Moving to Aberdeen

[yachtcharisma]

My job is taking me from the sunny southwest of England to Aberdeen for the next two years. A quick glance at the nautical almanac doesn't look too promising, so does anyone know where might be a good place to base a boat in the area? Bearing in mind that I've a young family and so we've tended to enjoy fairly short trips recently? An hour or so's drive away would be ok, but sadly the west coast is, I think, going to be too far... Where is there good sailing in the area?

Cheers
Patrick


Sailing a Corribee in Plymouth
vzone.virgin.net/patrick.fox

 

[Twister_Ken]

Stonehaven? nm

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[jimi]

Moray Firth or Tay? Short season in the land of the northern lights and haar! Take a wooly pooly!

 

[webcraft]

Hi Patrick,

I live six miles from Stonehaven; we are currently trying to sell up here so we can move to the W. Coast to do more sailing. Don't suppose you want to buy a 4-bedroomed house with Post Office and village shop do you?

Ken's Stonehaven suggestion is a good one if you have a bilge keeler - it dries - but the problem is getting a mooring. There is a long waiting list, and if you are interested I would contact the harbourmaster immediately. There's nowhere really to sail to though - you go out of the harbour and turn left or right and that's your choices.

(BTW Stonehaven is a very popular place to commute to Aberdeen from and a pleasant place to live. Good real ale and quite a few visiting yachts in the Summer).

Forget Aberdeen itself, they hate yachts and try to stop them entering the port.

The nearest marina is Peterhead, NNE from Aberdeen. It's a good marina, less than an hour's drive from the centre of the city. Grotty surroundings though - there's a supply boat base right next to it and it's all a bit industrial. Day sailing from Peterhead there's not really anywhere to go - Fraserburgh is a smelly and not particularly attractive fishing port, while Banf/Macduff are too far to go there and back in a Corribee in a day.

Whitehills is a small newish marina about an hour and a bit's drive from Aberdeen, and might be worth a look. From there you can potter to Banff and Macduff or day sail to Portsoy, Findhorn or Lossiemouth, and it's relatively sheltered compared to Peterhead where you have to pass Rattray Head to get N.

Findhorn is pleasant, but allegedly hard to get in and out of. Very popular yacht club. Might be within your tolerated driving distance if you get a house to the N. of Aberdeen. From there you have a few places to day sail to - Portsoy, Spey Bay, Lossiemouth etc. - and the weather is often very good in the Summer.

The other advantage of Whitehills or Findhorn is that you are well on the way to Inverness and the Caley Canal if you suddenly get the urge to go West.

Someone also suggested the Tay - but you would be on a swinging mooring. Dundee is about an hour and a half's drive South from the centre of Aberdeen, less if you live South of the city. Possible expeditions from here include short sails to Tayport and other places on the N. Coast of Fife, or up the Tay to Perth, plus local racing etc.

But really my advice would be to bite the bullet, put the boat on the West Coast and make a holiday of it each time you go sailing. It's a fabulous cruising ground with all manner of interesting places to go. NE Scotland is a coastline you don't mind cruising up once on your way somewhere, but beyond that it's dull as ditchwater while not being particularly safe.

<font color=blue>Nick</font color=blue> -

 

[longjohnsadler]

Sound advice. I've a friend who lives in Chester and keeps his boat in Crinan - over 6 hours drive, but still thinks it worth it. Maybe Dunstaffnage? And the drive from Aberdeen on a summer evening has to be better than M5/M3 etc. And there's always the Caledonian Canal to play with....

 

[Ohdrat]

I would say Whitehills is an excellent base.. the Moray Firth (officially from Wick to Peterhead has surprisingly a number of small ex fishing harbours.. some drying some not.. it's mild ... well relatively and sheltered.. particularly the inner Moray coast around the Black Isle (the bit of land between the Inverness Firth and the Cromarty Firth.. and there's a resident pod of dolphins .. a great plus with kids (even the big ones)

There are other bases further into the Moray Firth.. I would strongly recommend Avoch (pronounced Och).. and the Caley Canal at Inverness which has the added advantage of Fresh water birthing reducing anti-fouling costs.. many fishing vessels used to use the caley canal to clean their hulls.. by steaming thro it, killing all the growth which was then easily washed off.. P.S. the caley canal then gives you easy access to the west coast.... I would hazard some of the best sailing to be had in the world..

 

[Escapeii]

I lived in Aberdeen for over 20 years and resisted buying a boat until I knew would have more free time and could live somewhere more suitable for cruising. I've almost got enough time but I am still 3 hours away from the boat.
Test the drive to the west coast before crossing it off the list, as the sailing does make up for the drive, especially if you are only going to be in Aberdeen for two years.
I know folk who keep their boats on the Moray coast for the majority of the season and move them to the west coast for a few weeks during the summer. The Moray Firth is a fairly interesting area and is about an hour away from Aberdeen, if you live on the north side of town. Think twice about living on the south side of Aberdeen and close to the coast, as it suffers from thick sea mists (the haar) during the summer months. Anywhere more than 5 or 6 miles inland is relatively haar-free. The Moray Firth could be said to have it's own favourable micro-climate, basking in sunshine when the rest of the N.E. is looking rather grey.
If Whitehills now has a little marina then it might meet your requirements. Check out Lossiemouth too, though it may be difficult to get a berth.
Peterhead is probably the closest marina. It is well sheltered with simple modern facilities. However there is nowhere near by to sail to.

Good luck and be sure to make good use of those long summer evenings.

 

[ponapay]

Aberdeen to Dunstaffnage is 4 1/2 hours of fast driving. Its not the getting there that is the problem its the getting back after a hectics week-end's sailing that is the killer.

Whitehills is great.

Peterhead is uncomfortable, but might improve if they complete the planned wave break.

West coast is best if you can stand the driving.

I keep mine in the Baltic, its better sailing, warmer and cheaper. We also get much more sailing - you have to stay longer. If you base yourself near a Ryan Air terminal its not too expensive.

Aberdeen to Aarhus return for two is about £190 using Easy Jet and Ryan Air.

 

[ponapay]

If you are in Aberdeen on 4th December there is a 'Yotties Dinner' taking place at the Royal Northern and University Club. £35 per head, 3 courses, pre-dinner drinks and wine. Cash bar after meal. Men must wear jacket and tie.

Names and cheques to me by 25th November. Send a pm to book and get my address.

 

[Escapeii]

Ian,
I almost took the liberty of suggesting the same when I replied earlier!
I hope you have a good evening on the 4th.
David Wood

 

[longjohnsadler]

West coast might be a drive (4.5 hours seems a bit long?) but time from front door in A'deen to boat in Baltic can't be quicker (time to get to airport, park, allow for possible delays, checkin 30 mins, flight time, travel other end). And most people arrive at their boat with a bootful of gear, tools, battery maybe...

 

[Ohdrat]

Re: Re West Coast

mmm well I reckon if the West Coast is really beckoning you might be better off either at Avoch which is very close to The Inverness end of the Caley Canal or one of the yacht basins around Inverness.. that way its easier to get to the boat for a week-end sailing on the Moray Firth and then when it comes to longer spells .. say a week of easy cruising you can easily access the West Coast thro the Caley Canal..

 

[Rowana]

I agree with Webcraft in general, although I would question keeping the boat on the west coast. Having said that, I know a couple of guys who do, but it IS a 4 1/2 hour drive to Oban area where there are a few places. My personal favourite is Ardfern.

It depends on what type of sailing you do. If you are happy with the drive, then go west. If you like to potter for an evening, then Whitehills is probably your best bet, although I believe it's quite full up.

When are you comming? Have you got somewhere to stay?
If you wish, send me a PM and let me know when you're arriving, and we could arrange to meet over a few 'Light' refreshments, and I can give you a run-down on the area.

Jim

 

[webcraft]

Don't understand what you guys are driving if you are taking 4.5 hrs to get to Dunstaffnage . . . a horse and cart?

From 6 miles South of Stonehaven I can usually make either Ballachulish or Dunstaffnage in 3 hours if I travel in the evenings - during Summer days the road from Perth to Crianlarich can be a caravan strewn nightmare. (That's in a G-reg Nissan Sunny or an old Volvo 440, not a Porsche btw).

The Clyde is a similar distance away - 3.5 hours from Aberdeen city to Largs or Ardrossan - but it's an easier drive in many ways, mostly dual carriageway, and of course there's lots of good day sailing to be had there.

Re. living North of Aberdeen - I used to work in an orifice in Bridge of Don, right on the N. edge of town. It took me less time to get to work from here - 24 miles S. of the city centre - than it took colleagues who lived in Ellon, only about 12 miles from the office and on teh same side of town. Depends where you are working, but if your company has offices in Altens then you can be in work in under 20min from the Stonehaven area - or well over an hour from N. of the city.

- Nick

 

[yachtcharisma]

Thank you to everyone who's replied to this so far, its proving really helpful. Whitehills is sounding good at the moment - pottering to nearby harbours such as Banff, Macduff and Portsoy sounds pretty much our style. That said, the west coast does beckon, and certainly down here we've tended to prefer the isolated anchorage to the marina or harbour... The bit I didn't mention is that after 2 years in Aberdeen we'll be in Edinburgh for the following two years, so might save the west coast 'til then.

Cheers
Patrick

Sailing a Corribee in Plymouth
vzone.virgin.net/patrick.fox

 

[yachtcharisma]

Thank you, ponapay, however we're not moving up until the end of January. Maybe next year??

Cheers
Patrick

Sailing a Corribee in Plymouth
vzone.virgin.net/patrick.fox

 

[yachtcharisma]

Thank you, Jim. We'll not be coming up until the end of January (a chilly introduction to the area, I suspect!), but thank you for the offer and I'll perhaps be in touch closer to the time.

Cheers
Patrick

Sailing a Corribee in Plymouth
vzone.virgin.net/patrick.fox

 

[Rowana]

I'm talking of driving from the NW side of Aberdeen. One of the worst bits is from my place to where you are. It usually takes me 45 mins to 1 hour to get to Stonehaven, so you've got an hour's start on me.

We moved to Oldmeldrum because my work was in Dyce - 20mins drive. Was made redundant, so new job in Altens - 1hr+ in rush hour. - But no, I'm not moving to Stonehaven, although I used to live near Kinneff at one point in my life. I intend to take early retirement next year and go sailing - Sod the traffic.
But first I have to find a boat!!

Jim