Ronhilda makes it to Dives Marina

First week: a wash out. Too much of any weather you can think of.

It was with some gloom on my part that the start of Ronhildas Normandy rally approached with forecasts for high winds, fog and rough seas. All hopes of getting to St Valery sur Somme seemed doomed for another year by the Thursday and I delayed my first batch of crew coming down to join with me till Saturday evening. Saturday indeed was a windy wash out and Sunday was the same so we stayed in Chichester Marina.

Monday was calmer so we set off for Brighton to join the Commodore’s Ariel - expecting to pick up some forecast wind from the south west. After passing the MIxon pole at Selsey Bill, what wind there was still on the nose with no signs of it going around to the SW. In view of the Tuesday forecast for F6/7 we did not want to get trapped in Brighton nor did we want to tack or motor all day. So we turned around and had a gentle downwind sail to Gosport and a large splendid meal in the Castle as compensation.

Tuesday did indeed bring the high winds and with no improvement forecast for midweek so we went back to Chichester and the crew was sent home awaiting my call. I hoped to get across on Saturday including crew that were originally due to join in Fécamp by Le Harve ferry. They arrived on board Ronhilda on Friday evening.

Main Rally Week:  Too much Wind. Too little Wind. Too Much Fog. A Strike, and a couple of nice sailing days.

The weather window came during Friday. Ariel had been stuck in Brighton since Monday, got to Fécamp but by the time my crew had arrived on Ronhilda after work so had the F6/7s and Friday evening was again spent in Chichester.

Saturday was spent awaiting the forecast reduction, listening to the mayhem on the VHF with the participants in the Round the Island race. However it seemed things had calmed down by the evening and were forecast to reduce even further so we set off. Over the bar and with a single reef and Solent jib bent on, Ronhilda was at last creaming along at over 8 knots heading for Fécamp. Past Nab and I went below for some shut eye before the shipping lanes. A shake an hour later brought the news that a second reef was required. Putting my head out the hatch I could hear, feel and see well over 20 knots over the deck, heavy seas, but a cruise liner was looming a couple of miles behind us in the gloom and deteriorating murk south of the Owers. As the weather forecast appeared all wrong with visibility decreasing, prudence dictated a return and regroup. We therefore backtracked and picked a buoy up off Hayling Island. A 30 odd mile round trip to go nowhere.

Sunday saw thick fog with less than 1 Cable visibility, so with no chance of getting to Le Havre on time to catch his ferry back, we dropped Ian Middleton off at Sparks and motored up to anchor out of harm’s way, close inshore between Ryde Pier and Wootton Creek. All commercial shipping had been stopped so we stayed put till after lunch and then motored in the fog to Gosport. It was agreed to have one last try again on the Monday to Le Havre; if this was still not a goer then it was hey ho to the fleshpots of Devon.

Monday dawned with light winds from the SE not ideal for Honfleur/ Le Havre but we set off anyway at 0600. As we approached the shipping lanes the wind went east a couple of degrees, we were able to sail, and so off we went across the Channel, Devon being left for another time. The rest of the day was spent either motoring or sailing at the edge of thunder clouds sometimes quite briskly. We saw Sour Kraut under Antifer in the late evening sun and arrived after her in Le Havre about 2200.

Meantime Ariel and others had sailed from Fécamp to Honfleur and were tucked up in the inner basin.

Tuesday saw us slip off just after dawn before HW and with the wind from the North we went over the sand banks with the keel left up, bore away up the Seine and arrived at 8am with Honfleur lock on free flow. Ideal for the 0830 bridge into the inner basin I thought.

Well 0830 came and went with no movement of the bridge and the Commodore kindly phoned to say there was a small note in the Sailing Club's office to say all bridges cancelled till after 1600. officially a meeting all day was going on but it seemed like a strike to us. Ah well that wall in the outer harbour with the rusty ladder looked attractive after all and we duly moored to it.

With having to leave first thing and get to Dives on Wednesday we decided that was that and to stay on the wall over night. All others on the rally duly arrived or left the basin that day after normal bridge service was resumed as all rally yachts needed to get into Deauville/Dives before the respective lock gates closed a couple of hours after HW. The Commodore kindly consented to have us latecomers onboard for a cockpit party that evening after they had left the inner basin.

Wednesday saw the 0830 lock full of little LSC yachts (well six of us). Ronhilda was going to try Dives further west than Deauville for the first time so we had to get a move on to get there before the water disappeared and the gate closed. As soon as the training wall ended we turned sharp left over the sand bank. As it was nearly HW my prediction of around 5M of depth was proved correct and the sand bank knocked some of the waves off from the F4/5 NW wind so we made very good speed at 7/8 knots to Dives fairway buoy arriving about one and half hours after HW. With a F4/5 blowing straight at the Ebb the bar was rather rough but not of any great concern, least depth being 2.6M in the troughs. Looking back it was quite impressive.

Dives turned out to be a delight: economical, good facilities and with a choice of over 20 empty visitors berths, we plus one other yacht being the only visitors in town. The town itself has plenty of interest being where William the Conqueror left for Hastings in 1066 and many old buildings and his Church survive.
In the evening we took a taxi to Deauville to join the others in the yacht club for the rally dinner and a good evening was had by all.

Thursday saw us going west via Ouistreham to drop off two crew members, and we had the best day of the rally by sailing all day inshore along the Invasion beaches. On a sunny summer's day it always makes me reflect what a difference to June 1944. Having made excellent progress we made for St Vaast and as a bonus arrived as the gate opened.

Friday was an exploring day, crew went to Barfleur by bus and I went for a 5km plus walk which tested the metal hips out nicely.

As Saturday and Sundahy were forecast for light winds, we decided to return on Saturday, hoping for a spinnaker run in the French forecast SE winds. Ronhilda decided to sulk and not lower her keel electrically. As it takes an hour to pump the keel up by hand, and being the sea was flat, I decided to leave the keel up and not lower it manually. The French forecasters were as good (bad?) as the UK Met office in that the wind stuck at 1 to 2 knots NE all day, the tide making most of it. So our rally ended with a day’s motoring and no spinnaker.

So not as good as last year’s weather but an interesting rally all the same, perhaps it's Holland in 2012 but I think I will get Ronhilda up there well before the start.

Many thanks to my multi crew - some who only got in half a day’s cruise for their efforts and wasted pre bought ferry tickets. None got the sailing as planned. These stalwarts were:

Stephen Ledraw
Oliver Nissen
Bruce Rankin
Ian Middleton
Steph Janes
Jill Moffet
Charlie Quayle
 

And last by not least thanks to the rally organiser David Roach and his wife Jill for all their efforts as well.

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