Permitted to Pass

 First thing in the morning we motored three miles up to the mouth of Loch Eriboll to a less sheltered anchorage to wait for the tide. We had breakfast and then each found various ways to kill four hours or so. We were about fifteen miles from Cape Wrath and waiting for the tides to play out, so that when we arrive at that exposed turning point the flow will be turning in our favour. Meanwhile the wind was building and blowing nearly 20 knots.

According to the Pilot (a guidebook for sailors), Cape Wrath is: 

'...a confluence of strong tides making it a very dangerous place in bad weather. It is totally exposed to the North and west and is frequently subject to very strong winds which build up a huge and dangerous sea in a very short time. Even in calm weather a large ocean swell is often present.'

So it is not surprising that we are waiting with a certain amount of trepidation and even nervousness. It is tempting to go early but with a strong east wind blowing we seem likely to travel quickly to the Cape and get even further in advance of our plan to then struggle against the flow. So we wait and try to distract ourselves with bits of work and scanning online news and reading our books.

 The wind continued to build, blowing mainly around 20 knots but with some gusts up to 30, which was not forecast. We decided that the inside track, always our preference, ,was not likely to be feasible with this stronger than expected wind. We both became increasingly nervous but to some extent we were already committed. Loch WEriboll does not offer much shelter and we knew that a storm was forecast in a couple of days. At last, it was 12.30pm. Adventure involves uncertain outcome. This trip, this passage round Cape Wrath, was feeling like an adventure

With the mainsail hoisted, but fully reefed down, we motored out to get clear of the little rocky island that was sheltering us, at least from the swell if not the wind. Once clear of the rocks, in the full force of the wind, we turned onto a north-west heading and set sail at 5 knots to clear Farafaid Head by a mile. A sizeable swell was coming from the north, but the sea state was reasonable and we enjoyed great sailing. We then turned due east aiming to be 3 miles north of Cape Wrath by 4.30pm. We made good progress, even with a fully reefed sail and arrived on time at our target point, three miles off Cape Wrath to the north. As forecast the wind shifted to become more easterly and we set off south-west and then south to round the Cape. Kindred Spirit II was flying and we were feeling increasingly confident and enjoying the trip. 

We had fifteen more miles of active sailing before turning south eastwards towards the safe harbour of Kinlochbervie. The way into Kinlochbervie is not obvious. You are faced with what seems to be a continuous rocky shore. The Navionics gave us the confidence to keep on sailing towards the entrance. Eventually we dropped the sails and motored into the narrow rocky channel that leads to the harbour. We moored up on the pontoon and had a hug, we had made it. Our immediate priority was to head straight up to the hotel on the hill, In the bar there was no food available, so we feasted on beer accompanied by peanuts and crisps. After a modest number of beers we returned to the boat and cooked a slightly random meal then crashed out. To my shame I did not even complete and post the blog, oops!

In the morning we slipped our moorings and headed out into the best day of sailing so far. The east wind was blowing about 18 to 25 knots and with a full sail we were shooting along. We soon reached the north-west cliffs of Handa Island and sailed close in. Mark then went for an early catch-up sleep down below and woke before we reached the next highlight, the Old Man of Stoer. I climbed this sea stack with a couple of mates about thirty years ago and so it was great to see it again, from a different perspective. 

It was my turn to sleep, not least because the wind dropped for a while. However it soon returned, so Mark enjoyed a couple of hours speeding on our way past Lochinver. We sailed round to thread through the Summer Isles but eventually, just past Horse Island the wind was on our nose and we resorted to the motor for the last ten miles u p the channel into Ullapool. We picked up a visitor mooring in the bay. We treated ourselves to langoustines at the famous Fish Shack in Ullapool and then, after some shopping for food, sat outside the pub looking out to our mooring. A storm is coming, and it may be that we have to wait it out here or at least in the vicinity. The mooring is not ideally sheltered from the south, oops.

We have a sense of satisfaction. We did not conquer Cape Wrath, but on this occasion at least, we were permitted to pass round it. Sweet.