WARNING - AMAZING DEAL - SUMMER SAILING VOYAGE

Where: Oban to Largs 28th July to 2nd August 2013

Cost: Superb Special price of £399 per person

Summary:

We have the opportunity to provide a superb summer cruise around the Islands and Highlands of the West coast of Scotland to the general public. During your time on board the boat, with other guests you will learn all necessary sailing skills, to help handle this super sail training ketch.

The cost of the trip includes all your food (ingredients), your lodging and instruction. You will simply be required to get to Oban Marina (Train) and leave from Largs Marina (Train). Whilst on board the boat you will be expected to help out with all aspects of daily living (cooking, washing up, sailing).

The detail:

The trip is 5 nights 6 days, departing from Oban Marina at 6pm on the 28th July and arriving into Largs Marina by 2nds August. The sailing route will be dependent on the crew and the prevailing conditions, but could include stops at Mull, Colinasy Jura Islay and possibly Northern Ireland and the mighty Mull of Kintyre.

Opportunities will be available to leave the boat for short forays onto the shore, to visit marinas, villages and hostelries, any extra spends on these at your own expense.

This trip will sell out fast!

To reserve your place please email cwright@patterdalehall.org.uk you will then need to complete a booking form and return non refundable deposit. There are only 8 places available. Adults only (unless accompanied by a guardian).

Read more about Sail Training on board Tenacity of Bolton at http://www.tenacityofbolton.org/

The return voyage from Largs.

The delivery crew of Steve, Colin, Jessie, Chris and Jim were all keen to get going from Largs. With a forecast for the next 48 hours of E4/5 we were looking forward to some good sailing. We charged out of the marina, up went the sails, down went the wind, down came the sails and we were forced to motor to our first nights destination of Lamlash. We anchored just off the Buddhist retreat on Holy Island, a very picturesque setting.






Ailsa Craig slides by



Day 2 dawned and by 08.45 we were heading south towards Ailsa Craig, The Mull of Galloway and home. The forecast however had different ideas, predicting SE6/7, what happened to that pleasant E4/5? Down past Ailsa Craig and Loch Ryan we had a pleasant easterly but on rounding the headland at Loch Ryan the wind veered and increased to a SE 6/7 (as forecast) occasionally gusting to gale force winds. After some hours of tacking and getting nowhere against a foul tide the decision was made to go close inshore and motor. The coastline was interesting enough with Portpatrick looking like a very pleasant little harbour, but we pressed on. Finally having missed the tide at the Mull of Galloway we anchored very close inshore at Port Logan some 7 miles north of the Mull. It offered us just enough protection to get some hard earned kip.



Is it really that cold out there?



Up at 04.30 the next morning we weighed anchor and were on our way by just before 5am. The wind had diminished but what there was still from the wrong direction so we motored past the Mull and through the overfalls. With the favourable tide we raced around the Point of Ayre on the northern tip of the Isle of Man. At this point the wind died altogether and we motored through the poor visibility passed the wind farms and finally to anchor at the end of the river Lune to wait for the tide to take us to Glasson. Having had a very enjoyable Pasta Carbonara for supper we weighed anchor at 11.45 for the night time Pilotage up the river. The mist had gone and everyone enjoyed a settled trip, picking out the lights of the next buoy in turn. We entered the outer harbour at 01.10 and tied up to the harbour wall waiting to be locked in the next day.

Home safe and well we did a lot more motoring than we wanted but with SE 7/8 on the weekend forecast we were pleased to in a safe haven.





Largs to Glasson Delivery trip

Read more about Sail Training on board Tenacity of Bolton at http://www.tenacityofbolton.org/

Long hard last day.

Anchored back in the beautiful town of Millport, all crew members enjoy a well earned rest after our hardest day yet. Today has been eventful to say the least.

After a good kip moored in East Loch Tarbert, all hands were on deck by 9:00, moorings ready to be slipped. Skipper Ian skilfully helmed the boat through the narrow channel that lead us back into larger waters. Soon enough, the mizzen, main and headsail were hoisted fully and the boat made good way, everyone was huddled in the cockpit, sheltering well away from the high winds in which we found ourselves. Our rest was halted as there was a loud bang from the port beam and the headsail began to waver in a menacing manner. A pulley, integral to the workings of the headsail, had been bent and twisted until it could hold no more! The 15-20+ knot winds had proved very over powering to our humble vessel. A quick and well handled tack ensured that no more strain was put on our magnificent ship. Skipper Ian moved downstairs and left Tenacity in the hands of Peter Mackin. We made good progress upwind and, with around 5 knots of boatspeed twinned with some skilfull helming, managed to dodge the many treacherous and endangering lobsterpots, laid down by some sly fishermen. Hiren Patel was the first to fall victim to sea sickness, however, he kept it down like a man and fought with valiance.

After Peter had guided tenacity into some sheltered waters, the entrance to another loch, and the crew had rapidly (apart from Abhinav) devoured a sausage butty, Alex Johnson took the helm and steered our vessel downwind in the more benign but still gusty waters. Progress was smooth and with a short beat, including a seemingly endless stream of tacks, destroying the progress of the two Hestons downstairs (Sam and Will), we arrived at our beautiful and picturesque lunch spot. Both Hestons provided the crew with a well deserved hearty meal, despite once again disregarding a fellow crew member and leaving him to starve in the wilderness.

Next upon the helm was Abhinav, who motor-sailed Tenacity up the final lengths of the beautiful loch, surrounded by the all encompassing beauty of the Isle of Bute. Our passage was plagued with big changes in wind direction, causing the ship and crew to be shaken and stirred. That was not the end of our misfortune. The reefing system for the headsail had once again failed and immense strain was put upon the enduring crew in order to get the system to work. Abhinav stayed at the helm all the way to Millport and shortly before entering the harbour put the boat through even more tacks, pushing the crew to the brink. These tasks were made infinitely easier by the incredibly fast hands of Sam Cordingley and Peter Mackin, who completed their task with vigour and determination. However even Sam couldn’t keep up with the blurry hands of Mackin.

 

Millport has once again proved an invaluable place of calm and solitude, where the crew of such a demanding vessel can rest and recover from their hard and invigorating days work.

Dinner was prepared once again by Sam and Will, who made use of the various spices kept on board to flavour their concoctions with copious amounts of chilli flakes. However, their twist on fish and (chilli) chips went down a treat and all the crew felt satisfied, not only by the laughter after observing the pair’s alternative cooking methods, including wills exuberant and extremely effective methods of crushing garlic. Both the Ians and the rest of the crew are now resting and enjoying a good chocolate cookie.

Abhinav and Peter

Loch Fyne

After 8 hours of sailing, we find ourselves moored up at a marina at East Loch Tarbert. Yet again we’ve had a busy day after an early start of 7.30. It was all go right from the off as we had to slip the mooring buoy that we had tied ourselves to, to keep ourselves safe, during the night, which was particularly rocky. After we had skilfully slipped the buoy, we started heading north up Loch Fyne. But a surprise was on its way when Hiren took the helm and managed to take the vessel to a record speed of 8.6 knots, a new best by almost 2 knots. But the elation was short-lived as the computer only recorded a speed of 8.3 knots.


Around 1.10, the crew jumped to stations in order to lower the anchor for the lunch stop, which the skipper had selected to be, at the entrance to Loch Gair almost 18 nautical miles up Loch Fyne. Surrounded on either side by steep snow-topped mountains, we sailed at a fairly fast speed down Loch Fyne. The journey was relatively uneventful however, 30 minutes in, the wind picked up, forcing skilled helmsman, Peter Mackin, to get us through this tough patch of sea.

Fortunately, Peter managed to get through without a scratch. Downstairs, record-breaker Hiren Patel, and his partner, Alex Johnson began making a scrumptious scone platter, before coming back up to help moor the boat at East Loch Tarbert. After this incredible manoeuvre, done with expert skill and ease, easily showing off the boys quick learning skills, and quiet efficiency, Hiren and Alex made a luscious mix of chicken fillets, bell peppers and onion for the mouth-watering fajitas. Unfortunately, one member of the crew (Will), got a bit too greedy with his first fajita and at the end, Abhinav Kumar could not have a second. Fresh from his embarrassment of the previous nights beef rice fiasco, Will was very apologetic and Abhinav shrugged his hunger off like a man.

The highlight of the night was most definitely the chance for us all to get a good shower. As we washed the grime and dirt from between pores in our skin, we realised how long we had been at sea and how quick it had gone.

Now, we go to bed, looking forward to the final full day of this voyage of epic proportions.

Hiren Patel (Record-breaker) and Alex Johnson (previous record-breaker)

Sunday 7th April

After two days without us, Holt and Cordingley are back! At present, we sit moored in Loch Ranza, singing along to Katy Perry’s ‘Hot ‘n’ Cold’.


We had a shaky start to the day, discovering that there had been a theft overnight. Having purchased a reasonably priced pack of toilet rolls the night before in Campbeltown. Out of the goodness of our hearts, the rolls were left in the public toilets as we tried to give something back to the town which had welcomed us with open arms. However, upon visiting the toilets again in the early morning, we were horrified to discover that the rolls had been stolen by a new gang of local youths. As you can probably imagine this led to widespread panic among the group, as we hunted down a fresh roll. As things were becoming increasingly desperate, Cordingley ventured heroically into the unchartered territory of the lady’s toilets to recover a roll, as Holt looked on in pure disgust. Luckily, five to ten minutes later, the situation was relieved and we all returned to the boat in comfort.

We set sail from Campbeltown at around 9 o’clock this morning, and have sailed all day to Loch Ranza, without the aid of the engine. During the journey, we encountered a vessel of the naval variety, spotted by Cordingley on the approaching horizon, just off the port bow. As we drew closer, it became apparent that they were heading straight towards us, and showed no signs of backing down. As the severity of the situation increased, Mackin called for an ‘attack jibe’, much to the confusion of his comrades. After the ‘attack jibe’ was explained to us and executed, the naval vessel fled in terror, and we were free to continue on our original course.

Upon arrival at Loch Ranza, Holt and Cordingley once again began work in the kitchen to prepare tea. It could be said that the pair made the chilli dish look easy, but it was not without it’s dramas. The paramount of which was a slight cultural error on our part. As a result of Cordingley’s ingenuity in the kitchen, and a desire to add flavour and colour to boring rice, as witnessed on previous nights, the pair added a beef stock cube to the rice, which threw up some severe ramifications, namely that Hiren cannot eat beef. Luckily, the dynamic duo recognised the error of their ways before serving, and poor Hiren had to make do without rice, but selflessly settled for more Doritos with his ‘sensational’ chilli.

As expected, the banter is yet to cease, and the trip has so far turned out to be very enjoyable.

Written by Will Holt and Mr Sam Cordingley (the dynamic duo)

Read more about Sail Training on board Tenacity of Bolton at http://www.tenacityofbolton.org/

Saturday 6th April

We set of from Lamlash at the usual time of 9 o’clock in attempt to reach Campbelltown before tea. We had our usual breakfast of cereal and second breakfast of sausage butties made by Alex and Hiren. A short distance from Lamlash we began motoring with full canvas hoisted. After a number of dramatic wind shifts, the wind became more stable and we were able to switch the engine of and continue our voyage under sail. We made good progress which allowed everyone to have a go at the helm. The most notable improvement was Will, despite his erratic course yesterday his steering was pretty much straight. We once again had lunch on deck thanks to the pleasant weather. During our lunch break, we spotted a submarine motoring along the surface across our path to Campbletown. Everyone on board stared at it in wonder, enjoying the lunch prepared by Sam and Will. After lunch we completed the final few miles into Campbletown and, after a short lull, docked on the visitors pontoon, guided by Ian, our skipper.

The antics continued during free time, which included a trip into the town so the crew could make use of the facilities, despite Campbletowns lack of toilet paper, disaster was averted. Will and Sam decided a quick dip in the sea was the best way to wind down after a long, hard day on deck. The result, inevitably, was a soaked pair of joggers and trainers. Being on a yacht, the best course of action to take, in Peter and Alex’s eyes at least, was to hoist Wills wet clothes up to the spreaders and see how long it would take to notice...the answer, a stupidly long time, (well done Will). Dinner prepared by Peter and Abhinav, was plagued with issues, ranging from crew distractions, and problems with the hob having two less heat rings than was needed! Nonetheless dinner was on the table and consisted of a huge pan full of Bolognese and pasta. This went down well and to many crew members’ amazement, the table and all plates and pans, were left empty! Success!

Before our expedition tomorrow, a few supplies were needed, after a short while searching for the co-op, a essential for any real town, let’s be honest, the shopping was complete and all crew members are eager to begin our intrepid adventure into the ‘Wilderness’.

Peter and Abhinav.

Read more about Sail Training on board Tenacity of Bolton at http://www.tenacityofbolton.org/