Home in Mylor

“Sarah Jane “ is now safely tucked up in her home berth at Mylor.

Since leaving Dartmouth we’ve sailed most of the way with the wind from the south west or west and the tide in our favour, very useful when rounding Start Point and Dodman, although we used the engine little bit between Plymouth and Fowey.

We visited the River Yealm on the way, staying overnight on the visitors pontoon just off Warren Point. We managed to get into the last available space on the river side of the pontoon between two boats, not too difficult, there was no wind and there was a steady flood tide helping us to ferry glide in. Getting off the pontoon was much more difficult the tide was flowing out very fast along the pontoon from our stern, occasionally sweeping on or off the pontoon. There was also a strong wind pushing us onto the pontoon. I was hoping the downstream boat would leave before us but they were staying all day. Having twin rudders, hence no prop wash, doesn’t help in these situations. The only safe was to spring the stern off into the current and go off backwards. Using our big ball fender as a pivot we eventually managed, using full forward power the get the stern round far enough for the tide to overcome the wind and reverse out. We’d enlisted the help of the owner of the powerboat at our stern to make sure our spring line came off ok and also to walk our bow upstream a little way as we came out. He was probably concerned about his boat and more than happy to help. We were a bit concerned that the wind may blow us against the stern of the power boat and were ready to fend off but in the end this wasn’t needed. Boats on mooring buoys were swinging across the tide quite close to the pontoon adding to the fun, guides do warn that this may make turning for large boats difficult, no mention of smaller ones. At times like this we wish we had a bow thruster, quiet or noisy.
Next time we visit we’ll either go to the upper pontoon or pick up a mooring buoy.
“Runcible Moon” our pontoon neighbours in Mylor were on a buoy a little downstream of where we moored. We ate at the Yealm Yacht Club that evening. The clubhouse was very crowded, since it was their regatta the following day, but the food was good. The only black spot, literally, was a plague of flying ants which descended on the area that evening.

We had intended the following day to go up the River Tamar as far as Cargreen. There’s a pub there, The Crooked Spaniard, that Wickersley Joggers visited a couple of years ago during a Cornish weekend. Their mooring buoys are free if a meal is eaten in the pub. However, a couple we met at the Yealm told us the pub has shut down. We tried phoning to confirm this but there was no reply, so we decided not to risk it and go on to Fowey instead.

Fowey was very crowded, we rafted up against a Belgium boat that turned out to be going on the Mylor. We ate at the Gallants Yacht Club where there is a Thai cook with a very good reputation amongst visiting yachtspeople. We ate spring rolls, calamari and Thai style Fowey Mussels. Very good, the cook’s reputation nwas definitely intact. Once a week , Friday we think,they have a Thai tasting evening.
As we were getting out of the dinghy at the town quay a drunken young lad fell off the pontoon into the river. His mate, who was also drunk, managed to grab him to stop him sinking. We tried to pull the helpless lump out of the water but couldn’t, he was too heavy and the other youth was no use at all. Fortunately the Harbour Master was nearby and between us we managed to pull him out. He stood there swaying and eventually fell again, but this time into their dinghy. In spite of strong advice from the Harbour Master to take the water taxi they insisted on going by dinghy and set off weaving across the river to Polruan, shadowed by the Harbour Master. The same HM came to collect our mooring fees the next morning. The two drunks managed eventually to find Polruan but one went for another swim ( or sink) when getting out of the dinghy,but the water was very shallow.
Next day we set off on the final leg of our holiday, from Fowey to Mylor. We had another good sail, from the mouth of the river Fowey to the Castle buoy off St Mawes then started the engine for the short distance to Mylor.

All that remains of the holiday now is to clean the boat and unload it, especially the wine. We shall be down again in a couple of weeks so will leave some stuff on board.
By the time we get home on Thursday we will have been away for six weeks and travelled 562 miles through the water. Since the tides have been with us much of the time we suspect distance over the ground will be much more.
For the next trip we shall have to see if either of our GPS measure actual distance travelled over the ground rather than planned route miles.

PS. The herbs survived well, except for one coriander, which turned to seed. They all came in useful, especially the Basil.