Rally Extravaganza Part 1 of 4 LYMINGTON Review
Three participants (Old Possum, Moonshine & Pikorua) made the journey to Lymington on Monday against the tide and a light SW wind. A smooth ride for the power boats but lots of tacking and slow progress for the sailors. Whilst sail progress steadily improved as the wind slowly rose to F4, the arrival of the ebb tide made the Western Solent noticeably more bumpy off Lymington. Old Possum and Moonshine moored at Town Quay without issue but the strong offshore wind at Dan Bran provided an interesting challenge for Pikorua when coming alongside alone. Most who came on Tuesday had a smooth run and moored at Dan Bran in slack tide and light winds. Amelie faced stronger winds when parking but received very enthusiastic encouragement from onshore and came alongside without incident. Enterprise left Portsmouth very early on Thursday and was rafted alongside Amelie by 9:00 am.
Tuesday evening drinks and snacks were held in breezy conditions on the Dan Bran pontoon next to Pikorua. All those on Town Quay walked to this meet-up bringing their own drinks and even a collapsible seat. The tables used for snacks and nibbles were placed in the lee of a fishing vessel and also securely lashed to pontoon cleats so only one container was picked up by the wind.
Wednesday forecast was for rain but 6 people elected to walk over the marshes to Keyhaven. The sun shone most of the time and we reached Keyhaven Yacht Club in good time for a light lunch before returning to the marina.
The Rally Dinner was held on Wednesday evening at the Royal Lymington Yacht Club. They proved very well organised. We had easy access to the bar to order drinks on arrival and our own dedicated function room for the meal with a single long table draped in white linen with individual placeholders to remind us of our meal choices. The Commodore Sally Kalis greeted us on arrival and service began promptly. The food was both excellent and plentiful. A very good evening and a venue we would happily recommend.
Thursday was left as a free day for shopping or just lazing about which proved a good option since the rain showers were both frequent and very heavy.
We had pre-booked the garden decking area at the Mayflower for an informal drink and Pizza evening on Thursday. Although the weather had improved by the evening the seating was still wet so the Mayflower team happily moved us all inside. We were also unexpectedly joined by the crews of King Hi and Happy Place. Pizzas were good and the participants engaged in the usual animated conversations about boating including real depths off Bembridge, the importance of propeller balancing and the low cost of a lift and scrub at the nearby Yacht Haven.
Next morning the sailboats on Dan Bran left at 8:00am for Poole, using spring lines to clear the rafted power boats and ably assisted by the crews of Gite and Moonshine who were up at 7:00am to ensure they were on hand to help.
Thanks to all who attended a successful start to the 2026 4 part Summer Rally Extravaganza.