China Girl, UK Circumnavigation - Year 6
| Vessel Name: | China Girl |
| Vessel Make/Model: | Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 41DS |
| Hailing Port: | Ipswich |
| Crew: | Ann and Steve Crome |
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05 September 2024
Inverness and home
From Cromarty to Inverness, CG's winter home was only 17 miles, the wind was very light, we got 10 minutes of sailing in our last trip of the season but essentially it was a motoring day.
05 September 2024
Cromarthy firth
This is the view from CG looking the other way in Cromarty Firth. No so good.
05 September 2024
Off to Cromarty
Wick to Cromarty in our passage plan was 55 miles, mostly on a heading of about 220 (SSW). The wind had been south-westerly for days and we didn't fancy a 55 mile beat so we delayed and watched the weather like hawks. Eventually a day of Westerlies, not too strong was forecast so we went for it. We [...]
05 September 2024 | Castle of May
Castle of May
Dunrobin Castle and Castle May are both well worth the visit if you are ever up that way. The latter has been kept just as HM The Queen Mother left it the last time she visited in 2001. The lady that introduced us to the castle had been working there since she was a child, she was probably in her 70s. [...]
26 August 2024 | Wick Marina
Bye Bye Orkney
It's time to leave Orkney and head south back to mainland Scotland on our way to our winter base in Inverness. Landfall on the mainland will be Wick. Much thought and head scratching has gone in to this trip: timing, distance, tides and mostly the sodding weather. Perm all these. From where we are [...]
26 August 2024 | Wick Marina
Washing the outboard
From Calf sound a 2 hour trip on the motor to Whitehall in Papa Sound on the northern end of Stronsay. It was mostly upwind and we couldn't be bothered to tack all the way. Two nights on a visitors buoy and a look around the village.
What did we do in 2021
Juggling the COVID restrictions we sailed over two periods - April 24th to 26th and June 26th to September 20th. This is 88 days and we moved the boat on 48 of those, so a pretty busy trip. We travelled 1013 miles in 225 hours sailing for 77 and motoring for 114. We visited 47 different towns, villages, hamlets and anchorages across north west England and the southern half of the Scottish Islands. Two falls off the back of the boat, one trip to hospital. We had no trouble getting into marinas but couldn't get into a restaurant without a booking anywhere in Scotland. Where would we go back to? There are too many beautiful places to easily pick out one or two. Maybe Traigh Gheal, (Balfours Bay) on the south coast of Mull as an anchorage and Tayvallich at the top of Loch Sween as a village. Where would we no go back to? Craobh Haven is a great marina but it's expensive and there is absolutely nothing to do on land. Pullodobhrain anchorage just south of Oban is extolled in the pilot book as unmissable, we'd say it's very average and there are plenty of other equally pretty places. Photo shows the classic view of the painted houses in Tobermory, taken from CG.
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A few photos of the collection of ships made out of matchsticks
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Created 2 June 2019
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