With the inshore shipping forecast promising wind increasing 6-7 perhaps gale 8 later it seemed an ideal excuse for an early start.
Arriving at St Justinian early I checked out the preparatory work for the new boathouse and slipway which is needed to accommodate the new Tamar class boat which is bigger and faster than the present Tyne class boat that is due to be replaced by 2012. It looks a bit of a shambles at the moment, Health & Safety would have a field day!
With that the door opened and the Garside engines roared to life. It then slid down the ramp and into the water, but I missed the best picture when the boat hits the water!
The Garside was donated to the RNLI by Thomas H Garside and his sister Dorothy and is a Tyne class lifeboat. She is 47' long with 14'8" beam and a 5' draft, she also has a steel hull with aluminium superstructure.
The Garside is powered by twin General Motors six cylinder diesel engines, each producing 425hp with a maximum speed of 17.5 knots and a range of 240 nautical miles.
In the event of a capsize she is designed to self right within 10 seconds.
In the event of a capsize she is designed to self right within 10 seconds.
The Garside circled and came back into St Justinian then sped off into the middle of Ramsey Sound through the large standing waves, and before I knew it, she had disappeared, very impressive though.
I started my paddle back slightly slower than the Garside and even slower when I rounded St John's Point and felt the full force of the North Easterly wind.
I paddled out to Carreg Gafeilliog and had a bit of a play in the rough water between the rocky outcrops.
I was about to paddle back into Porthsele when I heard the familiar roar of the Garside's engines as she came into view and headed into the sheltered water of Porth Melgan.
Altering my plans I paddled over to Porth Melgan. Although only about a mile, it was hard work into the continuous wind. At least when reaching Porth Melgan it was sheltered and warm in the sun. I spend about half an hour watching the lifeboat, nicely driven Mike!
It was then an easy paddle back to Porthsele with the wind behind me.
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