RCYC cruising

By Paul Morris

The morning is overcast and there’s a slight breeze from the south. The sea is flat and House Bay is peaceful. Terns screech and gulls call and, on the beach, a handful of penguins waddle in and out of the water. We sit in the cockpit with our steaming mugs enjoying the moment. This is a beautiful pause on our way to Kraal Bay on Langebaan Lagoon. Then I hear it: the mighty breath. Between us and the open sea is a humpback whale. It moves closer, crosses our stern, breathes again. It submerges without a ripple. I watch, trying to anticipate where it will surface. For 20 minutes the whale does figures-of-eight around the boat. At times I could have stepped off onto its back. A perfect morning is now sublime. This is my definition of cruising. Cruising as a category is a bit of a catch-all term at Royal Cape Yacht Club (RCYC). A kind of ‘anything-but-racing’ activity. It’s the crew that goes for a short Friday sail and a sundowner in Granger Bay, or the birthday boat full of teens off to Clifton for a day of paddle-boarding, swimming and celebrating. It’s the old salt crew that goes out twice a week every week, rain or shine, because that’s what they’ve always done. And it’s the December fleet that heads up the West Coast, where some will live on the hook for a week or two in Kraal Bay, and others will keep going to Paternoster, where they can go ashore and eat at great restaurants while watching their yacht riding its anchor chain in the bay. While many are content pottering around the Cape coast, dreaming of crossing oceans, others actually do it. Yachts Calypso, Reve de Lune, Vixen and others all took the post-pandemic gap and are now in the Caribbean. Maybe the common thread is that cruisers like journeying. Whether it’s the Caribbean or Clifton, Stompneus Bay or Nosy Be, we all like to take our boats somewhere. No doubt, Royal Cape sailors have always enjoyed sailing in company. Friends organising a small flotilla for a crayfishing trip to Dassen Island or Kraal Bay in December. For some years now, the Raids to Hout Bay and Saldanha have been well-attended, favourite events. A few years ago, our current vice-commodore, Alan Haefele, started the cruising sub-committee after seeing a need for events and activities that supported more varied boat use. RCYC has long celebrated a strong racing history. Many regular racing boats also enjoy participating in other sailing activities too. And the majority of boat owners don’t race their boats at all. By strengthening the cruising offering, the Club will encourage boat owners to try out different things with their boats, as well as provide the opportunity for socialising and building the Club spirit. We started putting more energy into cruising events and raising its profile with a seat on the general committee. Pete Sherlock took over the portfolio in 2019 and, building on what had come before, injected some fresh ideas and a new energy into the

RCYC cruising section. A literal ‘Big Splash’ event was held at the V&A Marina. The splashing came from a hilarious ‘anything-that-floats’ race. There was food, music, a marquee, plenty to drink. Probably best of all was the gathering of about 20 boats and their crews around the common joy and camaraderie we all get from sailing. The event proved that while many of our cruisers enjoy the freedom that comes with not having to be anywhere at a particular time, to go when the weather is right and then only if you feel like it. There is also nothing like tying up next to a few other boats, sharing a few drinks, a lot of stories and a few good laughs. The good thing about events is that it brings sailors together who might normally sit at their own table on the terrace and not get to mingle with other crews. As we’ve increased our efforts to promote cruising, we’ve seen growing friendships and connections that have not only expanded our social lives, but also resulted in the sharing of experience and expertise. This coming together after a shared experience is probably most satisfying and, indeed, intense when the experience has been tough. For this reason The Knysna Rally is RCYC cruising’s flagship event. Two nights at sea, around the two notorious capes of Cape Point and Agulhas and then through the tricky and challenging Heads into the lagoon. For most sailors in the world, this passage isn’t just a cruise, it’s a real adventure. It’s one for the trophy cabinet, if cruisers ever had such a thing. Actually, one of the Knysna Yacht Club members carved a beautiful wooden yacht on which all the names of the RCYC yachts that have participated in the rally have been engraved. Epitomising the spirit of cruising is the fact that this trophy isn’t won by anyone; it reflects the

achievement of all participants in the event. And the party in Knysna is really epic! The cruisers have visited the two islands in our local cruising grounds in the past year. We’ve been to Dassen Island a couple of times, were given a tour and then the opportunity to braai ashore. Earlier this year, 10 boats visited Murray’s Bay Harbour at Robben Island in a trial to see how many boats we could get in there. The Robben Island management team was very hospitable and excited about hosting us again in the future. With transformation a high priority at RCYC, the Robben Island fleet that crossed the bay was probably one of the most diverse we’ve seen for some time. The flotilla hosted 10 students from the Department of Maritime Studies at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology as well as a contingent from the Robben Island Museum. It was wonderful to see so many young people on the water with their fresh energy and enthusiasm adding to a fantastic day out. Looking ahead, the RCYC cruisers can look forward to more of the same favourite events that we’ve seen over the past few years. We’re looking at impromptu ‘pop-up’ cruises that can be organised at short notice when the weather is just right for, say, an afternoon cruise and a sunset braai in Granger Bay or a cruise around Robben Island. Suggestions are welcome. Once the good weather makes landfall at the Cape, regular cruisers’ braais will, once again, become a feature of our social calendar. These have proved very popular and give us all the opportunity to meet many of the international cruisers whom we host over the summer. When I walk down the dock in mid-winter and the rain streaks across the pontoons, when the northwester has turned Duncan Dock into a choppy mess and the boats snatch at their mooring lines, I think of an early morning walk on Kraal Bay beach. The bay is a mirror and rays fly in formation in the shallows. I remember the dozens of humpback whales off House Bay as we made our turn into the anchorage. I look forward to summer socials, sundowners on the beach with friends and the swapping of tales and advice around the cruisers’ braai fires. Join us sometime. Everyone is welcome.