Cowes....

Bonita spent another day in Cowes, and several other Gaffers arrived today. We now have the Dutch boats Helen and Recipe together with Cygnet, Louisa May, Lahloo and Agapanthus. Enough for a jolly evening in the pub. We went to the Duke of York; very likely named long before the current Duke took up any official duties.

There are lots of flags for Saturdays coronation all over Cowes - no sign of any republican dissent here.

The picture shows a local gaffer sailing in the Medina river. She is the pretty little Vivid: built in 2008 to a Victorian (1886) design.

Cowes

Except when she is in a gathering of gaffers, Bonita always looks strikingly different to todays modern boats. The above picture wasn't taken by a drone, but by Justin from the upper deck of the Red Funnel ferry which passes alarmingly close to the marina on its frequent trips to the mainland.  Every time the ferry leaves we hear the recorded message over the ships loudspeakers telling the passengers to stay calm and what they should do in the unlikely event of an emergency. Justin has had to go home for a couple of days and as it is blowing quite hard from the east, Bonita is staying put while I get on with a few jobs and general sorting out. While going to the supermarket I had a look at the excellent (and free)  Max Aitken museum in the High Street which has lots of fascinating nautical items. Aitken had a remarkable life and was the son of Lord Beaverbrook, the enormously rich owner of the Daily Express: not all children of high- achieving parents succeed so well themselves. I was the only visitor to the museum  and there were two staff on duty so it makes you wonder about their business model. Certainly worth a visit.

Cowes!

After leaving Ramsgate at 4am we thought it best to carry on and by 11pm we were off Beachy Head motoring against a light head wind. Part of the reason we carried on all night was because the forecast promised an easterly breeze. It was a bit late in coming but off Brighton we got a nice NE wind which shifted round to the east and blew all day. We got to Gosport by high water, 10.30 am. But we decided not to stay as Justin needed to go home for a couple of days. So we had a fine sail to Cowes and Bonita is now berthed at Shepards wharf where the Gaffers are gathering later in the week. 

As always Cowes is full of interesting people, shops and boats even though the sailing season hasn't really got going yet.

There are some pretty extreme boats to be seen as in the picture. What are the chances someone will still be keeping her in sailing condition in a hundred years time?

Kentish coast

Although the Heritage area of Ramsgate inner harbour is very convenient for the town, it is also close to several nightclubs that keep going with great energy till 2 or 3 am. So we moved Bonita to a pontoon in the outer harbour. Several more Gaffers have appeared and we had a gathering in the Ramsgate Wetherspoons - it is said to be the largest Wetherspoons in the country, and is certainly very large. A fitting start the the OGA Round Britain cruise we hope. We said goodbye to Jan and Robert who have so ably organised the weekend.

The picture is of their boat Emanuel in Ramsgate harbour. 

We left at 4am to catch the tide and as this log is written we are somewhere between Dover and Dungeness. We have successfully dodged all the ferries coming out of Dover and so far have not been troubled by the many Border Force vessels searching the Channel for small boats. We are  motoring in calm weather but hoping for a favorable breeze.

Ramsgate inner harbour

Bonita spent the day in the Heritage section of Ramsgate inner harbour. Several Gaffers have gone on a trip up the tortuous river Stour to Sandwich, but we stayed put as a) we've done it before, and b) we were expecting visitors.

Allan came by car with Toby and Martha for a boat inspection and a dinghy trip around the inner harbour. The picture shows Toby getting to grips with the art of oarsmanship, with a little bit of supervision.

The Heritage area of the harbour is next to a busy bit of the town. By day Bonita a number of admiring comments which are always gratifying. However at night this part of town benefits from a lively night life that does seem to go on very late.

In the evening the Gaffers enjoyed a fish and chip supper at the Sandwich Sailing and Motor Boat club on their converted Dutch barge. A jolly evening ably organised by Robert and Jan Holden, whose lovely boat Emanuel is kept in Sandwich.