Stunning Twilight Sail aboard Edith May

Photos: Heading out towards Seagull Island.

Red sky at night, picking out silhouettes of the boats.

Watching the sunrise from Lower Halstow Creek.

Hearing from Skipper Ed Gransden at the end of our trip.

Click photos to enlarge.

Like most, I spend nearly all of my time on dry land, so when I saw Tiller & Wheel's beautiful photograph of the sun rising over Grain and Sheppey promoting their Twilight Sail, I was intrigued and remembered how long it has been since I was down on the water there myself.

Waking up to the dawn chorus each morning becomes my regular alarm clock at this time of year, so as time, tide and weather all seemed to coincide, I thought why not get up even earlier than usual this Monday morning and booked my place to sail online. Although I must admit hearing my alarm go off at 2:00am was, well, alarming!

It was pitch black when I arrived at the dock in Lower Halstow Creek for our 3:30am free trip around Seagull Island on what was forecast to be the hottest day of the year so far.

Skipper Ed welcomed us aboard Thames Sailing Barge Edith May, and after putting us at our ease with some safety advice, he and crewmate Emma and helpers untied the barge from its home mooring, and with a light breeze just catching the topsail, we began our short passage.

With the sun just below the horizon, the light was incredible looking out across the estuary towards Grain and Sheppey and the sailing peaceful and a little bit magical and in such contrast to my regular walks around the sea wall.

As we gently ambled, the barbecue was lit for bacon sandwiches, served with tea and coffee, delicious!

Ed fired up the engine when we reached the marker buoy at Seagull Island and explained the unpredictable nature of the tides sometimes and the need to get a bit more speed up for our return.

Watching the sunrise and the silhouettes of the boats, we calmly made our way back to the mooring at the dock, arriving around 5:00am.

Before we disembarked, Ed told us about the small number of surviving Thames Sailing Barges still in use today and Tiller & Wheel's mission to offer free sailing trips and an affordable subscription model so sailing can be an option for everyone.

Having lived here virtually all my life, I have never experienced the sunrise and changing light over the estuary at this time of the day before.

If you think you've seen everything where we live, you honestly haven't until you've watched the sunrise or sunset from such a calm and tranquil twilight setting.

To book your sailing experience with Tiller & Wheel and to find out how you could become a 'Patron', visit: www.tillerandwheel.com

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