2025 June 14th, Day 77. To Knockinelder Bay.

 As per the previous post I left early and was at Donaghadee Sound at what passes for slack water. The rain had started exactly on time, 15 minutes before I weighed anchor and, more conveniently 15 minutes before I arrived. The wind turned on schedule but was late in increasing to 8 knots when I turned off the engine, sailing on a dead run with the cruising chute and headsail.

Naturally as soon as I had them up the wind dropped to 5 knots but I persisted an 40 minutes or so later it picked up and I was making a good 5 knots through the water until I was off Skullmartin by which time the wind had reached 15 knots and I took the chute down, just in time as not long after I was making 6 knots under the double reefed headsail in a strong F5 gusting 6.

Not long after there was a lot of loud thunder, fortunately from the squall that had just passed, I get rather nervous when lightning is about, it doesn't often hit boats but sometimes it does with fairly disastrous results.

I had forgotten how heavy a wet spinnaker can get, bagged it must have been double the dry weight. Another good reason to have a snuffer, dropping that sail into the cabin would have swamped everything.

Having looked at the forecasts I decided not to push south, it's likely to take me two more days to get to The Skerries so there seemed no advantage in going on in the rain, so I went into  Knockinelder Bay.

Rant mode on/ DOES ANYONE APART FROM GUY COTTEN (Fisherman's gear), MAKE GEAR THAT WILL KEEP YOU DRY FOR A SEASON OR MORE! I have wet wet feet because my leather boots are leaking from the bottom up and my jacket is leaking on one arm. /Rant mode off.

26.6 in just under 5 wet hours.

Pics and video may follow if the rain, which had stopped for a while stops again,

2025 June 12th Days 75 - 76 To Ballyholme Bay.

Thursday

A quick shopping trip, only slightly delayed by ASDA not opening till 08:00, shower, paid the Bill and I was away at 09:15 to be ahead of the forecast rain and thunder. I am now back at anchor in Ballyholme Bay where it is quite busy for mid week with 5 6 yachts at anchor, more than I have seen overnight and there are lots of spare berths in the marina; perhaps rising marina charges are pushing more people to spend time at anchor?

I needn't have been in quite so much of a hurry as the 12:00 inshore and domestic forecasts  dropped the Thunder storms, put back the rain although there is still poor weather on the way.

Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough - Strong wind warning

24 hour forecast: South or southeast 4 to 6. Slight or moderate. Rain then showers, fog patches developing in east. Moderate or good, occasionally poor in west and very poor in east.

Outlook for the following 24 hours: South or southeast 4 to 6, becoming variable 2 to 4. Slight or moderate becoming smooth or slight. Showers, fog patches at first in east. Moderate or good, occasionally very poor at first in east.

The plan remains to head south on Saturday and if the sea is calm there anchoring in Knockinelder Bay just N of Strangford Lough on Saturday night. There is rain forecast for Saturday, if the forecast gets worse I might wait till Sunday, after that the models are showing generally light but favourable winds till Friday. 

If the sea and / or  wind are not amenable to anchoring I will go into Ardglass but otherwise I don't really need to, although a shower and a chineese from the take-away is always welcome, as I managed to get a lot of long dated supplies for main meals and I have diesel to motor all the way to Milford with a 150 mile reserve if I really had to.

Friday a.m..

Unless it happened whilst I slept, which I doubt, F6 winds have not appeared but since mid afternoon yesterday the weather has been really mucky with continuous rain and fog / heavy mist and F4-5 winds veering from the E to SSW, but it was warmer overnight than at any time on this cruise, but I was still using the warmer of my sleeping bags, rather than both. 

There were an awful lot of very wet sailors out racing yachts last night, and one yacht left the anchorage at about 05:30 this morning probably to get the first of the favourable southerly tide through Donaghadee Sound; rather them than me in this weather.

The automated domestic forecast shows this weather, apart from the wind direction, continuing through tomorrow (2 "rain drops" 80-90% probability for much of the day) but the inshore forecast at 07:00 is just a little more optimistic:

Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough - Strong wind warning

24 hour forecast: Southerly or southeasterly, veering southwesterly for a time, 4 to 6, becoming variable 2 to 4 later. Slight or moderate, becoming smooth or slight later. Fog patches at first in east, otherwise showers. Moderate or good, occasionally very poor at first in east and poor elsewhere.

Outlook for the following 24 hours: Variable 2 to 4, becoming north or northwest 3 to 5 for a time, then west later. Smooth or slight. Occasional rain or showers, becoming mainly fair later. Moderate or good, occasionally poor until later.

The ECMWF and ECMWF models show, the heavy rain along
 or just off the coast.

The models show the northerly setting in early to mid morning 
but we can see why there is some uncertainty about timing and
rain, it all depends on how quickly the small area of low pressure 
moves east. 

In the few minutes that it took me to write the above the domestic forecast changed to show slightly less rain tomorrow with 70-80% probability of "2 rain drops" over a shorter period.

Tomorrow the tide through Donaghadee Sound sets south at 06:15, normally I would set the alarm for 04:40 and leave at 05:15 for 7 - 8 hours of south going tide, with a decent wind or under engine all of the way to Ardglass (the tide sets south earlier in The Sound than offshore and earlier north than south) but this time I think I'll leave it a while and just look out of the window and check the met office radar to decide if and what time to head south, giving up some favourable tide to stay dry and hopefully get an hour or twos extra sleep. 

Friday p.m..

The wind has gone round to the SW or WSW F3-4 but the tide is foul in Donaghadee Sound and I suspect the wind chan will not last. The good news is the sun is starting to break through and it could turn into a pleasant evening.

Friday evening.

F6 is now in the forecast for tomorrow and early Sunday:

Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough - Strong wind warning

24 hour forecast: Southeasterly backing northwesterly later, 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later. Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth later. Rain or showers. Moderate or good, occasionally poor later.

Outlook for the following 24 hours: North or northwest 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first, becoming variable 2 to 4 later. Smooth or slight. Occasional rain or showers, becoming mainly fair. Moderate or good, occasionally poor at first.

However it is blowing offshore, will be behind me and looking at the models most of it is further north, it will certainly be one for a late decision, essentially as a lot of rain is back in the domestic forecast. However if I don’t move south I’ll probably have to go back into the marina as this anchorage is wide open to the N & NW.

Change of plan: Subject to seeing the midnight forecast in the morning I'll leave early tomorrow, under engine, which I would in any case use to and through the sound, then sail as the wind sets in, I can reach the anchorage or Ardglass before stronger winds are likely to arrive, if they do - according to the models, Met Eireann and the domestic forecasts the coast south of here should not be too windy except perhaps for gusts or in squalls. I'll probably get wet for longer than going into the marina but I think this is the preferable option as headwinds are now being forecast for Monday. 

Ardglass might or an anchorage south of there might become favourite so I would have an easier leg to The Skerries on Sunday. 

Click here for Knockinelder Bay.

2025 June 10th Days 73 - 74. At Bangor.

Wednesday 11th, a.m..

Detailed planning is a waste of time at the moment as the forecasts are all over the place and don't agree in the medium term. What appears to be certain is a brisk wind tonight into tomorrow but not as bad as the models were showing yesterday morning, the met office this morning think otherwise but I think they are concerned with gusting winds further north.

Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough - Strong wind warning

24 hour forecast: South or southeast 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later. Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate later in north. Rain or thundery showers later. Good, occasionally poor later.

Outlook for the following 24 hours: South or southeast 4 to 6. Slight or moderate. Occasional rain and thundery showers. Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Also fairly certain is that the winds are likely to be southerly and occasionally easterly for the next few days and I am reminded of the old saying that gentlemen [especially this elderly one] do not sail to windward, also anchorages outside of Strangford Lough are all exposed to easterly winds.

The short term plan, such as it is, is to move back to Ballyholme Bay tomorrow afternoon or Friday if it is blowing a hooley, that is well sheltered from the south and east so I should be comfortable enough for a couple of nights and save fees in the moderately expensive marina. Then I will head south on Saturday with a moderately civilised start time to get through Donaghadee Sound at the start of the south going tide. Some motoring may be required if the forecast is right (unlikely that far out), if the sea has calmed down I might find an anchorage but I suspect I'll end up in Ardglass which will not be a disaster as that could be the last place for resupply for a long time and I might well go in anyway on Sunday for stores.

After that I will meander south. One of the longer term options I see at the moment is to go across to Anglesey to tick another thing off my bucket list - The Menai Straights. Providing the weather is kind (no northerly component and not too strong from the SW for when I get to the southern end) the tides look at first glance to be OK from about the 23rd June which would let me cruise down to Fishguard and Milford for my optimum arrival there on the 1st July to secure a months "free" berthing vs arriving before the 30th June.

Wednesday p.m..

It maybe a Friday to move to the anchorage, the inshore and domestic forecasts are now predicting thunderstorms and heavy rain tomorrow afternoon to go along with some wind but an early move after shopping my be the answer, the sea at the anchorage is calm at the moment and likely to remain so.

Click here for Thursday back to Ballyholme Bay.

2025 June 10th, Day 73 to Ballyholme Bay, then Bangor.

A somewhat frustrating day reflected in my Facebook posts:

06:59: A south going tide, NW wind and sunshine is too good to miss. And I need a shower so I am heading to Bangor. Ideally I will anchor for tonight and go into the marina tomorrow morning to avoid the F6 forecast for tomorrow night but if the anchorage looks uncomfortable I’ll go straight to the marina.

11:00: At anchor but I suspect I’ll be moving to the marina as it is quite lumpy, no problem with the wind holding the boat head to the waves but if the sea does not calm quickly when the wind dies I will be rolling all over the place.

14:45: Feeling annoyed: At 9:00 making good speed I considered going straight to Arglass as I had time to get past Copeland Island on the tide, but every source said the wind would be gone or SE by lunchtime so I anchored hoping that the wind would die and the sea calm quickly. then at 12:00 the same sources were saying the wind wouldn’t drop till 19:00 or later, rather too late to make a decision so I moved to the marina.

Now at 14:45 there is no wind although the domestic forecast is still saying 7-14 knots c NE till gone 19:00.

Still, it is nice and warm here which makes a pleasant change.

An interesting coastal path via multiple bridges IIRC

they are early 20th century with no other purpose, full

screen is probably needed to see them.

A total of 18 miles in five and a half hours.

Click here for next steps and my time in Bangor.

2025 June 9th, Day 72. To Larne (Yellow Stone)

 A Long trip today 😀

Less than a mile to the "Yellow Stone" anchorage in Larne Lough
in three-quarters of an hour.

The anchorage at Brown's Bay was a bit uncomfortable as, several hours after my arrival, a swell came in from the north that with a westerly wind had the boat rolling, not enough to disturb my sleep but annoying during the day. With rain coming shortly followed by a North or North-west wind overnight tonight that could make Brown's Bay seriously uncomfortable I moved into the lough straight after my morning coffee.

I am still working out what to do next, the northerly wind would certainly help going south but anchorages with shelter from the north are someway off (there is an interesting one off Copeland Island but it’s open to the S, see below) and the rain today put me off leaving on todays tide. The forecast is now predicting little or no rain on Tuesday and Wednesday which is a big improvement.

Tomorrow may be OK to move to Bangor /  but the northerly may still make Ballyholm Bay uncomfortable depending on when the promised veer happens.

This mornings inshore forecast, Larne is on the N Channel so both areas need to be considered:

Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough

24 hour forecast: Southwesterly, backing southerly for a time, then veering northwesterly later, 3 to 5. Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate in north and later in south. Rain or drizzle, then showers later. Moderate or good, occasionally poor for a time.

Outlook for the following 24 hours: Northwesterly 3 to 5, becoming variable 2 to 4, becoming southeast 3 or 4 later. Slight or moderate, becoming smooth or slight. Mainly fair. Moderate or good.

---

Mull of Galloway to Mull of Kintyre including the Firth of Clyde and North Channel - Strong wind warning

24 hour forecast: Westerly or southwesterly, backing southerly, veering northwesterly later, 3 to 5, occasionally 6 for a time in North Channel. Smooth or slight. Rain and drizzle, the showers later. Moderate or good, occasionally poor for a time.

Outlook for the following 24 hours: Northwesterly, 3 to 5, occasionally 6 in North Channel, becoming variable 2 to 4, then southeasterly 3 or 4 later. Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate for a time in North Channel. Mainly fair. Moderate or good.

I am thinking of Ardglass later in the week or perhaps going into Strangford Lough before the weekend in case the UKMO model is correct.

UKMO & ECMWF model runs from this morning for Saturday. 

It is also over 50 years since I have been round the Lough so that has it's attractions, but although the tides are good for Donaghadee Sound this week, making the tide through the narrows into the Lough could be a stretch so an intermediate stop if the conditions are right or to Ardglass for stores then back to Strangford before or after any bad weather might be best. I'm not going to worry about that until Tuesday or Wednesday.

The view south is not unpleasant but the less said

about the north the better.

Click here for Ballyholm Bay and Bangor.

2025 June 8th, Day 71. Kilnaughton Bay to Brown's Bay, Larne.

 Draft WIP

I was awake early and unlikely to get back to sleep so I left an hour and a half earlier than planned. The wind was lighter than forecast at about 10 knots from the NW but I stuck with the headsail only as I suspected it would get stronger as I got away from land. 

Eventually having been through some moderately turbulent sea caused by the wind against the last of the tide flowing NE past Islay I was proved right, but it was a couple of hours during which time I was finding excuse after excuse for not putting up the cruising chute each time rejecting the idea that it was pure procrastination or laziness preventing me. The wind then suddenly came in as the forecast 18 knots and gusting into the not forecast the mid twenties. I was bowling along at 5.5 - 6+ knots under the double reefed genoa - less than the original #1 jib and making excellent time.

About 06:00 the tide had turned, the sea quietened down and I was under full sail making good speed, that dropped off an hour north of The Mull of Kintyre but initially improved again once I was past the TSS and came to the wind.

07:45, 2.5 - 3 knots of tide but not taking me in quite the
right direction (blue line = track, black = heading). A few
degrees off close hauled for speed in 7-8 knots of wind.

The wind lasted till 09:00 when it dropped to about 5 knots and backed to the SW so on went the engine and I headed more directly to Brown's Bay. Apart from an hour or so the engine stayed on until I anchored at 1 o'clock, although I could have sailed the last couple of miles in a renewed stiff westerly there was not a lot of point. I could have carried on to Bangor but there is more protection here from a veering wind and I did not expect the brisk westerly to last, and it didn't.

The anchorage.

Looking at the weather forecasts I doubt I will be going much further than Belfast Lough for several days. I may have to move into Larne Lough as the wind may briefly go round to the N or NW at some point, but the models do not agree on when and how strong it would be. 

Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough (@12:00 Sunday)

24 hour forecast: Variable becoming south or southwest later, 2 to 4, occasionally 5 later. Slight or moderate in far north, but elsewhere smooth or slight. Showers, perhaps thundery at first, rain later. Good, occasionally moderate at first and poor later.

Outlook for the following 24 hours: South or southwest veering northwest later, 3 to 5. Smooth or slight at first except in far north, otherwise slight or moderate. Rain, drizzle or showers. Good, becoming moderate or poor for a time.

The UKMO domestic forecast has changed the strength and timing of a northerly wind 3 times already today. The Irish MO doesn't mention it at all.

51 miles in ten and a half hours.

Click here for Mondays adventure.

2025, June 7th Day 70. Kinuachdrachd Harbour to Kilnaughton Bay, Islay.

 WIP

Facebook:

A grotty day but on the plus side only light rain rather than the heavy in yesterday’s forecast, so I left the anchorage at 06:40 to get some following tide to help me south. 2+ hours later and no wind yet but I am pressing on.

The forecast for the next few days is more rain so checking out anchorages etc. holds little attraction. The wind forecast SW then W or NW F3-5 for tomorrow, although not brilliant, is the best for crossing the N Channel for the next week so I will probably head over from Islay early tomorrow.

A day of changing plans; I wanted to get as far south and west as possible to give the best angle on tomorrows likely wind and shorten the distance so was aiming for Port Ellen, but after a few hours of motoring in 0 - 4 knots of wind and quite a lot of light but steady rain I decided to head for Aros bay on the SE corner of Islay, the angle on the forecast wind would be c 20 degrees worse and it would be about 3 miles further to the Mull of Kintyre but I didn't want another 3+ hours of motoring on a damp windless day.

Then a little after eleven o'clock when I was off the south point of Jura the wind set in from the NW at 15 knots, the rain was heavier but the met office radar suggested it would soon clean, and the implication from the met office chart for lunch time was the occluded front was clearing and the wind should hold.

So at 11:50 I reverted to my original plan and sailed at 4.5 - 5.5 knots to just off of Port Ellen to anchor in Kilnaughton Bay.

Approaching Port Ellen, from L to R, almost hidden

Laphroaig, Lagavulin and Ardbeg distilleries.

Port Ellen and the anchorage.

The 15:00 runs of the ecmwf and UKMO models, available earlier than usual, are somewhat better than this mornings, but light winds could be a problem midday:

The 12:00 inshore forecast, issued before this run of the model does not yet quite reflect this.

Mull of Galloway to Mull of Kintyre including the Firth of Clyde and North Channel - Strong wind warning

24 hour forecast: Northwesterly 4 to 6, backing westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5. Smooth or slight, becoming moderate for a time in North Channel. Showers. Good, occasionally moderate.

Outlook for the following 24 hours: Westerly veering northwesterly 4 to 6, backing southwesterly 3 to 5. Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate near Mull of Kintyre. Showers. Good, occasionally moderate.

I have done the route south from here before so pulled up that plan and ran it for tomorrow, in theory I could be there in time for dinner if I can make 4.5 knots. I suspect more realistically it will be a later arrival or perhaps I end up further north at Red Bay or Glenarm. At least we are closer to neaps than springs but a brisk north-westerly against the ebb tide from c 10:30 could still cut the sea up somewhat.

Times UTC, another early start required .

40 miles in eight and a quarter hours.

Update:

The inshore waters forecast just got worse:

Mull of Galloway to Mull of Kintyre including the Firth of Clyde and North Channel - Strong wind warning

24 hour forecast: Northwesterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7 in North Channel, backing westerly or southwesterly, 4 to 6. Moderate at first in North Channel, otherwise smooth or slight. Showers. Good.

Outlook for the following 24 hours: Westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5, backing mainly southerly later. Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate near Mull of Kintyre. Showers, rain later. Good, becoming moderate or poor later.

I’ll to check the midnight forecast before I leave and put my head out of the hatch.

Click here for Browns Bay.

2025, June 6th Day 69 p.m. Puilladobhrain to Kinuachdrachd Harbour.

WIP Place holder.

Notes: timing, tide state, anchorage and selection.

The Gulf of Corryvreckan to starboard, Crinan

hidden by the islands on the port bow.

16.5 NM in three and three-quarter hours.

Click here for Islay.

2025, June 6th, Day 69 a.m. Loch Aline to Puilladobhrain.

DRAFT.

I weighed at 05:15 and headed down the Sound of Mull with a light wind from the NE, that progressively changed to a light south westerly and just before arrival to F3-4, but on the nose so I motored in. Even at this time of day and 2 boats having left the anchorage was still quite busy bt with a few spaces left.

pic of rainbows to follow

Entering the anchorage.

17 miles in just under 4 hours.

Click here for the afternoon.

2025 June 5th, Day 68. Tobermory to Loch Aline.

DRAFT

The latest forecasts are showing fresh NE winds on Saturday which with F6 today rather puts the kybosh on The Treshnish Islands. It also shows rain most days for a good while and not very helpful winds to get south next week.

After a shower and some last minute shopping I left at 11:20 earlier than planned and against the tide to perhaps give me the opportunity to get to Loch Spelve to make a passage through Luing a possibility, with a very early start, on Friday. If things go to plan I'll be in shelter if and when the stronger northerly wind arrives on Saturday, probably on the Jura side of the sound or east of Ghia, most likely the former as I am not in that much of a rush.

There was absolutely no wind in the harbour that was rapidly emptying out of cruising yachts, outside there was about 8 knots but with more forecast and heavy squalls about I stuck to headsail only. Soon after it was up to 15 knots and varied from that, occasionally less, up to 20+ and at one time 25 which was a bit nerve wracking with the dinghy in tow.

Apart from having to avoid a freighter and two large ferries the trip was generally uneventful but I decided against Loch Spelve as the wind had steadied to a brisk F5 and would be on the nose and against the tide at charted over-falls at some point between Duart Castle and Lock Don. So into Loch Aline with a swift 360 degree turn and a lurch towards the shore when the ferry, which had been alongside for at least an hour, decided to come out just as I got there.

Entry delayed by the ferry, we would have collided just south of
the red can buoy another yacht and a large motor boat coming
from the east also had to take avoiding in and we entered in line
astern with me leading, probably frustrating them as I stuck
to 5 knots, 6 over the ground, as they both over took me as soon
as they could whilst I was getting the anchor ready.

A nice change from the last attempt was anchoring on the first attempt in good holding although next morning I did find I had found a spot with lots of thin black mud on top of the thicker stuff and I needed several buckets of water to clean the deck after weighing anchor.

Facebook post:

The plan for tomorrow is to leave when I wake up to take the last of the tide out of the Sound of Mull and then cross to the east side of the Firth of Lorn 6 or 7 miles N of Fladda and anchor there, leaving early afternoon to get the first of the S going tide down the Sound of Luing stopping for the night at Crinan or a bit further S. 

If the weather is as the models showed in the evening I should have light adverse winds on Friday but tide all the way after the stop for lunch and a north-westerly on Saturday to take me down the Sound of Jura, but I will need to find a safe spot later o Saturday as a F6 is forecast.

Pics to follow.

14 miles in three nd a half hours.

Click here for Puilladobhrain.

2025 May 31st, Days 63 - ? Tobermory

Saturday 31st

Slept late, checked engine oil (no loss / usage) and changed the gearbox oil that I omitted to do on the previous service but that was done early so no big deal.

With rain all afternoon I stayed put for a bit of blogging and did not blow up the dinghy to go ashore.

Sunday 1st June

Light winds early morning so I got the dinghy out and rowed ashore, 15 litres of diesel from the self service pump at the garage. Unusually they have a good stock of Campingaz 907 cylinders so I will be back as soon as the wind drops and they are open to get one before they are snaffled up by others.

I could have done without the cold shower rowing back to the boat after the hot one. It continued to rain to early afternoon, at the time of writing it is too windy to row ashore for shopping although I would be blown back to the boat, assuming I didn't miss, and it is not worth getting the engine on as it would have to come straight back aboard due to v strong winds coming, I don't need the dinghy to flip over and drown the engine.

The lunchtime inshore forecast is, if anything, worse than I thought it would be, Arnamurchan point is a few miles west of here so take you pick from:

Mull of Kintyre to Ardnamurchan Point - Strong wind warning

24 hour forecast: Cyclonic 5 to 7, becoming northwest 4 or 5, backing south 5 to 7 later. Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough in northwest and slight in southeast. Showers. Good, occasionally moderate.

Outlook for the following 24 hours: South 5 to 7, increasing gale 8, perhaps severe gale 9, veering west 6 to gale 8 later. Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough in northwest and slight in southeast. Fair then rain then squally showers. Good, becoming moderate or poor.

---

The Minch - Strong wind warning

24 hour forecast: Cyclonic 5 to 7, becoming northwest 4 to 6, backing southwest 6 or 7 later. Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth at first in central area and rough in south. Showers. Good, occasionally moderate.

Outlook for the following 24 hours: Southwest 6 or 7, backing south 7 or gale 8, perhaps severe gale 9, veering west or southwest 6 to gale 8 later. Slight or moderate, becoming moderate or rough, occasionally very rough in south. Fair then rain then squally showers. Good becoming moderate or poor.

NW winds should be OK here, more N could be bad news as the harbour would then be a bit exposed  but I'm on a 15 Ton mooring so safe enough and I'll not be bashing against a pontoon. 

The wind so far has been very variable and swirling with boats sometimes pointing in all directions, now we are all pointing a little N or W with tight mooring lines.

Sunday Evening drama:

I heard what sounded a bit like a yacht engine, but it kept going so after a while I poked my head out to take a look and saw a yacht at least 500 yards away in trouble with a partially furled headsail flogging in the strong breeze.

The charter boat from Oban, that I have seen quite a few times over the years, had what is known as a halyard wrap, the jib halyard looked to me to be very slack, this meant that the halyard could not keep the part of the furling gear at the top from turning and the halyard then gets wrapped around the forestay, as a result the bottom part of the sail furls whilst the top does not. They either did not recognise what was happening or kept on furling anyway making things worse. This can be a devil to sort out, and you have to know how. They gave up and tried to pick up a buoy encumbered by a lot of windage aloft in the very fresh wind.

On the 4th or 5th attempt, pictured above, they lost a boat hook but were very lucky, I did not see that but the skipper of the old boat next to me did and had a small ridged rowing dingy, he sculled out in 15 - 20 knots of wind with some gust quite a bit higher to retrieve it and helped them get onto a mooring at the end of the anchorage, then went aboard and helped secure the sail - but not before it had flogged a long rip or two in the sail. 

Well done that man, and thankfully there was someone around with a dinghy that could be rowed in those conditions, mine couldn't be, at least up wind.

On Monday morning the boat made it into the marina with the sail removed, the end of their sailing holiday and are now likely to have an argument with the charter company and / or the insurers who generally do not cover damage to sails unless caused by something else breaking or by contact with something external.

Monday

After a windy and wet night it was sunny with no wind first thing so I was ashore shortly after eight to do a large bag of laundry and shop for a few things. Annoyingly they had change the combination on the front door, which is required for access before 09:00 and I had to wait 15 minutes for someone to come out before I could start the wash. Once it was in the dryer I did the shopping and went back to the boat with that and to pick up the empty gas cylinder, back on shore I got the replacement cylinder and the laundry making it back to the boat just as the wind started to blow up.

It still looks like blustery or gale force winds and serious seas west of Mull until Thursday so I paid for the last 3 nights and bought a discounted five day ticket that can be used at any time so hopefully I can wait for decent weather, spend a few days around the area then come back here for a night or two to get ready for a longer trip south.

Tobermory is quickly filling up in advance of the Gale(s), at 14:00 the marina is full and I can only see a couple of 15 Tones moorings left, from 28? (according to the web site but I suspect a few have been added)

Tuesday

It was pretty windy last night but with maximum gusts of 32 knots recorded locally it was not as windy as forecast so those down in Loch Aline who reported deploying two anchors did the right thing, but now they have to get them up. Storonoway though were getting gusts of over 40 Knots so it looks as though we were lucky.

We might not be as lucky later as the domestic forecast for Tobermory has gust of 42 Knots this evening.

Annoyingly the swirling wind means I have to keep all of the hatches closed for much of the time to keep the rain out and we are promised showers for the rest of the day.

Tomorrow looks like a non starter as well, Thursday is much better.

But with > 5m waves off Coll tomorrow its will be a few days
before I'll want to go there or to the Treshnish Islands so perhaps
 an exploration of  Loch Sunart will be in order although shelter
it rather variable and the good anchorages may be full. Some
research will keep me busy for a while.

Wednesday.

There was no wind first thing so I made an 07:00 quick run ashore for fresh food in case I can leave tomorrow. After lunch with a wind that would blow me back to the boat I squeezed in another between squalls for water and booze - Scottish law only allows sales after 10:00 and to avoid mistakes all the main supermarkets and the coop include zero alcohol drinks in that ban.

The weather is not looking that promising tomorrow morning, the lunchtime inshore forecast:

Mull of Kintyre to Ardnamurchan Point - Strong wind warning

24 hour forecast: West or southwest 4 to 6, occasionally 7 at first and 3 later. Very rough at first in west, otherwise moderate or rough, but becoming slight or moderate in east. Showers, squally at first. Good, occasionally moderate.

The Minch - Strong wind warning

24 hour forecast: West or southwest 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 at first, then decreasing 4 or 5 later. Moderate or rough becoming slight or moderate, becoming smooth or slight later just north and east of Skye. Showers, squally at first. Good, occasionally poor at first and moderate later.

F4 or 5 is not a problem normally but not attractive for west of Mull anchorages with the accompanying seas.

I'll wait until the morning to decide and have a last minute shower if it looks sensible to leave later, perhaps to Loch Sunart for a day sail if the rather limited anchorages there do not look attractive for an overnight stay. Having a couple of days mooring in the bank here I don't particularly want to pay for one of the limited moorings or pontoon berths at Salen if one was available.

Thursday

My Facebook post:

Not a good day so far and it is not yet 9 o'clock and I am waiting for the rain to stop. The latest forecasts are showing fresh NE winds on Saturday which with F6 today rather puts the kybosh on The Treshnish Islands. It also shows rain most days for a good while and not very helpful winds to get south next week. 

Added to that for several days to come the tides are not helpful to get through the Sounds of Islay or Luing.

Finally whilst clearing a blocked sink, the plug in the other popped out as I was using the plunger and I got a face full of very dirty water. A good job that happened before my shower rather than after.

So, what next? I gave up trying to do a detailed long term plan as there are just too many variables. After a shower and a bit of last minute shopping, hopefully avoiding the rain showers, I am going to head down the Sound of Mull, probably this afternoon when the tide turns or first thing tomorrow. Then take it from there, light winds tomorrow so probably quite a bit of motoring and the Sound of Islay looks favourite for Friday evening or Saturday but we shall see.

Click here for the move south. 

My review of anchorages and marinas around UK has been updated.

Anchorages and Marinas covered as at Feb 2025

Updates June 2025:

As of 14th June I had visited 185 different locations in Sancerre, some many times. Almost all have at least some comments.  

• East coast of Ireland Split into two.
• Mull of Galloway to Ardnamuchan split in two just S of Crinan.
• Further anchorages.

Updates April / May 2025:

• Further anchorages to the date above.
• Ardnamurchan Point to Rubha Reidh (west of Loch Ewe) split into two at Skye Bridge as it was getting very long and I anticipate more anchorages north of there to be added in the near future.
• Orkney (and hopefully later Shetland) now on a separate page.
• Table of contents added to longer pages, I may do the rest at some point.

Updates Feb 2025: 

• It is now possible to download a .GPX file with all of the covered locations identified (as per above) plus a long list of places I have checked out on paper and may visit.  This can be imported into Memory-Map and other charting software, Details below.
• A few boundaries have been rationalised to run between headlands rather than anchorages to remove confusion and avoid further changes when I add new locations, descriptions on some older links may not be updated but they will still work.
• The Isles of Scilly split from SE Ireland to make more room, there are now 12 pages. 
• Now having a 5G phone, 2025 notes will include O2 5G coverage although I suspect very few will appear, Milford Haven despite being a reasonably sized town is not currently covered.

Sancerre in the anchorage at The Holy Island of
Lindisfarne, 2021, the Farne Islands and Bamburgh
Castle in the distance.  A trip line is required in
this anchorage, to see why click here.

Update Nov 2024: Updated with those visited through 2024

I now include:

• Harbours and Marinas.
• Some info on fuel & gas availability but I would not have checked at many locations. 
• Cell coverage, Vodafone and O2, for those I have visited recently.
• Videos of anchorages when weather, daylight and time permit.

Be sure to check out Reeds and / or the appropriate pilots for more detailed information and alternates, this is just an overview of likely candidates, but I have been to all of them over the last few years. Some notes on passage making using some of these can be found here:  "Planning a round GB trip" , a list of charts and Pilots I have used round GB can be found here: "Charts and Guides for a round GB trip"

Updates Winter 2023/24: Further updated during a boring winter 2023/4 to include some information on access to and from marinas. Done from notes but largely from memory but fortunately that is good for this sort of thing, I just wish that I always knew why I went into a room or opened a browser page 😕. See my page Marina & mooring notes (opens in a new window) for some general tips, definitions and the context (handling of my boat) in which I comment.

Village Bay Anchorage, St Kilda 2023.

Hunda Sound anchorage looking towards Scapa Flow, Orkney at 03:30.

Note that these "Pages" do not show up under "Post Labels" (right). There will normally be more photos of each anchorage on the linked post and sometimes subsequent ones (I normally only "tag" the first post in a sequence) the associated slide show, or by clicking on the Post Label right:

• The Solent.
• The Needles to Rame Hd (Plymouth).
• Rame Head to Lands End.
• The Isles of Scilly. 
• Lands End to The Mull of Galloway excluding Ireland.
• The East Coast of Ireland from Carnsore Pt to Carlingford.
• N. Ireland
• Ireland clockwise from Carnsore Point.
• Mull of Galloway to South of Crinan.
• Crinan to Ardnamurchan Point.
• Ardnamurchan Point to Skye Bridge.
• Skye Bridge to Rubha Reidh (west of Loch Ewe).
• The Western Isles.
• Rubha Reidh to Duncansby Head.
• Orkney and Shetland.
• Duncansby Head to the Solent. 

GPX download of locations.

A small chart section showing places I have visited (Red and Blue)
and those I would go to in the right conditions.

I have the entire collection and the charts on my iPads, iPhone and laptops
so if I need to choose a destination or make a diversion I don't necessarily
have to do further wide ranging research, just check tides, the pilot and
charts for the detail.

At the time of writing there are 102 possible locations mainly from Scilly,
Ireland and Lands end to Shetland via Cape Wrath, in addition to the c 150
places I have been to at least once in the last few years.

Download files last updated Feb 2025.

The chart at the top of the page is a snap shot of some of the places I have visited, they are marks / way points in "Memory Map", I have exported these for back up and so that I can share them to my other devices, I have now made them available so that others can down load them for reference. They are stored in a .GPX file which most charting packages can access, the categorisation may or may not make sense in other software but the marks should appear. If in doubt, back up what is already in your package so that if you can't manage the two or three hundred marks you can bulk delete then restore.

An example of a single mark exported from "Memory-Map for All"
to a .GPX file and imported into my Seapro 3000 navigation software
as a waypoint. Category and symbol information were ignored although
 the name and position did come over. Care must be taken using these
as an actual waypoint - as noted below positions are only indicative.

For software geeks this is how a single point is described coming out of Memory-Map.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>

<gpx version="1.1"

creator="Memory-Map for All 1.3.1 https://memory-map.com"

 xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"

 xmlns="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1"

 xmlns:xstyle="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/gpx_style/0/2"

 xmlns:xgarmin="http://www.garmin.com/xmlschemas/GpxExtensions/v3"

 xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1 http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1/gpx.xsd http://www.topografix.com/GPX/gpx_style/0/2 http://www.topografix.com/GPX/gpx_style/0/2/gpx_style.xsd http://www.garmin.com/xmlschemas/GpxExtensions/v3 https://www8.garmin.com/xmlschemas/GpxExtensionsv3.xsd">

<wpt lat="51.7073036414" lon="-5.1566832963">

<time>2025-02-10T12:51:51Z</time>

<name>Milford, Dale Shelf, Free Pontoon</name>

<src>mmid:F2364F57A0B3A561</src>

<sym>Anchor</sym>

<type>Anchorages and Marinas:Scilly to Mull of Galloway</type>

<extensions>

<xstyle:fill>

<xstyle:color>00ff00</xstyle:color>

</xstyle:fill>

</extensions>

</wpt>

</gpx>

Overlay list in "Memory-Map for All", items
ticked and those below will be displayed. 

Despite referencing a Garmin schema importing this into Garmin "Active Captain" has the same result as into SeaPro except that the name is truncated further.

Note positions are indicative and do not necessarily mean that you can anchor in the exact location, I sometimes place them close to an anchorage so that the icon does not obscure charted information. E & OE! - check out charts, in particular the Antares charts for West Scotland, Pilots etc. Naming conventions are not altogether consistent as things have changed with time and software upgrades and as selection is graphic from a chart ninety-nine times out of a hundred I am not spending time to improve it further.

I will probably update the files at some point in the future, it is not practical to just issue changes as the the .GPS file does not manage changes or deletions so if you plan to take updates put your own marks under a different category so that mine can be mass deleted and reloaded. The overlay list shows routes, these will not be made available as these may not be up to date or validated, my masters are in SeaPro and exported to the plotter and/or MemoryMap if and when required. Also I am not taking responsibility for your navigation!

Some places have a combination of a marina and moorings (e.g Tobermory which also has some possibility of anchoring), Moorings and mid river pontoons (e.g. Fowey), etc.. I flag them by the type I have used most or the most prolific (e.g. Fowey is shown as moorings although there are a number of mid stream pontoons) but occasionally when there are two significant facilities (e.g. Tobermory marina and moorings or Plockton with significant moorings and anchorage) I put in a mark for both.

The sub category expanded to show the
anchorages, right click + view takes you directly
to the point and an appropriate chart, doing the same
on a category or sub-category shows all selected.

In "Memory-Map for All" they will be shown as overlays under different categories and sub categories so they can be hidden as required, and will be locked in position (but can be unlocked), other software may not support this. I have done basic testing on an iPad and another PC, both using "Memory-Map for all". The older versions of Memory Map did not support sub-categories and I guess they would be turned into categories, early issues with "Memory-Map for All" have been resolved and as the basic software (not the charts which are still remarkably cheap) is free I see no reason not to move to the latest version.

Places I have been to, and therefore have notes on the web site for, are grouped together under "anchorages and marinas" with sub-categories roughly equating to my regional categories above. Anchor Icons ⚓  are coloured to differentiate anchorages (Red) from marinas, moorings and pontoons (without walk on access) that usually have to be paid for (Blue). None of the anchorages I have flagged have to be paid for (unlike Salcombe, Falmouth and Kinsale) but there may be a charge to use landing facilities, usually with an honesty box or on line payment e.g. Plockton (where you can land on the beach for free and it is a shorter walk).

Link to download visited anchorages etc. as a .GPX file to import into Memory-Map (or other mapping software with care).

There are two other categories; in a second downloadable file:

• Possible Anchorages - places I have done at least some research on and so for instance know there is normally sufficient water for Sancerre to stay afloat as low tide and I would, in the right conditions, anchor there overnight. Clearly there are lots more! They will show Green if displayed. They are not categorised further due to the work that would be required.
• Possible marinas - as above, show in purple
• Link to download possible anchorages and marinas. 

There are few possible anchorages on the south coast as I have been to most of the more important anchorages and none on the east coast as I have not done any research on them since 2020 and although I have some noted in excel spread sheets I would have to sift through them and manually enter them, as I don't plan to go that route again I'm not going to put the work in. 

Ireland is a different matter, a round Ireland trip has been on the bucket list for a while and I planned some routes out in detail a couple of years ago, as they are in the system I have put the end points of each planned leg into a third  down loadable file under the category "IRE" that covers Cape Clear west about to Loch Foyle, the coast from Cape Clear east about to Fair Head is covered in the other two files.

The anchorage at Canna, the Small Isles, on route from
Tobermory to S. Uist, 2022. The Isle of Rum in the distance.

2025, May 30th, Day 62. Plockton to Tobermory.

Leaving Plockton

I was ready a bit early so left at 07:30 in a flat calm hoping to get some sailing in on the way to the Kyle Rhea, I did get to sail a couple of miles out from Skye Bridge to a miles or so beyond, making 3 knots or less, before I put the engine on the make slack water, such as it is, at the Kyle Rhea.

Skye Bridge

Entering Loch Alsh.

Slightly edited Facebook posts on the above:

[..] I think the boat in front is the big American boat that was across the pontoon from me in Stornoway, she came in from Broadford Bay, now on the hammerhead in Tobermory. It was fun catching he up in the v light wind 😀

Response from someone I know who is a keen and good racer [and he knows I did an awful lot at high level racing back in the day]

Now now Mr. Lashbrook, you are not racing, are you ? 😄

[..] heaven forfend. Anyway it wasn’t a fair fight, 40+ft of lumbering steel against 3.5 tonnes of A9m in 5 knots of wind broad reaching, me with a 150% deck scraper, his headsail rather smaller (nether of us put mains up till later, if I’d put the kite or chute [up for such a short distance, I guess you would have had a point?]) Mind you I’d swap for a transatlantic if someone would do the heavy lifting for me 🙂

Pleased with the timing despite some slow sailing,
planned arrival at the Kyle Rhea was 10:20.

I was the third of at least 6 yachts heading down the Kyle Rhea
at the beginning of the tide. I had hoped to cut the corner half
way through but a fish farm boat was coming the other way
against the tide.

Overfalls getting started just 20 minutes after the tide

turned. There is a better video of the overfalls here

from when I went through an hour into the tide in 2021 

opens in a new tab / window.

 

Plockton past Skye Bridge and through the
Kyle Rhea.

As I passed the Sandaig Islands at about 11:30 I was putting on the sun screen, 25 minutes later I was putting on the fleece and warm trousers and they stayed on for the rest of the day with oilies as evening approached.

I had a good but brief sail from south of Eigg for about an hour, the wind set in again sometime later but, after waiting to see if it would hold, it then backed 40 degrees in the time it took to unfurl and sheet in the headsail so it was back to motoring.

Ardnamuchan Point, the sea bigger than it looks but no problem
about 1.5 knots of adverse tide but an hour later I had slack
water for the last leg into Tobermory. Not for the first time as I
have past in the evening there were huge flocks of Guillemots
on the water east and north of the point. 

More pics may follow

Plockton to Tobermory, 58 NM in twelve and a
quarter hours, most of it motoring.

It now looks as if I will be stuck in Tobermory for some time, my Facebook post this morning:

"The plan now is to visit Coll / Tiree, the Treshnish Islands and perhaps western Mull but I could be here for some time. The UKMO & ECMWF agree on strong winds for a while with winds gusting >30 knots until Thursday or Friday, including 50 knots Monday night and > 40 on Tuesday night.

I guess I could go to a sheltered loch to anchor but even Loch Aline could be a bit iffy with the strong wings coming everywhere from c S through W to N. So I think I’ll stay on the mooring.

It was probably a good choice to opt for the mooring rather than a pontoon, assuming a place was available, cheaper, private and with all the wind no problem with electric power. The down side will be having the dinghy in the water in those winds and probably needing the engine on it to get ashore, but if there is no extended quite period I have fresh food to last through Tuesday so could easily wait till Wednesday to blow it up.

I just hope my last surviving carrot will last another couple of days for the spag boll the mince having the longest use by date."

The UKMO 03:30 and ECMWF models for Monday evening

 

Click her for a separate post on my stay here and the weather updates.