Gibson Cup – Six yachts cruise in company

Six yachts cruise in company

Approaching the Mull of Kintyre

Yachts Jaynor, Oribi, Silver Gare, Froliki, Artic Tern, Nordic Tern

Dates 9 July – 17 July 2021

Cruising in a small yacht can be lonely and often quite isolated. Most of us have difficulty in finding crews so a cruise-in-company provides support if things go wrong and opportunities for people to meet. This is the story of our cruise from Rhu in July 2021.

Our boats started to gather at Rhu on Friday 9 July. The plan was for three boats to sail from Rhu, Jaynor, Nick Savva, Oribi, Peter Greenwell and Silver Gare, Gilmour Manuel. Two more, Arctic Tern, Jim Brown and Nordic Tern, Michael Jane, were to sail from Ardfern. As they say, one good tern deserves another. The sixth and final boat was Frolika, Ewan Mackay, which we chartered from Seaspray Yacht Charter. Apart from Frolika, we were all to meet at Port Ellen. Ewan didn’t want to subject his young and possibly seasick prone family to long passages, so he went from Oban to Spelve and then to Colonsay.

I was to sail on Silver Gare with Gilmour and Janet. Silver Gare had been at Dumbarton ashore for three months for repairs to her 85 year old timbers, and was only launched the day before we were due to sail, so she was leaking badly when she reached Rhu. Fortunately, she had taken up sufficiently by the following day to allow us to sail, but it was a scary start.

Rhu to Kip to Port Ellen

We sailed with the ebb tide on Friday evening, Oribi left before us while Jaynor followed on Saturday. The wind was SW F2 to 3, so very light. We stopped for the night at Kip Marina, to allow the boat to take up a bit more. By Saturday, the automatic bilge pumps were only working occasionally, so we were able to head for Campbeltown.

We left Kip at 10:00 with no wind and an overcast day. Silver Gare cruises at eight knots with her twin Perkins 4108s doing 2,000 revs, which is very comfortable. We made good time to Campbeltown, leaving Arran to port, arriving at about 16:00. We were joined soon after we arrived by Nick Savva and Mo on Jaynor.

The following day we rounded the Mull, which was quite placid. Jaynor sailed with us. With a good following tide and clear calm weather, we made good time to Port Ellen. Oribi, Nordic Tern and Arctic Tern were already there, berthed on the very comfortable marina pontoons. Jaynor joined us about an hour later.

That night, Gilmour, Janet and myself had been invited by Peter Greenwell for dinner on Oribi. John Brown on Arctic Tern had arranged to eat in the Port Ellen Hotel but they all joined us for drinks on Oribi before they left. 

Peter Greenwell cooked us a full Sunday roast, no mean feat on a Moody 33 with two burners. It was delicious. After that we staggered across to the neighbours, Jaynor, for drinks with Nick and Mo. Then we got the news. England had lost to Italy on penalties, so we had another drink, some to drown our sorrows and some to celebrate.

Dining well on a Moody 33

Port Ellen to Bunessan

Monday was glorious. Silver Gare left last. There was little wind as usual so we caught up with the others quite quickly. We sailed inside Texa and out round the Ardmore Islands, and then through the Sound of Islay, which was spectacular. With the tide we were making 12 knots over the ground through fabulous scenery. Our American guest, Janet, was most impressed. We reached Scalasaig at about 17:00 where Ewan and Frolika were already waiting for us, having spent the previous day paddle boarding in Loch Spelve.

He had anchored Frolika just to the north of a line subtended from the RoRo pier. The designated anchorage is shown on Navionics just to the south of that line, which directly obstructs the approach to the RoRo terminal. Having anchored, and settled down for the night we were roused by the ferry, Clansman, who wanted us all to move, otherwise he would refuse to berth. We all moved to his satisfaction but he was delayed. It would be helpful if there was an area shown on the chart in which we were prohibited from anchoring to allow the ferry safe approach to the RoRo terminal.

We were also puzzled as to why boards placed for berthing yachts should be designated as ‘unsafe structures’. My family were already ashore when we arrived but we were soon reunited on board Frolika. We all went ashore in search of a drinking establishment but all were either shut or full, so we stayed on board. After the problem with Clansman I think we all felt a bit down, so we stayed on board anyway. Emma Jane, Mike’s daughter, was on Clansman so she got the ferry’s side of the story.

Tuesday dawned overcast but calm, so we all went ashore and walked round Colonsay. Because of the mist, we couldn’t see very much. There was a very good, wellstocked shop, which sold anything we needed. The anchor windlass on Silver Gare had failed so Ewan had to lift the anchor by hand. Silver Gare was still leaking up forward, so Gilmour elected to leave the group and sailed straight to Dunstaffnage for a lift out and repair.

Frolika left at 11:20 heading for the Sound of Iona. After rounding the north end of Colonsay, we got a decent slant for the south coast of Mull, making landfall on Mull to the east of the Torran Rocks. We unrolled the genoa and motor-sailed at eight knots, in a steady south-westerly breeze. We skirted the north side of the Torran Rocks and anchored in the Sound south of the ferry pier and went ashore. The island was beautiful but, due to Covid, the cathedral was closed. Still, we had a very pleasant family walk and the shops were open. We upped anchor and motored round to Bunessan, Loch na Laithaich, where the rest of the group were waiting.

Peter Greenwell, resourceful as ever, had a gas barbecue, table and chairs on board. We all took our own burgers and went ashore on Eilean Ban, which is a tiny island in the middle of the loch. One of us had plenty of midge repellent so we had an excellent BBQ on the island. Unfortunately, Ewan, Jackie and the boys were not able to join us because they had not been fully vaccinated.

Bunessan to Oban

Wednesday 14 July, Bunessan to Arinagour, was dull and misty, with little wind, so not good for sailing. We motored towards Staffa where the place was like Piccadilly Circus. There was a square rigger, Lady of Avanel, and countless motorboats with lots of people wandering round the island. There were scores of puffins flying around, not very impressed at all that humans were taking over their island. After that, the breeze freshened, and we were able to deploy both our sails, including our in-mast furling main.

After a little practice, we found that the in-mast furling worked quite well and we had a good sail between the Treshnish Islands to Arinagour on Coll. We tied up to one of the laid moorings in the anchorage but there was a horrible swell rolling in. We all had a very uncomfortable night and were glad to get away in the morning. Sadly, the hostelries ashore were either full or closed, so we couldn’t gather as a group.

Unfortunately, we had to return our very comfortable chartered Bavaria 42 to Oban on Saturday morning, so Thursday was our last night with the group. We booked tables for 11 at McGochans in Tobermory which is a very good pub next to the marina. It had reopened after a fire and served us a very good pub grub meal. It was an excellent evening after which we repaired to Oribi for Peter’s usual hospitality. The group said how much they had enjoyed the cruise-in-company, which was a new experience for them. I was asked when I would be doing another.

We had to fuel up before the morning rush so we had to get up at 07:00 to get our place on the fuel pontoon. No fuel was available at Oban, and we had to return the boat full. We had our best day’s sailing down the Sound of Mull in a steady SW F3 doing a tide-assisted five knots in glorious sunshine. It doesn’t get much better. We had a family dinner, just the six of us, at the Pizza Place on the pier.

We handed back Frolika to Seaspray Yacht Charter. The process was hassle-free and friendly. The boat was given to us in good order and we returned it full of fuel and in the same order. We gave them a list of minor faults, which helped them. We went round to Dunstaffnage to check on Gilmour. Silver Gare was just going back in the water after a minor repair, so all was well. He and Janet were planning on heading for Loch Aline.

All in all the cruise was a success which I hope we will repeat.

The Paps of Jura

Reay MacKay