On to Scotland
10 August 2016 | Troon, Scotland
David
We left Holyhead at dusk. It was blowing hard, but the weather forecast was for it to moderate over the course of the night. Instead, the wind increased, the powerful Irish Sea tides came around against the wind, and we had one of the most challenging nights of our entire voyage! Fish draggers were working, navigational lights didn't match the chart, and Margalo was pounded all night by the short, sharp, seas, dousing us with cold seawater.
We passed the Isle of Man, and continued to the north. In the early hours of the morning our big anchor broke free of its lashings and went overboard with about 15 feet of chain, necessitating that Owen go forward, haul it aboard and tie it down with more substantial lashings!
In the early morning we reached the Mull of Galloway, on the east side of the North Channel, and our first view of Scotland from the sea. For the rest of the day we crawled along the Scottish Coast, up the length of the peninsula, and around the corner into Loch Ryan. We roared down Loch Ryan on the strong breeze and found a marina at a far corner of the Loch in a tiny town named Stranraer. With the wind shrieking around us we managed to tie up to their dock. We commiserated briefly with the other boats on the dock, and repaired to the local pub, named The Grapes, to lick our wounds.
A few words about sailing in Scotland. The Scottish Coast is one of the most exquisitely beautiful spots I have ever seen from the sea. Vast fields, separated by hedgerows, with patch works of mowed land and pasture. Handsome, lonely looking manor houses every mile or two. Rugged, rocky, hills, with herds of cattle and flocks of sheep. The coast is deeply indented with innumerable lochs and coves and harbors. Clear, blue, skies alternate with dark, threatening clouds, yielding a constantly changing land and skyscape. The people are delightful, and the place has a wonderfully civilized feeling.
But the weather is simply awful! We thought that we were pretty tough, veterans of sailing the New England and Canadian Maritimes late into the fall. Our weather looks positively tropical compared to this place! Cold, 40 knot breezes in early August! Like Maine in December! We hauled out gear that we hadn't needed anytime on our trip. Thermal underwear, fleece, down, watch caps, sea boots, full foul weather outfits, and we were still cold. And the spray and wet managed to find its way down our necks and inside our warm clothes. The Norwegians say that there is no such thing as bad weather, just inadequate clothing, but I am not sure that they are right......
Yesterday morning we headed out early and had an easy, short, sail to the town of Troon, 35 miles northeast of Loch Ryan.
After a champagne celebration of our trip, the boys packed up their stuff and we walked into town for a hearty dinner. At 958PM, they boarded the ScotRail train to Glasgow to begin their trip home. It was a bittersweet moment. We have had a wonderful trip together and I was sad as the train headed out of the station.
Margalo has a few more miles to go. We will head out in an hour or so for a boat yard on the River Clyde, not far from here, where she'll be tucked into a shed for the winter. They're expecting us on Friday, so we can poke along, enjoying the lovely Scottish scenery and weather, for the next couple of days.