Metro – Visa-gb trip from Cowes to Southampton Quay
Metro Blind Sport and Visa-gb teamed up for a four days sailing trip between Cowes and Southampton Quay from 6 July to 10 July 2023
Day 1 started with four visually impaired crew (Gareth Dawson, Mihayl Iliev, Ollie Cousins and Anil Kanani) travelling to Cowes; three from London Victoria and one from Reading. Journey from Victoria was hampered by the train strike but with a change at Havant, a 50 minute wait there we all made our scheduled Red jet Ferry from Southampton to Cowes, where we met the volunteers (Mark Askew – the skipper, who had arrived the day before – Billy Forsyth and Helen Brice) at the Duke of York Pub. We then took a short walk to Cowes Marina.
After the usual introductions the crew had a tour round the yacht and cabins were assigned soon after. Skipper Mark gave a safety briefing including a demo on how to put on a life jacket. Billy, a veteran sailor and ex police officer, gave a lively and fun lesson on how to tie some of the knots used in sailing i.e. the bowline, the half hitch, the figure of eight, etc. The two photos; the first one is Billy showing Ollie and Anil how to tie a half hitch knot, the second Helen is knotting!
We all then put on our Metro Blind Sport T-shirts and collared a crew member from a yacht moored on our port side to take a couple of photos behind the Visa-gb and Metro dodgers.
We chilled for a while, and got to know each other and our experience of sailing, found the shower blocks and heads and in true Visa-gb fashion went to the Duke of York for a bite to eat and a few drinks. Returning to the yacht for a cuppa, a natter about our aims for the 4 days and about our plans for day 2, a lesson on the tides and high water and how the latter is used as a reference point and how our sailing would be affected by the tides and wind forecast for the following day.
Mark also showed the crew how to check the engine and explained how the sprinkler in the engine unit would automatically kick in if there was a fire in that unit. Photo shows Ollie and Gareth checking the engine with Mark.
Day 2 started early as we had a scheduled delivery of provisions from Asda. While waiting for the delivery we had a cuppa and a refresher course on tying knots and a tour of the front of the yacht.
When the provisions arrived and stowed away we had a leisurely breakfast, a natter and further safety briefing including on how to use the harness, the location of the life raft, flares, man over board procedure and much more as well as the different lines (ropes) attached to the sails and what they did.
In preparation for setting off each member had a briefing on their role with Gareth at the bow, Mihayl at mid-ship, Ollie at stern and Anil on fender duty with Mark and Helen overseeing the casting off. Billy was at the helm guiding the yacht out of a tight mooring towards the fuel depot.
We set off at 11:00 to avoid the tide going against us. While Billy was filing the fuel tank, Mark gave a lesson to the rest on how to hook the cleat on the pontoon from the yacht when coming in to moor, thus avoiding someone having to jump off the yacht. Once we fuelled up, we headed off toward the open waters. After an hour of motoring (Anil at the helm) we raised the jib (front sail) to make the best use of the wind behind us and then the main sail.
With calm waters and southerly winds we had Champaign sailing towards the west coast of Isle of Wight. Helen, Billy and Gareth made lunch; tasty wraps with cheese, salad and peanut butter. None of us had tried a combination of cheese and peanut butter before, but all agreed it was a great combination.
We continued sailing on calm waters for a few more hours enjoying the sun, taking photographs, and each member of the visually impaired crew taking turns at the helm and receiving briefing from Mark, Billy and Helen on how the sails work, what is meant by tacking, jibing, etc, how to use the winches and much more. During the calm sailing two spitfires flew overhead. This is quite a rare sight as they normally fly in pairs. When the wind started to fade the engine (or technically known as the donkey) was started and we motored into Lymington harbour. We had the opportunity to practice what Mark had taught us on hooking the cleat on the pontoon and we successfully tied up. In usual Visa-gb fashion we had a cuppa and Helen and Ollie made a great borlotti beans and sausage dish for dinner. This was followed by a trip to the showers, then to the bar for a few drinks, a de-brief on the day’s sailing, plans for day 3 and then off to bed.
Day 3 was a late start dampened by the rain forecast but this gave us the opportunity to explore Lymington Town and obtain some needed provisions for the rest of the trip. The crew walked to the cobbled high street, where Gareth purchased fishing lines in order to attempt to catch fish for our dinner whilst sailing and Helen spied a painting from a shop window that was given to her brother – what a coincidence. The photo shows Mihayl, Gareth, Ollie and Helen posing in Lymington before we all headed back to the yacht through the cobbled street passing some Tudor and Victorian buildings, chandlers and beautiful detached houses.
Once we’d stowed the provisions we set sail to New Town Creek where we anchored the yacht and had a lovely lunch. The sailing was not as calm as day 2 so we had to tack a few times which gave the crew the opportunity to work the winches, trim the sails and experience making drinks and lunch in slightly choppier waters than previously encountered. It was a lovely day and the water was so calm when we got to New Town Creek it tempted Gareth, Ollie and finally Anil to jump off the yacht for a swim! Photo shows all three of them enjoying the cool water on a hot sunny day.
Before anchoring Mark gave everyone a briefing on how to anchor the yacht, how the anchor works and the visually impaired crew had a go at putting the anchor down and put it up when we were due to leave.
We then set sail toward Southampton Quay to moor for the night. Gareth was making some real effort in catching fish for our dinner but sadly this didn’t work out so Anil and Ollie, with Billy’s help prepared and cooked curry and rice en route for our evening meal with a choice of vegan or chicken. Photo shows Gareth fishing while Billy is enjoying the sunshine.
It was a well needed and deserved sustenance for the crew after a long day of sailing. We finished the evening with a trip to the pub for few of our favourite tipples and a natter and briefing for the next day.
Day 4 with the tide and wind going in our favour at 8am, the crew set off early to take advantage of this and headed off to Osborne Bay for our final sail towards the Isle of Wight. We motored out of Southampton Quay and the crew set the sails up and embarked on the sail to Osborne Bay putting in many tacks before arriving at our destination, where the team worked well together in order to orchestrate the perfect voyage. This was certainly a tougher sail than the previous two days with the crew having to work hard and as a single team to make sure the tacks worked smoothly so that the yacht manoeuvred in the right direction. Some shipmates were a bit knackered due to the tougher sail and had to take a much needed nap before lunch. The yacht was anchored and lunch composed of wraps, bread rolls, cheese, salads, and meat fillings that included leftover chicken from the previous night’s curry that Billy seasoned with ground garlic, were served and consumed in windy but perfect scenery! We even managed to get Mark to jump off the yacht to untangle the fishing hook off the yacht.
And for the final time, the crew set sail back to Southampton Quay where we moored for the final time and enjoyed a very tasty spaghetti Bolognese prepared by Gareth, Ollie and Helen. And you guessed it, a final trip to the pub was always on the agenda where the crew shared and reflected on their experience over the past few days. FYI – we failed to catch a single fish!
Day 5 was spent packing, tidying up and cleaning the yacht, saying goodbyes and sorting out travelling arrangements. We were all very sad to leave but as the saying goes ‘all good things come to an end.
Quotes from the crew:
“The team was very positive. Helen Billy and Mark managed to make me feel at home on the boat!
In my opinion, they showed great patience in explaining everything to me several times.
Metro members were always trying to make me one of them! Anil and Gareth helped me with difficult English phrases. Ollie constantly offered me hot drinks and food.
I think everybody learned a lot, but for me it was very useful to learn sailing in English!!!
But there was something very bad…the trip was very short!
THANK YOU!”
Mihayl lliev
“All in all it was a fantastic trip and we all learned a lot from each other. Thank you to everyone who took part in this trip, to those who organised it at Visa-gb and to Metro Blind Sport for supporting the visually impaired crew to take part in this trip.“
Anil Kanani
“It was my first time to sail and did not know what to expect. It was a fantastic experience and made better in the company of wonderful people. Everyone was very welcoming and helpful!
Thank you very much everyone for making my first sailing a memorable one and to Visa-gb and Metro for giving visually impaired people like me opportunity to experience such activity!
Ollie Cousins
“We all learnt so much on the trip and the team worked so well together. The trip brought back happy memories and I shall certainly hope to be on another trip next year.”
Helen Brice
