I count myself lucky to have completed my day skipper training with Elite Sailing, based at Chatham Maritime Marina on the river Medway. Close to the Thames Estuary and the busy Port of Sheerness at the mouth of the river Swale, this area offers sailors more challenges per nautical mile than most coastal waters.
What seemed like a straightforward journey from Queenborough to Burnham-on-Crouch turned into a thrilling adventure, filled with hidden sandbanks, sunken wrecks, and the need to cross two main shipping channels, all while keeping an eye on the ever-changing weather and tides. This experience only served to underscore the importance of passage planning and the significance of buoyage in making a safe passage.
With winds topping out at 12-15 knots, we got the chance to reef the main and head sails. We also practised tacking, gybing, and stopping the yacht with a heave-to ready for a Man-over-Board drill. Anchoring for a few hours to plan a night passage, we produced detailed pilotage plans identifying buoyage light sequences, which, together with accurate headings to steer which brought us safely back to Chatham Maritime Marina.
The final day was spent in the marina practising boat handling, preparing the yacht lines and fenders to bring the yacht safely alongside a berth, and setting the lines to slip before leaving the berth using wind, tide, and engine effectively and safely.
