After being sick off work for three days with a bad cold, I have made my way to Devon and am faced with a choice of taking it easy and watching other people on boats in the rain on TV or risking it and going myself on a boat in the rain.Not a tough decision really.
Being a blustery day with F4 NWish winds I decided to launch from Totnes and sail down the upper reaches of the Dart and see where I get to. I drove the car into town and down to the steamer quay car park where you can park all day for £6 (bring coinage) It also benefits from having a public slipway which is accessible at almost all states of the tide although there is mud at the very bottom of the tide. The slipway is also used by the rowing club in Totnes and an eye must be kept on them on the first part of the Dart. Opposite the slip on the other side of the river is Baltic wharf, birthplace of Peter Goss' ill fated experimental catamaran Team Philips. Just as I was getting ready to put my boat in the water two huge trailer loads of canoes and accompanying hordes of kids turned up all getting set to get out on the river, which spurred me to get on the water pronto.I pushed the canoe out into the middle of the stream which was less then a foot deep and climbed aboard.I'm off!
The first part of the Dart I'm on, called Home reach, is more or less straight for the first mile, as stated the major hazard will be rowers as any thing larger then the smallest tender will be waiting for a higher tide before it can venture this high up the estuary.Although even at low tide there is plenty of room.
After this the hills press in close and the river bends every which way so the winds can be fickle and unpredictable.
one moment you're racing along the next the wind dies off or is suddenly on the head, what this does allow for through during the slacker moments is to enjoy the beauty of the surroundings; oak tree forests line the steep hills, the branches and roots dipping into the water at high tide,
pastoral scenes glide by; deserted barns outlined on the hill tops, brown cows munching on green fields, grey herons standing sentry on the muddy banks as you slide past . After a few twists and turns I arrive on Sharpham Reach, Sharpham House becomes apparent on the right hand bank, standing high on the brow of the hill. Sharpham boathouse is passed, in an idillic setting nestling in the trees in the corner of a bend. To the right of the boathouse on the southern slope of the hill are the vineyards of Sharpham winery.
As the wind funnels down the hills and estuary the sail fills, the canoe lifts her bows and flies down the estuary.Soon I am turning the corner from Ham reach to Duncannon reach.On my right hand side is Ashprington point, the site of the field I have booked from the Sharpham estate for a OCSG local meet in August. I stop to reef in the sail a little as beyond here the estuary widens out for the next three miles or so down to Dittisham and the wind is increasing in strength, what little blasts of sunlight there was earlier in the morning have now gone and its started to rain.Rounding the next turn in the river Bow creek stretch off to my right, a mile or so up it is the small village of Tuckenhay and its riverside pub The Malster's Arms, a good paddling destination and launch place of Canoe Adventures, who's giant Voyager canoes are always seen on the river;this picture was from last summer.
I sailed on a run down the Dart, Stoke Gabriel village was on my left with Dittisham a few miles further on, I toyed with the idea of a pint of Doom Bar at the Ferry inn at Dittisham but then thought about the run back up to Totnes, it would be on a rising tide but against the wind a fair amount of the way, I decided to put in at Stoke and consider my options, as the tide was still very low there was no point in going up Stoke Creek itself, there is a pontoon at the head of the creek by the mill pond wall but an hour or so either side of low tide it dries out. So I put in at Mill Head at the mouth of Stoke Gabriel, (and home to Stoke Gabriel Boating Association) opened my flask of coffee, had a bite to eat and considered what to do, then a flash of inspiration hit ! : I called my mum! She's downsizing her house and has an eye on a property in Stoke so I thought this wold be a good opportunity to take a gander at that, get a lift back to my car in Totnes and drive myself back to Stoke and pick up the canoe. Bit of a cope out I know but it was cold and raining and unlike the royal family no one cares if I decided to bail out.
After I pick up my car I returned to Stoke and parked at the Mill Quay.The rain had stopped and the tide had risen the wind had died off a bit so I decided to sail back up to Ashprington Point and take a look at the camping field again.
Being a blustery day with F4 NWish winds I decided to launch from Totnes and sail down the upper reaches of the Dart and see where I get to. I drove the car into town and down to the steamer quay car park where you can park all day for £6 (bring coinage) It also benefits from having a public slipway which is accessible at almost all states of the tide although there is mud at the very bottom of the tide. The slipway is also used by the rowing club in Totnes and an eye must be kept on them on the first part of the Dart. Opposite the slip on the other side of the river is Baltic wharf, birthplace of Peter Goss' ill fated experimental catamaran Team Philips. Just as I was getting ready to put my boat in the water two huge trailer loads of canoes and accompanying hordes of kids turned up all getting set to get out on the river, which spurred me to get on the water pronto.I pushed the canoe out into the middle of the stream which was less then a foot deep and climbed aboard.I'm off!
The first part of the Dart I'm on, called Home reach, is more or less straight for the first mile, as stated the major hazard will be rowers as any thing larger then the smallest tender will be waiting for a higher tide before it can venture this high up the estuary.Although even at low tide there is plenty of room.
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| Home Reach |
After this the hills press in close and the river bends every which way so the winds can be fickle and unpredictable.
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| Fleet Mill Reach |
one moment you're racing along the next the wind dies off or is suddenly on the head, what this does allow for through during the slacker moments is to enjoy the beauty of the surroundings; oak tree forests line the steep hills, the branches and roots dipping into the water at high tide,
pastoral scenes glide by; deserted barns outlined on the hill tops, brown cows munching on green fields, grey herons standing sentry on the muddy banks as you slide past . After a few twists and turns I arrive on Sharpham Reach, Sharpham House becomes apparent on the right hand bank, standing high on the brow of the hill. Sharpham boathouse is passed, in an idillic setting nestling in the trees in the corner of a bend. To the right of the boathouse on the southern slope of the hill are the vineyards of Sharpham winery.
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| Sharpham Reach |
As the wind funnels down the hills and estuary the sail fills, the canoe lifts her bows and flies down the estuary.Soon I am turning the corner from Ham reach to Duncannon reach.On my right hand side is Ashprington point, the site of the field I have booked from the Sharpham estate for a OCSG local meet in August. I stop to reef in the sail a little as beyond here the estuary widens out for the next three miles or so down to Dittisham and the wind is increasing in strength, what little blasts of sunlight there was earlier in the morning have now gone and its started to rain.Rounding the next turn in the river Bow creek stretch off to my right, a mile or so up it is the small village of Tuckenhay and its riverside pub The Malster's Arms, a good paddling destination and launch place of Canoe Adventures, who's giant Voyager canoes are always seen on the river;this picture was from last summer.
I sailed on a run down the Dart, Stoke Gabriel village was on my left with Dittisham a few miles further on, I toyed with the idea of a pint of Doom Bar at the Ferry inn at Dittisham but then thought about the run back up to Totnes, it would be on a rising tide but against the wind a fair amount of the way, I decided to put in at Stoke and consider my options, as the tide was still very low there was no point in going up Stoke Creek itself, there is a pontoon at the head of the creek by the mill pond wall but an hour or so either side of low tide it dries out. So I put in at Mill Head at the mouth of Stoke Gabriel, (and home to Stoke Gabriel Boating Association) opened my flask of coffee, had a bite to eat and considered what to do, then a flash of inspiration hit ! : I called my mum! She's downsizing her house and has an eye on a property in Stoke so I thought this wold be a good opportunity to take a gander at that, get a lift back to my car in Totnes and drive myself back to Stoke and pick up the canoe. Bit of a cope out I know but it was cold and raining and unlike the royal family no one cares if I decided to bail out.
After I pick up my car I returned to Stoke and parked at the Mill Quay.The rain had stopped and the tide had risen the wind had died off a bit so I decided to sail back up to Ashprington Point and take a look at the camping field again.
It really is in an ideal spot ,at the head of the best part of the Dart for sailing with three miles or so of wide open estuary between it and the Dittisham Narrows, with the option of a 1 mile trip up to Tuckenhay or a 3.5 mile excursion up to Totnes.
I sail back to Stoke Gabriel , the tide is now high enough to allow me to sail right up to the slipway next to the quay and wheel the canoe a few feet to my car.
On Sunday i decided to go for a quick sail on the Dart again! The wind was very light F2 South Westerly at most. Stoke Gabriel is my favourite put in place for the Dart, the parking is cheap: £3.20 for the day and it s on the best part of the estuary. In the car park at the Quay I fitted the cleat back onto my sail thwart to enable my little jib to be fitted, using this set up isn't ideal as reefing the main is a bit messy but it was very unlikely to be an issue today. my main camera's battery had gone flat so I used the camera on my video camera which isn't too bad. I parked my car on the mill pond
The quay across the creek not only creates the mill pond but is a very popular destination for crabbing!During the summer it gets chock-a-block with young families out crabbing, I wonder how many times the crabs in Stoke Gabriel spend their summer days in kids buckets!
Next to the quay is the brillant River shack selling quality local produced food and drink
This photo is looking out to the Stoke Gabriel creek to the main estuary beyond.The end of the pontoon dries out at low tide, on the right hand side of the creek except at high tide there is access along the Mill head and the boating club, where there is always mud free put in at all states of the tide
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| Walking along to Mill Head |
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| Mill Head looking towards Dittisham |
Once launched on the Dart I hoisted my jib and headed down to Dittisham.I thought I would get to the Ferry Inn pub and get that pint of Doom Bar I had missed from the day before. The wind was light and patchy, occasionally leaving me becalmed on the water, a river pagneant down in Dartmouth earlier in the day meant there where a few more boats on the water then would be expected on such an overcast day, although even in the best weather the Dart is never busy much above Dittisham. The tourist ferry came down river from Totnes, normally when I see it coming I head for the edge of the estuary as it follows the channel and it can make unexpected turns, today it came upon me during a becalming so I was content to just sit there and let it pass close by.
Looking back North over the moors the storm clouds were gathering
In the end I got as far as Lower Gurrow Point just above Dittisham , but a family BBQ was in the offing so I turned around and reached back up to Stoke, once back there on a high tide the best sailing of the day was had in the little creek, the wind blowing directly into it and funneled by the hills either side, after tacking up and down the creek a few times I was able to land the canoe right by the quayside again like yesterday. In less then half an hour I was heading home, but there's still an unclaimed pint of Doom Bar with my name on it at the ferry Inn! I intend to claim that very soon!
