Four boats lined up for the trip West............... Hawkeye with Colin and Tina , Brinsmead with Len and Steve , Sumprezzi with Paul and George and Mr Max with Ian , Trish and the kids ( we now number them as names got too confusing ).

We (Mr Max) had arranged to meet the others in Studland bay at midday .....whilst we were crashed out catching the sun we heard the chatter on the radio and were disturbed to hear of bad conditions , boats being shaken up and VHF's disintigrating.
 

We were concerned that the week may be cancelled due to the rough seas , but after a brief meeting we decided to press on around St Albans Head and check out the conditions further around the coast.

One of my favourite spots along this stretch of coast and well worth a visit is Lulworth cove which for anyone who has not been there before its a large natural cove cut into the high cliffs which surrounds it on all sides and forms a beatiful setting for a relaxing afternoon at anchor.Take a dinghy with you as the cafe is worth a visit and the Ice creams are yummie.

Im glad to say we stopped there ...if only briefly to grab a bite to eat and a swift drink before heading off toward Weymouth.The master plan was to carry on to Torquay where we were booked in at the marina , but due to charging problems with Sumprezzis alternator we decided to overnight at Weymouth and carry out a repair if possible to Pauls boat.

The following day sees all crews refuelled and refreshed and raring to crack on West toward Torquay and ultimately Plymouth.The next stage of the trip is to round Portland Bill( of which we have heard all sorts of horror stories )and see what sort of conditions we would face in Lyme Bay.

To hug the coast of Lyme bay would add sixteen miles to the journey so with good conditions we would head in a straight line across the bay with bolt holes planned should we need to. So with baited breath we rounded Portland Bill...........

Flat calm or as good as  so we sort course using both compass and GPS....due west 270 degrees ...6 Miles off shore and we registered 500 foot of water beneath us at one stage. We stopped in Torquay marina home of the rich and famous (Jim Davidson to name but one )to refuel and stretch our legs before continueing on to Plymouth.

The further west we travelled the fewer boats we saw and the harsher the surrounding coastline as you can see from the back drops on the photos.

As we pulled into Plymouth we were greeted by thousands of people on the Hoe and the Radio one road show with Sonique signing live on the stage which is one of my best memories of this event and whenever I hear it on the radio I always think of that day (with a big grin)

My thanks to the organisers and crews who made the trip West and  a special thought to Paul and George on Sumprezzi we wish you well.