The second week in April saw Contour fill up with more crew ready for the passage West through the Crinan Canal towards Oban. Despite the best efforts of Easyjet to scupper plans, Marcus travelled South to pick up Hektor (a rather longer journey than planned involving a train and not a plane) and RV in London with our friend Tim and his son Lev to travel North together. The West Coast Main Line sped us to Glasgow and then on a local train to Helensborough, from where we set off on the 12 April in a fresh breeze to reach quickly down the Firth of Clyde and work our way through the Kyles of Bute towards Crinan.
Press - Gang sweepings!
Our days in and around the Clyde had already taught us to be ready for variable, gusty, and strong winds which happily shift and squall and we were starting to be able to read some of the topograhic clues. We had set off with our No. 2 yankee, full main and staysails hoisted, however, as we turned West into the Kyles of Bute, we found ourselves South of Loch Striven tucking in a reef and shifting down to the No. 3 (smallest) yankee - it was becoming a very quick and slightly damp sail for our new joiners. Marcus found himself getting unexpectedly twitchy about pushing the boat hard with younger sailors onboard, however, said younger sailors just wanted the boat to tip over more so they could enjoy the 'climbing up the deck while trying to pull each other off' game (while very firmly clipped on to the safely lines)! As it so often does, reducing sail turned out to be the right move - we still surged along at six knots North West up the Kyles towards the Burnt Isles, but it was all much more comfortable onboard.
Not staged at all!
We threaded our way through the narrow channel South of the Burnt Isles, however the strong (and unexpected) South Easterly made anchoring impractical; the Clyde Cruising Club pilot and wonderful Antares charts came to the rescue and we tucked into Rubha Dubh, a small bay in the lee of Bute, for lunch. Restored, and with the skies cleaning, we reached South down the West Kyle of Bute, again being teased by variable and sometimes quite strong winds. We planned to anchor close to Ardrishaig and be ready for a prompt entry into the Crinain canal to start our transit the following day.
Rhu to Adrishaig
Again, Antares served us well and we anchored close into a very picturesque bay, well sheltered from the Gusty Easterlies, South of Rubha Preasach a third of the way up Loch Fyne. All the help from the Antares surveys was starting to draw the sting from our enforced departure from Largs a few days before (when the Antares survey yacht needed the visitor's berth.....). We did have the delight of 5 people's worth of wet kit to deal with which led to Marcus muttering something about installing radiators and a new heater mid-sabbatical (this idea has been vetoed!).
Crinan Canal to Oban
After a tranquil night, we were up early re-configuring Contour for the canal transit; sails to be stowed away to leave clear fairleads, additional fenders to be inflated, and long 12m lock-lines to be unearthed from the stratum deep within the rope locker. (Marcus' view is that it is impossible to own too much rope; this view has undoubtedly been used to justify some second-hand 'comfort' boat-purchases at time of low morale....).
Having been entertained by Dolphins we arrived promptly in time for the advertised 'opening time' for the Crinan Canal, to find..... rather an ominous 'out' note on the door of the office (it was almost Paddingtonesque and missing only a smear of marmalade!) No matter - the sun was shining, there was stone skimming to be done, and we expected things to be a bit 'quiet' this early in the season. Further inquiries revealed that our failure to complete the very well-disguised 'booking' part of the Scottish Canals website would delay us a bit. We locked into the Ardrishaig basin and went for a delightful walk up a very beautiful woodland glen, complete with waterfalls and even some swimming. In the evening Hektor was dispatched up the mainmast with a small hammer to photograph and tap down an errant split pin end that had caught on one of the halyards the previous day. It's fortuitous that he enjoys any excuse to be hoisted up the mast as it's considerably easier getting him up there than other members of the crew......
Child Labour
The following day our transit started, in company with a large motor cruiser. Our combined lengths overall were somewhat longer than the length of the canal locks so, until we separated out after the first couple of locks, they were rather at risk from our bowsprit. Our bowsprit was not remotely at risk from their canvas bimini, so we were not too concerned, although it did make the manoeuvre into the early locks slightly delicate.
Having separated out we quickly got into a good routine through the canal; the ascent locks are somewhat harder work and involve the shore party running ahead some distance to prepare the next lock for entry, having closed off the last one. Hektor and Lev got into the swing of things and to our pleasure and surprise proved strong enough (just!) to open the heavy lock doors while Hazel closed the gates on the previous lock.
This sped up progress significantly, although passers-by looked somewhat bemused at Tim and Marcus lounging in the cockpit whilst two slight kids strained against the lock-gate beams! After a break for Nintendo and chocolate (there were threats of mutiny and/or reports of enforced child labour), we were pleased to start the descent locks, and the vistas from the canal became ever more spectacular as we approached the final miles. Having switched roles for the descent, Hazel had the pleasure of trying to manoeuvre into a lock just as the throttle decided to give up the ghost completely making it virtually impossible to know if the boat was in neutral or in gear. It wasn't pretty, but we did manage to get the boat secured safely in the lock with no damage (other than to Hazel's nerves) so Marcus could set to work fixing the offending linkage (temporarily at least).
We spent a pleasant night in a quiet stretch of the canal which gave Hektor and Lev the opportunity to try out our new electric outboard and head off on adventures up and down the canal unimpeded by adult interference. It is far less truculent than the previous 4-stroke petrol engine and was an instant hit with the crew who could be heard shrieking delightedly and singing even if they were too far off to be seen. The next morning we completed the final (and incredibly beautiful) stretch of the canal, stopped briefly in Crinin for coffee and cake and and to get the boat ready for sea again, before being let out of the final two locks and back into open water. We then reached our way up into Loch Craignish, having identified an anchorage near a small island for the kids to explore. The wind was steady and the anchorage clear so we decided to sail into the anchorage spot; this mostly worked, although as ever the gusty conditions helped with the entertainment!
This is Lev's standard photo face and does not necessarily reflect morale at the time
With the landing party established ashore on the aptly-named 'Goat Island', sunshine and a reasonable forecast (along with, it has to be said, perhaps some overpowering optimism from Marcus and Tim) the decision was made to try for an overnight camp on the island, an adventure our younger crew were very taken by. A series of logistics runs in our 'compact' tender followed, however, as we finished the runs the forecast gentle SE piped up to 25knots, and heavy rain slightly dampened all of our enthusiasm. Retreat to a warm boat beckoned, we set out a second anchor and settled in.
It is NOT raining......
The following day the Fresh South - Easterly persisted, offering the opportunity for a fast sail up towards Oban; wind and tide were fair and we made our way cautiously towards the 'Dorus Mor' - a notorious tidal gate that, whilst not as tricky as the Gulf of Corryvreken, requires some care. We shot through like a cork from a bottle, and the calm waters offered a clear view of the extraordinary turbulence and power of the tidal streams in these confined waters.
There followed an extraordinarily fast and pleasant sail up past Scarba and Lunga, and through the tricky narrows into the Firth of Lorn. Often sailing at 6 knots we were making 8-10 over the ground at times, and arrived earlier than expected in Loch Spelve, on the Island of Mull, in good time for a quiet afternoon enjoying glorious sunshine and the sheltered tranquility of this spectacular inlet. Conditions were fair and Tim showed great skill and seamanship, sailing us into a confined anchorage and dropping anchor within a couple of meters of our planned spot. Sadly this was Tim and Lev's last full day on board, before they had to catch their train from Oban the following day. With a contrary wind we motored up the picturesque Kerrera Sound into Oban, and dispatched them South on the train after a most excellent lunch of fish and chips. We then got on with the slightly dull task of stocking up on food to prepare for our next crew - Hektor's cousins Max and Bea who we would pick up on Mull for the forthcoming week.
It's rare to get a photo of Marcus sitting still - such was the relaxing nature of Loch Spelve
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