During the first day of June 2010 I set sail in 'Equinox' my 24ft 6' Cornish Crabber from Chichester Marina and headed West down the Solent on a once in a lifetime adventure. Three and a half months later I completed my challenge; having sailed solo around the entire UK; visiting the Scillies, Ireland, Wales, Scotland and the Hebrides; going with huge trepidation over the top via Cape Wrath - the 'big right turn', before the next 'big right turn' heading south, at John o'Groats. This blog is my diary, written most evenings as I took stock of the day's progress; often with a huge lump of Cheddar cheese in hand and a pint of Speckled Hen to keep it company. Sometimes I was almost in tears; tiredness and frustration having taken its toll. Other nights exhuberant after breathtakingly beautiful passages along our stunning coastline with favourable following winds. It describes the ups and downs; the tears and laughter; the extraordinary kindness shown by complete strangers who offered a tired sailor in their midst refuge, solace, warmth and company; their generosity often humbling. My hormones were, I'm sure, in a mess making me perhaps rather vulnerble; as just six months earlier I'd endured the surgical removal of a cancerous prostate gland; laprascopically - a six hour procedure that left me physically weaker than before. You can read the background to the illness and the reasons for the challenge - to raise awareness of this terribe disease; that could have so easily have killed me elsewhere on this blog.

I am indebted to many; and recorded their names elsewhere; but as I reflect on the voyage many months later, I have not fully sung the praise of Cornish Crabbers, the builders of my sturdy little yacht and Roger Dongray the yacht's brilliant designer who drew upon a hull shape that had developed over hundreds of years by men who worked and fished at sea and whose very life depended on their vessel's seaworthiness. It's long keel, sail configuration and weight distribution in seemingly monsterous seas; quite incredible for a yacht so small. A Crabber 24 is not the swiftest yacht to be had for her size, for sure. But what she lacks in that respect she makes up for by her abilty to take heavy weather and harsh conditions in her stride. Built solidly without compromise, Equinox delivered me safely home after a voyage of well over 2500 miles in some of the most hostile and dangerously tidal waters you can find anywhere in Europe. In Wales, for example, the RNLI were phoned by an experienced commercial fisherman watching Equinox from his harbourside office; reporting to them, that a yacht was struggling in heavy seas and a F7 a mile outside the harbour entrance. By the time the lifeboat had been launched, I was tucked up in Aberystwyth marina; a little bruised and battered it has to be said, but safe and sound; I never even saw the lifeboat!

I've recently set up the blog so that readers can cover numerous diary entries in one go. To access earlier diary entries just click on the link 'Older Posts' at the foot of each page. Only a few clicks are needed to get to the entries at the beginning of the voyage and my preparation beforehand.

I hope you enjoy reading it; and if you do, or have done, please be kind enough to leave me a message. For which, in anticipation, I thank you.
The voyage also raised over £10,000 for the Prostate Cancer Charity - not my main goal but those who donated on my 'Just Giving ' page made a huge contribution too; as I was notified by email of each donation as it was made; each raising my spirits immeasurably. My main goal was to encourage 2500 men to get PSA tested - one for each mile sailed; and I beleive that goal was achieved too. And finally, I would also like to thank the growing number of men who have, both during and after the voyage ended, taken a PSA test, as a result of the publicty the voyage attracted; been diagnosed with the disease and taken the time and trouble to email me.

Wednesday, 1 September 2010

Tobermory - Mull - 1st September

A decision to make a very early start to both reach Tobermory before it gets too dark and to get as far away as I can from the tempting entrance to the Caledonian Canal was made over a cup of Ovaltine late last night after hearing the weather forecast!
  You’ve guessed it, Cape Wrath it is! So sneaking out of the bay at 6:45 I had a challenging weave between islands most of which, I’ve never heard of; along with isolated shallow hazards for most of the day before reaching the far end of the Sound of Mull. Again, even though the weather was not too good there were plenty of yachts out and about, mostly motoring; just as they were yesterday and the bulk of them were heading south and going flat out too! Is fuel free up here?
  Between Scarba and Luing another sea otter made an appearance, about 150 yards away, but well within binocular range. This one was about a mile from the nearest land - he must have a Gold ASA Duke of Edinburgh’s swimming badge, stitched on his trunks, by his mum. The sea was about 30 meters deep and on reappearing after a prolonged dive that took well over a minute, hardly took a breath before starting to chew on what looked like a live lamprey to me; with a look on his face as if he was chewing a lemon made of biltong! Just like yesterday - though not on his belly this time. I hate Lampreys. God must have had a hangover the day he made lampreys, wasps and slugs! All utterly pointless, as indeed are midges; a number of which bit me last night around my ears. How they itch! Here's why....A few years back, I turned on my torch to change a fly while night fishing for Sea Trout on the River Taw and there was a lamprey not five feet from me in the eddy created by my wadders! Who needs laxatives! I'll have bad dreams again tonight, having jogged my memory of this awful event .
   So here I am in Tobermory, moored on a visitors buoy with a waterfall pouring into the bay not 200 yards from me and the famous multi coloured houses on the sea front to feast on, with my second hen in hand! The time is 19:45 and all is good with the world, although I’ve sadly had to run the engine for over half of the day, as the wind was sulking! Still 32 miles covered and much of it north.
   Pretty much the same weather is forecasted tomorrow with Mallaig the target; round about the same distance to cover as today. Cape Wrath is getting closer!
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