Some nice easy sailing north up the east coast of Yorkshire.
I knew when passage planning that this section of the voyage would be fairly straightforward and so it has proved! Long straight coastlines and following winds have sped us up the Yorkshire coast from the Humber to just north of the Tees.
Easy rolling from the Humber to Bridlington
We had a nice easy day on Wednesday, with a 40-mile reach up the coast to Bridlington. With a push from the tide we were sitting comfortably at 7 knots for some stretches, that’s quite a bit for a wee boat and the miles passed quickly.
Bridlington is an interesting wee harbour. It’s really a fishing harbour with a few pontoons. Like my home port, it dries out at low water. We had a nice meal in a local pub (the harbourmaster warned us off the Harbour Inn!) then settled in for the night.
Unfortunately we settled with a steep lean to port as the previous boat had left an awkwardly-placed hole in the mud. Calum barely noticed as he had a couple of drams in him and the angle was tipping him into his bunk. I had to remake my bed on the floor, luckily there was just enough room!
Slightly tired to Scarborough – and the joy of seeing some family
I wasn’t feeling the freshest after my night on the floor but we soon set sail for Scarborough. Wind conditions were similar again, so the miles passed quickly and we were soon power reaching into Scarborough bay.
Once in the harbour, I met my sister and her family who come here each year for their hols. It’s quite the resort and I sampled the top tourist treats including a lemon top, a go in the cliff railway and some very nice fish and chips. This was all very restorative but it was quite a long tramp back to the boat.
Like Bridlington, and many other Yorkshire seaside towns, Scarborough has a ‘pirate ship’ which looks a bit odd but seems a popular attraction.
A long chug to Hartlepool
On Friday it was another 40-mile hop up the coast. There wasn’t very much in the way of wind, so most of the day was motoring. With a bit of experimentation I’ve found the optimum speed for motoring – the trick is to get near your hull speed with the revs as low as you can. This means you get a good solid cruising speed without using too much fuel.
With our ears ringing a bit from the engine we were glad to get to Hartlepool, a large marina with lock gates to enter. This was a bit pricier than Bridlington and Scarborough but provided a slightly more comfortable experience with shore power and sheltered waters. We celebrated our smooth progress up the Yorkshire coast with a mighty curry, a nice break from fish and chips.
Now it’s onward to Amble, a mere 80 miles from home!
things that might have been otherwise 