23-24th August - Home!

In the morning we took the dogs for a walk, Sue did some packing and cleaning and at 0930 we moved to the fuel berth. Just prior to opening at 1000 the a nice woman came down the pontoon to drive the fuel pump. We loaded just under 200 litres before getting foaming, I’m not sure whether we were full or whether there was a problem with their system as I’d expected to need a little more but in any event it was plenty to get home and to dilute the continental fuel which is polluted with even more bio fuel than ours and therefore liable to promoting the fuel bug which is a pain.

Once full Sue and I said good bye and she and the dogs pottered down the pontoon to catch the ferry to Oban whilst I set off down Kerrera Sound.

I had to put all the fenders and lines away myself now, being solo again so did this on the way down the sound. I needed to make a decent speed to  not be caught by the tide at the Sound of Luing and as the wind was, as always, on the nose I just motored. Once through the sound, now with an adverse tide and with a reasonable breeze I tried sailing, the wind was SEly about 9 knots and initially we made a good speed bus soon it died away to about 4 knots at which point I ran out of patience and started the engine again. I needed to be around the Mull of Kintyre by about 2330 or stop and catch the tide in the morning, as we were making good speed under motor as I got to Gigha, where I might have stopped, I didn’t and carried on towards the Mull. I had the remains of a curry for lunch as soup as we’d managed to eat most of the meat content (from the chopped up hamburgers).  By about 2130 I had a reef in the main but it wasn’t doing much with the wind about 15 degrees on the port bow  however  the wind increased to 25 knots and went onto the nose again having been a bit free to port, all a bit Mull of Kintyre. I put on my wellies and oilskin trousers for the first time since the North sea and dropped the main and carried on. I had some pork mince stir fry for dinner, another legacy of the freezer packing up with some pork mince needing eating and Sue not fancying it. Passing the light at the Mull we picked up more of a current and soon were around the corner with the wind reducing steadily to about 10 knots.  I had ben hugging the coast but as we turned to the SE we lost the boost from the current, it was actually audible, a quiet sort of whistling / whooshing  noise. I like a positive current so  headed offshore a bit and picked it up again although without the aural accompaniament. We carried on for about half an hour before turning to the East and with the wind now in the SE I put the main up again and pulled out the genoa and stopped the engine. Passing Sanda there were lights shining from the  bay, I’d heard that the island had recently been bought by a fish farm business so surmised that they were in residence. I hope that  they don’t stuff it up as it is a fine island to visit and stop at whilst awaiting the tide at the Mull. Maybe they’ll re open the pub….

Anyway from here we had a lovely sail in 5-7 knots of wind which went to the East and allowed me to sleep sporadically up Kilbrannan sound. We  wind went a bit light and on the nose for a bit in the lee of Goat Fell, but we managed to drift on and just keep moving. Once we’d regained the breeze off Lochranza we managed to sail all the way to Ardlamont point,  Carry point and then the mooring without tacking,  with me picking up the mooring as we ghosted past it with the main stowed  and after rolling up the genoa at the last minute. I was quite tired so went below for an hour’s sleep before getting up again, tidying up a little and rowing ashore for the first bath in several months.