Wreck Bay to Holy Loch

Despite the name Wreck Bay is a very good anchorage, perfectly sheltered overnight. Worm behaved herself too, and we slept in, not stirring until 0800. I blame the Belfast Coastguard! They broadcast the weather report a full hour later than Stornoway, so there is no incentive to be awake at 0700.

Anchored in Wreck Bay

Lowering clouds had replaced yesterday's sunshine, and our tentative plans to explore the Burnt Isles and the vitrified fort did not survive the weather. We set off at 1100, motoring through the Burnt Isles then down the Eastern Kyle with very little visibility. We decided to make for Holy Loch, so we could spend the day ashore in Dunoon if the weather got no better tomorrow.

It alternately rained and drizzled all day, and the wind was on the bow until we turned up the Firth of Clyde. We got the sails up, and had half an hour of sailing until the wind died away, then the engine went on again. The contrast with yesterday was extreme!

Once tied up in Holy Loch Marina we put the cockpit cover on, and ate dinner on board as there were no restaurants in easy reach. The marina staff had told us there was a pub in the village, so we left Robinetta and spent the evening there, using the Internet and soaking up the warmth.

Leaving Loch Tarbert

After a crew breakfast and awards at the Tarbert Hotel the final event of the Traditional Boat Festival was a sail past on Loch Fyne. We motored out of the harbour near the front of a pack of boats, then got our sails up and had a lovely sail with a variety of traditional boats; everything from converted fishing boats to a varnished wood Antigue Classics racing yacht. Julian took some great pictures.

Some of the boats went back into Tarbert, but many headed straight home. We sailed across to Portavadie Marina, just across Loch Fyne. We needed diesel after our days of motoring south and Loch Tarbert only has it available Monday to Friday.

Portavadie Marina is too new to be on our chart plotter, and a fish farm confused us slightly but we found the entrance and got the sails down. A fender went overboard while Julian was tying them on, but we picked it up without problems and headed in. Julian called them up on the VHS and we got a reply!

We headed straight for the fuel dock and someone was waiting there when we arrived. We had been warned that the fuel was expensive compared to Loch Tarbert, so we just filled the tanks, not the cans, but the whole process was very time effective. It only took half an hour from getting the sails down to raising them again, then we were off on a glorious sail to the Kyles of Bute.

The scenery was spectacular, and the weather perfect; blue sky, force 3-4 wind, and calm sea, The wind dropped as we approached Kames, so we furled the jib and put the engine on to motor along the shore and look at Tighnabruaich. Julian spotted some gannets diving, and decided he wanted to have a go at fishing too. He got out the new mackerel line he bought at Tarbert and streamed it out behind.

I put the engine in neutral and we sailed very slowly (½knot) along the shore towards Tighnabruich. For the first time ever we caught fish! Two beautiful mackerel took the lure, so that was dinner sorted!
 
The wind came up again, so the engine went off and we sailed up to the Butt of Bute. The wind dropped away again there, so we got the engine on and since it was 1900 and we were close to where we wanted to anchor we got the sails down. We had a look in Caladh Harbour, a very popular anchorage, but it was full as expected, and there was already a yacht in the tiny anchorage by One Tree Island we had been recommended to try. We ended up anchored in 3m of water in the scarily named Wreck Bay. There were already 2 boats there, but there was plenty of room for us.

Julian cleaned and cooked the mackerel for dinner. Delicious!

Tarbert Traditional Boat Festival

There are many tarberts in Scotland. The word means an ithsmus or boat porterage. The best known separates the Kintyre peninsula from Knapdale. West Loch Tarbert is a remote anchorage but East Loch Tarbert has a fine village, fish dock and marina. I have been there twice before, once years ago in a charter yacht and then on Bonify during the Round Britain in 2013. This year the traditional boat festival fell in the middle of a two week cruise on Robinetta. When we were planning our holidays we didn't know where Robinetta would be. We hoped to visit the Outer Hebrides in May but expected to be somewhere closer to the Clyde.

Then we ended up leaving Robinetta in Stornoway and arranging to keep her in Fairlie for the winter. So we wanted to be in the Clyde but were 180 nm away. We weren't sure we wanted to try to get to the festival, or just sail. When we got to Stornoway the weather was fine but with not much wind so we decided to motor sail south and keep our options open.

We called the organisers and got a programme. It sounded relaxed and fun. The tiller pilot was doing most of the work so we had two long enjoyable days getting to Crinan and then got to Cairbaan on Thursday night. On Friday the wind was a strong southerly. Perfectly wrong. We fought it down to Tarbert. We think we were the only boat to leave the canal that day.

We arrived in Tarbert to a great welcome. Most boats had arrived the day before to avoid the strong winds. There was a grand collection of boats, both local and visitors. The biggest was Cruinneag III, a beautiful varnished bermudan cutter ketch built in Tarbert by Dickies in 1936. The smallest was a Drascombe Skaithe. The two boats from farthest afield were Lassie of Chester, a Nobby from Bangor and a motor cruiser from Wisbech. At least four boats were from Arran, Pequita a Twister from Lamlash and three boats from Lochranza, a Hillyard 2 1/2  tonner, a Memory 19 and a larger old wooden yacht. Local boats included festival organiser Hans Kok's 1918 gaff ketch Makkemok. As well as many sailing vessels there was a good selection of converted fishing boats One must not forget the longship Freydis hand built by festival organiser Phil Robertson for his other event, the Viking Festival. Saturday's barbecue was a fund raiser for Phil's aspiration to take her to Norway to participate in festivals there.

The primary public purpose of the event is to give locals and tourists the opportunity to walk around and look at the boats and talk to the owners. We spent most of Saturday and part of Sunday morning aboard with our hastily scribbled sign showing people around and answering questions.

For the participating crews it was mostly about the craic, but also about sharing skills and knowledge. Douglas, a lad from Loch Ranza had just migrated from dinghies to his first larger boat, a Memory 19 called Odyssey which had not been looked after by her previous owner. He had been shown how to sail gaff rig by his friend Robert a self declared 'sea gypsy' with Storm Petrel, a tiny Hillyard. I helped Douglas set up his bobstay tension and when the wind died there was a big topsail debate. The general feeling was that it was too big to sheet.

There was a boat moored on our pontoon flying an OGA 50 flag but somehow we never got to meet the folks on board.

We had a reception on Friday evening with good music from local musicians and a fine ceilidh with country dancing and rock covers on Saturday night. It poured with rain and the midges were out in force but we had a grand time.

Saturday afternoon also saw a greasy pole competition and the village raft race.  Those able to get out to the end of the greasy pole, grab a bottle and bring it back won a bottle of whisky. The hard part was turning round after getting the bottle, but a few managed it.

On Sunday morning, many nursing sore heads, we gathered for a great breakfast in the Tarbert Hotel which some will remember from the RBC for its kippers. A low key prize giving completed the formal proceedings but it was agreed by vote that we would do a sail past in the loch. The weather was starting to clear up as we left the pontoon and although it was still cloudy we had a good breeze and lovely backdrops to the collected boats. After an hour we scattered to home ports or next destinations.

Cruinneag III

Swn y Mor

Lassie of Chester

Into Loch Fyne

After a peaceful night at Cairnbaan we headed off down the canal at 0900, into an obvious headwind. The early forecast was still for SW force 5-7 occasionally 8, but the wind did not feel that strong in the canal. Two large modern yachts locked into the canal basin at Ardrishaig as we prepared to lock out. They reported that it was rough in Loch Gilp, but we decided to give it a go anyway. It is less than 10 miles from Ardishaig to Loch Tarbert, and we were determined to get to the festival!

We got the bowsprit out and the jib bent on in lock no 2, but there was no chance to raise the main and put reefs in it. We got the stay sail up in the sea lock, then motored out at 11.00, letting Worm out onto a long line as we went.

We were never tempted to unfurl the jib, or raise the main to reef it. Even the stay-sail kept her heeled! We beat down Loch Gilp and into Loch Fyne on stay-sail and engine, keeping up a steady 2-3 knots. The seas were Robinetta friendly, in that they did not stop her, but that was due to the fact that we were sailing across them, not straight into them as we would have been just on engine.

We reached East Loch Tarbert at 15.30 after what turned out to be a pleasant time on the water. Robinetta rolled a bit, and took the occasional wave over the bow with spray coming aft into the cockpit, but she felt solid and safe. The gusts were fierce, but too short to cause us problems. Worm had followed along in her normal problem free fashion, arriving with no water in her at all!

People were waiting to take our lines, others came along to chat and admire Robinetta. The Tarbert Traditional Boat Festival is run by very friendly folk.

Black Isles to Cairnbaan

We woke to cloudy skies and after another fine breakfast we raised sail and for the first time for as long as I can remember we sailed off the anchor.

The other yacht crews were up and about too and the bermudan, now identified as a Hallberg-Rassey left behind us. The folks on the ketch took our picture as we passed and I took theirs.

We were so busy enjoying the view that we went the wrong side of Lunga and only noticed because there was no rip.  We turned back and crossed into the Sound of Luing and sped down towards the Dorus Mhor.

The skies had cleared into a gorgeous morning as we arrived at Crinan but the lock was full and we had to wait so we picked up a spare mooring. We locked in with a large bermudan yacht and tied up by the café. It was lunchtime so we used the facilities and bought some paint at the chandlers.

Then it was time to leave. We wanted to get to the Ardrishaig basin but we ran out of time getting through the locks, and had to stop for the night at Cairnbaan. It almost felt like we had come home. Our Journey to the West was over.

Canna to the Black Isles

Early morning at Canna

We didn't want to go down the Sound of Mull again so we looked for a route around the west of Mull. Rubh Ardlanish has an anchorage liked by both Martin Lawrence and the Antares folks. It is about 50 miles from Canna and 30 from the Dores Mhor so we made it today's 'plan A'. We both woke around 4 but couldn't face getting up so we went back to sleep until the 5:30 alarm. I made the tea as usual and we bounced into action. Ok, bounced might be over-stating it.

Coming in so late in calm weather, we had done the bare minimum of putting her to bed. The peak halyard and jib were still in place so we just had to unfrap the halyards, fit the stay-sail halyard and free the tiller and we were ready to go.

But first breakfast. Stornoway black pudding, fried tomato, bacon and egg.

Then Alison started the engine and I hauled the chain up. The anchor came free really easily with only a little kelp. Anchor stowed, we raised the stay-sail and tensioned the bob-stay and we were off. Hardly any more work than coming off a buoy.

A ketch motored off ahead of us and a sloop raised sail on the mooring and followed us. We left just after 7 and for the second day in a row heard no weather forecast. A mystery we would solve later in the morning.

Once clear of Canna we went head to wind and got the main up. Back on course it was clear that there was enough wind to sail, but not to make 4 knots so we motor sailed.

The route took us around Coll and down the west side of Mull. I wanted to pass east of the Treshnish Isles and down past Staffa but a read of the pilot and the tide tables on the way to Coll told me we would be fighting strong tidal streams that way. So Alison laid in a course outside the Treshnish Isles and Iona.

The weather was stunning, showing off the very best of Rhum, Eigg, Muck and Coll with distant vistas of Ardmamurchan under puffy cumulus clouds with stratos and cirrus above.

I didn't hear the 10:10 weather either. Alison checked the radio and the volume was turned right down. Mystery solved. She had tried to turn it off yesterday by turning it down like we did with the old radio and not turned it up again. This morning I had turned it on and assumed the volume was still as I had left it.

We discussed the options for Thursday. Rubh Ardalanish would be a good place to get to the Corryvreckan or the Sound of Luing. It was near springs so the former was only attractive at HW slack. That was too early or too late. The latter was Ok at any favourable tide. The trouble was the favourable tide was 6:45 to noon. That meant a 2 or 3 am start. If the weather was fine we should go further on to Carsaig. Plan B.

Dutchman's Cap

We couldn't quite make the course to leave the Dutchman's Cap to port and the gap between it and Lunga looked wide enough that the tide should be weak so we deferred the decision and motor sailed best course to windward as I cooked scotch pies in the Omnia. After lunch it seemed we could nearly make the course and  would sail better past Iona if we pinched around the outside. That worked nicely.

Finally at 13:10 we got a weather forecast. It was fine to go on to Carsaig. We would get a night's sleep.

Then the machine screw I fitted last year in Peterhead when the weld failed on the tiller pilot attachment sheared off. Alison helmed while I found the packet of machine screws, sawed one to length and fitted it.

Iona looks almost uninhabited from the west at first. One house peeps out through the rocks, then more appeared as we sailed past.

As we turned the corner the wind dropped and the tide kicked in in our favour and we headed east at 51/2 knots. It got very hot out of the breeze and we peeled layers off including the legs of my Craghoppers. T shirt and shorts at last! 7pm and we had to put sun tan lotion on.

We passed the Rubh Ardalanish anchorage almost without noticing it. Carrying on was the right idea. We would be 10 miles closer in the morning.

 

But Carsaig was horrid. The wind funnelled down the valley and the anchorage was tiny and the wind would blow us towards the rocks. The Black Isles were 2 hours away, we would be there by midnight. Plan C.

The wind calmed down as soon as we were away from Carsaig. It was dark but we could still see as we entered the anchorage. The Garmin chart plotter was pretty useless but the Navionics charts on my tablet were ideal.

There were already three boats in there, a gaff ketch, a lug schooner and a bermudan sloop. Our gaff cutter added perfectly to the mix!

Anchoring was simple and the shelter and holding good. We settled down for a quiet night.

Sailing South from Stornoway

The alarm went at 4am, but it was 0450 before we'd drunk our tea and packed the bedding away. We hoisted sail on the mooring and sailed off, with only 15 seconds of engine assist to get us clear of the buoy and give us steerage way past the moored boats. We were very slow getting clear of Stornoway bay (1½-2 knots) but we sailed anyway.

We laid in a course for Barra, but did not expect to get there. It was a wish that could only come true if the wind stayed west, and it was due to go south west. At sailing speed we would not get there until gone midnight. By 8am we knew it would not happen as the wind was on the nose, and we changed our plan, heading south of the Shiants then diagonally across the Minch and down the west coast of Skye. We needed the engine to sail this course too, but at least the wind was helping, until it died away to nothing. The autopilot went on for the first time this year, and by 1500 we had the main down since it was doing nothing.

There were compensations for the motoring. We had blue sky and sea, glorious sunshine and scenery, and the air was warm enough for both us us to lose layers of clothing! There were small family groups of guillimots sitting on the water, and occasional solitary puffins. Gannets and fulmers flew overhead, but they were rare. Not as rare as yachts though! I spotted only 4 all morning.
 
We phoned Loch Tarbert (Lock Fyne) where we are booked into a traditional boat festival as we passed Loch Pooltiel and had phone signal.We booked ages ago, when we were first planning our trip, and before we decided to leave Robinetta in Stornoway, and have not really looked at the programme. There were no details when we booked, so we wanted to check it was actually going to happen! It is, starting on Friday with a reception, so that is our aiming point, timewise. There are high winds forecast for the following Sunday so we want to be somewhere sheltered then anyway. We do not have long to get there, but that is okay.

We got the main back up just off Neist Point when we got some wind, but it soon went (the engine was only off for 5 minutes.) There was a bit of swell off the lighthouse; two tide regimes meet here, and for a while we were slowed to 3 knots. We had lost the tide that helped us down the Minch now and progress slowed. We decided to head for an anchorage in Loch Bracadale and stay there for the night. Our ETA showed as 22.00, so we would still have light to anchor.

By 19.10 we were off An Dubh-sgeir, with a lovely view of Macleod's Maidens, and about to head into Loch Bracadale, but the ext forecaste changed out plans. By Thursday afternoon, when we were planning to go through the Corryvrecken there was a force 7 in the forecast. That is way too much wind to even think of taking Robinetta near the place.

With the benign conditions of this evening it made sense to push on as far as possible, to give ourselves more time to take the route through the Sound of Luing on Thursday morning's favourable tide, so we abandoned the unexplored beauty of Loch Bracadale, and headed towards Canna. We would not arrive until Midnight, but it is a familiar place, and if we felt up to it we could keep going and do an overnight passage. We raised sail again at 20.00 when the wind came in a little from astern, but there was not much of it, and the boom lifted with every swell, so it only helped a little. We got them down again at 22.30 before it became totally dark.

There were a lot of fishing boats gathered on the north shore of Canna, obviously after the same fish as the dolphins that swam past us at 23.00. The dolphins did not stop to play, just swam past at speed, but it was lovely to see them again. We picked up Canna's pilotage lights, and headed into the harbour on the leading lights. Much easier to see at night than in the daytime!

As we had feared all the moorings were taken, and 3 boats were already anchored, but there was a good gap between the end of the moorings and one of the anchored boats, so we dropped our anchor there. Our anchor light has stopped working, so Julian hauled an LED lantern up the mast on the spare halyard. Then we turned in at 00.20, with the alarm set for 05.30.