Today was about really experiencing weather and tides.As I moved up the Sound of Jura the weather conditions and water state changed considerably. I set off with a force 2 south easterly, which was so slight I had to pole out the genoa to stop it from collapsing. I was in T shirt and shorts and the sea was flat. Then as I went around the top of Gigha and moved towards the centre of the Sound, the tidal escalator took hold and I accelerated by about 3kn. At the same time a "cloud street" developed, followed by a series of squalls, the wind veered ( went clockwise) into the north west and the the sea got quite a bit lumpy in places. By the time I reached Ardfern 6 hours later there was constant drizzle and I was wearing 2 fleeces and a set of wet weather sailing gear. Understanding what is really going on to explain the changes is fascinating stuff.
Before I set off this morning, radio 4 put out a snippet of a piece of the shipping forecast, which had been put to music by Cecilia McDowell. Shortly afterwards they played a medley of similar things that people have done. For most people the shipping forecast is an incomprehensible but poetic sounding British institution.As land lubbers we just want to know whether we are going to need a brolly or if it will be good for a barbecue. As I listen to the so called weather forecasts during the day and they say something like its going to be overcast but there will be sunny spells later and it will be a bit breezy I get really frustrated.For those who are sitting in a harbour wondering whether to set off or not they want to know just how breezy is it going to be which direction is it going to come from and when's it going to arrive. The sunshine would be nice, but I can put on something waterproof if it rains.
When you are at sea, or about to be, these factors are so much more fundamental. They matter so much more. On land you know it might rain later. At sea you see the situation developing. You see the evidence of the warm front meeting the cold front. The cloud street was such a clear feature in the sky. It was like way off to the south there was a very large steamer and its plume was stretching out behind it in a straight line. I wanted to understand what was really happening here. I also wanted to know how so much energy was released as a squall passes and be more confident about the way the wind direction would change as it approached and passed.I have picked up my old copy of David Houghton's "Weather at Sea" and intend to be more of an expert on these things within a couple of weeks weather watching.
The change in water conditions was more comprehensible. If the sea is viewed more as a river, then the swirls and turbulence become more comprehendable.When you look into a shallowish river you can see the rocks and the deeper bits and there is no surprise about the way the water flows and moves. When you are at sea you just see the surface. There may be rocks and you have your charts to know the depth but its harder to get the overall picture and sometimes you get surprises. I had stepped onto the tidal escalator and was being taken northwards on the ebb. Ahead of me off the Island of Danna I could see waves breaking across the whole width of the Sound through my binoculars. I suspected rocks or a bar, but there were none. Rough water was not even shown as a symbol on the charts. As I passed through it, the standing waves and areas of oily smoothness it was like being in a cauldron. I was in 41m of water. However when I studied the chart a few hundred metres up stream of this area the water was 180m deep. All that volume of water was rising over a set of under water hills and so was being crammed through a third of the space. It's bound to have an effect at the surface. At the top of the Sound lies the Gulf of Corryvreckan in which forms a whirlpool under certain tidal conditions that you don't want to be any where near in a small slow boat. The other ways out of this Sound are equally as interesting in their own way. When I move north i will have to pick my timing carefully.
As i approached the top of the Sound of Jura and entered the small Loch of Craignish the drizzle had really set in. I wondered just how many shades of greyythere could possible be.
Tony runs a boat charter business out of the marina in Ardfern at the very top of the Loch of Craignish. I have known him for about 20years. We met when our families were on holiday in the Scillies.We had a common interest in diving. He has since remarried and lives with Carol and their 3 year old son Fergus. in a rented place which looks out over the loch.Carol swam across Corryvreckan last summer with her swimming club! They needed to time that carefully too!
Tony has continuing problems with his charter groups hitting rocks in some large and expensive yachts. This causes a lot of damage and he's had so much trouble that insurers are now refusing to quote him. So if things happen he's having to pay for the repairs instead of claiming.
Fergus is a bright young lad and has reacquainted me with all the Thomas the tank trains. There also seem to be a few more than when Joe was his age. He was also pretty interested in my camera and took a good picture of me at my laptop.
I am now in one of the most scenic sailing areas of the country. I need to savour it and use Tony's knowledge to decide where to go. Roger Marsden has emailed me and has recommended anchoring in Tinkers Hole off the far side of Mull. He also commends going to Fingall's cave whilst playing Mendelssohn's Hebrides Overture very loud. So you see IT men can be very poetic!
Tonight we go and see "Salsa Celtica" for a bit of live music. I shall have a second night in a real bed.
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