Testing the anchor in Loch Torridon

We departed the serenity of Acairsaid Mhor on Rona to be greeted by the Sound of Raasay living up to its somewhat truculent reputation; a stiff breeze - against - tide made the first minutes of our passage a little uncomfortable until Hazel had completed her speedy-sail-hoist exercises. We then settled on a fast broad reach North along the coast of Rona, to gybe around Limpet rock and head ESE towards Loch Torridon.  Torridon is famous as a remote and beautiful mountaineering destination and we had it in mind to find a secure anchorage and climb some hills.  Our sail to the mouth of Torridon was a straightforward, speedy reach with a reefed main and our No2 Yankee pushing us along happily at 7 knots.  Once past Sgeir a Gheir, the headland marking the Southern entrance to Loch Torridon, things got a bit less simple.  The wind backed by nearly 100 degrees as a we made our way down the loch and, from a broad reach at one end, we found ourselves beating into the wind by the time we were half way down and in the inner loch ('Shieldaig').  After a brief visit to the town of Shieldaig to visit the shop, we weighed anchor and, as the wind has died completely, started what we thought would be a gentle motor into Upper Loch Torridon. 

From our first exposure to loch sailing in the Firth of Clyde, we have learned that it is a 'different' experience, in particular the wind can be expected to be consistently inconsistent!  The further North we have progressed, as the scale of the surrounding topography has increased, this has become all the more evident.  It is hard to mitigate this; vigilant helming and a conservative approach to reefing and selecting headsails helps, however at times the changes can be so stark that the only response is to react quickly when it happens!  Some lochs seem especially prone; the mountains around Upper Loch Torridon certainly accentuate any gusty weather, and it is one of the few places (another being South Georgia) where I've encounters wind increasing from  nothing to 40+kts in a matter of seconds.  When it comes to beating upwind in these lochs, there does seem to be a slight on-the-wind effect at the edges of the loch, allowing us to sail closer to the wind. I guess the friction of the land slows the wind and shifts the direction slightly -  so if the wind is strong you might make a bit of extra progress by going close to the edge and pinching upwind. The downsides are obvious - trying to avoid hitting bits of submerged Scotland alongside the less dramatic risk that you might lose the wind completely.

Upper Loch Torridon certainly had some surprises in store for us; in the 3.5nm sail from Eilean a Chaoil at the entrance, to our anchorage in Hotel Bay at the Eastern end, the wind increased from virtually nothing to 12 knots - "shall we put the sails up and save diesel?" (that would be ALL the sails - no reefs), to 29kts - "we're nearly at the anchorage, lets hand the sails now and motor the rest" to 36kt gusts - nicely timed for Hazel having the somewhat truculent No2 Yankee half-stowed (best not to quote the conversation at this point).  Slightly unpleasant, and gusts that were a taste of what was to come for the remainder of our stay in this spectacular loch.  We anchored as the wind touched 40 knots; relieved that the holding was excellent and we settled quickly; little need for blasts of 'astern revs' to dig the anchor in!

Contour at anchor in Hotel Bay, Upper Loch Torridon

With many days and nights at anchor in unfamiliar surroundings, we have really put our anchor gear to the test over the last few months. We have dragged once; off Copeland Island at the entrance to Belfast Lough whilst waiting for a fair tide. In this instance dinner was ready, we knew we weren't going to be there for long and it's likely we weren't as rigorous in our approach to dropping the hook as normal. However, given some of the weather we've encountered, it's something of a surprise that dragging hasn't been more of a concern. It's probably fair to acknowledge at this point that our 27kg Delta Claw anchor has worked really well in a range of different conditions (touching wood at this point). There are undoubtedly more modern anchors out there (plenty of scope for heated anchor-related discussions on yachting forums!), but our bowsprit arrangement limits what we can use, and in fact it has been great.  We carry 45m of 10mm chain on the bower, with a further 40m of 12mm hawser rode.  We almost always put all the chain out - and carefully plan anchorages accordingly - although rarely use the rode. We then rig a large anchor strop - made from 15mm hawser-laid polyester spliced to a large chain-hook. This does two things; it stops the chain beating up the bobstay too much and also mitigates shock loading if the sea is bouncing us around, or if it is gusty - a particular problem when anchoring in lochs. On a gusty day you can watch it stretch alarmingly, and then be reassured that it is saving the bow roller and rest of the gear from all that bashing. The polyester has also proven usefully resilient to chafe from the bobstay with which it (inevitably) interacts often. 

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When the forecast has been especially bad (> 40 kts), we have wanted to leave the boat alone somewhere for a while, or if we want to 'kedge' in a tight anchorage, we rig our second anchor.  This is a quite remarkable bit of kit, a Fortress FX23 which is made from a light magnesium alloy, sort of like the offspring of a Danforth crossed with a jet plane. It is paired with 30m of chain and a long hawser.  With the benefit that it can literally be lobbed into position from the deck, this has proven to be a great investment and we have ridden out some truly howling Scottish weather with both anchors laid well off the bow, about 40 degrees apart (it even comes apart for easy stowage).  Faffs can occur when the wind drops and allows the boat to swing around creating a wonderful tangle - this is not a setup we would leave rigged for days on end without a kedge.  For anyone with a true love of anchor chat, we also carry a further 40kg Danforth which came with the boat - made of heavy galvanised steel it lurks in the steering compartment lashed to a bulkhead, threatening to break fingers and lacerate shins when released!  Used only once as a kedge, it is very effective but damn heavy. When deployed from our tiny dinghy there is the very real risk that both anchor and crew will enter he water together!

Ok, probably time to move on from anchors. Once established in Torridon we ventured ashore to explore; Hazel to go for a longer and faster run, Marcus for a more sedate exploration to find a cafe. Torridon has an active combined community centre, gallery, and really good cafe and, slightly to his surprise, a conversation with a group of elderly locals developed in to them bursting into a rather prolonged song, a pleasant if unexpected addition to a cheese toasty.

Summit of Ben Damh (South side, Loch Torridon)

Our first bit of walking was to summit Ben Damh on the South side of Torridon; we set out in clear weather and made our way up through coniferous woodland,  past picturesque burns and dramatic waterfalls.  Climbing above the treeline the going got a little tougher and then in places the path crossed large shale and boulder fields which run along the ridge up to Ben Damh. Spectacular views as far as Plockton and beyond rewarded our efforts and, true to the wild reputation of the place, other people and signs of civilisation were scant.  

Boulder fields along the ridge to Ben Damh.

Waterfall at Glac na Gainmhich 

Spectacular sunset at the anchorage

Our next expedition was the 'classic' Torridon walk along Liathach; we shied away slightly from a somewhat tedious tarmac 'walk in' from our anchorage and instead managed to find a helpful local taxi driver (the only one and very hard to track down) who got us to the start of the path. After this we had a relatively brutal continuous ascent from sea level to the first peak at 915m made easier by the excellent clear track.  From here we made our way West South West to Spidean a Choire Leith - the first Munro at 1055m and high point of the day. With the weather holding and the wind manageable, we continued along the rather more adventurous pinnacles section of the route and on to Mullach Rathain, the second Munro.  

The start of the pinnacles section on Liathach - a reasonable head for heights required

Keeping to the ridge line on the final pinnacle

Enjoying the views over Coire Mhic Nobaill and Coire Dubh

Looking back along the pinnacles

Our descent down 'Toll Ban' was a further demonstration of the high speeds Hazel can achieve over rough ground, and we fairly flew down a rough, loose shale slope - the anticipated cafe opening hours and the dire requirement for cake setting a clear target to beat (target thankfully achieved!).

Upper Loch Torridon in the sun

Safely back on board, we made further plans for a lower walk on our third day in Torridon, however, the weather was not remotely cooperative and our inclination for covering the kilometers in the lashing rain was limited. We progressed some routine boat stuff (including checking over and lubricating the steering gear that Marcus rebuilt in the Autumn last year), did some planning for winter projects, and raised our second anchor ready to make a prompt getaway.  Torridon, however, was not finished with us. Our last evening at anchor was characterised by a slightly unexpected series of screaming squalls which again tested our (now single) anchor, and rather prevented a comfortable night's sleep - 6 to 40kts over seconds leads to a certain amount of noise, alarms and boat movement even when the anchor is holding well! Having said that, and notwithstanding the challenges of Torridon, I think we will be back - it is worth it!

Steering gear works - not the easiest access!

From Torridon, plans take us across the Minch to explore more of the Outer Hebrides - hopefully the Minch will be kinder than last time and we will take less of a beating!

Follow our progress here.