point we were joined by a couple of porpoises.  One of was about 0.3mt in length!

The brick works, truly a stunning campsite ... and an 8am start, was a gentle welcome to a stunning morning ... it had been a late night due to shuttling cars ... and a lovely chicken curry, thanks guys for that!

It really was idyllic ... and I could have happy lounged around enjoying the song of the birds and the warmth of the sun on my face ...

Erin, Alice and Mark, in their P&H sea kayaks and creaming up for another sunny day. We paddle out of the bay into Hells Mouth which had a super gentle 0.5mt wave chain.  We were soon greeted by another pod of Porpoises (5 we saw over the day and really close, 4 mts at one point).  Out to Middle Mouse and then on to Cemlyn Bay, for rescue practise.  As there kayaks were reasonably loaded I was keen to put them through their paces.  On the west edge of Cemlyn a small tidal race/overfall works on the ebb and we got there just into the first hour.  Capsize and rolling in the current and assisted rescue if a roll was missed, then into to add some variety ... deck off and legs out eddying in and paddling down before i shouted capsize while one of the others carried out a rescue.  All worked hard despite some initial hesitations.  Mark kindly offered to capsize again and this time it was Alice's to turn to put him back in and manage the situation in 0.5mt chop.

 

We looked for a sunny spot out of the light breeze, and choose this rocky small island, for some lunch and an opportunity for them all to consider were they were and how long to Holyhead Harbour.  Two seals watched us while we sat, eat and chatted and many terns flew by ... We hit Carmell Head at full pace, with f2/3 wind against tide an exciting fast ride with 2.5 mts curling tops and then set out towards a tall chimney.  One Irish ferry came into the port ahead of us and as we neared, it was clear we had picked up the eddy stream again, but this time we just had to deal with it!

Close to the entrance of the Port we held ground for 10 minutes as a ferry loomed on the horizon and then passed us by.  Heads down we paddled across the entrance and then along the inside of the breakwater towards our beach.

It had been a super two days, with natural stuff happening and tasks given, to really get the group working.  They had done really well and with just over 10 days to go before the beginning of their adventure, they still have some time to put finishing touches to personal outfitting of the sea kayaks, food and what works practically, some further personal rescue practise and developing an effective group pace.  Their blog and further information about their adventure can be seen and followed here 

I look forward to paddling the English Channel with the three of them on the1st July, winds permitting and will let you know how it all goes!

roger chandler
www.coastalspirit.com
north wales sea kayaking
&
expedition support