PicoMicroYacht to circumnavigate the Isle of Wight

PicoMicoYacht is to circumnavigate the Isle of Wight. The word 'circumnavigate' seems a bit melodramatic for going round the Isle of Wight, that not quite so large island on the south coast of England, but will be an adventure for PicoMicroYacht. 

According to the Wayfarer Association, who organise events for their 16 foot sailing dinghies to circumnavigate:  'It is suitable for advanced sailors only who are able to deploy good seamanship skills and helm for long periods of time.' 

But being smaller than a Wayfarer and having no room for crew will mean stopping off in ports and using beaches to break up the 75 mile distance.

This is to coincide with a group of very fit people from South East London running round the Isle of Wight between 29th April and 2nd May to raise money for CASPA, a charity that works with children and young people affected by Autism. 

This group called 'The Four Day Runners' do crazy things that PicoMicroYacht can't do, like run for four whole days and in the middle of it run a marathon (some drink local Ale in the evenings).

some four day runners training

PicoMicroYacht can't keep up, so the soft option is to row and generally do things that make it easy, like go with the tide to help get there more quickly.

The four day runners will be looking down on PicoMicroYacht as it passes iconic places such as the Needles on the Western side of the Island and St Catherine's Point on the south side, as they run along the cliff tops.

The total journey promises to be a true adventure. Click below for further details.

The Planned Voyage

PicoMicroYacht and the joy of fixing boats

I am convinced that some boaties like working on their boats almost more than being out on the water.

My brother has taken more time building his canoe than he will be using it and he just loves his old Stuart Turner engine for his 23 foot yacht, even though it is most unreliable piece of equipment he has (apart from his Seagull outboard) - but the joy of fixing it is clear.

Just listen to an old Stuart Turner R3M go https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Sqmks0W87I and you will see his point.

For PicoMicroYacht getting the job done and being out rowing as quickly as possible is the priority.

But it is a bank holiday and a tyre of PicoMicroYacht's trailer need replacing and the replacement turns out to be the wrong size. And the WaterRower I use to train on is in bits because the tank has just sprung a leak and the temporary repair didn't fix it.

Even though the WaterRower is the best bit of kit I have bought, it has a flaw - the drum that contains the paddle that provides the resistance to the rowing action is joined together by a central seam that is prone to leaking.

The temporary fix was unsuccessful

It has to be taken apart and mended properly, which the suppliers will do.

So no rowing over the vacation period until I get one of these fixed.

Was PicoMicroYacht the last solo to row the English Channel?

The French 2013 ban for cross channel rowing is still in place.'Channel rowing' can be done but the voyage is half way across from the English side and then back again.

Two polish gentlemen had a go illegally recently because they wanted to find work in France,  rescued by the RNLI after bravely rowing fruitlessly into a strong head wind for two miles.



To get round the ban people have planned to row 50 miles to Belgium instead, a more challenging crossing because of the less predictable shipping routes. I hope these Bournemouth hotel employees who planned to row to Nieuwpoort did well - I haven't heard whether they have done it yet.



So was PicoMicoyacht the last solo voyager? No - for two reasons. Harry Uglow rowed across a month later than PicoMicroYacht, in 2012. Harry was the youngest solo voyager at 15 years. I think he was the last to make it.



Harry did it in a Janousek coastal sculling boat, a remarkable achievement given it was not exactly calm throughout and he did it in less than five hours.

Secondly, PicoMicoYacht had two small auxiliary sails, although the power from these was counteracted by the 3-4 gusting 5 close head wind from the East. PicoMicroYacht could not land because of the rough sea and had to be content to arrive at the point the chart said no water at low tide.

2012 was also a bumper year for UK celebrities rowing across the channel, including  Davina Mcall, Denise Lewis, Freddy Flintoff and John Bishop photographed in Dover. They obviously enjoyed it at the end, but John Bishop had then to run to London, having cycled to Calais from Paris. That far away look reflects his fatigue level.



The end of an era possibly.

When I'm 74

The Beatles song:

'When I get older, losing my hair, many years from now ... will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm sixty-four?'

I ponder now whether PicoMicroYacht will be still out there, shall I say, not 64 but 74?

A cousin is still rowing competitively, having started nearly 60 years ago. The photo below is him winning on that famous old rowing course on the Thames, at aged 71 years, so it is possible.

Sean Morris winning the Henley Masters 70 - 74 years old competition. 

Over ninety years ago another relative was winning on the same course, and Gallaher's cigarettes decided to cash in, perhaps reducing longevity for others.

According to Geoffrey Page, in his book 'Hear the Boat Sing: A history of Thames Rowing Club and Tidway Rowing,' it was a tough one. 

Exiting the Western Solent

PicoMicroYacht was to exit the Western Solent on the South Coast on a spring tide and cross Christchurch bay to Christchurch harbour. The tide through the exit is somewhat treacherous as it squeezes out through a narrow gap between the Isle of Wight and the mainland Hurst Spit.

According to Peter Bruce in his book 'Solent Hazards' (5th Edition), 'The constriction of the tide flow caused by Hurst Spit creates very strong tidal streams, circular areas of flat sea caused by up welling water and unusually spiky waves'

The strategy is to turn to starboard through the North Channel to avoid being swept out past the famous landmark the Needles and risk being destroyed by large and steep breaking seas.

But if you make a mistake the tide will get you in it's grip and push you south west across the infamous Shingles Bank where, as Peter Bruce has put it, 'Even if the slightest swell is running, ugly waves can appear as if from nowhere to capsize even quite sizable vessels.'

With this in mind I set off from Keyhaven, the first part of the voyage exiting the sheltered harbour close to Hurst Point.  Soon I was opposite the lighthouse with the Hurst Castle to my left, the sea revving up.

The next stage was to hug the Hurst Spit around the castle, but first I had to get through some rough water as the tide bore down on the spit, the waves refracting off it in a commotion. Photography was difficult as I had to concentrate.

But soon I was through the worst and heading into the Hurst Narrows.

I now had to stick close to the Hurst Castle but also avoid hitting the groynes or a sandbar called 'the Trap' that stuck out into the channel, the tide sizzling past.

I could see what I had avoided and was glad now to be rowing safely onward  as I looked back at the turmoil through the camera zoom.

Out to sea was the Needles, across the hidden Shingles banks.

The sea calmed down and a friendly gaffer passed by under motor, stemming the tide.

Soon I had crossed Christchurch bay helped by a north easterly wind that started when PicoMicroYacht was half way across. When PicoMicroYacht arrived at the harbour entrance the tide was still streaming out, so it was beached on a sandbank for a while.

Various boats and canoes would exit the harbour but with the tide too strong for them to re-enter and this kept me interested until it was time to finish the voyage.

Where am I?

This summer I have been planning a voyage when the conditions and wind and time are right. In the meanwhile I realised that out at sea PicoMicroYacht can seem very small, so I decided to find a way of people seeing me more easily.

Having sails up helps, but I was struck by the fact that when I rowed round Land's End and was two miles out at sea none of the 20 or so people running along on the cliff top saw me. What chance a ship two miles away closing at 20 knots? That's six minutes.

So I have been experimenting with an automatic identification system transceiver (apparently they call it a transponder but the experts say it is a technically a transceiver).

My WatchMate 850 receives and transmits from a VHF antenna fitted at the top of my mast. It can then identify if a ship is about to collide with me as well as telling all other large ships my whereabouts. It also provides a call sign for the ship so I can even radio them directly to warn them about PicoMicroYacht.

A byproduct is that PicoMicroYacht is being tracked and this then goes on the internet so people can know where I am (There is a pirate mode in case I want to receive but go in cognito).

It shows my voyage as well.

As you can see, I didn't get out the harbour this time.

Finishing the Thames Voyage

PicoMicroYacht's final journal was from Gravesend to Queenborough in the Medway Estuary, a journey of about 23 miles.

Gravesend was soon receding into the distance.

The new London Gateway container ship port did not seem very busy.

Further on was the refinery at Holehaven.

Finally PicoMicroYacht was looking out towards the North Sea.

With Wimbledon tennis about to start, it was strawberries and cream for refreshment.

To the south was a large sandbank stretching back to the shore with a solitary seal who decided to move into the water.

In the background, as if beached on the bank, was a fort at the entrance to the Medway.

Some yachts were scuttling into the harbour as PicoMicroYacht finished the long journey down the Thames.