SV Ostinato: Have I Mentioned It's Cold Here?

June 25 - Scotland West Coast
56.47N and 5.10 W

After leaving the Caledonian Canal we motored down Loch Linnhe in flat seas with what little wind there was on the nose. We had been so busy with playing with the kids that beyond departing the canal and heading west, we had no destination. Not to worry, there appears to be a beautiful anchorage every few miles. It just becomes a matter of what looks inviting. Sailing down loch Linnhe was the water version of the rode trip we had just taken to return Julia and George to the airport in Edinburgh. Spectacular is not a strong enough word. Craggy rock strewn mountains covered in a lush green carpet enclosed us on each side as we sailed down the Loch toward the Sound of Mull. The only excitement was the Corran Narrows where the water appears to boil from a rushing tidal stream and eddies on each side. We set the hook down for the night in Loch Aline on Morvern, where we began to hatch a loose plan for what we would do now that we had finally arrived.

Tinker's Hole

June 26 - We headed off South the next morning for the Isle of Iona to visit the Iona Abby established in the year 563. Our first night was spent in Tinkers Hole. Two other sailboats had arrived before us so the anchorage in what the Pilot quoted one visitor as calling it a "half-flooded quarry" was a bit tight. Robert Lewis Stevenson reportedly came to Tinkers Hole to write. While obviously inspiring to him, it was not our most brilliant evening. Sometime around 9:00 pm the wind piped up from one direction and the current from another. What had been a quiet spot suddenly sprouted boiling water and waves within the tiny area surrounded by large boulders. All three boats emptied out from the rocky hole early the next morning.

Ostinato at anchor in Iona

Iona (56.20 N 6.23 W) does not have much of an anchorage. As with many places, the best spots are
taken up by mooring balls for permanent residents and local fishing boats. Add the traffic from the large ferry boat, buried water/power lines, copious amounts of seaweed, a little fog and, well you get the picture. We trolled up and down the tiny anchorage and King finally pointed to the spot we would claim. I weaved Ostinato between a troller and two small tenders on moorings to inch up to the shore. It took two tries but we finally bit into something that would hold us a bit. It was too bouncy to put the dinghy engine on so King rowed us ashore. In a town with only one road, somehow we took a wrong turn and ended up in yet another cow pasture. By now we are undeterred by a few cows so we carried on, carefully watching our steps, and arrived through the Abby's back gate to join the site's pilgrims and sightseers.

Hoping those are friendly cows as we came in the back gate at Iona Abby

While the history of St. Columba, the Book of Kells and its medieval buildings was interesting, what made this visit special was a group of about 30 women who had taken over St Peter's chapel to sing Gaelic songs and hymns, acapella. The music was quite spiritual. During the tour of the sanctuary, the guide shared that the original alter was made of Iona marble and had to be restored because legend was that if a ship had a piece of Iona marble aboard it would never sink. Apparently, every sailor wanted his own little insurance policy. I am glad to report that we did not chip off a piece of the new alter but picked up our piece at the Iona general store.

The tide retreated leaving the dink high and dry

We returned to the dingy three hours later to find her high and dry on the beach. We were able to slip out of the anchorage with only a few feet under the keel. The good news was the wind had died and Iona Sound was like glass. We motored on north to reach our night's anchorage on the north side of Ross of Mull in Loch na Lathaich or Bunessan (as if that's easier?) at 56.20N and 6.16W. As we made our way, you could see the fog beginning to descend on the mountain tops. It was a race to get the anchor down before it enveloped us. We lost. The radar guided us in and we spent a quiet night playing dominoes. King whooped me bad.

June 28 -We left early the next morning in light rain and force 4 winds from the west taking us on around the top of Mull. The word for the day is "grey". During the sail we saw everything from swirling eddies, fog, and winds from 5k to 25k. And have I mentioned its still cold? We tied up at the dock in Tobermory. I really looked forward to a long, hot shower. However, while the facilities were new and spotless, the $3 charge per 7 minutes of water sent me grumbling back to the boat head for my washing up.

June 30 - We thought our arrival in Tobermory would be our departure point to head north to Skye but plans are like the weather, forever changing. A gale was forecast for today so we decided to leave the dock and seek shelter back in Loch Aline. It blew like hooey all night but the eight or so yachts that sought refuge in this long narrow loch all appear to be holding well. I even saw what appeared to be the sun peak out for a minute but refuse to get too excited. It was probably a hallucination.

We have begun again to rethink plans. Long range forecasts are not very encouraging for improvements in the weather. There is so much to see here making this a very hard decision but we are in great need of a little warmer weather. I'm thinking 60 degrees would be a good start.

July 1 - We continue to sit in Loch Aline where we are awaiting mail which will bring replacement credit cards....another story. Expect Gus and Helen on Wings to arrive tonight. It will be fun to see a familiar face.