Mooring Kames/Tighnabruaich

[dewent]

Visiting West Kyle has been a favorite of ours over the years.

However the mooring buoys at the Kames Hotel have become few and poorly maintained in recent years. We've sometimes resorted to those off the Royal Lachan Hotel but these are even worse.

Does anyone know if they have been improved for 2026?

Thanks...................

 

[nevis768]

Why don't you ring and ask them? They advertise their use on the hotel website.

 

[ylop]

The Royal was closed (new owners renovating it?) so I think it’s very unlikely they have been serviced unless it’s trading again? I think the Tighnabrauich Development Trust had/have a few visitor moorings close to the pontoon - they might only be insitu when the pontoon is there?

The boatyard will accommodate you for a reasonable fee if you call them. It’s a bit of a longer walk to the pub but Duncan and Isla who own it are very helpful.

 

[dunedin]

Anchor at the Bute side and take the dinghy across?

 

[sawduster]

We've used one of the five west cafe moorings, which I think are now TDDT managed as Ylop says, before and stopped off for tea and cake. The various hotel moorings were caked with mussels and didn't look good. About | Five West | Coffee Shop | Stylish Friendly Coastal Dining Space

 

[dewent]

The Royal was closed (new owners renovating it?) so I think it’s very unlikely they have been serviced unless it’s trading again? I think the Tighnabrauich Development Trust had/have a few visitor moorings close to the pontoon - they might only be insitu when the pontoon is there?

The boatyard will accommodate you for a reasonable fee if you call them. It’s a bit of a longer walk to the pub but Duncan and Isla who own it are very helpful.

Thanks for the reply.

Didn't know there were visitor moorings near the pontoon - I'll look out for them.

SWMBO would definitely find the idea of walking from the boatyard to Kames a non-starter!

 

[dewent]

Why don't you ring and ask them? They advertise their use on the hotel website.

Thanks will do.

Website says there are 15 visitor moorings. Well there may have been 10 years ago but not now - only a handful. I suggested to the owner last year that it would be worth getting them serviced as it brings a lot of boats from around the Clyde to eat and drink at Kames.

 

[dewent]

Anchor at the Bute side and take the dinghy across?

Done that but the space is limited and, depending upon the weather, a dinghy crossing can be untenable.

 

[dewent]

We've used one of the five west cafe moorings, which I think are now TDDT managed as Ylop says, before and stopped off for tea and cake. The various hotel moorings were caked with mussels and didn't look good. About | Five West | Coffee Shop | Stylish Friendly Coastal Dining Space

Thanks for the info. I'll look out for those and give the cafe a visit too.

 

[ducked]

The various hotel moorings were caked with mussels...

So there could, in fact, be such a thing as a free lunch?

 

[sawduster]

So there could, in fact, be such a thing as a free lunch?

It depends on what the mussels would be free from....

 

[RunAgroundHard]

It depends on what the mussels would be free from....

About 15 years ago I cooked up Moules marinière from mussels found clinging to Caladh Harbour islands’s rocks. No one fell ill but they were quite gritty and not a memorable feast. Probably some parasite eating away at my brain.

 

[ducked]

About 15 years ago I cooked up Moules marinière from mussels found clinging to Caladh Harbour islands’s rocks. No one fell ill but they were quite gritty and not a memorable feast. Probably some parasite eating away at my brain.

While there may be a parasite eating away at your (or my) brain, we didnt get it from eating adequately cooked mussels.

I would expect mussels on a mooring buoy to be farly distant from grit sources, and in Tighnabruach to be fairly safe from environmental pollutants too.

Maybe a bit of sloughed off ablative antifouling from your hull, but the buoy is probably going to be up-tide from it most of the time.

 

[ylop]

I would expect mussels on a mooring buoy to be farly distant from grit sources, and in Tighnabruach to be fairly safe from environmental pollutants too.

Various boat owners who let their heads out in the Kyles, a few old septic tanks in the area and some small sewage outfalls around - no idea how well treated (even if only untreated rainwater you’ve got all the manky dog owners who dump their waste anywhere nobody can see) plus various cows and sheep. Definitely not the worst place in the world but maybe not the best either!

Maybe a bit of sloughed off ablative antifouling from your hull, but the buoy is probably going to be up-tide from it most of the time.

But downstream from your neighbours!

 

[ducked]

Various boat owners who let their heads out in the Kyles, a few old septic tanks in the area and some small sewage outfalls around - no idea how well treated (even if only untreated rainwater you’ve got all the manky dog owners who dump their waste anywhere nobody can see) plus various cows and sheep. Definitely not the worst place in the world but maybe not the best either!

But downstream from your neighbours!

Re the (by your own description) very dilute sewage, with cooked mussels which, in addition, you will presumably have put through a standard gut-emptying regimen, this is vanishingly unlikely to be a problem. I'd say eating salad is likely to be a much bigger risk

Downstream of your neighbours slightly less so, but the drift of this thread seems to be that you probably wont have many, because there are few moorings for them and those there are are covered in mussels.