Three events are being organised in the West Country this year. There will be the usual two weekends at Salcombe and Fowey at the beginning and end of the season: Salcombe on the 12/13th May and Fowey on the 29/30th September. Dinner on the Saturday nights will again be at the SYC and the RFYC.
In addition, there will be a special third rally at the end of August: a long weekend at Charlestown, a pretty, eighteenth century former china clay port in the north-west corner of St Austell Bay. The harbour is now privately owned and is the base for a number of square-rigged ships that are employed in the making of movies and TV programmes. The outer harbour dries and we shall berth in the inner, floating harbour where the square-riggers lie. We can only do so close to HW and so shall lock in at about 2000 on Friday, 31st August and out again by 1000 on Sunday, 2nd September. We hope that dinner on the Saturday night will be on board one of the big ships; if they are all away, then it will be in a harbourside restaurant. There is plenty to do in the Charlestown area: cliff walks, a good beach, the Eden Project, for example. We hope that this rather special location will attract Rivals from other areas, in addition to a good turn-out by our local members. The date is the weekend at the end of the August Bank Holiday week and so is within the school holiday period, so it may suit families better than the other events. You can learn more about Charlestown at www.square-sail.com/harbour
More details will be posted nearer the time but, if you have any queries, please email Michael Smith on ‘michaeljsmith at uk2 dot net’
