Saturday 12 January 2008

Langstone Harbour

The slipway at Bedhampton is one of the most alarming I know - just look at all those health warnings. It is also huge - someone told me once it was built for the D Day landings and never removed. The surroundings are uninspiring too, with a gravel wharf and Havant's sewage works on the other side of the inlet. So I got in and rowed off sharpish.
Langstone Harbour is big so waves can be quite large. Today, with a Force 4 blowing from the west, there were a few white horses. Well, not large enough to be horses, more white my-little-ponies really, enough to make rowing harder work than I would have liked.
Kept close to Hayling Island on the way out, with a little detour into a lake in the lee of the harbour mouth spit called the Kench. Some very attractive houseboats there.
Caught up with the DCA at Milton Lock, the only remains of the military canal that linked Portsmouth Dockyard with London via Chichester and the rivers Arun and Wey.
Headed straight across the harbour on the way back and golly it feels lonely in a very small boat right in the middle. A moment of alarm was caused coming back to Bedhampton when I cast a look forward to see this approaching:

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Jealous, very jealous ;-)

Still, the stairs look better :-|

Good stuff Chris, keep up the good work!

Phil.

Chris Partridge said...

I know, the stairs have to be done, the lawn mown and all those honey-does honey-done, but I was glad to be out!