Near-disastrous trip to Avranches

GJ0KYZ · 23 March 2011, 23:00

On the high tide on Monday I went to Avranches only to run aground in the fields of the flood plain. The tide was so high that absolutely nothing could be seen to help find the river course, nor were any currents visible as it was exactly high water. I wasn't paying too much attention to my track due to the relatively ample depths and as such I slammed into the river bank and ended up in 18" of water on what I thought was the right hand side of the Sée. Using the oars we quickly pushed the boat to the left looking for what we hoped would be deeper water only to ground on what later turned out to be the left-hand flood plain.

That morning's tide was the highest of the year; the boat didn't float in the evening. Early the next day I ran the anchor out into the middle of the river in the dinghy and waited for the flood hoping that we could pull the boat free. At high tide we were still aground and needed another inch or so of water. In desperation we stripped off, jumped overboard and managed to free the boat and push it to the river. At one point we became stuck again and so had to spin the boat around and try a new path. By now the tide was falling fast and so without GPS assistance (the chip was somewhere in my rucksack) we edged out of the estuary in 2-3ft of water. Holy doubled-barrelled sh*t that was close. I honestly thought at one point that the boat would remain there forever; it would never have been rescued. However, although the engine is damaged again Archangel is at least back home. This event was certainly a wakeup call to my becoming complacent when sailing in the Bay of Mont St. Michel.

martini · 23 March 2011, 23:12

Damn sounds like you were lucky to get away with that one

Moral of the story, don't go exploring shallow estuaries at the top of the highest tide of the year, do it the day before!

Still, what a day to be out in the boat

Steve_B · 23 March 2011, 23:14

Good God, a lucky escape and a lesson to us all about thinking we know an area inside out

gotchiguy · 23 March 2011, 23:46

That would have been pretty tricky if you hadn't been able to refloat it

So how did you spend the night then? Aboard?

Bigmuz7 · 24 March 2011, 00:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by martini

Damn sounds like you were lucky to get away with that one

Moral of the story, don't go exploring shallow estuaries at the top of the highest tide of the year, do it the day before!

Still, what a day to be out in the boat

Just goes to show though, that even when you do know an area , that actual point location can become extrememly difficult by a flat expanse of water. Land bearings can seem useless, unless you can mark several points as you go, but even they dont stack up sometimes if the expanse of water is so enlarged.

Its not the first time Ive thought about a sand bank or so whilst doing 30 knots, knowing I was well inside it only to discover that the shallow alarm for once actually worked and I was in 1.5M of water

Paul Cannell · 24 March 2011, 01:09

You're not the first & you won't be the last person to run aground,as you can see from this pic taken in Guernsey.

Channel Ribs · 24 March 2011, 08:48

Glad you got off eventually!

Ever thought about a Sealegs?

willk · 24 March 2011, 09:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Channel Ribs

Ever thought about a Sealegs?

http://rib.net/forum/showpost.php?p=358591&postcount=5

Anyone else wanting their futures told?

Anchorhandler · 24 March 2011, 09:35

Glad you got yourself out of it safe and sound... If your brave enough to ever try it again PM me and il give you my phone numbers... We only live a few miles away and have all kinds of equipment here that may help in a situation like this (tractors, excavators, heavy winching equipment etc...)....
Good job it wasn't during the month of May as about 2000 odd 'travellers' meet up and camp out on the banks of the river for a week or two.... They would have certainly got your boat unstuck for you! During the middle of the night though

Simon

Erin · 24 March 2011, 14:17

Lets hope our trip up the Seine is not quite so 'exciting'. Making a mental note again not to follow you too closely

. Sounds like it was a proper adventure though, which are few and far between these days. Bet you were glad you had someone else on board to help.

GJ0KYZ · 24 March 2011, 21:11

Thanks for all the comments everyone.

250kts: I don’t know the area that well actually; the course of the river in the estuary changes frequently and my GPS track is over a year old.

Bigmuz7: You’re absolutely right. An expanse of water with no points of reference is very unnerving and difficult to navigate. This was the main problem on the day.

Paul: I run aground in this area all the time; about half my trips end with a crash of some sort. Still, you’ve got to crack a few eggs to make an omelette (quick Mere Poulard joke there).

Simon: That’s a very kind offer; I’ll certainly drop you a line next time I’m going to Avranches (in the autumn, probably). Would you like to join me on a trip sometime? And yes, I know about the travellers, they were there the first time I went up the Sée. I’m sure they’re as good as gold, but all the same I’m glad the boat’s back home.

Erin: my cousin was with me and saved the day. Poor sod, he’s just had a serious operation and wasn’t feeling that great. Still, I’m sure there’s nothing better for one’s constitution that wading chest deep in cold, rat-and-coypu-invested water at 6am.