Sailing into the Arctic Circle is never an easy prospect, as Mark Rogers discovered.
Next morning was flat calm and we motored through Kyle Rhea and on to Plockton where we met up with a friend with a Sadler 26 and had a rather 'big' night. The next day, with hangovers and a southerly gale Force 8 forecast, we scuttled, heavily reefed, up the coast to Badachro on LochGairloch to wait for the storm to blow over before heading north to Stornoway, home of the world’s best black pudding.
From Stornoway we had a fast sail to Stromness, covering the 115 miles at over 6.5 knots. Philip and I had time to enjoy the music festival before packing the boat up for a fortnight and flying home.
We returned on 1 June to a northerly gale, but the next morning was calmer and we set off into a gentle northwesterly. The wind held until we drew abreast of Kitchener’s Memorial at Marwick Head. Determined to sail like Vikings, we waited for the forecast Force 5-7 northwester lies to kick in and by 1900 we were beating north, clearing Foula seven miles to starboard.
This story is from the May 2017 edition of Yachting Monthly.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the May 2017 edition of Yachting Monthly.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Midsummer on Hanö
This wonderful little island in the south-east of Sweden is a real gem off the beaten track
ADVENTURE SAILING TO HAITI
After spending two months in the Dominican Republic, Andy Brown sails west to Haïti bringing medical and school supplies to the town of Mole Saint Nicholas
In celebration of bad sailing
New owner Monty Halls tests his sailing skills with his family aboard their Colvic 34 ketch, Sobek. A recently qualified Day Skipper, Monty faces a few unexpected challenges...
Winter brings excitement and opportunity
Oddity’s double glazing, insulation and heating create a warm, homely environment as I bash out this column.
ADVENTURE MAISIE GOES TO GOES
To depart or not to depart? That is the question. Is it safer to stay, or suffer the wind and weather of a rough North Sea?
'MAYDAY, GRANDAD OVERBOARD!'
When David Richards and his grandson Henry went out racing from lowey, they didn't expect their sail to end with a lifeboat rescue
VERTUE
For a 25-footer, the Vertue has a huge reputation and has conquered every ocean. So what makes this little boat quite such an enduring success? Nic Compton finds out
Sailing siblings
Mabel Stock, her brother Ralph, a friend Steve and an unnamed paying passenger passed through the Panama Canal in December 1919 on the sturdy Norwegian cutter Ogre. They were towed to a quiet anchorage in Balboa away from the boat traffic but within rowing distance of the shore.
TECHNICAL MAINSAIL MODIFICATIONS
Safety and performance improved hugely when Mike Reynolds reduced the size of his mainsail and re-configured the systems controlling it
PILOTAGE DONE PROPERLY
Chartplotters are an amazing aid, but can detract from your real-world pilotage if not used with caution, says Justin Morton