Leg 4 – Edinburgh to Inverness

A word about sailing. It’s usually done with sails and involves wind. So far, since Eastbourne, there has either been no wind at all or it has been resolutely from the North. This is not what is supposed to happen at this time of year, when winds from the Southwest should prevail. We have motored a lot. Moral: everything we have ever thought about statistics is correct. On average

9 Jul – Port Edgar to Arbroath

We set off in a glorious dawn at 0500 and were touched that the inhabitants of Port Edgar turned out to see us off:

Are they not absolutely delightful?

On such a sunny day, the Firth of Forth looked its very best as we motored (yup; no wind again) steadily towards Arbroath.

Our 0500 start was driven by the lock opening times at Arbroath so, after washing the decks, sorting out the hopeless electrical arrangements and having a beer and a sandwich, we headed for a couple of hours shut-eye.

At 1800, the delightful Colin and Jenny Den-McKay arrived for aperitifs aboard followed by dinner at Garden House. Thank you both again for a super evening.

Daily statistics: we did 52.38 miles through the water and 52.74 miles over the ground; a tide loss of 2.09 miles. Our running time was 8 hours and 10 minutes and, no; we didn’t do any sailing! Total mileage is now 703.48, which is a very long way.

10 July – Arbroath to Peterhead

This bit of the coast was always likely to be a bit of a flog and the reality did not disappoint. We left Arbroath in bright sunshine with Colin on the harbour wall to see us off. The sunshine continued but wind and swell built from nothing to F3/4 and very bumpy indeed by Aberdeen. When we reached Peterhead, it was F5 and the sea had some quite big holes in it.

We belayed rigging the fenders until inside a very tight and shallow marina with an F4 still blowing inside. Eric did a magnificent job and we moored in the conditions that had spelt doom at Ramsgate (half a lifetime ago) without a hitch.

Once in, we had a “Godmother Linda” (ask Wendy…) and a proper Scottish fry-up with Lorne (square) sausage courtesy of Eric. And so to bed…

Daily statistics: well, of course we didn’t actually sail anywhere; the strong winds were so absolutely on the nose that it started to look like a divine conspiracy. So, we did 68.74 miles through the water and 66.17 miles over the ground; a tide loss of 2.57 miles. Our running time was 11 hours and 10 minutes. Total mileage is now 769.65.

11 July – Peterhead to Lossiemouth

The equation was somewhat complicated by the need to arrive at Lossiemouth no more than 2 hours either side of low water, it being Springs. So, we had to push tide around Rattray Head, which was otherwise much better-behaved than its reputation suggested. Not so, the Haar which clobbered Peterhead an hour after we left. We were concerned it might catch us and switched on a precautionary radar. It didn’t, and we cruised on in bright sunshine, watching the eerie grey wall on the horizon gradually recede.

Today was the day we finally stopped going north and started going west, albeit the most northerly part of the circumnavigation is yet to come. We had a great sail under Genoa as the wind treated us to a rare spell of southerly breeze and later a whiz of a broad reach under full sail.

And then, as suddenly as it had come, the wind went 180 degrees and on went the engine again.

We inched into Lossiemouth with just enough water over the entrance and moored in a comfortable depth on the visitors pontoon.

And then, off to dinner at 1629, courtesy of Eric; lobster followed by steak – superb!

Daily statistics: we did 70.00 miles through the water and 63.00 miles over the ground; a tide loss of 7.00 miles. Our running time was 10 hours and 50 minutes. Total mileage is now 832.68 – a seriously long way from Eastbourne.

We slept very well indeed, until……

12 July – Peterhead to Lossiemouth

… 0650. Eric rolled over in his sleep and kept rolling. Carl got up to the loo and reflected on the apparent strength of the previous evening’s wine. Both then realised that 20 degrees of heel on a visitors pontoon is just not right.

We had dried out and were leaning against the pontoon. Mooring ropes and fenders were doing a splendid job, but it was still just a little unsettling. So, I can confirm that there is absolutely not one metre of water at Chart Datum on the visitors pontoon in Lossimouth. Nor, as the marina office stated, is the bottom mud. It’s hard sand. Or rock. Either way, you don’t sink into it. Memories of Poole, Richard?

It was 0930 before I judged we had safely met my revised height of tide calculations and we still eased out with only 0.10 metre under the keel!

We made a special note of passing Covesea (Eric tells me that it’s pronounced Cow Sea) lighthouse, and the most northerly part of our circumnavigation.

Underway late to Inverness, the challenge now was to make the Clachnaharry sea lock before tide made entry impossible. In the event, we made it.

And so, we’re now in the Caledonian Canal at last. Everyone – lock keepers, office staff – has been super-helpful and has set the tone for an enjoyable week to come.

Daily statistics: we did 40.42 miles through the water and 39.33 miles over the ground; a tide loss of 1.09 miles. Our running time was 7 hours and 40 minutes, mainly motorsailing. Total mileage is now 872.  Gosh.

My thanks to Eric for many hours of quite hard sailing this week and all the help with hire cars, shopping and a splendid pot of Stovies for the arriving Hewitts today. Well done – and hope the leg heals up soon!