With a fresh northwesterly wind forecast, things were looking good for a fast passage down to Bridlington. Grimsby would even be possible if we were lucky.

We were up at 6am ready to depart at the end of the high water period. At just before 7am we radioed the bridge to request passage. However, they informed us we had missed the last swing of the day and would have to wait. It was a different crew of men on the bridge this morning and they seamed to be somewhat less flexible. It was twenty minutes until two hours after high water but apparently the bridge had to be closed well before that time today.

Luckily there was a dredger leaving the harbour at 9am so they would make an exception for it and we could follow it out. Grimsby was now out of the question but Bridlington would be a good stretch for the day. Once out of the harbour it was clear how sheltered the Whitby valley had been. Inside there had been little wind and here we now reefed down to the No. 2 jib and a small main.

Once we rounded Whitby Rock we were on our way. With a force four or five from the west we were pushing hard against a strong tide making five knots down the coast. Half an hour later we were past by the familiar sight of the Trinity House ship “Patricia”. She calmly steamed past us lifted the Whitby Cardinal Mark for cleaning, replaced it, then turned and steamed off. Within an hour or so she was on the horizon again – it would be nice if we could hold her speed!

The wind fluctuated through the day; at times we were almost forced to start the engine. However, the breeze steadied once past Scarborough holding at a comfortable level all the way to Framborough Head. As we approached Framborough Head the tide started to move in our favour and the wind started to gust. We were now moving at up to nine knots.

Any other time in the day this would have been a good thing but with this amount of tide it made it almost impossible to make it through the thin channel between the headland and the off lying sandbank. We went for the safe, but long way round by going south of the shallows. The seas had built quickly in the new current and it was a wet but fast beat to windward. After an hour we rounded the cardinal mark south of the sandbank and motor sailed up to the harbour. After negotiating our way to the harbour mouth past a number of impatient fishermen we were directed to a berth. Our drying berth for the night was alongside the wall at the head of the harbour. After a quick fish tea, we planned a swift passage to Grimsby on Tuesday.