Category: Culture: songs, stories, photography and art

Traditions and culture relevant to the world of real boating and sailors

Along Oare Creek at Christmas

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Hollowshore Cruising Club burgee

The view from Hollowshore Cruising Club’s current premises A sweet little open boat on the creek The view towards the head of Oare Creek

HCC’s burgee flutters against a blue sky; the view from the HCC’s clubhouse; a small clinker-built boat captured in the winter light; a view of Oare

Stakes in an Oare Creek gravel pit

Gravel pit at Oare

Julie and I took a stroll along the Oare Creek, near Faversham last weekend. We had a couple of errands to do in the area, but the real reason we made the journey was that it offered a chance for some overdue R&R.

While we were there, I took these shots. The one of the Hollowshore Cruising Club burgee seems particularly significant, as this is the last winter it will grace the old shed that’s been the club’s home for 50 years.

I can’t say where we’re moving, as the negotiations had not been completed when I last spoke with the Commodore, but it seems likely that we’ll have better facilities in future. Sill, I will miss the old clubhouse, not least because it’s picture window and balcony offer what I consider to be one of the best views in Kent.

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Book a room in South-East England

Curraghs caught in action on YouTube

Court of the Silver King curragh at Clovelly

Court of the Silver King curragh at Clovelly, seen on YouTube

I can’t remember what took me to the the Court of the Silver King website, but while I was there I learned that our salmon-admiring friends are now engaged in building their third curragh – they must be pretty experienced by now.

I also spotted a link to this YouTube clip of them rowing one of their earlier boats, and was struck by the sheer bouyancy and apparent lightness of the boat in action.

Inspired to search a little further, I found some further bits of curragh video:

Here’s a series of YouTube clips of curraghs racing.

Here’s a naomhóg rowing on the river Lee.

And I also found this nice old clip of a curragh taken in the late 1950s. It’s marred by a horrid commercial watermark, but it’s still charming.

Click here for more on curraghs at intheboatshed.net, including photos and excerpts from old books including plans.

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There’s nothing like a little scatology in the early morning

So I was tickled by this post about boat-naming from the way Londoners do it from Messing about in Boats.