Best time for St Kilda

MM5AHO

MM5AHO

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Thinking of a short trip to St Kilda this summer.
When is the best time? Early, mid or late summer? The weather seems less predictable than usual this year. When am I most likely to not have to scramble back avoiding a gale?
 
It took me three goes before I got there and that was with good weather forecasts ! But the first two ended with Easterlies locally and they are a no-no.
It is it's own weather....

On the last and successful time ( August) a helicopter came over when we were
a couple of miles off and failed to land as in 5 mins. cloud had descended making this impossible and the chopper had to return to Harris without landing.

Perhaps pouring a dramm into the sea will work as much as the w. forecasters!!

Good luck..
 
I've been several times, always in July or August but I would say any time May - September you might get a decent weather window - you absolutely must wait for moderate weather with not too much S in the wind if you want to have a chance of staying overnight. In the right conditions it's a fantastic place to visit.
 
St Kilda

We seem to have been having more easterly weather, in the last few years. More so in the early part of the summer. Anything easterly is a no no for St Kilda, but is excellent for the west side of the Outer Isles.

There is no fixed "best time". You just have to watch how the weather is shaping, and make your own judgement.
 
Agree with NormanS. When I was Officer Commanding St Kilda (from July 94 to January 95), I was persuaded that I had to declare a public holiday when the temperature got to 25 degrees C. I think it was about 15th July.
But we used to get hundreds of yachties and fishermen every year, so it's not too intrepid so long as you're sensible. In extremis, if you got caught out by a south-easterly, you could go to the bay on the north side of the island, home to the incredibly nosey seals.
And don't Google "Spinningdale" - it'll only frighten you.
 
June last year was good! :)

We went last year at the middle of June, a steady NE had been blowing for 2 , almost 3 weeks. Pics here

So an Easterly isn't always a curse, the atlantic swell had almost disappeared, and it was stunning visibility. The past few seasons the weather (around the west coast of scotland) in may and june has been very good, but it is usually better in may and june .

I guess it is basically luck that you get a stable weather system forming like we had.

Chatting to some of the base staff, they said the bay is never particularly sheltered , the swell has a habit of getting into village bay, but that the anchorage is tenable far more than it is comfortable ( we found very good, solid holding, reasonably far off the shore - 1 or 2 cables? - in firm sand). The day we were there the Hebredian princess arrived , so it was a lot busier and less "remote" than we would have liked, so it might be an idea to google "st kilda" cruises before planning trip dates so you can avoid getting there to find it swarming.

Steve
 
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I've also been there in NEerlies, actually more ENE. It made for a great reach, but the swell made Village Bay incredibly rolly -- of the worst sort, harmonic rolling. It would kick in until the gunwhales were literally in the water, then stop, then start all over again. A flopper stopper contrived from a cheap drogue (20-odd quid Plastimo) and a spare length of chain stopped it completely. A Rassy anchored nearby rolled for the whole night. I'd never go there without (a flopper-stopper, not a Rassy).

The swell was by no means enough to stop us going ashore, but it had a barely credible effect on the boat.

Another thought: one of the obvious jumping-off places is the Sound of Harris. The western side is very shallow for quite some distance and must be 'orrible after a westerly blow.
 
macd said:
I've also been there in NEerlies, actually more ENE. It made for a great reach, but the swell made Village Bay incredibly rolly
Click to expand...

We went in a NEasterly last year which made Village Bay just tenable - the worst swell was just outside the normal anchorage. Any significant weather between between NE and SSW may mean that the anchorage is untenable or at best very uncomfortable.

We also had strong N-NE winds the second night we were there which resulted in massive gusts coming over the hills from different directions and a lot of pretty wild veering at anchor.

It was still worth it though - an excellent trip.

- W
 
I have been there quite a few times from April to September. If the swell is bad or Easterlies anchor in Glen Bay on the NW coast. Get right in to the NE corner where it shoals. It's rock and kelp and I use a fishermans anchor. The wind can be fluky in the bay with some down draughts. My crew have gone ashore here and walked up the hill but I would never leave they yacht unattended in Glen Bay.

If you are constrined by the time you can sail out then I would recomend that you prepare for a Glen Bay ancorage.
 
The Azores High (also known as the Azores anticyclone) moves east in May each year, this normally brings a couple of weeks a fair weather to the west of Scotland, which we have found to be a very good time to head west, to StKilda and the like.
 
Thanks for all comments. Have set out three times before, and each time figured the weather wasn't good enough, and changed plans part way, (Canna, Harris etc) but this year I'm more determined.
 
I've been twice, albeit diving rather than sailing. Both times early summer, and both times we headed for Lewis/Harris and waited.

But go. I've been very lucky in my travels, but I'll take St Kilda in my heart when I pop my clogs.
 
Few years ago at Kyle of Lochalsh we met a charter skipper doing a regular Glasgow school week who told us his main business was weekly trips to St Kilda from Stornaway. Said he left every saturday with a full complement of passengers few of whom had ever been sailing. I asked how the beginners enjoyed it, his answer, 'dunno, really, a lot of them we never saw after the Butt of Lewis'. he agreed it was not the most enjoyable passage but he always had plenty of customers who were attracted by the adventure.
 
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