SPORTY! I've said it before and we are back into that mode: Sporty Scottish Cruising. The four meter plus tides and the constant back-and-forth wash of the currents through the islands are ever present variables. Rain, Mist, Fog, and Squally Showers are a constant that can be disregarded, if you are Scottish. When the wind arrives from the North Atlantic the level of difficulty rises to another level. The first element of the sport is done at the chart table using all the information available to determine the when and where of the currents. The second element is the trip itself from anchor up to the arrival wee dram.
Tomorrow's passage through the Kyle of Rhea along the east side of the Isle of Skye is one of the better examples of the chart table work. The route is through narrow passages which funnel the tidal streams into currents that can reach eight knots at times. Add a strong wind, (tomorrow's forecast F5-F6 occasional F7), against the current to the mix and large sometimes dangerous waves will build. This can be avoided with proper planning which we try to do.
A large, deep low pressure system has parked itself just west of the British Isles. This has brought gales to the western and northern coasts and strong wind where we are protected by the out-islands. However, we continue to get the 25 to 30 knots of wind from the southwest. This IS the strong wind that will go against the strong currents for parts of the day and create a bumpy or very-bumpy ride. Lots of complaints get filed when a ride like that occurs. And, the second element of the trip, the sailing, becomes much harder.
So we spend a lot of time calculating and re-calculating the route: what time to leave, how fast can we go, how far and to be where at what time, and not necessarily where we want to go but where can we go to hide if it gets just too nasty. We are usually pretty good at this and rarely have a problem. Regarding one of the previous blog entries where I talked of the rough ride down from the Faroes. As I suspected then we had a narrow weather window to make our escape. If we had not suffered that bumpy trip we would still be there as their weather has been terrible since then.