Deben Lugger rally

 This year's Deben Lugger rally was held on the weekend 31 July to 2nd August.  As with last year, I decided to extend my involvement by sailing round on the 30 July and then back on 3rd August.

Here's some video of what was a wonderful event:

And then some more pictures.

I left Pin Mill at 0400 on Thursday 30th July.

Then, on Friday 31st, the fleet gathered and we went for a pleasant sail up towards Woodbridge.

On Saturday 1st August, we cruised down towards Ramsholt in light winds.

And then on Sunday, there was the obligatory race, which is always a bit of fun.  Prior to this, the fleet gathered at Waldringfield for some rigging checks, not that it made any difference to the race outcome.  Alex still won by several leagues…

And then it was time for me to sail back.  I left Waldringfield at 0600 and motored down to Felixstowe Ferry, before hoisting sails and tackling the Deben bar.  Winds were F4 NE, so there were predictably notable overfalls at the entrance, which can be seen in the video above.

Then, I had a lively run down the coast, jybing into the relative safety of Harwich Harbour, and on to Halfpenny Pier for breakfast.

Then back to the mooring.

This was the track from 31 July, when I forgot my usual Garmin chart plotter - 8nm.

Tracks for the rest of the trip:
White: July 30th, 17.5nm
Yellow: August 1st, 10.4nm
Red: August 2nd 6.8nm
Green: August 3rd, 19.1nm.
Total trip length, 61.6nm

Deben Lugger rally, 22-24 August

 It was great to be able to attend this event, particularly by making the passage round from the Orwell to the Deben.

I left the mooring at Pin Mill at 0345 on Friday 22nd, and arrived at Waldringfield on the River Deben at 1015.  It was a fabulous passage, involving all sorts of sights that the iPhone camera just won't capture!

But I particularly enjoyed these:

For the rally, Daisy IV was joined by five other Deben Luggers.  The video above gives a flavour of the weekend.  Much fun enjoyed by all.

Unfortunately, neither tides nor winds were quite right for a safe passage to home waters by sea, so I have arranged to pick up Daisy IV later by road trailer.

41.8nm, including yellow track 23.2nm from Friday, red track 12.2nm from Saturday, and white track 6.4nm 

Deben Lugger rally, August 2024

A breezy sail up to Woodbridge on day 1

The annual Deben Lugger rally is quite an event, and a real opportunity to see just how beautiful and seaworthy these craft are.

The following video provides a personal viewpoint, since it afforded a first opportunity for Scuppers, our five month old Springer Spaniel, to come sailing.  He coped really well!

This video shows more of the sailing action!

The weekend panned out much as last year.  We launched at Waldringfield, early afternoon on Friday and then had a free sail, most boats working their way up to Woodbridge and back.

The next day, I was joined by crew and my two dogs, Kizzy and Scuppers - it was Scuppers' first sail on the boat and he did very well!

The fleet made its way downstream against the tide towards Bawdsey.  We hung back and used the beach landing in 'The Rocks' part of the river - useful for keeping pooches happy!  My crew and dogs went home later in the afternoon and I sailed back downstream to meet the returning fleet.

On the final day, following a free sail in the morning, there was an informal 'race' which followed a course from just upstream of Waldringfield down to The Rocks and then back. 

We finally recovered boats later in the afternoon.

A very pleasant trip all round.

Scuppers learning the ropes

Crew with Kizzy and Scuppers

Keeping a lookout!

9th August, 6.8nm

10th August, 15.4nm

11th August, 12.3nm

Combined tracks, 34.5nm