Day 62

LRest Day in Canna

Rain cleared about 11 so we packed sandwiches and rowed back over to the slipway.  Paul went off to run round the island.  We set off for St Edward church. Sheep shearing at the farm so followed the shore road and crossed the bridge to the small island of Sanday.

Could see out to the rocks and Hyskeir lighthouse.

Explored the beach to see the medieval castle on top of the rock.

Had booked an inside early table at the Canna Cafe.  Enjoyed excellent crab tart and fish and chips.  Just managed to row back before the rain started again.

5** for the cafe and the mooring. Could stay longer.

St Edwards Church with Rhum behind

Wind Singer in Canna Harbour

The bridge to Sanday and shore path

Medieval cast

Day 61

Loch Boisdale Marina to Canna

30 miles. 5 hrs 40 mins.

S 2 to 4 mostly F3.  Good sailing.  Crossed from S Uist to the small Isles.  Rhum and Canna in the distance.  Flat seas.  Had the cruising Shute out.  At its upper limit sailing 60 degrees off the wind.  Up to 7 knots at times.

Had a fishing boat trawling that we had to negotiate.  Ferry left Loch Boisdale just after us on a collision course.  Fortunately he changed course by 4 degrees and passed us at 15 knots with half a mile to spare.

Difficult to pick out Canna with the high peaks of Rhum behind it. Passed a medieval castle that looked like a lava plug on the way in.

Avoided a boat on the rocks on the way in

From the Small Isles CCC Sailing Directions and anchorages it says ....

Keep to the Southern half of the entrance to avoid the rock South West of the slipway. This can be avoided by keeping a conspicuous cottage on the hillside, open south west of the SW end of a pair of cottages on the shore....

We were 2 hrs off low tide and he did eventually refloat.

Went ashore in the dingy and found the Canna Cafe and community store. Had beers and Canna beef pie. A sheltered and interesting place with lots of greylag geese and rare black guillemots and divers.

Lava plug

The Canna Cafe

Black Guillimot

Day 60

44 miles. 8 hours sailing hard into the Southerly F4.  Early start after a fabulous overnight on a buoy in Ardmaddy bay in Lochmaddy, North Uist.  Grey clouds over rugged mountain tops as we sped by.  Less bird life than yesterday. 

Followed out by the ferry to Uig on Skye.

Many fisheries and fishing boats.  Long thin inlets and rugged unpopulated mountains.

Wind kicked up and the rain started at the entrance to Lochboisdale. Found the marina tucked away and glided onto a pontoon.  Planning to visit the Lochboisdale hotel later. 

Unfortunately the track ends half way through the voyage but starting point and destination are listed.

Day 59

Scalpay to Lochmaddy, N Uist

Via the Little Minch. 34 miles.

Set off at 9:10 after hot showers in the local community centre.  Paul had already run to the Lighthouse and back.  Chris & Nick explored the other harbours avoiding the sheep in the road.  Chris took the helm from the mooring and back out under the Scalpay bridge (a first).

S/SE 3 to 4 all day. Beating down N Harris to N Uist via the Little Minch.

At midday decided the Wizards Pool anchorage,  16 miles N of Loch Boisedale was going to be too long a journey.  Decided to try Armaddy Bay in Lochmaddy.

Went in past rocks with green/red marks showing the channel.  First bay was too small.  The second had two buoys in theSE corner as promised.  Sailed in to check it out.  Plastic rope and a plastic container as the pickup.  Used the chin and octoplate bridle for security.

Beautiful. Sheltered. Sunny.  Watched 3 deer feeding on the hillside.

Ardmaddy Bay

The Pontoon at Scalpay

Time out in Ardmaddy Bay

Day 58

The blog continues.  Paul returned to Stornoway and joined Nick and Chris on Wind Singer yesterday.  Boat and crew were ready at 7am to collect diesel.  We had to wait until the ferry had left and a load of ice had been delivered.  Tide was up so we tied up to the pier easily.  Not a good forecast SE 5-6, occasionally 7, gusting 24. Rain.

Left the fuel berth at 7:50.  Left the shelter of the harbour for the Minch with 2 reefs.  Slowly took them out as the wind eased.

The wind increased as we went through the Sound of Shiant giving us a burst of speed as it gusted 28/29 knots. Dolphins, gannets, puffins and guillemots.

The anchorage in Loch Claidh we planned to use had another boat in the best spot.  We anchored in 10m but it didn’t hold well soft mud and sand.  Decided on plan B to go 8 miles further South to North Harbour Scalpay.  Crew boosted by soup and sandwich on the move.  Went under jib and motor, seas were choppy.

Arrived Scalpay at 16:00 hrs after going under the bridge which had less clearance than the Skye bridge.  38 miles.

Track Day 58

Scalpay

Day 40

Wind Singer is now safely moored up in the marina in the centre of Stornoway. Lews castle and grounds on one side and the high street on the other. Skipper and wife are staying here for the next two weeks. The Irishman has returned to his native land temporarily. The voyage and blogs will resume at the end of June. The English man, his wife and the Irish man will make their way back to Oban via the coast of the outer Hebrides. At Oban the Scotsman will rejoin for the voyage down the East Coast of Ireland.

Please rejoin the blog at the end of June. 

Day 39

Left the mooring at Badachro in Loch Gairloch at 07:40.  Cloudier than other mornings but dry. Took us an hour to motor out of Loch Gairloch with the wind behind us.  Sailed most of the rest of the way on a run with wind S/SE 3-4. Weather looked grey behind us, although the sun broke through occasionally. 

Listened to the Stornoway coastguard weather forecast---- gale force winds expected soon in the Minch.

The 7 hours of passage had guillemots, a couple of puffins, seals, dolphins and another Skua.  A Naval warship appeared to have sent a rib out to a large fishing vessel so we watched all that through the binoculars.  The Emerland Princess cruise ship lumbered by on its way to Kirkwall on Orkney.  The Ullapool to Stornoway ferry came in and went out before we got there. 

Wind kicked up a bit as we negotiated the bay and into the marina. Harbour staff directed us to a berth behind the lifeboat.  Arrived at 15:15 after travelling 41 miles across the Minch.  As sheltered as possible. 5 other sailing boats came in just after us.  A visit to the pub to celebrate successful delivery of the English woman from Oban to Stornoway. 

A very windy night. Glad to be in port.