| 2007 | 2008 |
Our destination was Lybster, the weather was fine and the wind Southerly force
4 allowing a good run passing just west of the Beatrice field and reaching the
Caithness coast at 7 pm. The sun had been out all day and was now slowly setting
behind the coast. I had entered a waypoint from the Clyde Cruising Club Sailing
directions to find it was wrong and brought us up to the light at Clythness. We
found the waypoint in Martin Lawrence book to be correct. I have been to Lybster
before by land and passed it and identified it form sea but it shows that pilotage
on this coast can be awkward even if you think you know where you are going! We
tied up outside a fishing boat and ate aboard, leaving the long walk up to the
village for the morning. By then the wind was south westerly and blowing force
5 , forecast 5-7.Our destination was Helmsdale and the tide meant leaving after
lunch. We had a good look round the village, had a coffee at the Portland Arms,
saw the golf course, chatted to the interesting lady in the old fashioned shop
on Main Street. Reports that there has been no new blood in the village since
the age of the Vikings are greatly exaggerated. Finally we had lunch at the visitor
centre where a ridiculously wee sign said berthing fees were £ 15 per night
(no such signs anywhere in the harbour) but included use of showers and toilets.
As it turned out there's some sort of ongoing local dispute amongst the harbour
trustees and we didn't have to pay as it turned out.
eventually
was blowing parallel to the shore at a steady 32-34 knots with occasional gusts
to 35,remaining so for about 2 hours .We had a full reef in the main and small
genoa but found windward progress slow. We were shipping large amounts of water
in the cockpit and were pleased to eventually make the protected harbour entrance
in the lee of the Sutherland hills. Alex the harbour master was his usual very
pleasant and accommodating self and we were especially grateful of the drying
facilities in the toilet and shower block.
be somewhere beginning with F (Findhorn, Finechty or F%$£&%^ !)Cruise to "The House of Trousers"
John Barclay Fred Murray and myself drove
to Loch Aline (Sound of Mull) on Friday afternoon where we keep "Harmony"
on
her summer mooring. Arrived at 8 pm to a beautiful warm quiet evening. So beers
and drams in the cockpit in shorts and tee shirts.
Not for long though as a heavy rain shower swept down the Loch. So up with the
cockpit awning to continue our social entertainment. Bed at 11.30pm and up at
7 am for a sail to Dunstaffnage.
A very misty morning greeted us as we sailed down the Sound of Mull.
The mist lifted as we cleared Lismore light on the end of Lismore Island. A
lovely broad reach in a warm force 2 to 3 southerly took us to Dunstaffnage
bay north of Oban. We picked up a vacant mooring and made the traditional brunch
of bacon, sausage and beans. We watched the comings and goings for an hour or
so then sailed to Oban.
We motored gently around Oban bay checking the sights when we heard a shout
from the promenade. It was Ian Morrison with Craig Hardy on a boat-buying mission.
It appeared that Craig was in the process of buying a Contessa 32 from Ardorran
Marine in 
Loch Feochan.
We then sailed lazily down through the Sound of Kerrara, through all the moorings
and tacked south down to Seil Island where we anchored in a sheltered inlet
called Puldobrain ("pool of the otter"). There were 6 boats anchored
there when we arrived on a beautiful hot late afternoon.
The pub over the hill at the back of the anchorage was calling so we pumped
up the dinghy, rowed ashore and strolled up the well-worn track.
We ordered pints of cask ale at the "Tigh na Truish" ("The
House of Trousers" where islanders changed from kilts to trousers, before
crossing to the mainland, during the time when the Kilt was banned) and
sat out on the grass overlooking Clachan Sound and the well known "Bridge
over the Atlantic" in the brilliant sunshine. Surprise - surprise, who
do we spy standing of the bridge? but the two worthies from Oban Bay.
After downing a few we wended our way back over the hill accompanied by Ian
and Craig who wished to see the anchorage. Once aboard Harmony again we put
our chilli con carne supper on to heat whilst we sat in the
cockpit watching the sun go down over the island of Mull. By this time there
were 21 boats in the anchorage and a couple outside. Red wine and chilli consumed
and it was almost dark and time for bed.
We awoke at 7.30am to a very still and misty morning. Quick breakfast of tea
and toast saw us on our way by 8am. Motoring at a gentle 5 knots over a glassy
sea we saw the sea mist descend on us with
visibility down to about 150 metres just as we were about to pass between Bach
Island (at the south 
end of Lismore) and Lismore.
The passage here is only about 200 metres across so we were glad of our trusty
laptop and digital charts as we passed through safely.
Shortly after the mist lifted and we motored gently across to Duart Castle at
the entrance the Sound of Mull. Here we cutback the engine and had our traditional
brunch as we drifted past the castle. The Oban to Mull ferry chose this moment
to come charging out of the mist between Lismore Light and Lady Rock to disturb
us as we held onto our plates until her considerable wake had faded.
From here we sailed gently back up the Sound to our Loch Aline mooring for 1200
hrs.
Another good weekend especially as most of it was spent in shorts and tee shirts.
Phil Brown
Portsoy
Traditional Boat Festival
The forecast for the
weekend wasn't bad as I monitored it for the week before the boat
festival. There would be a west wind Saturday which would veer
to an east wind Sunday, so it should be a soldiers wind both ways.
On Friday morning this was still the case, although wind speeds
were on the high side of the comfort zone, with F5-6 gusting F7
now forecast. Oh well better have a look before we decide what
to do. After collecting my crew, John, we headed for Findochty.
As we approached Portgordon we could see white horses from a couple
of miles inland, never a good sign. As we waited for the tide
to rise we watched the sea. There were plenty of white horses
but the sea state didn't look too bad, so at 11.
00
we left. We set a half rolled genoa, leaving the main down and
were moving at the hull speed of 6 knots. The waves were steep
and averaging 8-10feet but were regular and all from the same
direction, so the sleigh ride was begun. It was exhilarating and
felt safe as we surfed down the occasional bigger wave. The log
was reading above the theoretical hull speed hovering around 8
knots, the highest I saw on the plotter was 9.2 knots!! We may
have gone even faster, but while surfing down the bigger waves
I was occupied with avoiding broaching.
Off Sandend we furled the genoa and started the engine. We were
now running directly downwind and the sail was collapsing in the
wave troughs and filling with a bang as we climbed the wave face,
so it had to be stowed.
I had been thinking I may have to go on to Banff if the harbour
approach to Portsoy was too rough, so I was scanning the sea ahead
for clu
es as we neared Portsoy. The seas
never worsened as we approached and the only difference was large
reflected waves off the wall. As these were only creating up and
down movement of the water we entered Portsoy new harbour without
difficulty. Inside however was a different story. The strong winds
meant that without the help of club members already in port we
would have found it very difficult to come alongside. The trip
had only taken ninety minutes, but what a ninety minutes it was.
To some of the salty sea dogs in the club it may have been nothing,
but it was the next level on my personal learning curve.I thoroughly
enjoyed it although I wouldn't want every trip to be like that.
We had just secured the boat when the festival harbourmaster came
along and said that the boat inside of me had to move, as it did
not match his berthing plan. He could 
not
be made to see the dangers of moving boats in that wind so with
the aid of a rib the boat was moved, with some difficulty. Boats
arriving over the next couple of hours all berthed with difficulty,
one boat almost being blown onto the rocks at eastern end as the
"rescue boat" sat un-attended. Disaster was averted
by the great efforts of the other boat crews. The skipper must
have had a premonition as he had a doctor and the local lifeboat
coxswain as his crew, all bases covered there then.
On arrival I found I was absolutely famished so we had a huge
picnic lunch to replace calories burned.
As we finished lunch The Reaper arrived. I had seen it at Portsoy
before but never thought about how it was berthed. The answer
to that question is "expertly", involving warps and
lots of engine power to turn it's 70 feet 270 degrees to port,
in an area of water only a little wider and longer.
Boats continued to arrive throughout the afternoon, we spent the
time checking in and wandering around the harbour area until it
was time for an excellent chicken Tikka Marsala to be produced
from the galley.
We attended the concert, in the
evening, at the Wally Green. As usual the performers were excellent.
We were glad to see the return of the Norwegian Shantie singers,
Slogmaakane (the fat sea gulls), whose charisma changes mundane
songs into works of art. The evening was ended by the Irish band
, The Raparees.
The next morning revealed bright sunshine and a light north wind.
The Skippers briefing at 10.00 was followed by the opening of
the Salmon Bothy by Alex Salmond, who made a very entertaining
job of it. As the V.I.P's toured the restored building Slogmaakane
burst into spontaneous song, as they did throughout the weekend.
They make Ken Dodd look like a reticent performer and we were
very happy to listen to them.
A slow wander around the harbour area was followed by an excellent
kipper lunch.
By now the crowds were building. The wind was veering to the east
and thinks were looking good. This soon changed as the new forecast
for the next day was "severe gales and heavy rain",
so an instant decision was made to return to Findochty 
straight away.
The wind was now a F3-4 easterly and I enjoyed an excellent down
wind sail back to Findochty.
On arrival in Findochty the wind was starting to rise and the
right decision had been made as the next day was exactly as forecast.
Here's hoping for more settled weather next year.
Bob Chapman
Destino
FUSION II PORTSOY 2008-06-25
Fusion II and Sparkle
left Findochty at 2pm on Friday afternoon of 20th June, bound
for Portsoy Traditional Boat Festival. The wind was blowing at
15 to 20 knots from the northwest and the sail down was pretty
quick. Both yachts chose to sail down with just the jib out and
no mainsail. Entering the harbour was pretty scary as the berthing
plan had changed yet again and the wind was gusting and blowing
the boats anywhere other than their intended mooring. Everyone
got moored up safely and a really good night of socialising with
singing and dancing ensued. 
Saturday
turned out to be a glorious, sunny morning and the crews checked
out the side stalls and attractions on the harbour front. The
racing was split into two separate events this year with the small
traditional drascombe/dinghy boats sailing in the first race and
the larger, cruiser yachts taking part in the second race.
The racing was well attended and the cruiser race turned out to
be a pretty long distance passage race (triangular course) from
Portsoy harbour to the quarry east of Portsoy, then a mile north
to seaward, round mark 2, then back to Portsoy and through the
start gate. Fusion II and Sarah Bheag got off to a flying start
but unfortunately it wasn't the start, it was the five minute
warning gun…………Both yachts retuned and restarted
the race. Fusion II soon too
k
the lead and held it all the way, passing the second mark as the
other yachts rounded the first mark. We launched the spinnaker
for leg 3 but just like Kentra at Varis, she wrapped herself around
the forestay and we ended up dumping it down the fore hatch. We
went to open the jib again and found the roller reefing to be
stuck………we could not fathom this one so we just
sailed the entire last leg 3, with only a mainsail.
Fusion II finished first, on corrected time, Bramble finished second and Solan third in the event. Findochty Water Sports Club 1,2 and 3. The skippers prize giving on Saturday evening was well attended and we were given lovely helpings of Cullen Skink and trifle, courtesy of Downies Fish Co. of Whitehills. The fish soup was fantastic, almost as good as my own!!!!!!Ha ha.
When we awoke on Sunday
morning the weather was terrible, it was bucketing rain and blowing
a hooley. Nothing deters the Finechty yachters though; we trickled
out of the harbour, one by one. Solan, Sparkle and Bramble departed
at about 12 noon. 
Fusion II left at about 12.30.
And the rain by this time was torrential. The sea state was rather
scary too and we were blown home with only the jib sail up (Mairi
let the whole thing out by accident - oops) We did intend to reef
it. Anyway we did some serious surfing down big waves at a steady
speed of 7.5 knots, over the ground in 20 to 25 knots of wind,
all the way back to Findochty harbour. When we approached Sterlochy
we rolled away the jib and suddenly wind battered us, rain and
waves from every direction, I thought we were going to be shipwrecked.
All of the fleet made it home intact. We lived to tell the tales
and we will no doubt be there next year.
Mairi Innes (Fusion II)
Varis Regatta - the lifeboat tale
I was approached by
the committee to act as photographer for the Findochty/Buckie
Varis Regatta, to be held on Saturday 
7th
June 2008. This was to be the first of a series of three regattas,
with those following being hosted by Lossiemouth and Banff/Whitehills.
Boats started arriving at Buckie throughout the Friday evening
and by 9pm the number 2 basin was looking very "Yottie".
Buckie was being used as the muster point as Findochty would struggle
to find wall space for those fin keelboats that could take the
ground. Those that cannot would not be able to berth in Findochty,
so we all assembled in Buckie.
While the boats arrived the Lifeboat laid the race marks for the
next morning, off Findochty and Portknockie. Sandy Baird doesn't
mind rafting up on a muster but he got more than he bargained
for when the lifeboat returned, when the Severn Class lifeboat
William Blannin came alongside to drop off members of the race
committee. An impressive manoeuvre expertly carried out by the
Coxswain and crew.
We were invited to the Lifeboat station for a barbeque, which
was expertly done, the collection buckets being well filled with
the folding stuff.
While this was going on, much hard work was going on establishing
handicaps for the racing. Handicaps established the race 
briefing was given before socialising
was resumed.
Saturday arrived overcast with little wind, I was unable to follow
the action in my own boat as it was stuck in Findochty, high and
dry, so I was invited to join the lifeboat for the morning. We
duly left harbour and whizzed out to the start line to fire a
maroon to start the first race, a passage race to Findochty. Once
the boats were on the way we headed for Portgordon, to lift a
race marker, which was not now being used due to the lack of wind.
We then moved markers off Findochty and Portknockie. On returning
to the committee boat, now off Findochty, we discovered it disabled
by a fouled propeller and drifting towards the rocks. An offer
of help was accepted and the lifeboat soon had the committee boat
in tow. The youngest crew member asked his mentor if this was
"a shout". He had been with the lifeboat only three
months and hadn't had a shout yet. He was told no, as we had come
across the casualty and were not called out. His disappointment
vanished a couple of minutes later when 
everyone's
pager went off. It was now his first shout!!
We recovered the casualty to Buckie, where the lifeboat arranged
for a diver to sort out the propeller. I had to leave at this
point to head for Findochty to photograph the finish of the passage
race. It was another hour before I could get my boat out and photograph
the rest of the racing. The wind increased as the day went on
ending up quite lively. The third race was changed to an Olympic
course, before the boats returned to Buckie, where a bus was waiting
to take the competitors back to the prize giving and an excellent
Buffet in the Admirals.
KENTRA VARIS SPEY BAY REGATTA
Team Kentra - Skipper - Angus Gallacher
Crew - Alex Mitchell
Crew - Mairi Innes
Crew - Councillor Gordon Macdonald (SNP)
Kentra left Buckie harbour with
her crew honed to perfection for the impending Regatta. The weather
was warm and sunny but unfortunately there was hardly a puff of
wind and the arrival of the Buckie Lifeboat at the race start
line caused a bit of a surge, which resulted in Kentra struggling
to get over the start line. The bulk of the competitors crossed
the line and headed north in search of wind to assist them to
Findochty but our skipper and team decided to try something different
in order to salvage something from a bad start so we set off for
Strathlene, via the inshore route, with the assistance of the
tide. We made good ground on the others and we cut between the
East Muck and Portessie (secretly hoping the rest of the fleet
would follow us and get wrecked on the rocks) However, only a
couple of boats cottoned on to what we were up to and tagged along
with us. The passage seemed to take forever but we eventually
crossed the finish line hard on the heels of Joker, a larger,
higher handicap, yacht than Kentra and Kentra won the race in
class 2.
Race 2 was an Olympic race around the triangle/sausage, marks
and Kentra did 
quite well once again, the sailing
was more testing this time and the wind had freshened significantly
to 17 knots for the race start and sea state became a bit lumpy.
On leg 3 we went to hoist the cruising chute and basically made
a mess of things so we hauled it down again but we had lost ground
and valuable time against a lot of very serious competitive racers
so, no medals this time. At one point Kentra was approaching a
mark on a starboard tack and an unnamed yacht almost rammed us
- closest I have ever been to another sailing vessel at speed!!!!!
Race 3 - cant really remember it all, but it was a fabulous start
with all 16 yachts from all 3 classes crossing the start line
at the same time and heading in a North Easterly direction before
tacking for the first mark. The view must have been pretty spectacular
from the shore. In the beginning…………. Kentra
was very close to the start line and after the race the committee
boat said that we were over the line at the start gun (so were
4 other yachts allegedly) but I reckon they need to buy a decent
watch because in my opinion, Kentra was not over the line - like
I said we were a racing team, honed to perfection!!!! A racing
team…… Kentra is a beautiful yacht to sail on and she
certainly held her own against the more serious, racing, fin keelers
from Lossie and Banff. At the prize giving, Angus was presented
with the third overall cup for yachts in class 2, which was an
excellent result for Findochty Water Sports Club. I really enjoyed
my weekend and I was very proud to be a small part of Kentra's
crew.
I must take this opportunity to congratulate Sandy of Bramble
who came second in his class, Bill and Fiona of Vivari, first
in their class and Fred, of Solan, third in his class - very well
done Findochty Water Sports Club Skippers and Crews overall.
Mairi Innes (usually Fusion
II but will crew for Kenta anytime)
Findochty Water Sports
Club - On Tour - Turkey 2008
Eight
Club members headed for Bodrum Airport in Turkey on Sunday, 18th
May 2008. Mairi & Neil Innes of Fusion II, Peter & Vi
Rankine of Lady Vi, Walter & Maggie Watson of Ambition and
Jim & Brenda Sutherland of Janet. Mairi & Neil chartered
a Dufour 325 Grande Large, named Fantastique (same yacht as last
year) and the others chartered a Beneteau Oceanis 411 named Dougie
T.
We were picked up at the airport by an air conditioned minibus and whisked us off to Port Bodrum Yalikavak Marina which lies to the North West of Bodrum airport on the Ionian coast at location 37degrees 06'. 42N 27degrees 16'. 92E where we met Merina, of Aura Yachting and were shown around our yachts. We unpacked and chilled out for a while then after showering, headed for the Windmill restaurant at Yalikavak fishing harbour where we had an excellent dinner and discussed our plans for the week ahead.
Monday. An early start
and both yachts set off, destination Bodrum, to the southeast
in the Carian Sea. We anchored on an 
isthmus
at Catalada Island. Easy to see why there are so many wrecks there
because ships would think from the distance that you could pass
through between the islands. We had some lunch that consisted
of bread, goats cheese, salad veg, olives, as is the norm when
I do the shopping. After lunch we went swimming before weighing
anchor and we sailed down to Bodrum Milta Marina where we berthed
for the night.
It is practice to call up the marinas on channel 72 and the yachts
are met by a rigid inflatable who will escort you to a berth and
assist you moor on an anchor buoy to the bow and with two stern
lines to the pontoon (then you drop your gangway/plank). We later
discovered that not only adults used this gangway to gain access
to the yachts, however this part of the tale will remain a closely
guarded secret.
Tuesday. Set sail from
Bodrum Marina headed for Pubus, a beautiful bay sheltered from
the Meltimi winds, approximately 8 
miles
south east of Bodrum where once again we anchored for lunch using
the electric windlass and had some lunch and went swimming. The
bay was quite peaceful and very pretty and a couple of tourist/day
trip boats came and went as we pottered round in our dinghies,
which soon became the popular way to communicate between the two
anchored yachts. We then headed back up the coast, north of Bodrum
and continued North to the beautiful town of Turgetreis, which
we nicknamed Hollywood because the name of the town is spelled
out on the hill in white stones. I was informed that a brother
and sister created the marina development that includes a yacht
club, a supermarket, banks and several designer shops, helipad
etc. The marina is the best laid out, modern, chic development
I have ever seen! That night we ate in a restaurant looking out
at Catalada Island anchorage, where we anchored that same afternoon.
Wednesday. Set sail in
good winds prevailing from the North east and headed all the way
across the Gulf of Gokova Korfezi 
(about
20 miles), passing very close to the Greek Island of Kos, in fact,
so close that a Greek Coastguard boat passed between us and the
island, perhaps as a little reminder!!! We anchored at a cove
known as Mersinick, en route to Kormen fishing harbour. Mersinick
is an enclosed bay lying under the cape, south of Akcali Adasi,
where we had the usual fayre for lunch and did some swimming.
In my opinion this was the most beautiful anchorage and the most
idyllic location of the holiday. Huge rocky cliffs that appeared
to give good shelter from the Meltimi encircled the cove, but
after a few hours we were hit by some huge gusts of wind that
seemed to come from nowhere and the boats swung on their anchor
chains. We suspected that Fantastique had dragged slightly but
it was about time to leave anyway so we weighed anchors and departed,
under motor, for Kormen fishing harbour, which lies about 3 miles
to the east of the anchorage. Again we moored with the anchor
at the bow and two stern lines ashore to the old pier. This time
it was Dougie T who dragged anchor and had to have a 
second
anchoring. There was nothing at Kormen except a restaurant so
we decided to call it the "Captive Audience Restaurant"
after we saw the prices that is!!! It turned out to be pretty
expensive but the food was very enjoyable.
Thursday. We headed on
a course of 33degrees North east, back across the Gulf of Gokova
Korfezi, on a heading for Cockertme Koyu but then the crews had
a change of plan and we altered west for the anchorage of Pubus,
once again. The sailing conditions were perfect and Fantastique
had a fabulous display of dolphins on the way across and we even
managed to get some dolphin photos. They were very large dolphins
compared to those in the Moray Firth and they kept giving the
boat a tap as if to say "catch me if you can". No chance!!!
We were the first two boats to arrive at Pubus and to drop anchor
then a beautiful, big, private hire, gullet called "Papa
Joe" came in behind us and anchored. We declined to join
them at their loud Turkish disco which they were holding on board
or on the jet ski that appeared as if by magic. We set sail for
Bodrum once more and had a cracking
sail up the coast.
Fantastique had a pretty good race with a French crewed Oceanis 411 and we held him off as long as we could but eventually he got past us. It was good fun all the same but at times like this, when you fancy a race, you wonder why you are towing your dingy behind the boat? We moored up in Bodrum Milta Marina for the evening.
Friday. Departed Bodrum, destination Gumsuluk, which lies 4 miles south of Port Bodrum Yalikavak Marina. We took great care on the approaches as the pilot book advises that there was a submerged reef at the entrance on the port side and that you could not see the bay until you were level with the entrance. We entered the bay and anchored in the southern end for lunch and swimming. Some of the party went ashore to check out the pretty town but it consisted of little more than restaurants along the beachfront and some small shops. It was, however, very picturesque and typically Turkish. There were several gullets at anchor along the shores and a handful of foreign yachts at anchor in the bay. That evening we headed back to Turgetreis Marina, my favourite, and moored up for the night. We ate out at La Villa restaurant where we had the best and biggest meal of the holiday. We had pizzas; curries, meatballs and everyone agreed that the food at La Villa was great.
Saturday. Market day in
Turgetreis - so we headed for the market which lay behind the
mosque with the two spires which looked like space rockets. This
was our last day so we decided to do some serious shopping at
Versace, Dolce and Gabanna, Radley, Hugo Boss, Ralph Lauren etc.
In Turkey, these exquisite designer retail outlets can all be
found on the busy back 
street
stalls where you hear shouts of "five for a tenner"
and "cheap as chips". I am sure that Neil's five designer
t-shirts which he got for a tenner are all genuine fake designer
goods though. After the market we stashed our purchases onboard
the yachts and watched the waterlines go down, then we set sail
in a northwesterly direction, destined for Bahce Koyu (Yalikavak
Liman) that lies directly across the bay from Yalikavak Marina.
We anchored on the north side of the bay, immediately behind the
partly submerged wreck of a gullet, which had struck the rocks.
Here we enjoyed our last day of chilling out by sunbathing and
swimming. The crews met both in the Ionian Sea and onboard Dougie
T, where much merriment was held and where a new dance was invented
to the song "Loch Lomand".
Later, we topped the boats up with fuel at Yalikavak marina and berthed out our mother port where the staff of Aura Yachting met us for a debriefing, so to speak. Later that evening we all set off for our last supper at the Windmill Restaurant, where once again the food was excellent and the waiters were such good crack, before departing for Bodrum Airport and the flight back home.
I thoroughly enjoyed my holiday and in my opinion these were the best sailing conditions of my three sailing holidays in Turkey so far. I really hope that the crew of Dougie T enjoyed their sailing holiday, as this was the first holiday in Turkey for all of them. Maybe some of our club members will be tempted to try a sunny sailing holiday after reading my story………….Just remember to invite me along.
Mairi Innes
Fusion II
Sailing in Harmony
to Loch Aline
Myself,
John Barclay and Fred Murray left Buckie at 11pm on the Thursday
after the crane-in. The timing of this departure was to allow
Fred to play tennis in Elgin that evening, so consequently we
had to buck the tide most of the way. The wind was light s/westerly
and we motored all the way to Inverness arriving at 9.30 am, our
slowest passage so far in 22 years. Normally it takes us 8 hours
though we once did it in 6 1/2 hours on the tale of a northerly
4/5.
The Thursday/Friday shipping forecast was giving 6 to 7 between
SE and SW but other forecasts such as GB Windmap and pressure
charts we checked before departure gave only light south to south-
easterlies. We have found the shipping forecasts to be very unreliable
for the last few years, often forecasting far stronger winds that
in fact occur.
We arrived in the inner Moray Firth in a flat calm and had light
head winds down Loch Ness whilst we lunched on pizzas. Friday
night was spent at the top of Fort Augustus locks. Hot showers,
chicken casserole and an early night to catch up with lost sleep
the night before.
Up at 7am Saturday, muesli and toast and off into a very cold
strong headwind. We had 30 to 35 knots on our head going down
Loch Oich. With much the same down Loch Lochy where our decks
were given a real good washing! We did however manage a cooked
brunch of bacon, sausage, beans, eggs and toast whilst the autohelm
steered straight down the middle of
the Loch.
Fred and I had our meal at the saloon table whilst John had his
under the shelter of the sprayhood.
On arrival at Neptunes Staircase, Fort William, we had a fast
ride down being the only boat and were in time to lock out of
the canal before closing time if we had wished. We did not however
fancy another night passage of approx 36 miles to our mooring
and it was also rather bumpy looking at the pontoon outside the
sea lock. The lock keeper, as a favour, let us stay in the sealock
basin on the promise that we would lock out in the morning. He
also gave us a print out of the latest
forecast, which was for light and variable wind. Wine, beer and
whisky in reverse order was consumed as we waited for our shepherds
pie to heat up in the oven. Another hot shower, a few more drams
and off to bed on a beautiful evening with the sun shining off
the snow on Ben Nevis.
Sunday dawned sunny and still and we locked out at 9.30am with
the whole of the ebb tide under our keel. We were through the
Corran Narrows in under 2 hours, meeting the cruise ship "Lord
of the Glens" coming the opposite way. We touched 10 knots
over the ground as we popped through Corran and out into Loch
Linnhe. Our big red buoy fenders we use for the canal were deflated
as we motored along and stored in the forepeak under the bunks.
The sea was like glass as we enjoyed a 
brunch
of bacon sarnies on the way. We lazed around the cockpit and saloon,
reading and chatting as the autohelm did the work. Eagle eye Fred
spotted a large red round buoy washed up on the shore
beyond the Glen Sanda Quarry and we motored inshore before launching
the dinghy and recovering it. Strangely we recovered another buoy
from the same spot 2 years ago. As we turned into the Sound of
Mull the ebb tide, which had been with us, then headed us as it
poured into Loch Linnhe. The Sound was quiet and sunny as we continued
up to Loch Aline entering against the last of the ebb at about
3pm. It took about 2 hours to reset our mooring, which we drop
to the seabed at the end of the season, and secured "Harmony"
for the summer.
Robert Morrice had volunteered
to pick us up and arrived about 5.30pm. It was a beautiful evening
for a run home, which was enlivened by a very, very close encounter/near,
miss with a deer and also a speed camera north of Aviemore. Thanks
for the run Robert and thanks Fred
for your good company.
Phil Brown 
Fusion II Cruise to Banff Marina
It was Friday 24th April
and the motley crew of Fusion II set sail for Banff Marina. Banff
Sailing Club was celebrating the anniversary of the opening of
their new marina and we were invited along by Gordon Maitland
to join in with the fun. We motored down on the Friday afternoon,
as there was hardly a breath of wind, so the passage took us 2
hours. On arrival, we called Jim Henderson, the new harbourmaster,
on the radio and he came along and assisted us to moor up and
filled us in with the domestics.
That evening it started raining and it forgot to stop so we didn't
venture far. In fact we ran up the hill to the Railway pub where
we bumped into an old friend from Banff whom we first met 20 years
ago in Tenerife, it was great to catch up!
On Saturday morning we were advised that the "cruise"
we were initially invited to join, in Banff Bay, had turned into
an official race so we filled up our entry form and paid our fiver
(could not possibly grudge this as the berthing was free). Then
we set off to the Spotty Bag shop for a slimfast breakfast of
burger and chips for me, and mixed grill for Neil. Just the thing
before a race!!!!!
The weather was beautiful and the sun was shining, then just about
five minutes before the start of the race the wind really blew
up and the showery squalls came howling in, some of the gusts
were hitting 33 knots of wind and we noticed that several yachts
had too much sail up - but for once, Fusion II was not guilty,
we had the mainsail reefed and were flying along nicely. We reached
the first marker ahead of the others, stealing Aquamarine's wind
as we overtook her on the start line, then made off in hot pursuit
of the second which was near Tarlair as Gordon's drawing said
it would be. About half way there we looked behind and saw some
of the other boats making a change in direction. We then realized
that the marker was away out to sea so we came about and headed
for it. It turned out that I had been making for a creel stowie
and everyone was following me. Ooops! The 31foot, fin keel boat,
Aquamarine, just got to the second marker before us, owing to
our little detour and we followed her round and quickly overtook
her for a second time. It was a great race back to Banff harbour
and Fusion II finished the course in 36 minutes, in first place,
2 minutes ahead of Aquamarine, who took second.
There are always casualties in Mairi's seafaring stories and this
day was no exception. During one of the gusts of wind one of the
Banff yachts tore his mainsail in two and a friend of mine later
told me that he was racing his yacht "Elise" at Lossie
at the same time, on the same day, and he tore his sunstrip off
his jib when he was caught in a gust which overpowered the yacht
and blew her over on her side.
After the race we headed back to the marina and the sun came out
and the wind dropped, then we had a surprise visit from Bob and
Jackie Lawton who came down by car for a look around. Banff Sailing
Club opened their clubhouse that evening and they put on a lovely
buffet for the sailors. They really do put in such an effort into
their social calendar and they are very welcoming indeed to visitors,
the hospitality was second to none and I sure that Findochty Water
Sports Club will manage to 
direct
a cruise or two towards Banff this summer.
We sailed home on Sunday in the beautiful warm sunshine with just
the mainsail and the spinnaker up - bliss. I got really sore hands
and I was also rather bored when it was my turn to fly the spinnaker
for what seemed like an eternity. Neil could not believe it when
he came up on deck and found me sunbathing with the spinnaker
cleated off and the autopilot on. You just canna get the crew
nowadays!!!!!!
For the record, I would like to point out that Findochty Water
Sports Club had nothing whatsoever to do with the Banff Marina
Wall collapsing last year, following Neil's cruise, just minutes
after the last Findochty yacht set sail for home!!!! The Banff
Club advised me that they would remember the event forever……………..
Mairi
Fusion II
First Sail
Saturday 17th
May was designated as the "first sail". Numbers were
down as a number of "boats" were cruising the Turkish
coast.
There were three boats that ventured out into a lumpy sea, on
a bright sunny morning, Solan, Sarah Bheag and Destino. The wind
was north east and chilly. I left Findochty with the first reef
in the main and a couple of rolls on the foresail. Passing Sterlochy
I realised that there was not as much wind as I thought so the
foresail was fully unfurled. I left the main sail reef in as we
were doing almost hull speed, any extra sail would make little
difference.
The tidal stream (west to east) and the northeast swell was producing
steep fronted waves. The average height was 4-5 feet but occasionally
a 
black-faced monster of 8-9 feet
bore down on us. At one point I could only see Solan and Sarah
Bheag's masts, above the crosstrees, when all three boats were
in troughs. The wind was not that strong though so the waves were
not breaking and the sailing was enjoyable. Su
rprisingly,
with these steep waves, we only received a soaking a couple of
times after slapping into the face of a wave.
After about 90 minutes we returned to Findochty and put a pizza
in the oven as we put Destino to bed.
A number of other "boats" had arrived as we sailed although
no more boats ventured out. The day was ended with an informal
barbeque at the Howff. Here's to a vintage sailing season.
Restoration of the
Howff
We had been planning
a major overhaul of the Howff for some time. The weekend of 29-30th
April 2008 saw the start of work. I had often wondered where the
name "Howff" came from. A long time Findochty resident
enlightened me. It is an acronym from it's days as a fisherman's
meeting shelter. I was told it stands for "Home of weary
Findochty Fisherman" .
(Re FWSC newsletter.
I think the definition of HOWFF is not quite as has been suggested.
HOWFF when used as a verb is indeed an abode, familiar shelter
or resort.
When used as a noun is to reside or visit a familiar haunt.
However in relation to Finechty it is was something quite different.
It was originally the village mortuary. This is from good authority
of one Mrs Mary Billing who is native of Findochty having been
born there at a very early age.
Keep up the good work, Cheers Ron.)
By the time I
arrived, work was well under way. Inside the plaster board had
been replaced around the chimney and an emptying of surplus furnishings
was taking place. These were carried down to a bonfire below the
high tide mark.
The main job of the weekend was
the erecting of a fence and laying of a large area of paving.
While one group dug post holes, another cleared the area of weeds
and surplus hardcore. The first line of paving slabs was laid
by mid-day. The cement mixer was shared between wet mix for posts
and dry mix for paving. While this was going on, the ladies were
busy with paint brushes, creosoting the shed, and emulsioning
the harbour office and finishing with a very nautical Oxford(R.N.L.I.)
Blue for the door.
Energy ran out mid afternoon, so, it w
as
Sunday morning when the fence and paving was completed.
A new window was fitted.
There is still a lot of work to be done. The paving needs completing and the edges need tidying and planting with suitable plants. Later the real transformation will take place, with a proposed kitchen, shower room and toilet.
The start has been made, when we eventually finish we should have a facility to be proud of.
Craning Day
We used to have a crane in day and a crane out day, but things
have changed. The mild winters, of recent years, have encouraged
more owners to keep their boats afloat over winter.
Myself, I have been lifting out every other winter. Although I
did not leave the pontoon more than three times, this winter,
I benefited by having my mast up, which allowed me to completely
change the running rigging.
On Saturday 20th April the crane was booked and the lifts commenced.
We have got the job down to a fine art over the years. Strops
were readied and hands held lines. Hooks were connected and the
banks man signalled the driver. A rhythm soon established and
gaps appeared on the quayside.
There were as many boats lifting out as lifting in, so these gaps
were soon filled again.
By the end of the day thirty-two lifts were made, comprising 28
boats and 4 masts. The quay appears to have more boats on it now
than before. Most of these boats will be craned in o
n
the May Day Saturday, after a couple of week's hard graft. This
may be the way of the future afloat for most of the year and a
short lift out for annual refit.
With our colder northern waters, osmosis is less of a problem
than in the warm south, so why not.