Sharpness

Sharpness owes its existence to the building of the large ship canal from Gloucester. Gloucester had been granted port status in the 16th century by Queen Elizabeth I but as trade increased during the following two centuries it was realised that a canal had to be built to bypass the difficult sections of the River Severn below the city.
Shortly after 1764 two plans were prepared for a canal from Gloucester, one to terminate at Berkeley Pill, the other a short distance from there. It was the first one that won favour and in 1793 work began to build the canal.
With only five miles built complaints were received regarding the cost. In May 1797 a request was made to terminate the canal into the Severn at Saul to save money. This was rejected but it was suggested that the canal should now terminate at Sharpness with a tidal basin and sea lock.
Thirty-four years after the first sod had been dug the Gloucester & Berkeley Canal was opened on 26th April 1827.

[@georgepayne9895]

I had served as crew in small yachts in & out of Sharpness, but in 1994 I was skipper/owner for the first time of my own boat.
I'd approached Sharpness a little early - mistake born of excess caution.
There are what's called 'leading marks' - points which you must keep 'in transit - lined up' to stay in the deep water - all the way from the first bridge to Sharpness.
The last such leading marks would lead me to the outer lock at Sharpness.
Problem.
According to my - new - chart, to follow those marks would lead me straight over what was marked as 'Bull Rock'.
Being allergic to anything called 'rock', I allowed my course to deviate to the west, Welsh bank/
Wrong!
Bang! We were over on our elbow, mud coming up the plug hole in the galley sink!
Assuming this was Bull Rock, as we floated, I moved further west (in military parlance it's call 'reinforcing failure'.
Bang! Over we went again.
I may not be the sharpest knife in the box, but I can learn when panicked - next time we floated, I moved east into deeper water.
We secured to the east harbour wall, breathed out for the first time in a while, & waited for the lock to open & allow us in.
The SARA rescue launch came roaring up, having been alerted to our 'difficulty'.
I explained why I'd strayed from the leading marks, to avoid Bull Rock.
They laughed. 'She was dynamited back in the 1930's!'
Put not your trust in princes or, it seems, charts!
p.s. I did it many times after that, & survived!