trip to the yealm and back tomorrow

As promised here are the proposed details of my trip tomorrow. I'm leaving QAB and sailing 16 NM as a return trip. I reckon I'll average 3 kts so dead reckoning makes it roughly 5 - 6 hr trip without stops. The tides are springs with a tidal range of 4m. HT is 6.50am 5.0m; low tide is 1335 1.0m. if I've planned this I'll go out of Plymouth Sound on the ebb and should have a 3kt flow going with me; if I leave the yealm promptly at slack water....I won't combat the incoming tide and I should be able to pick it up going through the breakwater gaps into the sound on the return leg.

The weather is changeable at the moment. The 1435 forecast from the Met office (confirmed by wind guru) puts the weather at westerly winds 8 - 14 knots with afternoon gusts of 23 knts (basically force 3 - 4 rising 5); some drizzle, but visibility is moderate to good and the sea state is slight to moderate with wave heights around 1m.

I spent some time this morning entering waypoints into my GPS and setting up a route plan. I intend motoring out to east mallard buoy just off the Mountbatten breakwater, raising sails and then sailing off to the Duke Rock Buoy just north of the eastern end of the Plymouth breakwater. if the wind holds true as westerlies - this pretty much puts me on a beam reach starboard tack sail all the way (although I've already learned that nothing is ever as easy as it looks or sounds in sailing!)

From there its a short hop across to the eastern end of the breakwater and then on southwards to east tinker buoy. From there I am heading to around 300m south west of the Great Mewstone island; then a short downwind sail to south of the island to clear the inner and outer slimes. The GPS then has to pick up a transit which lines up Wembury church tower to the north and the cardinal marks at cellars beach in the yealm outer estuary entrance (a bearing of 088M). Finally I'll know I've cleared the bar at low water-ish time if I stay to the left of the port red buoy marking the southern tip of this treacherous place.

Obviously, the return leg is the reverse of this route. If the wind remains from the west...its going to be a very long series of tacks to windward to pass Great Mewstone before turning north onto a beam reach back into Plymouth Sound.

Well that's it really.  This is the longest venture Arwen will have made and whilst I have complete faith in the seaworthiness of my boat......it's my abilities I am more concerned about. I hope I have the skills and knowledge to be safe and successful tomorrow.

Wish me luck

Steve