Three NABO Bristol Channel Cruise participants stayed overnight at Gloucester Docks. We had arranged with LLantony Bridge to use the 08:15 opening time, so at the appointed hour we fired up and left. We were joined by another boat. However when we arrived at Hempsted Bridge it did not open for us and a telephone call revealed that we had not read the small print. The bridge will not open during the rush hour, so we had to wait until 09:00. Thereafter, bridges opened and green lights appeared until Splatt Bridge. There, there was no keeper on duty and one had to leapfrog us by car, so there was a delay. We passed Saul Junction after about 3 hours and carried on to Sharpness, meeting a line of boats on the run in to the junction with the old lock arm. Recognising a number of our group we saw a space near the junction and came to a screeching stop and ducked in. Actually, it wasn't quite like that as we were wrongly positioned in the middle of the channel for a neat mooring manoeuvre, however, with help from Tony and Muriel on the bank we got there.
Giving the dogs some exercise brought us down to the old sea basin and the wonderful views it affords of the Severn Estuary with the two Severn Bridges visible on the horizon. The wind was blowing hard and clearly not suitable for us to leave on that tide. The forecast was not good either, talking of poor visibilty and winds of force 3 or 4. Sunday could be better. Then we met our leader and were told of trouble with the river pilots. Originally we were expecting (for the last 9 months) that one pilot could be responsible for the entire flotilla of 12 boats. As of the last 12 hours, the rules had changed and one pilot will only accept responsibilty for two boats, and as there are only two pilots on duty, and commercial shipping has priority, a flotilla is out of the question. Although only 6 boats require pilotage according to their insurance conditions, should the remainder try to tag along, not needing a pilot, the pilots would down tools, so as to speak. So the group is to be broken up! It looks as if we will be going on Sunday morning at 04:00.
In the evening there was a lifesaving practice competition to practice the accuracy of throwing life buoys. Good fun and very instructive. In the middle of this our third crewmember, Gemma, arrived.
Comments