The waiting game

I was really pleased to have conditions leaving Milford Haven that allowed me to do something I couldn’t do when sailing round Britain. I stopped overnight in the very small anchorage on the East side of Lundy. I inflated the tender and went ashore for a short walk and brief (!) visit to the Marisco Tavern. The Guinness here didn’t match what I’d become used to! It was a non boat day though so very quiet. One of the trip boats delivers over 200 day trippers when it’s running!

And … I had some of my best sailing getting there!

I had anticipated that at some stage I might spend a while somewhere waiting for weather to pass through. Padstow is not a bad place for that to happen and having Ruth for company was a bonus; although the weather hasn’t made it as much of a holiday as we might have liked. When I sailed round Britain I met Ruth here as well but 2021 was more like a real summer than what we have had so far!

But we met up with friends who were staying here and with fellow sailors also waiting for a change in the weather – and we managed to find some good weather windows for some lovely walks around Padstow and the Camel estuary and along parts of the Southwest Coast Path.

Tomorrow or the next day I shall leave the enclosed inner harbour and head towards Lands End, maybe stopping at anchor at St Ives if the conditions are settled. It can get quite rolly outside the harbour and coming down on the firm sand inside the harbour (which I can in Thalmia with her twin keels) can be a bit juddery unless the sea is flat calm.

Then I’ll make my way back to the Exe along very familiar coastline – quickly or slowly as the weather dictates.