DAY EIGHTEEN - SCRABSTER TO LOSSIEMOUTH

No sooner had we put Cape Wrath behind us it was time to focus on the next, and almost more challenging prospect, the notorious Pentland Firth.   The Firth is the stretch of water which separates the Orkney Islands from Caithness, and is well known for the strength of its tides, being among some of the fastest in the world, a speed of 16 knots being reported close west of Pentland skerries.  The force of the tides give rise to overfalls and tidal races, which can be extremely dangerous at certain points of tide and wind direction.  All credit to Simon and Anthony, a huge amount of research had been done in the days preceding our passage, and last night at Scrabster they spent a very useful time with the Harbour Master gleaning more local knowledge and putting together a passage plan in relation to the current conditions of wind and tide.  It was decided that in order to pass through the Pentland Firth at the optimum time we must be on our boats and away out of the harbour at 7.00am, so it was an early start this morning!
The wind was already very strong as we walked down to the boats in the half light, and no sooner had we made our way out of the harbour entrance we were hit with a good Force 5-6 westerly as we made our way across the bay to Dunnet Head.  Once around the Head, we kept in close to shore to try and optimise the benefit of being in the lee, and were able to get a good view of Castle Mey overlooking Mey Bay to the Orkneys, which were barely visible in the half light of early morning.
Soon the tell tale signs of lines of white water began to appear, and we strained to make out what would be our best route through the first race.  Although Si had plotted a course, there was no way of knowing on the Garmin what would be our best route through, and it reminded me very much of hunting, lining up the first jump, choosing your moment, summoning as much confidence as you can muster and kicking on!!  Anthony and I spied our opening, and through we went.  I was at the helm and for a split second felt lost in the confusion of big waves and churning sea sending you every which way, but luckily saw our opening and we were very quickly through and out the other side.

John O'Groats

The next race we would encounter was off John O' Groats, and again on our approach the white spumes of water told their own story.  However, right in tight to Duncansby Head the way looked relatively clear and we even had time to slow down and take a photo, much to the amusement of several seals which were complacently bobbing about, blissfully unworried by the marine maelstrom taking place behind them.
It was a great feeling to have both Cape Wrath and Pentland  Firth now behind us, and to be heading south!  The wind was blowing hard and we had the sea on our nose, so we again decided to tuck in tight to the land as much as we could to make it more comfortable.  The advantage of this being we saw a fantastic series of castles in Sinclair Bay, including Castle Sinclair Grinigoe, supposedly the finest medieval/renaissance castle in the north of Scotland, and currently the subject of a preservation programme.  We also paused to admire another beautifully maintained castle, which seemed the perfect story-book castle by the sea.

A picture-book castle by the sea in Sinclair Bay

Once around Noss Head we were heading into Wick, our early morning start catching up with us and in dire need of hot tea and a good breakfast.  Wick is another small port which was incredibly prosperous due to herring fishing in the nineteenth century.  We spent a happy hour in the local harbour-side cafe, enjoying gargantuan breakfasts and slowly starting to warm up.

Coffee morning at Helmsdale

Once out of Wick we had to face what seemed like an interminable journey down the coast towards Helmsdale in lousy conditions, with the sea absolutely on the nose and working hard for every mile, the only consolation being that the sun was starting to come through and a brightening sky promised a good day ahead.  At Helmsdale we moored up alongside and made a brew on the pontoon, enjoying the sunshine and the views of the much softer east-coast landscapes.  On leaving Helmsdale we discovered that the wind had decreased a little, and we we able to begin crossing over the Moray Firth to our overnight stop of Lossiemouth.   The wind was now more on our beam, and we were able to make up time and get the boats back up to productive speeds.
The entrance to Lossiemouth Harbour is charming, almost French in feel, and I was delighted to see a very Australian style white sand beach on our approach!  Home from home!

Lossiemouth Beach in the late afternoon sun

Distance travelled:  94.2 nautical miles
Time travelling:  6 hours and 4 minutes
Average speed: 15.5 knots
Total trip: 1,294 nautical miles