Leg 5 Largs to Oban

Leg 5 Largs to Oban


Crew 


Christopher Nash
Brian Turgoose
Paul Dawe
Ruslan Scutenic (Scooter)

Day 1
Ice Creams at Nardini, Barbecue on the beach at Largs.

Day 2 
Sailing Largs to East Tarbert on Loch Fyne, via Rothesay (crunch 1) and the Kyles of Bute. Crunch came as we hit a hard bit of the pontoon in a fierce onshore gust. Zavaronis ice cream was not a patch on Nardinis.

Scooter negotiating the Kyles of Bute

Day 3
When just about to cast off found the steering was jammed at the wheel hub. Hilarious chasing an RAC van around town before finding Hamish who fixed the jammed steering after a couple of hours preparatory investigations.
East Tarbert to the Crinan Canal. Meeting Morag in the rain, the good and hearty face of the Crinan, staying at Lochgilphead, and witnessing binge drinking in the Argyll Arms.

Arc Angel in the countryside

Day 4 
Through the Crinan Canal, Paul and Scooter operating all 14 locks to Crinan. Meeting Catriona, lock operator and heartbreaker of the western Isles. Staying a second night in the tranquility of the canal.

Clyde 'puffer'

Day 5 
Crinan to Port Ellen, Islay via the Sound of Jura. Meeting Eilean, who directed us to the pub her parents would choose.

Day 6
Port Ellen via Lagavullin (Double crunch) and the Sound of Islayto Scalasaig, Colonsay (Triple crunch). Oh dear. A really tough day for crew and boat. Tying to visit Lagavulin distillery we went hard aground in the cove on rocks in a falling tide. Trying all the techniques described in the recent Yachting Monthly article on going aground, with  Paul and Scooter getting soaked in the rain and dinghy, but without success, we were finally saved by an adjacent anchored yacht pulling our spinnaker halyard from the mast top to heel us over and we were free - our saviour claimed his salvage ( a bottle of wine) but we missed the distillery tour.  The exhilarating and fast sail up the sound of Islay that followed made up for it. At Scalasaig, Colonsay we anchored next to the ferry pier - after three attempts, and anchoring by muscle power- the windlass had failed again. We had the main 20kg bruce anchor down and Paul out in the dinghy laid the kedge. On these two hooks we spent quite an exhausted, worried and windy night in the rainy bay. 

Day 7
Scalasaig to Craobh Yacht Haven avoiding the Gulf of Corryvreckin. Pulling up the anchor by hand took three people. Sailing to Craobh was a joy and was fast, with the tide all the way. We reached 12.4 knots at one point. Craobh yacht haven gets my vote for best marina ever.

11 pm at Craobh

Day 8

Craobh to Dunstaffnage Yacht Haven via Kerrera Sound and Oban. All morning was spent with Gregory bashing and swearing about the windlass. 'It's dead' he declares. Sailing blissfully along before the wind and in the sunshine all the way through Kerrera Sound to Oban Bay, and on to Dunstaffnage, for an appointment with Jim who said he'd fix it. 
Evening taxi into Oban to a really great fish restaurant by the ferry terminal. A blissful end to the week.