Thanks to all those members who attended the 2024 AGM, minutes of that meeting will follow soon but briefly all the present committee members and officers were re-elected. David Brimson was confirmed as Treasurer. A discussion about future subscription rates resulted in general acceptance that, should the need arise, an increase to £20 pa for a family membership would be acceptable but is not required at present.

In the immediate future we have a members’ evening on March 20th at the Regal when NCI Prawle Station Manager, Richard Povall, will talk about filling a niche in the search and rescue network. 7pm for 7.30 as usual. Details of the April and May meetings are in the calendar on the web site.

Good news recently received, which some of you will already have heard, is that the proposal to allow gill net fishing in the Estuary was put to the vote at an IFCA meeting in February and was soundly defeated. Not only on technical issues but also in response to public objections. Thanks to all of you that took the time to respond.

I hope to see many of you on the 20th.

Tony

 

In the meantime the following has been received from the Salcombe and Kingsbridge Estuary Conservation Forum and might be of interest to members.

Dear Estuary Forum members

Notices:

South Devon Catchments Partnership meeting – this Wednesday (today) 6th March at 2pm – Hybrid meeting hosted from the Cary Room at Follaton House, Totnes TQ9 5NE – within the agenda (see attached) we will be covering the Dart Catchment Action Plan, monitoring form, and round table updates.

To find the Cary room, please enter Follaton House via the grand pillared ‘Civic Entrance’ – head across the ‘Old Reception’ lobby into the ‘Inner Hall’. Turn to your right and the Cary Room (G221 below) is now facing you.

To join the Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88553672794?pwd=4Dhvsm9YQHaPx3qmlL2t7GGgB2Dlgd.1
Meeting ID: 885 5367 2794
Passcode: 575509

Living Dart: The Saltmarsh Project: Phase II – You are warmly invited to attend the upcoming ‘super saltmarsh’ event on the 25th at Totnes Cinema–the culmination of Living Dart: The Saltmarsh Project Phase 2 of this partnership project, and would very much appreciate you sharing the event details with friends and colleagues who may be interested. The team has learned so much over the past several months, there’s much to share, including the responses made by the local artists who joined us over the winter.

Here’s a synthesis of the event:
• Join Bioregional Learning Centre and partners for the official ‘unwrapping’ of Living Dart: The Saltmarsh Project.
• Totnes Cinema, Monday evening 25th March from 6.30-9.30pm. This free event is a screening, learning opportunity and live artists’ performance.
• Bar opens at 6.30pm for the purchase of drinks and snacks. Programme starts at 7pm.
• Meet the team, learn from experts, experience contributions from the project artists Beth Heaney, Christian de Sousa, Clare Parker & Jade Hayes, Emilio Mula and Ivan Grieve.
• The evening will end with a Q&A to discuss how we can get to know–and protect–this vital ecosystem and carbon store.
• The event is free but please register here [Eventbrite link] – seats are going fast!

More detailed project information, including next steps for restoration, will be going up on our [BioRegion] website once we have gathered it all together and summarized it in a useful way.
We would also like to invite you to view our great new animation made with funding from Naturesave. https://vimeo.com/907185044

Bathing Waters Consultation – [Four of the 27 proposed are within the Dart Estuary] the consultation is only open until the 10 March. Anyone can respond to the consultation online via Citizen Space: https://consult.defra.gov.uk/water/consultation-on-designation-of-27-sites-as-bathing by email at bathingwater@defra.gov.uk or by post at:

Bathing Waters Team
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Ground Floor
Seacole Building
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF

Bathing Water Overall Classification 2023 – can be found on 2023 Statistics on English coastal and inland bathing waters: A summary of compliance with the 2013 bathing water regulations – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Best wishes

Nigel

Wine tasting, membership subs, Gill netting in the Estuary

The survey by IFCA  about the legalising of gill netting within the Kingsbridge/Salcombe Estuary ends on January 19th.  Any members wishing to make their views known should follow the advice given in the December 2023 newsletter which you will have received by email.  The newsletter is also available on www.kebc.co.uk under whats on/club newsletters.

On Wednesday January 17th, at the Regal Pub in Kingsbridge, Barrel and Still will be hosting a wine tasting evening.  7pm for 7.30 as usual, nibbles will be available and members will be treated to a tasting of a number of wines.  The event will cost £10 per person, payment to be made to Linda on the evening.  Please let our events coordinator, Linda Lee, events@kebc.co.uk know how many of you are coming so that we have an idea of numbers. This event was well attended last year and enjoyed by members.

Your 2023 membership expired on December 31st, 2023,  except for those that joined in the last quarter of the year.  Many members have renewed their £15 subscription for 2024, thank you. Those that have not yet done so have until January 31st 2024 to make their payments; if you fail to do so we will assume that you have resigned your membership.

Look forward to meeting many of you on January 17th.

Tony Watson.

KINGSBRIDGE ESTUARY BOAT CLUB
(THE CLUB)

The following from Andy Thomson, the RYA instructor who runs shore based training sessions for KEBC’

“Andy and Theresa Thomson will be exhibiting their ‘Boat on a Board’ offering at Malborough hall on the morning of December 16th. If you are going to be staying at the Cottage Hotel on the night of the 15th after the Club Christmas dinner why not take a very short detour and visit them on your way home? They would love to see you”.

Read on for details of the 2024 courses available.

KEBC 2024 winter workshops

Once again, KEBC is pleased to offer winter workshops and courses to our members. They are well proven, run by the Devon School of Navigation for KEBC and club members benefit from preferential rates. Non club members are welcome but we ask that you either join our club (£15 per year) or pay an additional £10 per half day session.
Here’s a chance to improve or refresh your VHF radio and local navigation skills while meeting other club members.
Booking deadline – we need to know numbers no later than January 31^st 2024 to be able to confirm the room bookings. At this stage just contact Andy Thomson (he is also KEBC secretary) andy@thethomsons.info or 01548 581288 to reserve your place(s) and make a provisional booking. He’ll answer any queries you have.

 

Background

Andy has been running courses and workshops for KEBC members for many years. They receive good feedback from his students. He runs the Devon School of Navigation and teaches RYA shorebased courses (Day Skipper, Coastal Skipper/Yachtmaster Offshore and Yachtmaster Ocean). He runs VHF Short Range Certificate (SRC) theory courses and is an RYA SRC examiner.

Contact Andy if any of these courses are of interest to you. There’s also a ‘response form’ on page 3 for you to use.

VHF Short Range Certificate (SRC)

Someone on your boat must hold an SRC to use marine VHF radio legally. To gain your SRC you have to learn the necessary theory and pass a short practical exam. The cost for the theory (if you enrol via Andy on the Royal Yachting Association’s online course) is £65. The practical exam takes about an hour and a half and the RYA currently charge £70 per person. This includes their payment to your examiner so there’s no other charge. Andy would be pleased to enrol you on the theory and run your practical exam. Contact him to discuss your needs and how best to address them.

KEBC Workshops

These are NOT RYA courses and don’t have exams or certificates. Their aim is to help you learn more about some of the key topics that affect our boating whilst in a reasonably relaxed and ‘fun’ environment and working with other club members.
They are classroom based and run as ‘half day’ modules (roughly three hours teaching plus time for a tea / coffee break and a chat). Most people prefer morning sessions and the schedule overleaf reflects this. Afternoon or early evening sessions can be arranged. We limit class sizes to a maximum of six people. The prices below include handouts, refreshments and room hire.

 

“Practical VHF”

If you rarely use your boat’s radio then this workshop is for you.

Mobile phones are better than nothing but, at sea, VHF radio is, by far, the better way to handle a problem or emergency. This workshop addresses a widespread problem – most people don’t use their marine radios enough or even at all and they become de-skilled.
Come to this workshop and regain your VHF skills. Feedback from attendees can be summarised as “great fun and very useful”
It builds your PRACTICAL skills by using real marine VHF radios with realistic scenarios. It is ideal for ‘rusty’ SRC holders and is suitable for both beginners and more advanced users.  Sign up to Join in the best way to practice your radio skills and it’s just before the boating season starts.

1. Duration: One half day
2. Cost per person:£35
3. Provisional date 13^thMarch 2024. 09:30 to 13:00.

“Know your waters”

We always seem to follow the same route and it can get very crowded.
There’s nothing like knowing the waters where you do your boating. Salcombe can get very crowded but if you know what you are doing then you may be able to find peaceful areas. This workshop teaches you about navigating in our local waters so you can enjoy your boating more, both inside and outside Salcombe Harbour. You’ll work with real local charts and tidal information and end up by planning a passage to Dartmouth and back. The date is just before the season starts.

The price includes the loan of charts and navigating instruments. This workshop is suitable for both beginners and people with some navigation experience. We’ll talk about electronics but not use them as part of the course.

1. Duration: Two half days
2. Cost per person:£65
3. Provisional Dates:6^th and 7^th March 2024. 09:30 to 13:00 both days.

Notes

1. Teaching location. We use the John Wesley Room at Stokenham Parish Hall. It is ideal for our purposes and has ample free parking nearby and at the hall. The cost of using this facility is built into the prices shown above.
   1. We have to take Covid precautions and comply with all legal and RYA training requirements in force at the time of the course or workshop.
   2. To attend any KEBC or Devon School of Navigation classroom training you must be fully vaccinated with all recommended supplementary jabs.

Prices are correct at December 2023.We may have to pass on any external price increases imposed on us and the cost of the room is why we’ve had to slightly increase the price this year over last.

Minimum attendance on a course or workshop is two people.It is perfectly possible to run them for one person but the charge will be as though there are two people.

Dates are provisional at this stage.If you have a strong preference for other dates let Andy know.We’ll confirm arrangements, numbers etc. early February 2024.

Bookings and refunds. We will acknowledge all bookings we receive. Approximately one month before a course or workshop is due to run we will send you an invoice. Payment (by card, cash, cheque or bank transfer) is then due. YOU can cancel your attendance and receive a full refund of any money you have paid until two weeks before the scheduled date. After that, sorry, but the course fee is due in full. If Andy has to cancel a course for any reason then we will refund all the money you have paid. That is the full extent of his liability to you.

 

KEBC’s 2024 Winter courses and workshops

To: Andy Thomson

My details

Name, address, contact phone or email number

 

Please sign me / us up
For the Practical VHF / Know your waters  (delete as appropriate) on the scheduled date and time.
You’ll receive an acknowledgement from Andy once he receives this form.

Names:

1.

2.

3.

Please contact me:

I am interested in an SRC course / KEBC workshop / RYA shorebased course and would like to speak to Andy to get more information about the workshop / course or discuss options and dates

Your name and date:

Final step
If you printed this page and manually completed it then send it to: Mr. A Thomson, Hedges, Kiln Lane, Stokenham, Devon TQ7 2SQ.
If you electronically completed it just email this page or the whole document to andy@thethomsons.info

 

On November 15th. Roger Barrett will talk about his book A Maritime History of Salcombe which, of course, includes references to the fruit schooners built in Kingsbridge.  At the Regal, 7pm for 7.30.  The evening with Simon Ballantine on Nov. 1st attracted 40 members and I expect Roger’s talk to be similarly successful, be early to get a good seat!

Bookings for Christmas at the Cottage Hotel are coming in steadily, if you haven’t booked yet please contact Linda to do so.  All details follow in this message.

I hate to mention it but subscription renewal time is here again; still only £15 pa it represents good value.  If you pay by standing order please check that the date and amount are correct.  If you use direct debit, the joining and renewal page on the kebc web site gives you instructions; the club’s bank details are sort code 30-94-72;  Acc. No. 01223778.  Payment is requested before December 31st and members who haven’t renewed by January 31st 2024 will be removed from the membership list.  Please remember all our officers are unpaid volunteers, please try to make life a bit easier for them by paying your sub on time.

We have a change of personnel on the KEBC committee. Piers Rogers, who has given so much of his time to the club over the years, has resigned and is handing the post of Treasurer over to David Brimson.  Thank you Piers for all that you have done for the Club and welcome David, thanks for volunteering to take on the task.

Discussions with Salcombe Harbour Authority about dinghy racks on the Kingsbridge slipway and moorings in Kingsbridge are ongoing.  They are unable to give us a timescale but I do know that they are trying to pursue both matters and we are in constant contact.  Either the Harbour Master or his assistant will be at our AGM in February to give us updates and take questions.

Boatwatch has drawn to a close for 2023 after a relatively quiet summer.  Thanks to all the volunteers that carry out patrols and report incidents; your work is appreciated not only by boat owners but also by the Harbour staff.  We always need more volunteers.  The work is not onerous and you will only give up as much time as you can spare.  Contact details are on www.kebc.co.uk  under services.

I look forward to seeing many of you at our final events for 2023.

Tony Watson

Upcoming events and Show report.

Click here for the calendar for our winter social events, as it stands at the moment, up to February 2024; the subsequent dates will be filled as we find speakers. If you have any ideas or know people with interesting stories, please let me or Linda know.

I can add that we had a good day at the Kingsbridge Show, the weather was perfect, numerous members came to see us with questions and suggestions and new members are joining as a direct result of conversations with the stand staff.  My thanks to those that gave up their time to be there, a photo of the stand is at the end of this letter.

Enjoy this extra sunny period, see you in a couple of weeks, there will be a glass of wine for all attendees of the first social event of the season

Tony Watson

Our stand at the 2023 Kingsbridge Show.