Ashdown Week Cruise 2002

Ashdown Week Cruise July 2002 The July cruise was my first as a (new) member of Ashdown.

My logbook reads: Eliona, Dufour 36

Saturday, Northney - East Cowes;

Sunday, Yarmouth;

Monday, Lymington - Beaulieu;

Tuesday, Cherbourg;

Thursday, Poole;

Friday, East Cowes;

Saturday, Northney -

but this hardly tells the story of a very enjoyable week . . . . . Although I had sailed with Graham before, Saturday's gentle sail to East Cowes was an ideal opportunity to get acquainted with the other crewmembers - Paula and Les. After eating on board we met the rest of the cruise (Fizzgig and Layla) at the local pub. It was obvious - even allowing for the effect of alcohol- that I was in the company of a very pleasant and friendly bunch of people.

The sequence of events for the rest of the week now becomes slightly blurred - the only thing that I can think of is the early onset of short-term memory loss - surely nothing to do with alcohol! Saturday evening ended with a nightcap on Fizzgig. On Sunday we made Yarmouth where we visited the Lifeboat Station during its open day. Here we met the great grandson of a famous lifesaver and purred over the new Lifeboat Station in the harbour. Monday - it must be Lymington! - after lunch, a pint and some shopping we sailed for Beaulieu, where we tied up for a good night's sleep. As with previous evenings, Eliona had 'rendezvoused' with the other yachts.

Weather for the week was not predicted to be too favourable - gusting 6s, visibility moderate to poor, sea state moderate to rough - venturing out of the Solent seemed unlikely for the cruise. However, John probably sensed that Eliona wanted to have a look at going further, and was happy for us to poke our nose out through the Needles to assess the situation. If we decided to go anywhere further we would meet up with the others in a couple of days or so. An hour's sailing from the Needles made up our minds - Cherbourg, here we come!

We took turns in helming for approximately an hour at a time. Away from the influence of the English coast the swell increased. Winds remained constant at 25 knots - gusting 30 at times. Around two hours out Eliona's warning buzzers went off - as a severe weather warning was broadcast. Although we couldn't hear it, we could guess its contents.

We arrived in Cherbourg about ten hours after passing the Needles (that sounds painful) and I think that breaks Graham's previous best crossing time. That night we rafted up, but after finding a berth the next day, we celebrated Les's first Channel crossing - later the Harbourmaster suggested that the rest of the marina may like to join in the celebrations, but we had to go to dinner. At a Chinese we played a new game - hunt the food - I suppose it was something - and let's face it what do you expect at midnight?

Thursday we returned to Blighty - Poole to be exact - again we sailed most of the way - putting the donkey on for about the last two hours. We entered the marina at 2150 to find the quay packed with people - obviously waiting for our return, and to celebrate Les's crossing. This welcome was underlined by the spectacular firework display that followed - just as we put the boat to bed - Graham certainly knows how to pull strings in Poole!

Friday we headed back to East Cowes - sailing about half the time. That night we all met up for a cruise dinner. Enjoying each other's company we swapped stories from the week - whether it was sail trimming, pontoon lashing or channel crossing.

Saturday after saying our goodbyes we all made for our home berths. The busy Solent certainly contrasted with the solitude of the channel. In light winds, Graham tried out his new spinnaker, and we made Northney in the early afternoon. The journey back gave us the chance to reflect on a very enjoyable week. Probably the highlight of the week was the Eliona disco dancing championships - with only the four on board, Graham, Paula, Les and myself, there was obviously one person who had a natural advantage . . . yes! Les could certainly run John Travolta a close second!

Concluding, I would like to thank all those who helped organise a great week - with special thanks to John and Graham.

Eamon Furlong