TADORNA the SHELDUCK

21st of July 2010: from Boulogne to Dieppe, a trip of 50 miles which gives us, coastal skippers as we are, the real feeling to be `on the high seas', because most of the time there is no coast within sight, and professional traffic is completely lacking. To add to this alone-on-the-world feeling, half way down, we get imprisoned by a dark and drizzling fog patch which, all of a sudden, reduces the visibility to an absolute zero (Gris-Nez Traffic broadcasts an urgent safety information message). Later on, when already approaching Dieppe, an active black rain cloud, conveying a lot of wind and pouring rain, makes us jump in our full offshore clothing, leaving just a short moment to take in a first reef. Entering Dieppe Marina, still in our dripping offshore jackets and trousers, sun is out again and we are welcomed by a harbour master in T-shirt and Bermudas. Meteorologists call this a large complex low with unstable maritime air. We shouldn't need many more of this to get disturbed and unstable ourselves. But Dieppe is a lovely ancient French port with a lot of good restaurants along the quay, so this makes it all worthwhile and the troubles of the day are flushed away with a glass of French wine and some excellent sea food.