dylanwinter
Active member
Orkney has some magnificent tidal rips. Locally they call them roosts - although they are spelt Rosts. They happen on each tide when the Atlantic attempts to fill up and then drain the North Sea.
This is a film of a 30 mile journey jill and I made between Kirkwall on Mainland and Pierowall on Westray. It was mid summers day so we had about 21 hours of daylight to play with. There was not much wind so it was mostly a tide driven journey. Shortly after leaving Kirkwall we picked up the first Rost that runs between Shapinsay and Mainland. That sped us along to Greenholme when it ran out of speed and then turned against us.
When they turn you there are three choices.
1/Drop a hook and wait for the tide to change,
2/ seek out the back eddies and slack sections and then motor madly against it making 5.5 knots through the water but only one knot over the ground
3/ go find one of the fabulous Orkney beaches to kill six hours while waiting for the tide to change.
Fortunately Westray alone has 18 beaches to choose from.
at one point we were doing 8.7 knots while the sails flapped ineffectually
25 minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLFSP-ykzd0
D
PS - the film will look one heck of a lot better on a proper big fat TV than it will on a bloomin ipad
This is a film of a 30 mile journey jill and I made between Kirkwall on Mainland and Pierowall on Westray. It was mid summers day so we had about 21 hours of daylight to play with. There was not much wind so it was mostly a tide driven journey. Shortly after leaving Kirkwall we picked up the first Rost that runs between Shapinsay and Mainland. That sped us along to Greenholme when it ran out of speed and then turned against us.
When they turn you there are three choices.
1/Drop a hook and wait for the tide to change,
2/ seek out the back eddies and slack sections and then motor madly against it making 5.5 knots through the water but only one knot over the ground
3/ go find one of the fabulous Orkney beaches to kill six hours while waiting for the tide to change.
Fortunately Westray alone has 18 beaches to choose from.
at one point we were doing 8.7 knots while the sails flapped ineffectually
25 minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLFSP-ykzd0
D
PS - the film will look one heck of a lot better on a proper big fat TV than it will on a bloomin ipad
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