sailingarielle

We found Scotland to be a fabulous cruising ground for many reasons. There are the endless options for exploring remote islands and  lochs,  in view of the wild Highland landscapes. Stunning anchorages, friendly harbours, moorings and marinas are plentiful. The good news about the weather: it is changeable!! So dull and soggy periods don’t stay for long and by the evening the mountains appear again crystal clear. Then there is a lot of wildlife around, in and above the sea….

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When planning a longer passage across unprotected  water a careful preparation is essential. The first thing is certainly checking the weather forecast. To precook some hearty food for the time of the passage is advisable, just as preparing the appropriate warm clothes for cold nights, and everything else that needs to be at hand.  To cook and to extract things from the cupboards is highly strenuous on a swaying boat. For the next day a fair, later decreasing wind from…

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Unlike the indented west coast, the east coast  of Britain is straight and shallow. It does not offer  natural shelteres in bays or lochs and harbours are usually  built in the mouth of rivers with a tendency to silt. Some are  protected by huge breakwaters, and are accessable at all states of tide, like Newcastle or Sunderland, others are tidal harbours that can be entered only around highwater, challenging the sailor to  reach harbour at the right tide without hitting…

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Edinburgh is a magnificant city and can hold its ground in comparison with any major European capital. Spreading out over several volcanous hills, it impresses with stunning views and its homogenous archicture and towering above all is Edinburgh Castle. The streets were flooded with huge crowds of people, who had come to the city to experience the Fringe Festival, this celebration of creative energy. Artist were performing throughout the city, on the streets and in all kinds of event locations….

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The rate of tidal streams in the notorious Pentland Firth  is higher than that in any other part of the seas around Britain, especially at spring tide. We had waited for the currently exeptionally long and high spring tide to end. The pilot books and almanacs we consulted say, that passage should only be attempted in moderate winds and with a fair tide. The weather forecast predicted a fine breeze from west and we calculated 6 hours before HW Dover…

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With approaching the Hoy Sound leading ships to Stromness harbour on the Orkney mainland, we entered these extreme tidal waters for the first time. It gave us a foretaste of the Pentland Firth. Also here it is important to get the tide right, as a spring tide will run with up to 8 kts.  Sound of Hoy Entrance Old Man of Hoy Stromness typical grey stone houses down to the waterfront We liked the Orkneys a lot right from the…

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We left Stornoway at about 10:30 a.m. for Scrabster, lying on the Scottish mainland opposite of the Orkneys.  For the passage of about 120 nm, we calculated arriving the following day in the early morning. We had given up the original plan of intercepting the passage by anchoring in beautifull Loch Eribol, which lies quite conveniently half way on the north coast of Scotland. In the course of the next day as on the following days, sharp north-easterly winds were…

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We ventured further North, Stornoway being our next destination. Once again Dolphins and all kinds of sea birds kept us company for a long stretch of the way. In the distance we could make out the Shiant Islands, the so called miniature  St. Kilda, these  westernmost islands of the Hebrides having a mystic appeal to all sailing in this region. The Outer Hebrides can supply for enough islands, islets, lochs and bays for a hole summer of sailing. We wanted…

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