Boating buddies and fellow Aquastar owners Phil Carter and Neil Cotillard push north in their attempt to circumnavigate the UK in less than a month, but there’s trouble ahead...
ROUND BRITAIN IN 26 DAYS PART II
27 APRIL − 75NM
RAMSGATE TO LOWESTOFT
Two days and 225nm into our circumnavigation attempt, we’ve crossed the Channel from Jersey and made it as far as Ramsgate. However, we’ve already had a few problems and are well aware that the hard yards lie ahead as we push on north up the exposed East Coast with 24 days and 1,700nm to go!
With a high-pressure system over Scotland and moderate north-easterly winds, we complete our engine checks and head for the fuel barge. Somehow Neil manages to get lost in the harbour and arrives several minutes after me, muttering something about the previous evening’s Calvados nightcap, but his hangover is soon forgotten when Merlin gives us a hefty discount on the fuel to support our fundraising efforts for Prostate Cancer UK. Tanks brimmed, we batten down the hatches and head out into the complex channels of the Thames Estuary.
Once past North Foreland we are soon zig-zagging through the various channels and wind farms bearing foreboding names like Knock, Sunk and Black. After a wet couple of hours bouncing through the chop, the tide turns, allowing us to increase speed and push on towards Lowestoft. The autopilot on April Rose is still playing up, requiring me to hand steer the whole time but at least it helps me to stay focussed.
Dodging the shipping keeps us both busy and as we close on the low-lying Suffolk coastline, Sizewell nuclear power station hoves into view. At 1430 we catch sight of the huge wind generator to the north of Lowestoft harbour, which Colin assures me is the tallest on the English mainland and goes by the name of Gulliver, one of many random facts he proffers as we make our way north.
Royal Norfolk & Suffolk Yacht Club finds room for us in their small marina and once safely berthed Colin sets to work drying out the bunk on April Rose caused by a persistent leak from the deck vents.
We enjoy a superb dinner in the club’s restaurant, discussing options for the next leg. The moderate north-easterlies are set to continue for a few days so we decide to have a rest day to make repairs and explore locally. With no early wake-up calls to worry about, when the yacht club bar shuts, the gin bar on April Rose opens.
The next day dawns cold and grey but at least it’s dry and we spend the morning sealing the deck vents to try and stop the leaks. Once complete, we dig our bikes out and head off to explore Lowestoft. We follow the inner harbour towards Oulton Broad but are soon distracted by the lure of a pint or
