2023 3rd September, Days 28 - 30 Hope Cove to Plymouth via Salcombe.

I was up early and headed to Salcombe.

Bolt Head when entering Salcombe in a vain attempt to get a
mooring without rafting up on a buoy.

Then bad news as I arrived, they were "rather busy" and only had a mooring if I rafted up on a buoy. I don't like rafting on a buoy at the best of times and certainly not in strong winds in an anchorage with a very strong tides. Of course the other boat(s) might leave, it was after all quite early in the day, but that could not be guaranteed and it was very busy with catamarans and monohulls rafted 3 to a buoy in places and more boats would likely arrive. 

So I decided to go back to Plymouth, hopefully to a marina so I could get some laundry done, with many boats about I rang ahead and reserved a berth at the Mayflower Marina for three nights. It was a very good sail back in fairly light winds that backed a few miles from the Great Mew Stone when the cruising chute went up.

Its always fun overtaking bigger boats, in this case a 15 meter
catamaran.

I did not want to risk crossing her bow in a fluky wind so had
to slow down and pass to windward.

Stonehouse barracks from Mayflower Marina.

29 miles in seven and a quarter hours.

Click here for The Yealm and back to Hope Cove.