Sailing Florencevideo
Sailing 2426 miles around Britain | What we Learnt - Sailing Florence Ep.198
30 January 2025 · 33 min · 46K views · United Kingdom
Sailboat Florence cuts through dark sea, sails full
What this video covers
Matt and Amy completed a 2,426-mile circumnavigation of the British Isles aboard their Oyster Marine 37 Heritage, Florence, departing Portsmouth in late May and returning in October — 144 days total.▶ 17:04 An eight-month refit delay compressed the season, forcing longer overnight passages on the east coast to make up time.▶ 0:47 The longest single leg ran 248 miles from Whitby to Wick in two nights, after a seven-day weather delay in Whitby.▶ 14:24 They chose a clockwise route to complete a true circumnavigation rather than the more common out-and-back up the west coast.▶ 12:50 Highlights included Fair Isle (the first anchorage after 581 miles of marina stops up the east coast), the puffin colonies at the Shant Islands, rounding Muckle Flugga at the top of Shetland, and reaching St Kilda in a narrow weather window.▶ 19:29 They used an almanac and PredictWind for tidal routing, often overriding PredictWind's suggested routes through Orkney's narrow channels in favor of safer outside passages.▶ 22:41 Weather proved the greater challenge — locals called it the worst summer in memory — and the crew spent extended periods anchored waiting out gales, including one that hit 61 knots in the Irish Sea while they sheltered in Milford Haven.▶ 17:04 One misjudgment on the east coast of Skye left them moving anchorage in 45-knot downdrafts while towing a dinghy they nearly lost.▶ 26:18 Total engine hours were 66; they anchored 96 nights and spent 38 in marinas.▶ 18:48 Tidal planning and patience with weather windows matter more on a UK circumnavigation than raw mileage.
Boats in this video
More from Sailing Florence
From Sailing Florence — see the channel’s boat, crew, and every analysed video.