Scilly Isles 21-24 July 2024

[PirateSyrett]

Glad to help and excellent news about PBL2 in Fowey!

To answer your Q here’s a photo of us anchored just off the camp site at St Martins - nice and sandy.

We ran into this anchorage dropping the kedge in deep water on a very long line. We then nosed onto the beach to drop people and kit to keep everything/ one dry, and dropped the main anchor on the beach. This way you have more flexibility on boat positioning and in stupidly shallow water you can haul yourself safely into deep water, drop the propeller and make sure that everything’s good to go before recovering your kedge.

And if you really want to whet your appetite even further…. then David Eastburn and Tim Good’s ‘Harbours and Anchorages of Scilly’ 2nd Edition book is a wonderful resource when you can’t access google maps for satellite imagery!

Hope you all have a wonderful trip.

M

[Fatalbert]

Thanks team- good advice on here.

My copy of ‘Harbours and anchorages…’ arrived today. Nice book.

All we need now is good weather and a convoy!

[fastasfox]

I'm in Cornwall from the 20th for two week's and I had planned a trip to Scilly, but my outboard let go whilst in Scotland. I have just fitted a new to me Mercury Optimax 75hp and the early signs say it's running well....but I have yet to give it a shakedown. Over the next couple of weekends I'm hoping to get my boat (5m Tornado) out on the river near me, where we have an unrestricted section I use.

If all goes well, I could be up for a trip ( weather permitting) Like you It would be just My Son and I, and we were hoping to camp too.
let me know if you're still planning on going and I will keep you posted on my mechanical status.
We would launch from Penzance....Gorran Haven is a smashing place but the slipway is restricted by both tide and time.
Cheers Paul.

[Fatalbert]

Paul

Yes, plans progressing nicely thanks and still keen to go.

I’ve booked the camping,, the boat goes in the water this weekend, a few more minor bits and pieces have been purchased and hopefully it’s all lining up nicely.

There’s still availability on the campsite on St Martins if you wanted to book…it’s a bit of a punt I’m afraid on the campsite, because it’s not refundable (but then again, it’s not obscenely expensive either!).

I’ll start looking more closely at the weather as we get a week or so out…fingers crossed!

Hope the testing/proving goes well, would be good to have some company for the transit.

[Chris Baker]

@Piratesyrett, Just read your comment re your Scilly trip. I am hoping to go on the 25th July for 3 weeks. I have a ferry ticket just in case but would rather take rib. My boat is 4.8m ribcraft, so pretty robust but quite small for that journey. Was going to put family on Scillnian and follow behind, or preferably find some one to go with. Quick question: were flexible with your dates to find a good weather window or did you just crack on??? Id be lying if i said i wasnt nervous (and excited) about making the journey.
I could be tempted to go earlier as part of this bigger group if you have me?

[paulbrown22]

Originally Posted by Chris Baker

@Piratesyrett, Just read your comment re your Scilly trip. I am hoping to go on the 25th July for 3 weeks. I have a ferry ticket just in case but would rather take rib. My boat is 4.8m ribcraft, so pretty robust but quite small for that journey. Was going to put family on Scillnian and follow behind, or preferably find some one to go with. Quick question: were flexible with your dates to find a good weather window or did you just crack on??? Id be lying if i said i wasnt nervous (and excited) about making the journey.
I could be tempted to go earlier as part of this bigger group if you have me?

Assuming it's in good condition then an RC4.8 is more than capable of the journey depending on how much fuel you carry and how confident you are. It's a great hull but obviously only ~4.8m long, so if conditions aren't good it could be a very bouncy and slow ride for several hours, and the human tends to give up before the hull! I'd definitely suggest being flexible on date/time to make the crossing (both ways) in a good weather window, as once you leave land in either direction there's no stopping points.

[Fatalbert]

Chris- would love to have you along! I’m afraid I’m constrained by the dates as they stand, so I could delay 24 hours for weather and/or return early ahead of bad weather, but can’t re-schedule the whole thing.

We’re also excited/nervous- I’ve got that horrible feeling there will be something big I’ve missed.

As per Paul, I think your ‘ride’ sounds fine- I’d have been happy on our 5m RIB subject to the weather.

Long range forecast is looking decent /feasible, but obviously will be keeping a closer eye on it from Sunday.

I’ve convinced myself I don’t need to go to Penzance for fuel, I can carry 60 litres extra, so have 210 litres in total. That said, if it makes it easier for a flotilla to meet-up, I’d be happy to meet in Penzance. Other than that, will be tracking as straight as I can from Gorran Haven.

[fastasfox]

Originally Posted by Chris Baker

@Piratesyrett, Just read your comment re your Scilly trip. I am hoping to go on the 25th July for 3 weeks. I have a ferry ticket just in case but would rather take rib. My boat is 4.8m ribcraft, so pretty robust but quite small for that journey. Was going to put family on Scillnian and follow behind, or preferably find some one to go with. Quick question: were flexible with your dates to find a good weather window or did you just crack on??? Id be lying if i said i wasnt nervous (and excited) about making the journey.
I could be tempted to go earlier as part of this bigger group if you have me?

I'm hoping to go too. I'm in the middle of testing my replacement outboard...if the testing goes well on the river, the next step will be a Run out of Mylor Creek a week later and if that is okay, then I will want to try the Scilly Run.
With regards to being scared I think that's the right attitude to have and I too have never done the Scilly run, and like you it scares me, and heading out to sea for 40 miles should be daunting for us novices.
The good thing about that Run is it is well used by other craft....including the Scillonian ferry, so if the worst did happen then help should be available.
I think the OP's reason for this post was that he too is a first timer.

[Fatalbert]

Gents

This sounds great- I look forward to meeting you all.

Hope the engine testing is building the confidence in your unit. For info, I’ll have a small electric outboard and a towing bridle on board, the former won’t get us to the Scillies, but might get us out of a shipping lane and the latter should be peace of mind for a convoy!

F-a-F is correct, strength in numbers seems wise!

I’ll DM you with my mobile number and details and (if you’re in agreement) we can set a WhatsApp group up to discuss the detail rather than on here (which is clunky).

[PirateSyrett]

Originally Posted by Chris Baker

@Piratesyrett, Just read your comment re your Scilly trip. I am hoping to go on the 25th July for 3 weeks. I have a ferry ticket just in case but would rather take rib. My boat is 4.8m ribcraft, so pretty robust but quite small for that journey. Was going to put family on Scillnian and follow behind, or preferably find some one to go with. Quick question: were flexible with your dates to find a good weather window or did you just crack on??? Id be lying if i said i wasnt nervous (and excited) about making the journey.
I could be tempted to go earlier as part of this bigger group if you have me?

Chris,

Your RIB is perfect! It’s exactly the same as our boat, but more robust. We test drove a new 4.8 Ribcraft last year but couldn’t get the numbers to stack up.

On the weather question…. We had some flex, but not much, and I would absolutely recommend aborting if you’re not comfortable with the conditions. I’m a meteorologist/ oceanographer by trade and we sat in our back garden for two days before waiting for 35kt South Westerlies to abate. With some trepidation we crossed alone in a weather window that I’d been tracking on Windy (an excellent weather model), the Met Office (good) and BBC (dangerously risk averse) sites. En route we wondered whether we were doing the right thing because the residual swell between Mousehole and Lands End was large 3-4m and confused…. But there was absolutely no wind and so our boat handled it all comfortably at 20kts with no slamming or air time. If you’re able to safely/ comfortably manage the conditions to Lands End then I’d probably continue and if you’re not, then I wouldn’t hesitate to turn around whilst close to shore.

And so… You’ll love having your RIB in Scilly, but if you have the option to send some people via the Scillonian with kit then you’ll be able to save weight or add fuel depending upon how light you want to travel. Personally, I’d want to be ahead of the Scillonian knowing that they’re behind me, rather than having a problem in their wake. It’s also perhaps worth noting that nobody travelled outbound with us (because the forecast hadn’t truly settled), but on the way back it was crowded with outbound boats who all obviously had more confidence in finding settled weather.

Give it a go and enjoy the scenery along the coast to Minack as a training run….. and if you’re fuelled and feeling comfortable then keep on going!

Hope you have a fab time in Scilly however you get there, M

#Envious

[Fatalbert]

I’ve sent Private Messages to you with my number, so please shout if you haven’t got it.

Look forward to hearing from you (Chris and I have already spoken!)

Go Team Scillies!

PirateSyrett- with your pro-metman hat on, which model would you recommend as the best to use for the Windy app?

Cheers

[PirateSyrett]

Originally Posted by Fatalbert

I’ve sent Private Messages to you with my number, so please shout if you haven’t got it.

Look forward to hearing from you (Chris and I have already spoken!)

Go Team Scillies!

PirateSyrett- with your pro-metman hat on, which model would you recommend as the best to use for the Windy app?

Cheers

Ahoy @Fatalbert,

Interesting question. I use the ECMWF (European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasts) because I know that it is underpinned by UK Met Office data and at 13km grids offers the highest resolution of computational ‘cells’. I have compared their visualisations for wind and waves with other very expensive (for our business!) providers and it’s actually quite astonishing how close the free Windy product is to our expensive licence with the Met Office.

Perhaps, most importantly, their visualisations are excellent making it very easy for all mariners of all abilities to interpret. They very accurately forecast a light wind period, with long, low abating swell, that allowed us to cross to Scilly in comfort - we didn’t ship a drop of water despite being in a small (5m) RIB.

We also use Weather Crave (which is underpinned by the French Met Office), because it provides a sanity check using completely separate French data and their 15 day forecast, whilst a little wobbly at times, gives a good approximation of likely conditions much further ahead than the Met Office or Windy.

Additionally, if you want access to excellent current and forecast conditions in the Scillies (or frankly close to any airport worldwide!) then search ‘St Mary’s TAF METAR’ and you access the ‘Terminal Aerodrome Forecast’ and ‘Meteorological Aerodrome Report’ = current weather absolutely free. It’s provided free of charge for pilots and offers another excellent resource.

Hope that helps and if anything’s unclear then please come back to me, M

[Fatalbert]

PS- thanks for that insight.

I really like the windy app, the models do differ though and the blended view often seems slewed by the outliers (NOAA mostly, but possibly others too).

I’m a former professional pilot, so I do keep an eye on the TAF for wind, but as an inexperienced mariner, the precise relationship between the wind and the sea-state is often a surprise! ;-)

[Fatalbert]

So… it’s tomorrow!

The weather looks to have improved enough to go- we’re prepped and feeling confident.

Any last minute joiners?

Also…would welcome any additional eyes on the weather and sea state tomorrow. I’m seeing 10-12 knots (G16) with a 1.4m swell as my worst case en-route. Which I’m comfortable with.

Planning to route Gorran-Lizard-Lands End- Wolf Rock- Scillies.

Last minute tips, tricks or observations welcome!

[PirateSyrett]

Originally Posted by Fatalbert

So… it’s tomorrow!

The weather looks to have improved enough to go- we’re prepped and feeling confident.

Any last minute joiners?

Also…would welcome any additional eyes on the weather and sea state tomorrow. I’m seeing 10-12 knots (G16) with a 1.4m swell as my worst case en-route. Which I’m comfortable with.

Planning to route Gorran-Lizard-Lands End- Wolf Rock- Scillies.

Last minute tips, tricks or observations welcome!

Good luck @fatalbert!

I can see the gap you’re aiming for and it’s great that you’ll be arriving in the Scillies on a rising tide. My only observation is one on tidal stream around the Lizard which might see a fair bit of wind against tide chop depending on your timings. If you can’t pass the headland at slack water, it’s probably worth making an early call on passing very close inshore or standing out further to sea to avoid the likely local effects at the headland.

I only mention it because we’ve turned back at the Lizard before whilst sailing an 8m Trimaran in similar conditions; nice and gentle down the coast to the Lizard and then suddenly much angrier seas at the headland. We took the easy option and anchored in the Helford river instead, but I suspect if we’d had a better plan we could have probably avoided a rather unpleasant drenching!

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on St Martins and the campsite as we still need to give that a go.

Fair winds and following seas, M

[Obsidian]

Best of luck!

[paulbrown22]

Go and enjoy it - look forward to hearing/seeing the story!

[Fatalbert]

Morning RIBnet…!

Just a very quick post operation report from the recent trip to the Scillies. My overwhelming advice to anyone thinking about going is to ‘Just do it…’ it’s a fantastic trip, a fascinating place and a great adventure!

We had good company from Chris and Will in the eponymous Yellow Rib on the last leg from Wolf Rock to Scillies, which felt like a major comfort blanket as the swell was larger than anticipated and quite choppy too.

We also discovered the Lizard to be as described- we had to venture further out to sea than planned to avoid some pretty epic tidal races. We’ve definitely learned a lesson for next time!

Overall, we did the 73 miles from Gorran to St Martins in 5 hours 20 (the return in just over 3 hours!), which felt like a lot longer on the way out…

Lots of wildlife- countless pods of common dolphins, an unusually friendly pod of Risso dolphins with young, loads of porpoise, a fleeting Minke Whale and a couple of very large schools of very large Tuna (literally hundreds of them) boiling the ocean as they hunted.

I’m sure many of you have been to the Scillies, so I won’t eulogise about that, suffice to say that it’s worth the trip.

As relatively inexperienced boaters, I’ve learned a load about planning, the boat itself and operating in relatively challenging waters (en-route and in a blowy, shallow, Scillies). I also learned the boat is several orders of magnitude more capable than I am, which is the right way around!

There was some great advice on here from people and I’m really grateful for that.

I’m already planning a date for next year- I think maybe changing the camping spot to Bryher, so it would be great to get a bigger flotilla to reinforce the group…

[PirateSyrett]

Originally Posted by Fatalbert

Morning RIBnet…!

Just a very quick post operation report from the recent trip to the Scillies. My overwhelming advice to anyone thinking about going is to ‘Just do it…’ it’s a fantastic trip, a fascinating place and a great adventure!

We had good company from Chris and Will in the eponymous Yellow Rib on the last leg from Wolf Rock to Scillies, which felt like a major comfort blanket as the swell was larger than anticipated and quite choppy too.

We also discovered the Lizard to be as described- we had to venture further out to sea than planned to avoid some pretty epic tidal races. We’ve definitely learned a lesson for next time!

Overall, we did the 73 miles from Gorran to St Martins in 5 hours 20 (the return in just over 3 hours!), which felt like a lot longer on the way out…

Lots of wildlife- countless pods of common dolphins, an unusually friendly pod of Risso dolphins with young, loads of porpoise, a fleeting Minke Whale and a couple of very large schools of very large Tuna (literally hundreds of them) boiling the ocean as they hunted.

I’m sure many of you have been to the Scillies, so I won’t eulogise about that, suffice to say that it’s worth the trip.

As relatively inexperienced boaters, I’ve learned a load about planning, the boat itself and operating in relatively challenging waters (en-route and in a blowy, shallow, Scillies). I also learned the boat is several orders of magnitude more capable than I am, which is the right way around!

There was some great advice on here from people and I’m really grateful for that.

I’m already planning a date for next year- I think maybe changing the camping spot to Bryher, so it would be great to get a bigger flotilla to reinforce the group…

Outstanding! Well done 👏 and looking forward to the photos.

It’s really fab isn’t it?

M

[paulbrown22]

Originally Posted by Fatalbert

Morning RIBnet…!

Just a very quick post operation report from the recent trip to the Scillies. My overwhelming advice to anyone thinking about going is to ‘Just do it…’ it’s a fantastic trip, a fascinating place and a great adventure!

We had good company from Chris and Will in the eponymous Yellow Rib on the last leg from Wolf Rock to Scillies, which felt like a major comfort blanket as the swell was larger than anticipated and quite choppy too.

We also discovered the Lizard to be as described- we had to venture further out to sea than planned to avoid some pretty epic tidal races. We’ve definitely learned a lesson for next time!

Overall, we did the 73 miles from Gorran to St Martins in 5 hours 20 (the return in just over 3 hours!), which felt like a lot longer on the way out…

Lots of wildlife- countless pods of common dolphins, an unusually friendly pod of Risso dolphins with young, loads of porpoise, a fleeting Minke Whale and a couple of very large schools of very large Tuna (literally hundreds of them) boiling the ocean as they hunted.

I’m sure many of you have been to the Scillies, so I won’t eulogise about that, suffice to say that it’s worth the trip.

As relatively inexperienced boaters, I’ve learned a load about planning, the boat itself and operating in relatively challenging waters (en-route and in a blowy, shallow, Scillies). I also learned the boat is several orders of magnitude more capable than I am, which is the right way around!

There was some great advice on here from people and I’m really grateful for that.

I’m already planning a date for next year- I think maybe changing the camping spot to Bryher, so it would be great to get a bigger flotilla to reinforce the group…

Great news, well done - always daunting the first big trip, but sounds like a great success!