Another Wrabness night

After two interesting sails in Papa Stour at the Manningtree regatta we needed to get her back to her home berth. We could get out of Mistley Marine four hours either side of high water in Robinetta, but Papa Stour lives on a half tide mooring at Wrabness, and we only dare approach it in Robinetta at high water. We decided to leave Mistley as soon as we could after the race on Sunday afternoon and pick up a mooring at Wrabness.

Both of us were tired after the race, so we just motored down river to Wrabness. Cine Mara and Martje had taken moorings there too. We waved, but did not interrupt as both dutch crews were  chatting on Cine Mara and after a weekend of socialising a night by ourselves appealed.

I searched for Papa Stour's mooring. It was still afloat, but too much of the beach was uncovered for it to be safe to approach in Robinetta. Instead we picked up the mooring we had been on on Thursday night, and Julian rowed Papa Stour over and tied her up. He then got into the water (only waist deep, so much too shallow for Robinetta) went on shore, and walked along the beach until he was far enough up tide not to be washed past Robinetta as he swam out to her.

It was an interesting exercise in tidal calculations, and he reached Robinetta's bow safely. He then asked for a safety line to be tied to his life jacket, which he was wearing un-inflated, before coasting along the hull to the dinghy boarding ladder which I had put over the side with a fender attached to make a third rung. I did have to help him up with a pull on the safety line as he was quite tired.

We ate on board and went to bed early.