I
was very glad for GPS, radar and particularly the AIS (Automatic Identification
System – showing the position of large ships to me and me to them) as I passed close
by the Beatrice Windfarm where there were a lot of floodlights whose glare in
the fog obscured the lights on the navigation buoys, the same happened on the
new field to the east but daylight was breaking and the fog banks were becoming
thinner so it was rather less tense.
My most worrying encounter overnight was with a
very large oil tanker going south at 1 knot which I was passing in front of
when she started to make a turn towards me, was she turning to avoid me? Unlikely as she
could have called me by name or blind on channel 16 if my AIS was not transmitting
properly. Eventually things became clear as she completed a 180 degree turn and
went north making little speed over the ground and was clearly just doing “circuits”
to waste time.
I
got to Peterhead just after 17:00 having done the whole trip just under
headsail, often reefed. That was 78 miles in 17 hours for an average speed of
just over 4.5 knots, I could have gone faster but a difficult sea was
uncomfortable at that speed and would have been more so with more sail set.
It
was also a very cold trip and on this leg and most of the next two I was
wearing winter gear including fleece lined trousers, two fleeces, gloves and
full wet weather gear despite the lack of rain for which I was duly grateful.
In August!
Having had little sleep and with a couple of long legs to follow, I stayed at Peterhead for a day and was able to get a few fresh items of stores. Update: as I found in 2021 there is an excellent “Morrisons” within walking distance for the reasonably fit.
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| Watson (46' 9") class lifeboat built in 1952 alongside in Peterhead. |
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