Running aground while learning to sail – it will happen one day!
4,234 views | April 8th, 2013
Running aground while learning to sail
Running aground is something that will happen one day, and if you sail on the east coast it is a possibility every day. Get your calculations wrong and a great day of sailing becomes a day of mud wrestling. But the mud can be a great asset when training. Our skipper asked each of us to work out the earliest time we would be able to leave Bradwell Marina in Essex on a rising tide. The chart shows 0.5 in the approach channel but a local survey shows 0.2.
Taking the 0.2 figure plus our 1.5 draft we each did our calculations. Our timings varied from 1127 to 1212. Well, as the the sea state is smooth and the channel is soft mud, let’s see how we get on at 1127 said our instructor.
Leaving the marina after a bit of parking practice we slowly entered the channel. The depth started at 3.6 metres and we exuded confidence.as we passed the first buoy. Then as we passed the second the depth dropped to 2 then 1.8 butterflies we did not know what to expect. What happens if you run aground. Well just near the third buoy we slowly came to a standstill. Put the kettle on – tea all round was the skippers response. We will float at 1212 said one confident voice. Well at 1143 we edged forward into deeper water and we called it a draw!
Over dinner we looked at our calculations again and found that our interpolations were all different. What was also interesting was that the electronic chart plotter gave a time for departure of 1122.
Our skipper pointed out that the chart plotter had the same channel depth of 0.5 as the paper chart but local knowledge warned us that it was now 0.2m. It was a sobering exercise to realise that the electronics can be wrong to. with a rising tide it meant we could have a nice cup of tea and wave to the 40 schoolchildren and their teachers who were walking along the sea wall. Isn’t it amazing how you have an audience when things don’t quite go according to plan!
Posted by: firstclass
