Source: Vigilance of Brixham Facebook
The day everyone had all been waiting for finally dawned. On Tuesday 8th April, Vigilance left the Mayflower Marina in Plymouth to make the passage to Brixham.
The return crew - skipper Will Stirling, Chair of Trustees Rob Murray, Mike Hannaford, Nigel Hartley, Chris North, Nigel Orme and Peter Milligan - boarded Vigilance a little before 10 am. Also on board were the ashes of Colin Mawbey, who had skippered Vigilance to Devonport in October 2022, and had very much looked forward to leading the return. It was an honour to have his presence on board for the journey.
After the usual round of pre-embarkation checks, we found our planned departure delayed a little by a group of divers undertaking assessments – until they had all surfaced it would have dangerous to leave the pontoon. Just before 11.30, we cast off and Vigilance left the Marina, rounded Devil’s Point, passed Plymouth Breakwater and moved into open sea.
We had chosen the day because it offered the most favourable weather conditions, principally avoiding anything beyond a force 3 wind speed. It was sunny or hazy most of the time, but there was a constant easterly wind, necessitating use of all the spare layers of clothing we’d brought, and beyond Prawle Point the sea swell became more evident and did make Vigilance roll around more than a little!
Between Start Point and Berry Head we began to get the first reports from people who had spotted us coming. The swell lessened and we began pre[paring for our arrival. Some people did go to Berry Head to watch us coming, but they were apparently outnumbered by birdwatchers trying to catch a glimpse of a visiting hoopoe! We were delighted to see so many people on the pontoon to greet us.
Once moored (I do apologise to those I hit with the bow line I threw), Chris produced a bottle of - appropriately named - Johnson’s Trawler Rum to raise a toast, and at least a couple of bottles of champagne appeared from the welcoming party. Clearly there was much joy that Vigilance had at last come home.
After crew photographs were taken and some words of gratitude expressed for the contribution Colin had made as crew, skipper, trustee and chair of Vigilance, his ashes were returned to his family. When Vigilance is once more under sail, those ashes will be scattered at sea in a place he loved, from the boat to which he gave so much.
As well as being skippered home by Will Stirling, whose team at Stirling & Son Boatyard had lived and worked Vigilance for the past two and a half years, we were also pleased to see our funders, the National Heritage Memorial Fund and the National Lottery Heritage Fund, personally represented. It goes without saying that, without the support of these groups, we would have been unable to undertake this massive task and Vigilance would almost certainly have been lost. Our gratitude to them is enormous.
Work now starts to fit her out below – a sole, galley, heads – and above deck, masts, sails, rigging. Our reports will be less frequent, probably reflecting key events such as stepping the masts or the first test sailings, but we will be active throughout. We will also be opening Vigilance to visitors whenever possible, particularly at events such as the Pirate Festival in May – please come and see how stunning Vigilance now looks.
It is true to say that Vigilance is now better built than at any time in her life, and stands a far better chance of surviving her second century than she did her first. She will be undertaking a full sailing and visitor programme in her centenary year of 2026, and the sight of her red sails in the Bay and beyond will continue to stir hearts young and old for many, many years to come.
If you would like to be involved in any aspect of Vigilance’s future – ongoing maintenance, crewing, fundraising and publicity or any number of other activities, do visit our Facebook page, where you can find a list of the roles we aim to fill. We’d be delighted to hear from you. If you would like to help, or know someone who might, please email me - peter.milligan@vigilanceofbrixham.co.uk
Thank you for your continuing offers of help, whether from new volunteer interest, or from donations towards our ongoing work.
You can also help by visiting our Just Giving page - www.justgiving.com/friendsofthevigilance Alternatively you can join the growing number of people who are supporting us regularly through Buying Us A Coffee - www.buymeacoffee.com/vigilance Every donation helps.
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