We arrived at Whitstable Yacht Club at around 3:30 pm and put the boat together in soaring temperatures. You could say summer had finally come. Dinner at the Club was great. Animal lovers could have been concerned by one item on the menu "Church Mouse Pie" but this mercifully turned out to be a cheesy vegetarian alternative! Well fed and watered Gavin provided the entertainment with a spirited rendering of his "Wanderer" song which if you haven’t heard; you must prevail on him to sing next time.

The following morning we rigged and set out early encouraged by the forecast of Easterly F2-3 wind. Eight boats took to the sea and sailed, or rather drifted on the tide, towards the Swale. By 11:30 the wind had gone for an early lunch! We paddled, drifted, sunbathed and chatted and finally gave up hope of reaching the pub.

Then suddenly around 1:30 pm there was a flutter, a waft and in the distance some ripples on the water! Great whoops could be heard from various boats as we all tidied up, set sails and prepared to enter THE WIND ZONE! Suddenly we were flying and all the drifting and sunbathing was worth it. There’s nothing like sailing this fabulous little dinghy on the sea in your swimsuit on a lovely August day.

But shortly afterwards the tide turned and by telepathic consensus, we all gave up trying to reach the Swale and began heading back to Whitstable. With the wind behind us now, we hoisted the spinnaker but not for long as the new wind was too variable in direction to fly it properly. We still had a very enjoyable sail back to Whitstable Yacht club. It was lovely to see this active, friendly club in action with so many boats on the water with people of all ages.

Many thanks to the organisers and Whitstable Yacht Club for a great evening gathering and a great day sunbathing and sailing.

Jenny and Sarah

Wanderer 1330.