The Treacherous Goodwins
The Goodwin Sands, graveyard of many fine ships and
seamen, lie roughly between the North and South Forelands, some 3½
miles east of Deal. They are twelve miles in length and five miles
wide at their widest part.
The tides ebbing and flowing through the narrow neck of the
Dover Straits have built up these massive sandbanks whose outlines
are constantly altering and whose existence has always been a
hazard to vessels navigating these waters. At high water the sands
are completely covered but as the tide falls they break the surface
and expose perhaps a tenth of their total area, with some parts
then being up to 13 feet above the sea.
The golden line of sand seen from the shore on a fine summer day
gives little idea of the awesome aspect of the Sands on a winter's
night as the gale driven surf roars and lashes wildly over them, or
of the eerie sounds of the unseen bellbuoy and the wash of shoal
water heard through the murk of dense fog.
The Sands are marked by three Light Vessels maintained by
Trinity House; the North Goodwin, the East Goodwin and the South
Goodwin. All are visible on a clear day from the shore and their
sweeping beams of light are easily recognisable at night. In
addition to the Light Vessels there are ten buoys, seven of which
carry a flashing light. These, together with the lightbuoys marking
other offshore dangers in the vicinity, make the seaward view from
Deal during darkness an horizon of flashing lights, confusing and
incomprehensible to the landsman.
Lying along one of the world's busiest seaways, the Sands have
always presented a menace to shipping and even today, despite the
wonders of scientific aids to navigation, they lie in wait to
extract a heavy penalty from any vessel which grounds upon them.
Deep water lies close along their eastern edge and any vessel
striking here is in immediate danger of breaking her back as the
tide falls (as much as eighteen feet at Springs) and leaves her
bows fast in the Sand and her stern unsupported. A vessel running
fully on to the Sands is in no better position; for the tides will
sweep the sand from under her bow and stern to leave her supported
only amidships and liable to break her back.
As time passes the wrecks slowly corrode and either 'swaddle
down' into the Sands or slide off the edge into deeper water as the
tides alter the shape of the edges and the waves pound at the
hulks.
The Goodwins have been responsible for countless wrecks; one of
the worst in recent years being that of the South Goodwin Light
Vessel in November 1954, when she parted her riding cable in a gale
and was driven on to the Sands to become a total loss. Only one man
was saved, miraculously sighted and lifted from the wreck by a
helicopter after clinging to the rigging for eight hours.
Two wrecks are visible at all states of the tide. The 'North
Eastern Victory', whose clutter of masts and kingposts may easily
be seen on a clear day, whilst a little further to the South, the
top of one of the kingposts of the 'Luray Victory' can still be
picked out. These American cargo vessels were wrecked during 1946
and from each the Walmer Lifeboat saved the entire crew.
Help to those in peril has always been rendered by the boatmen
of this coast, and in the days of the sailing and pulling Lifeboats
those stationed at Ramsgate, North Deal, Walmer and Kingsdown were
famed for their services on the Sands. With the advent of the motor
lifeboat the stations at North Deal and Kingsdown were united at
Walmer, whose present lifeboat and volunteer crew are worthy
descendants of the old 'Seamen of The Downs'.
Often it is possible to see over the Lifeboat Station itself and
scan the Service Boards recording some of the rescues rendered in
120 years which saved 2,100 lives besides salvaging valuable
shipping.
Arranged visits to this Lifeboat Station are encouraged and
numerous school parties from a variety of areas in the south make
the visit every year from April to July.
Constant watch, both visual and by radio, and radar over the
Goodwins is kept by H.M. Coastguard Station at St Margaret's (Dover
Straits), which is responsible for initiating and co-ordinating
marine rescue of all kinds from the North Foreland Lighthouse to
Beachy Head and far out to sea.
Goodwin Sands map