Loch Feochan - entry and exit planning advice

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West Coast

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For those of you whoever been into Loch Feochan (south of Oban) what advice can you give me regarding entry and exit of this loch? I have the Sailing Directions, but looking for any local knowledge, especially with regards to tide timings. My boat is 35' starlight, with 1.5m draft
 
Not the answer you wanted, I have never gone in but drive past the entrance frequently, it looks tricky at low tide, and with such a big loch above a narrow curving entrance channel the tides will be strong. The boatyard and moorings there are operated by Ardoran Marine but there is no entrance details on their website but they do publish tides. I believe they also buoy the channel. Might be worth contacting them. The North shore where they are is quite remote with a single track road winding down from Oban, but the main road to Oban from Croabh skirts the south side, pretty enough but nothing special.
I had a conversation with a guy at Trig and Truish (sic) who kept his boat there and he was having a few pints while waiting for the tide to go in, so it sounds like there is a gate. He did tell me his mooring rates and they sounded competitive.
 
I've been in. The tide was running with us and it took all my Swellies experience. It was foolhardy but we hit nothing. It is well buoyed and at slack water should be fine.

The website of Ardoran Marine has tidal details and a chartlet. After all there is a boatyard up there, so many yachts must go in and out safely.
 
The reason I am asking is that I have booked a mooring there with Ardoran Marine for a month to used for long weekend sailing in the Oban area.
 
I was in there on Wednesday / Thursday this week. The entrance is narrow and shallow, and runs like a burn, but is very well buoyed. Local LW is anything up to 2 hours later than Oban. I went in at about half flood, and although very fast, it was nothing to worry about, although you do need to watch your steering. I had hoped to come out at local LW the next day, but coming down the loch, I could see a "dries 0.6m" rock showing about 0.3m. The LW (Oban) was supposed to be1.2m, so either the fairly high pressure had depressed the sea level, or the given drying height of the rock is wrong. Either way, I wasn't risking it, and anchored, and had a cup of coffee, till the tide came in some more.

I probably waited until the tide had come in at least 0.3m, and then of course had to fight the flood to get out. The tide seems very strong, but it was really no more than 2.5kn, but the effect is magnified by the narrowness and shallowness of the channel. With a draft of 1.4m, the least depth under the keel was 0.9m. That would be at about half-tide Oban, but remember the two-hour delay.

IIRC Bob Bradfield's Antares Charts shows a least depth in the entrance of 0.9m. It struck me as a very attractive loch.
 
You might find it useful to get a copy of Antares charts, if you're out west for a few weeks. Not least because they have a very detailed chart of the Feochan entrance.
 
I keep my boat (1.5m draft) at Adoran. There are several local boats of 1.8+m who don't have a problem.The entrance is tortuous and the channel narrow. Around high water there is plently of depth in the channel, the problem is the speed of the current which can submerge the rather inconspicious marker buoys, and make them hard to spot. If you come in with the current, its can bit scary, with several high speed turns. Get the timing right, close to HW, and its very straightforward. As a first timer, I would suggest waiting till HW in Little Horshoe Bay, or, better, Barnacarry Bay and coming in right on HW. Fingers crossed, you won't find this coming the other way:RED_PRINCESS_837414.570x1140.jpg It's scheduled to do some pick ups in the Loch this summer!
 
biscuit said:
I keep my boat (1.5m draft) at Adoran. There are several local boats of 1.8+m who don't have a problem.The entrance is tortuous and the channel narrow. Around high water there is plently of depth in the channel, the problem is the speed of the current which can submerge the rather inconspicious marker buoys, and make them hard to spot. If you come in with the current, its can bit scary, with several high speed turns. Get the timing right, close to HW, and its very straightforward. As a first timer, I would suggest waiting till HW in Little Horshoe Bay, or, better, Barnacarry Bay and coming in right on HW. Fingers crossed, you won't find this coming the other way:View attachment 51728 It's scheduled to do some pick ups in the Loch this summer!
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Hi biscuit, you would see that I referred to a drying rock, which IICR dries 0.6m on the BA chart. It's the one to the north of the island, marked with a wee yellow buoy, with "rock" on it, east of Ardoran. As I said earlier, on Thursday it was showing about 0.3m. Is the chart wrong, or was the tide lower than expected?
 
Sorry, Norman S, I really don't know the answer to that question.
I have never tackled the channel at low water, to do so would take more faith- in both local chart accuracy (Antares included) and local tidal predictions- than I posess. Even near HW the Depth finder readings can be very disconcerting (probably weed?). I am never in a great hurry, so am happy to wait until near HW as a rule. But I can see the advantages of a LW depart: carrying the flood up the Sd of Mull and Loch Linne in particular.
 
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I have been based here since 2009 and have experienced no difficulty whatsoever. My Rival 34 draws 1.48 metres so I generally try to avoid low water, but even then it is rare for there to be insufficient depth.
 
ianj99 said:
Antares very large scale charts would be useful to you. There are two charts for the loch, the entrance and Ardentallen bay to Eilean an Ruisg

http://antarescharts.co.uk
Click to expand...

Silly me. I have Antares Charts, but hadn't noticed the existence of the second chart, for further into the loch. The rock to the north of Eilean an Ruisg, which the BA chart shows drying 0.6m is shown on Antares as drying 1.7m. That explains a lot, and suggests that I could probably have proceeded out at LW on the day. (See post #3).
 
West Coast said:
Many thanks everyone for your help and good advice:)
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Some feedback to this thread - thanks all for the good advice. Purchased Antares charts, these are brilliant on an Ipad, dont know why I had never come across these before!

Been in and out a few times now, no real issues once you become familiar. It is a bit of a slalom with the tides though, came in last time in the middle of a spring flood which was perhaps a bit adventurous. OK for depth, but had 4.5 kn of tide under us which made steering round the local buoyage interesting. Especially when 2 of the buoys had disappeared underwater in the strength of the tide!

Great facilities at Ardoran Marine, so no complaints so far.
 
Google earth it- good aerial photography.
I use it all the time to help navigating through tight chanels.
Just checked it out and there is some good clear photography of the chanel.
 
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