Cuan Sound

[[2574]]

Intend making our first Cuan Sound transit later this week. The pilot says the ebb (west to east) is at its strongest in the first two hours after Oban HW. So I thought we'd make our way at Oban HW +4; I'd welcome opinion on this strategy and any other helpful tips.

Thanks

Rob

 

[AngusMcDoon]

I go through when it's slack water & use Antares charts. Never had any trouble.

 

[dunedin]

Check the weather forecast. Can be nasty (albeit briefly) coming out with a strong stream into a brisk Westerly or South Westerly.
You have the Pilot so know about the rocks near the Eastern approach and the Cleit Rock.
Otherwise, be prepared and enjoy a trouble free passage.

 

[wully1]

The submerged rock opposite Cleit Rock is the only nasty thing you need to worry about..

 

[Hadenough]

Febuary! 1994. Left Ardfern on my Yachtmaster Offshore exam thinking my biggest problem was getting Dorus Mor right. Then the examiner, told me to plot a course to Oban through Cuan sound! What fun. Still here though.

 

[Amulet]

You'll be fine as long as you have the tide with you. Any lumpy water is very localised. Rumour has it that if you drop your sails and switch off your engine it'll squirt you through harmlessly. (I'm not advising you to try that!) I have a piddly wee boat and but have gone through often in each direction at various stages in the tide with no problem, and I'm quite a scaredy pants usually.

 

[JumbleDuck]

You'll be fine as long as you have the tide with you. Any lumpy water is very localised.

I went through at full chat ebb a couple of weeks ago with my young crew at the helm. I gave occasional words of guidance, but it's really pretty straightforward. The important thing is to spot the beacon on Cleit Rock and head just north of it. That keeps you clear of the Lurking Rock of Doom and the current (there is a noticeable slope to the sea) pushes you well away from Cleit Rock. Decide beforehand whether you are going to stick close to the north of Torsa (I do) or keep well clear to avoid the two rocks there

Rumour has it that if you drop your sails and switch off your engine it'll squirt you through harmlessly.

BTDTGTTS. I was ghosting through under sail at a time when I had no engine on my Jouster when one of the Yahoos who ferried school children to Outward Bound-style courses on Scarba in those days decided to buzz me at full speed in his rib, just as I passed the ferry. The wash lost me what little steering control I had, and I made three complete 360^o turns as I was swept through, completely out of control. Never went near any hazards.

 

[JumbleDuck]

Can be nasty (albeit briefly) coming out with a strong stream into a brisk Westerly or South Westerly..

Can be nasty going in then too. The stretch between Easdale and the Cuan Sound entrance is the most consistently nasty one I know. Any wind seems to provide a vicious chop at any state of tide. Doesn't last long, though.

 

[zoidberg]

I used to shut my eyes.....

 

[agurney]

This might help for working out when Cuan changes

 

[wully1]

Can be nasty going in then too. The stretch between Easdale and the Cuan Sound entrance is the most consistently nasty one I know. Any wind seems to provide a vicious chop at any state of tide. Doesn't last long, though.

known locally as ‘Queez-dale’ for obvious reasons...

 

[cindersailor]

The CCC pilot advises against going south of the Cleit rock, but the Antares chart shows that this is a perfectly viable option and avoids negotiating the narrow section of the passage; tides in this area are relatively weak in my experience. Some nice anchorages in the SE corner too near the entrance to the shallow passage through to Ardinamir.

 

[Aja]

The CCC pilot advises against going south of the Cleit rock, but the Antares chart shows that this is a perfectly viable option and avoids negotiating the narrow section of the passage; tides in this area are relatively weak in my experience. Some nice anchorages in the SE corner too near the entrance to the shallow passage through to Ardinamir.

I've seen tides of >6 knots getting squeezed through the small gap in the Cuan sound and have found it interesting. If you find tides in the area to be relatively weak, where are you sailing ?

Donald

 

[cindersailor]

I was referring to the area south and east of the cleit rock.

 

[webcraft]

Can be nasty going in then too. The stretch between Easdale and the Cuan Sound entrance is the most consistently nasty one I know. Any wind seems to provide a vicious chop at any state of tide. Doesn't last long, though.

We always go through Easdale Sound if going N/coming S to avoid this bit of unpleasantness and shorten the passage.

Having said that, I would not advise anyone to transit Easdale Sound without local knowledge.

- W

 

[Deleted member 36384]

..... Having said that, I would not advise anyone to transit Easdale Sound without local knowledge .....

I was thinking that as well, but then remember that many do it that are not local and don't have local knowledge. With a bit of care, decent pilotage that is more than watching the plotter, it is quite doable.

An old chart that shows the dangers https://maps.nls.uk/view/101953133

 

[[2574]]

This might help for working out when Cuan changes

Someone's been busy with a spreadsheet - thank you!

 

[agurney]

I was thinking that as well, but then remember that many do it that are not local and don't have local knowledge. With a bit of care, decent pilotage that is more than watching the plotter, it is quite doable.

An old chart that shows the dangers https://maps.nls.uk/view/101953133

.. and here's what it looks like when the wind gets up:

 

[dunedin]

We always go through Easdale Sound if going N/coming S to avoid this bit of unpleasantness and shorten the passage.

Having said that, I would not advise anyone to transit Easdale Sound without local knowledge.

- W

Easdale isn’t an alternative to Cuan. And in a bumpy westerly just looks like a way to stay closer to a rocky lee shore for longer?
Antares Charts has surveyed Easdale as well. Doesn’t look too attractive to me, with narrow safe entrance at East side, and quite a lot of rock extending into the channel side of the Red pillar on the West side.
But generally we shoot up and down the Sound of Luing then pass safely West of this.

 

[A1Sailor]

I went through at full chat ebb a couple of weeks ago with my young crew at the helm. I gave occasional words of guidance, but it's really pretty straightforward. The important thing is to spot the beacon on Cleit Rock and head just north of it. That keeps you clear of the Lurking Rock of Doom and the current (there is a noticeable slope to the sea) pushes you well away from Cleit Rock. Decide beforehand whether you are going to stick close to the north of Torsa (I do) or keep well clear to avoid the two rocks there

It reminds me of my river canoeing days! Very hard to hit rocks in a canoe if the water is flowing round it - but the draft of ~3 inches helps enormously.