Monday, March 16, 2015

Island Sailing Club – Canvey Island







Essex is not short of sailing clubs. I have belonged to three of them: the Up River Yacht Club, Hullbridge Yacht Club, and the Marconi Sailing Club.

There are a several advantages in belonging to a club, and perhaps the most valuable is being able to use a club mooring, which is almost invariably cheaper than one supplied by a boatyard or a marina. Another advantage is friendship found with other members, especially those who sail similar boats to yours. For sailors who are socially minded, a club may be found that offers facilities for socializing, such as a bar and a restaurant. At certain times of the year, members may organize get-togethers; for example, a combined meal and prize-giving, or a dinner and dance evening, or a summer barbecue -  even an AGM can be a bit of fun if it is creatively organised, perhaps with a video presentation of club events. A big club will require a lot of upkeep; therefore organizers will be looking for members with time on their hands to do things like painting the premises, keeping boat parks in good shape, scrubbing the slipway, laying moorings, launching and retrieving boats etc.

Last Friday I was invited by a member of the Island Sailing Club to have a look at the Club’s facilities. I was very impressed. The clubhouse has a large, well-furnished lounge and a decent bar, plus the usual changing facilities. The boat park is enormous, and there are two large mobile hoists for moving vessels with the aid of a tractor. You could not want a better slipway, which has a perfect angle of descent, being not too steep, nor yet too shallow for manoeuvring craft in and out of the water.  There are many piled walkways to which yachts can be moored, facilitating access to them by foot at all states of tide. One drawback is that it is only possible for most yachts to sail in an out of the creek from two hours before high water to two hours after high water.

Despite the rather uninviting signs at the entrance to the club, and the Fort Knox appearance of the gate, I’m sure you will find a very warm welcome from members, as was my experience, last Friday. I say, thank you once again BD for being my host. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting you and your beautiful ‘Scruffie’.

Links

Island Sailing Club
 
Up River Yacht Club

Hullbridge Yacht Club

Marconi Sailing Club

Australian Scruffie


2 comments:

Alden Smith said...

As a boat owner myself I understand the Fort Knox mentality that arises to protect boats and property. But its sad for people such as myself and others who love to amble around boatyards just looking at all the beautiful little craft that are there.
I would be disappointed if when I came to the UK to have a look around nearly everything was unaccessible but I suspect that things may be similar to NZ i.e. Boatyards and Yacht clubs are open with a friendly welcome when owners open the gates and are there working etc. Am I correct in this?

William Serjeant said...

Alden,

If you come to the UK, I think you will find the boating fraternity are a friendly bunch. Clubs will always welcome visitors. Marinas can vary with their reception, but mostly they are helpful.

Cheers,
Bill.