Category: Scotland
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The Mighty Ben More
(Written by Grit Eckert) Our team set off in good spirit to complete the run that out of all of them was the longest. On studying the map we learnt that it’ll be 22 miles.Charlotte, Rick and I were defiantly up for it. Half an hour into the run we bumped into the first team…
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Oban to Salen on the Isle of Mull
Scottish Islands Three Peaks Race We weren’t last in the running race but we were almost the last boat over the sailing start line. We had a fair wind and the tide was with us and it was a lovely day so everyone was very happy. The main fleet were pulling ahead but still in sight,…
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The Start
The Race starts with a run over Pulpit Hill near Oban. It’s about 6 miles I think. Grit and I ran it on Wednesday night as a trial but got lost! That was pathetic really but we just missed one turning. We sailed Sumara down from Dunstaffnage to Oban Bay Marina early on Thursday morning…
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Fell Running and Invertors
You may be wondering what happened to my enthusiastic blog. It all started well with lots of posts and then it stopped just as it was going to get exciting. Well my first excuse was that the ship invertor stopped working – it just tripped the contact breaker. I decided against gaffer taping the breaker…
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Things aren’t looking so good! Anyone fancy a run?
Poor John has had to pull out because his chest infection hasn’t cleared up yet. We need to find another runner mighty quick as we will not be allowed to enter without five crew. I’ve tried a few people on the Scottish Islands Three Peaks Race website. One has found a boat and I am…
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Heavily Loaded
I seem to have put in two pictures, we certainly don’t have two Baby Blakes. I’m rubbish at this bloggy stuff but I’ll get the hang of it one day. Here is our kit list. I expect there is something crucial missing but even so when you multiply most of it by five you can imagine…
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A Rather Un-seamanlike Decision
Position Dunstaffnage Marina Gudrun and I decided to spend Monday in Tobermory and to get up very early Tuesday morning to sail the final leg down the Sound of Mull to Dunstaffnage. I had looked roughly at the weather on a grib file and it didn’t seem too bad. The weather on the harbour office…
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“I think that I shall never see,………..
Position N56,37 x W006,03 Wind: Who cares, we are snugged up in Tobermory! ….a poem as lovely as a tree”.Paul Robeson We arrived safely in Tobermory Harbour yesterday afternoon after a really fast down wind sail through the Sea of the Hebrides. Once we were safely tied to the visitors buoy we rowed ashore for…
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“Land Ahoy”
Position N56,41 x W006,41 Wind F4 Westerly rather unstable. Now we are sailing downwind through the Sea of theHebrides with Coll on our starboard bow. We hit some rough seas as the depth dropped from 1000m to about 100m but it is more peaceful now except for the occasional viscous squall which drives through with…
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Boring Bit about Ropes
There has always been a debate about mooring warps. Should they be nylon or polyester? I fall generally into the polyester camp, but only just. Nylon is a bit lighter, a bit stronger, and a bit more stretchy. It does absorb some water and becomes weaker when it is wet but even then it is…