Calling in for water in Gairloch Harbour, Flowerdale Bay, we were escorted by three friendly dolphins. Having been here for land-based holidays (spotted our friends' house on the hill there), it felt strange to arrive by boat!
The weather improved as the afternoon wore on but without much wind, sailing was difficult. Lucky we have an engine on board. However the landscape all around us was magnificant so we were never bored. The Scottish Highlands are beautiful, but even more so from the sea.
With our stomachs rumbling, we decided not to journey down to Inverewe at the head of the 7-mile long Loch Ewe. We have visited the famous gardens there before so instead we anchored at Mellon Charles on the north coast of the loch, about 2 miles in from the mouth. With only a few houses in the bay, we saw no other humans but had several scores of common terns for company, nesting on a nearby disused pier. They make a wonderful sight (and not-so-wonderful sound) when all at once they take off and swoop round the area seemingly in one body. Fortunately they quietened down overnight.
Tuesday morning dawned sunny and calm. The loch was like a millpond and the highlands looked magnificent. We were treated to many views of the mountains as we sailed past the entrances to Gruinard Bay with its eponymous island of anthrax fame, Little Loch Broom, and Loch Broom at the head of which lies the north-west's largest town Ullapool.
Then we found ourselves amongst The Summer Isles, a very attractive group of islands on the N side of the approach to Loch Broom. With the sun shining and a gentle breeze blowing, where could be better for a lunch stop? Finding a sheltered bay surrounded by small islands (therefore difficult to capture on camera), we dropped the anchor and rested in warm sunshine, taking our cue from the seals nearby. After 2 hours, we thought we had better move on towards Lochinver, our overnight stop. Just as well we did as within minutes of emerging from the islands, the sky darkened, the wind got up and rain began to fall. The weather up here can change so quickly ... the Mate was on watch as the wind force increased to 6 (22-27 knots) and Follyfin heeled over ...
Eventually tied up at pontoon at 8 p.m. Now we had arrived in Sutherland and the remote hills of Assynt where there are some extraordinarily-shaped peaks, such as Suilven - the sugar loaf. Regrettably it was never clear enough for me to get a good photo. In 'town', discovered the excellent Larder Bistro which specialises in homemade pies. We were just in time to tuck into tasty salmon pie served with mash and fresh veg ... nectar to our weary selves!
Yesterday, Wednesday 27th, we pressed on in drizzle and under grey skies, 30 miles northwards towards Kinlochbervie, our jumping off point for Cape Wrath, still amazed by the surrounding scenery. Passed close to Stoer Point where stands the Old Man of Stoer - a colossal rock pillar 200 feet high. Another Minke whale was also briefly sighted as well as dolphins and numerous seabirds, including what we think was an Arctic Skua.
Others had also arrived with the same plan in mind, so the small pontoon was overcrowded. Instead we opted for the harbour wall at the invitation of the harbour master. This means climbing up and down a 3-4 metre vertical ladder with metal rungs to access dry land; going up not too bad but descending is another matter, not undertaken lightly by the Mate anyway! Thursday morning and we are still here, along with all the other boats, pinned down by forecasted high winds and possible gale. Looks calm enough from here but rounding Cape Wrath is veritably not a piece of cake so we are waiting for a weather window before we attempt it.
There are benefits though: although it is impossible to purchase fresh fish here, or in Lochinver, the two main fishing ports on the north-west coast, you can talk to the fishermen on their vessels when they return from sea. And they are very generous with their surplus catch, so we have fresh haddock and two hake to keep us going for the next few days!
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