2025 May 18th, Day 50. Cunning plans #1,746 A & B.

The weather is not cooperating, again. Strongish winds have been forecast for later today (Sunday) for some time but last night stronger winds in the late afternoon and evening on Monday came up on the UK model with a lot more on Wednesday. In both cases the headline numbers were not terrifically high and not a problem off the wind but the gust maps showed it would be very variable with gusts to 30+ knots. And coming late in the day would make getting into Stornoway town marina a challenge as its quite tight and the wind on the approach can be very gusty and variable in direction,

The UKMO gust map on Sunday morning for 17:00 on Monday
with a little more later.

The Inshore waters forecast as at Sunday 07:00 reflects this, it is always best to add one force for gusts which brings it into line with the models:

The Minch - Strong wind warning

24 hour forecast: Northeast, veering east later, 3 to 5, increasing 6 for a time. Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate. Mainly fair. Good, occasionally poor at first.

Outlook for the following 24 hours: East, backing northeast, 3 to 5. Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate at first in far north and south. Fair. Good occasionally moderate.

By Sunday morning the models had changed again for
Tuesday with lighter winds in the evening.

Wednesday still looked rather windy although again the ecmwf
was not as bad.

The obvious thing to do would be to wait until Tuesday but the models could easily change again and for the last few days and in the models for Monday and Wednesday the wind increases significantly in the late afternoon and evening - last evening it was blowing a good F5, possibly a tad more.

From here to Stromness it is a 13 - 14 hour run at 4 knots, although with the forecast wind I should do more, that would potentially have me arriving as the wind would likely be increasing if not later.

The plan is therefore to shorten the distance somewhat for the crossing of The Minch, if the forecasts does not change significantly I will move south tomorrow (Monday), either to Loch Ned which has good shelter although you do have to find a spot between moorings, or preferably, if I can beat the tide around Stoer Head, Loch Roe which would avoid the bumpy seas I have often found between Loch Ned and Stoer Head at the start of the crossing to Stornoway.

Loch Ned is 20 NM and the easiest, most sheltered run. Loch Roe 28 NM with Stoer Head to contend with if it is windy. I'll make a decision on which when I have the morning forecasts and am past Handa Island, with the option of diverting to Loch Ned at any time until just short of Stoer Head.

The run to Stornoway @ 4 knots will be reduced from the 13 hours from Loch Inchard to 9 hours from Loch Roe or 10:30 from Loch Ned which should give me plenty of time to get to Stornoway on Tuesday before weather arrives and if that looks dodgy I can stay put.

Click here for Loch Roe.

2021 Round GB Day 30. Loch Eriboll to Loch Ned

This was another leg requiring good weather and timing to avoid rough seas off of Cape Wrath, as last year I was quite lucky with reasonable weather and a sensible start time to make Cape Wrath at slack water (c 13:00) before the south going tide would help me down the west coast. Strangely enough Cape Wrath is not named for wrathful seas but is derived from old Norse for "turning point".

It was a day of three parts.

Motoring I could have reached the Cape with a later start but preferring to sail as much as possible I was off at  08:30, after the almost obligatory motoring part up the loch I caught a reasonable breeze and used it reach well out to sea to hopefully keep clear of rougher seas off the Cape and to make better speed.

I had two routes planned, one offshore for heavy weather (shown)
and one inshore for good weather, in the event I split the
difference, starting offshore due to the sea state then coming
inshore for the run down the west coast.

Leaving Loch Eriboll

The wind did not last and in the second phase of the trip the engine had to come on for a couple of hours to north of the Cape by which time it was clear that the seas were not as bad as feared and conveniently the wind  came up to around 14 knots from the north east and I was off reaching under headsail only at good speed. "Flying Fox" that had shared the anchorage at Eriboll almost caught up to me at the cape but then headed offshore towards the Outer Hebrides.

Biggish but not excessive seas coming into Cape Wrath.
(Big seas rarely look as big in pictures!)

Coming into Loch Ned there was an unwelcome announcement by Stornoway Coastguard that a GPS jamming exercise would shortly start as part of a huge NATO event and I was 5 miles inside the area that could be effected. And just as I would be looking for the entrance to the loch which is not that easy to spot. 

Meall Mor, three miles from Loch Ned, the entrance to which
is just to the right of the island.

Less than a mile to run and its still tricky to see the entrance
even with binoculars.

Fortunately I was navigating boats well before GPS was even a twinkle in the eye of the US Dept. of Defence and I still carry lots of paper charts. The chart plotter and iPads would display charts without GPS but its much easier to get your bearings with a large scale chart, in this case a 1:25,000 chart of Eddrachillis Bay. As things turned out my GPS was unaffected but GPS spoofing (introducing positional errors rather than jamming) can be subtle so caution was needed even with good visibility. 

Less than half a mile out, the entrance is just to the right of the
shroud and above the guard rail stanchion.

Entering Loch Ned

Looking out from Loch Ned pictured in 2020.

Seals basking on an islet at the top of the Loch. 

48.5 miles over the ground in 11.5 hours.

Slide show all of my pictures from Loch Eriboll to Loch Ned, page through by clicking the arrows or click in the centre of the pic to view from Flickr in a new window or full screen:

Click here for day 31, Loch Ned to Stornoway.

Stage 15, Loch Ewe to Loch Nedd.

It was a close call on the weather with rough water often occurring at Stoerhead and strong (Force 6) winds forecasted early on moderating to F4 -5. But the winds were from the east or southeast so calm seas with the offshore wind and comfortably off the wind for most of the way so off I set, again with an early, 04:40, start.

Once clear of the Loch I was soon making 5 – 5.5 knots under a double reefed headsail with no mainsail.  The wind was up and down for a while until approaching Stoerhead it was down to a modest F3 with a comfortable sea.

Things changed quite quickly as I rounded the headland with quite a big sea coming from the north, left over from very strong winds a day or two earlier to the north east. On top of that were waves coming out of the lochs from what was now an easterly force 5 making for a very nasty sea. Not being far from my planned destination I switched to the engine and had a very uncomfortable ride as I past Oldany Island.

The "Old Man of Stoer" near Stoerhead

I had planned to anchor in Loch Drombaig a small loch behind multiple islands with an entrance about a hundred yards wide, it did not take long to decide that was not a good idea with seas breaking all round so I carried on to Loch Nedd a narrow lock but with a safe entrance and with good shelter.

Looking north down Loch Nedd.

33 miles in ten and a half hours.

Slide show all of my pictures from Loch Ewe to Loch Nedd. Page through by clicking the arrows or click in the centre of the pic to view from Flickr in a new window or full screen:

Loch Nedd to Loch Eriboll