Sail with Jim by James G. Whitelaw

Author:James G. Whitelaw [Whitelaw, James G.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Biography, Autobiography, Memoir
Publisher: James G Whitelaw
Published: 2021-03-03T00:00:00+00:00

Corpach to Barcaldine, Loch Creran

Once again winds were light, so I motored down Loch Linnhe to the Corran narrows. This is a narrow restricted stretch of water where the tide runs fast. You cannot pass through here against the tide, in the same way you cannot pass Channonry point except with the tide.

The tide was with me, and I passed through the narrows into lower Loch Linnhe, where the wind strengthened considerably from the South. It wasn’t too bad and I could have kept going, but having been able to remain dry for the past 3 days, I really did not fancy getting wet now. I turned the boat to port and edged over towards Kentallen Bay where I intended to drop anchor for the night.

I tried twice to get a hold on the anchor, and in the end I picked up a buoy in the bay. I don’t like to pick up a buoy, unless it is marked visitor, as that is someone’s property, and maybe they would be annoyed if they looked out of their window and saw you moored to their buoy. Needs must though, and I moored up for the night and settled down for a sleep after a simple meal.

Overnight the wind picked up and turned round to the North. I was not quite so sheltered from this direction, and passed a wild night, where the mooring was never far from my mind. In the morning, the day was none better and it was very clear that I would not be going anywhere that day. It was 9:00am the next morning before I was able to cast off and proceed on my journey.

It was definitely at this point where the decision was made to sell the boat. Being caught in a situation where I was trapped in the boat for 36 hours, there was just not enough room. The biggest problem was the height and not being able to stand up and get dressed, I mostly stayed in my sleeping bag all day and the two nights, only putting on my clothes to go check the ropes.

On the Wednesday morning, it was a much better day, and I cast off at 9:00am and headed down lower Loch Linnhe again. As the wind was still from the North, I was able to hoist my sails and have a leisurely passage down the inside of Shuna Island, past Castle Stalker and into Loch Creran where I was going to keep the boat all summer.

Castle Stalker, mentioned above, is one of the best restored castles in Scotland, due to its unique romantic position on a small island, only accessible at extreme low tide, and with difficulty. The present castle was built by the Stuarts in the 1440s and was renovated between 1965 and 1975. The castle remains in private ownership, but is open to the public.

I moored the boat at 11:30am, but still managed to miss the 1:00pm bus to Fort William, and had to wait a further 4 hours for the next one.

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