Moorings in Coll

[Quandary]

Noticed this year that the C'mal visitor moorings at Arinagour are now down to 10 (8 if you discount the two nearest the pier which are used by locals with a dinghy permanently on them). They seem to have been moved further in but are so widely space you are still nearer the ferry pier if you choose to use the farthest one. As a consequence the space with depth inshore of them is less than I remember but you can still anchor half a dozen boats there if you are careful and co operate. I asked the harbour master at the ferry pier about the extreme spacing, he did not have an explanation but denied that it was to use up all the available visitor anchoring space.
I was impressed by the mobo (local?) on the inshore mooring who every time they wanted to get out to the boat or return were driven down the road across the foreshore and out to their boat using an open yellow Dutton Surf amphibian, not sure about the 'Surf' it seemed to be fairly short of freeboard, not very quick either.

 

[Minerva]

Have they resolved the issue around payment? We were there in May and both the Calmac pier and the Coll hotel declined to take payment for use of the mooring...

 

[JumbleDuck]

According to Antares, two of the moorings were practically on top of shallow rocks, so perhaps they have moved them around to deal with that? We anchored, as we always do there, and there was loads of room at the north end. I think there were six of us at anchor.

 

[Quandary]

Have they resolved the issue around payment? We were there in May and both the Calmac pier and the Coll hotel declined to take payment for use of the mooring...

Dunno, I dont use our outboard and the available moorings were far to far for a lazy git like me. A small boat that anchored after us was asked to move further away by the operator of the rib that returned to the C'mal mooring nearest the steps. Not sure I would have complied at least until after he had gone ashore. It is a pity to lose a facility intended to encourage visitors but not sure the residents would agree. Encouraging visitors is so last decade! Scottish Canals have even got a whole new range of 'feck off' notices made, the best ones are on the back of the high vis tabard the managers wear.

 

[Cheeky Girl]

Why is it Cal- Mac that control the moorings not the locals?
Tiree has a Paypal option on the buoys & run by the locals

Can't complain about Scottish Canals all the operators that helped us were great

 

[JumbleDuck]

Why is it Cal- Mac that control the moorings not the locals?
Tiree has a Paypal option on the buoys & run by the locals

It's actually CMAL (Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd) who run the buoys there. That's the infrastructure company which owns the ferry piers and the ferries themselves, and they are the harbour authority for Arinagour.

There were locally run mooring there some time ago, and all sorts of shenanigans went on. Aggresive demands for payments by people who refused to offer receipts and may or may not have had any right to ask were reported here. In the end the owner of the visitor mooring buoys threatened to sink them and abandon the tackle in order to hamper or prevent anchoring. I don't know if he went through with his threat, but the decision by CMAL to put visitor moorings down was greeted with general rejoicing and relief.

 

[penfold]

Pleasant sounding chap; obviously never heard of trip lines. Things have to be pretty bad for CMAL administration to be an improvement; they couldn't run a bath.

There were locally run mooring there some time ago, and all sorts of shenanigans went on. Aggresive demands for payments by people who refused to offer receipts and may or may not have had any right to ask were reported here. In the end the owner of the visitor mooring buoys threatened to sink them and abandon the tackle in order to hamper or prevent anchoring. I don't know if he went through with his threat, but the decision by CMAL to put visitor moorings down was greeted with general rejoicing and relief.

 

[wully1]

Last time I was there we counted 28 boats on moorings and at anchor.

The holding is good on the patches of sand that were easy to spot amongst the kelp. Not sure I’d bother with a mooring unless there was a bit of east in the wind - in which case I’d not be there..

 

[Gwylan]

Payment at the hotel always seemed very informal. I have no idea where the money ended up or how it was processed.

We ended up miles out and used the outboard. Even by Welsh standards the welcome was less than warm.

 

[JumbleDuck]

Last time I was there we counted 28 boats on moorings and at anchor.

We were there at the same time as a rally of some sort and there must have been 20 there. Popular place.

The holding is good on the patches of sand that were easy to spot amongst the kelp. Not sure I’d bother with a mooring unless there was a bit of east in the wind - in which case I’d not be there..

The north anchorage is surprisingly good and offers a bit more shelter, partly from its orientation and partly because a reef almost all the way across the entrance breaks waves nicely. The downside is that there is really only room for two or three small and shallow boats among the moorings. We were there a couple of years ago and spent a peaceful evening and night while occasionally looking over to see the mastheads and masthead lights of boats in the main bit describing great circles in the air.

We ended up miles out and used the outboard. Even by Welsh standards the welcome was less than warm.

We landed for the first time in eight (I think) years this summer and it definitely wasn't as friendly a place as it was before. Perhaps that was because of the number of visitors, or COVID, or both, but it has definitely slipped down my list a bit. Also I miss The Ethical Supply Company, though I think the chap who runs it has the new village shop. The hotel has always seemed a bit grumpy, snooty or both.

 

[ctva]

Not been there for a good few years now preferring Breachacha Bay.

 

[Ink]

I feel sorry for the type of islands that have 120% capacity for July and August and struggle to support a village shop and pub. I can understand islanders reluctance to be friendly and jovial with all.

I was once told off for taking water from the tap on a pier once without asking. It was Coll in one of the wettest summers known to man by a person missing the island lilt in their Mancunian accent.

Then again (Dr) Rob Wainright chapping on the hull at 08:00 looking for a tenner also counts against the place for me.

We have spent a great afternoon however at the Coll annual Show in a marquee. That was a hoot!

Ink

 

[Shuggy]

The hotel is no longer collecting mooring fees - you need to phone 01879 230270 and make card payment by phone. We paid £14.40 in July for a 13m boat.

 

[Seven Spades]

We took our Discovery 55 through all the mooring and anchored in the area marked 2.6m on Navionics about 3 weeks ago. It was free.

 

[Quandary]

We took our Discovery 55 through all the mooring and anchored in the area marked 2.6m on Navionics about 3 weeks ago. It was free.

Amazed you do not have Antares for anchoring in places like that, really worth looking in to.

 

[Seven Spades]

I have, but it is easier to describe the location by referencing Navionics, more people will have Navionics than Antares.

 

[awol]

I have, but it is easier to describe the location by referencing Navionics, more people will have Navionics than Antares.

An interesting statement and certainly not true amongst my acquaintances. But then I still have papercharts.

 

[Seven Spades]

Why do you think that is a strange statement. Do not most boats have chart plotters? Navionics and paper charts should have the same information as they both come from the same source UKHO in this case. Antares are produced independently and not everyone has them.

 

[JumbleDuck]

Amazed you do not have Antares for anchoring in places like that, really worth looking in to.

People have been anchoring there for many, many years without Antares. It's easy.

 

[Quandary]

People have been anchoring there for many, many years without Antares. It's easy.

Not so sure about that, the guys who first laid the CMal moorings seemed to find it difficult enough, one or perhaps two were awfully close to rocks, the first time I was there after that you could see the waves breaking on them.
But after being introduced to Antares by Wully a few years ago I am a fervent believer, last years expedition to the Sound of Arisaig, Borrowdale Islands , Loch Nan Uamh, Ailort and Moidart would not have been half as interesting without their help.