If I Ever Get Better.

Haydn,

Have you "done" Strangford lough? Alledgedly a very nice place now the troubles have susided & the risk of a "Mountbatten" is lower unless MF decides to blow herself up! Also Rathlin Island has interesting approaches & currents.

I wouldn't want to miss Jura on the way up, very good malt there.


As to canals from Wales - apart from the Servern nav which is mostly English, the Welsh canals are all too thin for MF!
 
This sounds more like the Haydn we all know.
Well if you plan on going up to Oban and Tobermory.
Then the Caladonian is a super experience to do it justice you need a least a week to 10 days.
Yes I know you can go end to end in a day and a half flat out but there are so many places to stop at and enjoy Pubs, Castles even the locks are fun they all have keepers and they are very helpful.
It is a bit difficult sometimes chucking the pick out it's often too steep near the shore and the bottoms a mix of slate and rocks.
The cruising instructions tell you to not go too near the edges but then what do they know,
I had just spent 6 years bumping about the bottom of the Great Lakes of Canada and Hudson's bay on 7,000 toners so we went any way.:D
There weren't the moorings and pontoons in the early days they have now.
Shale if you are lucky the trick we did was chuck out the pick and motor stern to the shore and take a line to a tree, the pick grabbed on the steep bit and would hold quite well, that way you might only have 15 to 20 feet to row ashore.
So you will need a reliable calibrated DS the bottom is bluddy hard and there are not many soft bits.:D
Here is a link to Caley Cruisers:-
http://www.caleycruisers.com/index.asp

It has lots of info on it albeit it aimed at the holiday beginner.
Lots of info of the whole area and well worth a look at their video pages any way.
The Admiralty chart you need is 1791.

We did it in April 1979 on their then new Highland Admiral booked it at LBS.
the class is still going they now call it the Highland Commander.
When you do this trip stuff some picys and a report on the NW Mob in the Community Social Group.:)
Cheers David.
 
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You ever come across a boat called D9, ex Navy. Moored in Stourport last time I knew. About a three foot square wheel house. The saloon down a hatch, bit like a submarine.

I don't think I've seen this one, but might have run over it. We did ding a prop somewhere up there, then bounced around in one of the locks on a really windy day. Can get expensive on the river.
 
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