How much water is there in estuary at borth? Would it be pushing it to use a 46cm fin? or should I just leave the big board and sail at home? Would have to get on the small one then.


befs

it would be catapult city with that fin

just kidding you could get away with it at high tide but watch the sand banks.
in the main channel ive used my 70 cm on me formula board last year it was ok

id take all your boards as most people go on the sea front depending on the wind direction

if your going in the estuary check the tides as well

alan will probably add loads more to this later he might even draw you a map of the sand backs

A map of the sand banks would be useful! Ive been told there will be water so just need the wind !

BEFS....

When are you coming to Borth??

I'll draw a map of the sandbanks tonight for you and mark in the best places for sailing!

On big high tides then there is enough water pretty much everywhere in the estuary and you can happily sail across to Aberdovey and back without any worries (take a £1 with you for an ice-cream)... The only exception to this is around the point which has claimed many a fin. On smaller tides then you have to be wary, but there is almost always a channel between the sandbanks where you can sail whatever the wind direction. Yesterday i was there and the biggest sandbank in the middle remained exposed throughout high tide, but it was only a 3.3m tide. It didn't affect my sail though as theres still plenty of room this side of the sandbank, or on the Aberdovey side.

Let me know when you'll be here and we can go down to the estuary at low tide and I'll show you the various 'hazards'.

You can actually sail there even at low tide if you know where... Although it wouldn't be great with a big fin as the reaches would be pretty short.(Good for gybe practice though).

Anyway....The whole point of coming to Borth is to get out on the sea, so thats where you'll be!!

Al.

I'm coming to borth for easter friday- monday, book some wind !

OK... No hurry for detailed descriptions of the sandbanks yet then... i will do it though (hopefully) as it could be quite useful.

I'll put an order in for some wind.

Al.

Let me know how the wind request gets on. We are thinking of going away for the weekend and 'Bad' has also wheted my appetite for Borth

Looks like there should be a few of us there for easter then. Have to say im really looking forward to it after reading all the diary entries, forum posts about the place and its only £31 for 3 nights in the youth hostel.

Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about a map of the sandbanks. But instead heres a satellite image of the estuary on a very low tide. It looks like a relatively recent one too so the postion of the sandbanks is about right... I've marked a few points on this image and annotated them so you can see the places to sail and dangers to avoid.

A = The point. This particular sandbank is actually quite rocky and likes to eat fins for dinner!! Also, on big tides the water rushes out over this bank and creates some pretty impressive and strong currents. As you can see, the point stick out quite a way into the estuary so on mid tides and neap high tides its still worth keeping a healthy distance away from it.

B Theres another sneaky little sandbank here that is fairly solid. This is the one that caght Dazzamuffin out recently and broke his ankle. Its not usually a problem and is completely covered on big tides, but watch out for it at other times.

C This is the main big sandbank in the middle of the estuary. Its fairly obvious and actually made of pretty soft shifting sands so usually gives you a bit of warning before your fin catches and you get catapulted (usually!)

A This is the entrance road to the estuary. We usually park here and sail from the nearest bit of water. Don't drive too close to the water unless its a bug high tide though as the sand is soft and you WILL get stuck. Sometimes we park over by the tip of the dunes though.

B Graveyards. A pretty cool place to sail in a Westerly when you can park at the tip of the dunes, sail out through the channel C and sail in the flat water behind the Dovey bar, or play in the waves over the bar or at Graveyards. Can be good in a SE too.

C The main Aberdovey Channel. Even on the smallest tides, this channel is sailable. Best in E or W winds but the reaches are fairly short (perfect for practising those gybes). It can get a fair bit of swell / chop trundling up through the channel to.

D In mad E or W winds, this small channel is sailable on all but the lowest spring tides and provides perfect speed sailing conditions in dead flat water with strong winds funneling through the gap between the end of the sdunes and Aberdovey.

Of course, as the tide gets higher, all of these places are still sailable, and the NW-SE aligned channel near B becomes sailable too and is excellent in the strong NE's that often occur here.

At high tide you can sail pretty much everywhere in the estuary without worrying about the sandbanks at all.

Hope some of this helps.

Al.

Cool! You don't get this level of detail in the mags!

quote:

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Originally posted by SeanBo
Cool! You don't get this level of detail in the mags!

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Thanks Al gives us an idea of where and where not to sail. Can we have markers out on the water too ? Big inflatable red and blue A b and C's would tell us where we are withough having to take a map tied to boom

I've got a better idea, that will increase your sailing safety and pleasure..

Instead of markers I'll set up a series of little platforms. On the ones where you should be sailing I'll have a bikini clad Katherine Zeta Jones, Cat Deeley and the girls from Charlies Angels (look here for a preview of the new film It even contains a shot of Cameron Diaz on a surfboard, so you may want to check out here paddling style... Several times probably!).

Of course I'll instruct them all to cheer enthusiatically at every single gybe you attempt and they may well get a little overexcited should you actually come out of one planing.

In the areas with nasty sandbanks, I have a bikini clad Lisa Riley, Dot from Eastenders and Jeremy Beadle.


D'you think that will have the desired effect??.. Now where did I put Cat Deely's mobile number.

Al.

[Edited on 20-4-2003 by Gmac]

Well I went, I sailed( kind of)
and came back with my fin once piece

My mate Grant (Gmac) wants me to make it clear that he does not normally make rude comments about people he does not know. I was showing him how the forums work......

We were visiting this weekend and I encouraged him to register. He is a better sailor than he lets on and is only inhibited by the fact that he has three kids in tow. (Not as in 'behind a jet ski' - you know what I mean).