Rounding the Mull of Kintyre

[Clyde_Wanderer]

Is Emma a Westerley Centaur by any chance.

Dougie, Emma is a Snapdragon, and this particular one has a very impressive track record, like her owner
BTW Its Ironic that on your 173rd post you mentioned her name, as the number 173 has been very significant in the life of Emma's owner for the last 25 or so years.
C_W

 

[Clyde_Wanderer]

Lovely pics Clyde Wanderer.

Thanks Wully 1, suppose not bad for someone with a thyroid shake.

 

[tommccrorie]

Lucky you

Eamonn,

Only attempt the inside passage i.e. less than 150yds from cliffs, in FLAT CALM. In July 2008 we attempted the inside route after receiving a CG forecast of F2 for the Mull. We ended up getting 22knots on the nose after the lighthouse and getting "stuck" for 45mins in the overfalls 1mile north of the lighthouse. We had 5metre breaking waves coming at us from all directions and nobody thought of grabbing a camera - I wonder why? Eventually I managed to negotiate Negresco offshore into calmer 3metre breaking waves - what a relief. An experience hopefully never to be repeated.

Glad you enjoyed the thrill!

regards,
Tom

 

[Spyro]

Eamonn,

Only attempt the inside passage i.e. less than 150yds from cliffs, in FLAT CALM. In July 2008 we attempted the inside route after receiving a CG forecast of F2 for the Mull. We ended up getting 22knots on the nose after the lighthouse and getting "stuck" for 45mins in the overfalls 1mile north of the lighthouse. We had 5metre breaking waves coming at us from all directions and nobody thought of grabbing a camera - I wonder why? Eventually I managed to negotiate Negresco offshore into calmer 3metre breaking waves - what a relief. An experience hopefully never to be repeated.

Glad you enjoyed the thrill!

regards,
Tom

Only been round a handful of times but I think the problem was 150m offshore was way too far off. less than 50m is a bit scary but much calmer. Dare say you would have still had the wind on the nose so I think in those circumstances I would have headed out as well.
I was in an unusual spot first time I went round east to West. No wind and I was motoring in smooth water with just a slight swell but 25m off my port beam I could see large breaking waves.

 

[Ubergeekian]

Only been round a handful of times but I think the problem was 150m offshore was way too far off. less than 50m is a bit scary but much calmer.

I took the Jouster round a few times, and in my experience "inshore" had to mean "fifty feet away from the rocks". The edge of the nasty stuff was very clearly visible, not much further out.

 

[Searush]

Is there no slack water period around the MoK, so that you can carry the ebb South down one side & the flood back North up the other?

I like this picture, but what sort of jaw bone is that?

I like your adaptation of what I was taught at Scouts "Take nothing but memories & leave nothing but your thanks" No-one to thank there was there.

 

[webcraft]

Eamonn,

Only attempt the inside passage i.e. less than 150yds from cliffs, in FLAT CALM. In July 2008 we attempted the inside route after receiving a CG forecast of F2 for the Mull. We ended up getting 22knots on the nose after the lighthouse and getting "stuck" for 45mins in the overfalls 1mile north of the lighthouse. We had 5metre breaking waves coming at us from all directions and nobody thought of grabbing a camera - I wonder why? Eventually I managed to negotiate Negresco offshore into calmer 3metre breaking waves - what a relief. An experience hopefully never to be repeated.

Glad you enjoyed the thrill!

regards,
Tom

I had exactly the same experience the first time I rounded the Mull - but it was really down to the failure to realise the significance of a huge black cloud we were about to sail under. From sunbathing and dozing in the cockpit the wind was up to 30 knots in under a minute and the seas up to 3m shortly thereafter. This was also maybe 200m off, just off the lighthouse. I lost the genoa sheets (no stopper knot) and had a horrendous trip forward to try to get them back with the full genoa and the sheets trying to beat me to death, huge lumps of green water coming on board and a complete novice on the helm. (The boat was a Cobra 25, long before we got Fairwinds).

I still take the inside passage, but a little less casually now. Inshore is 50m or so off the cliffs - don't go in that white water! I have never had a beating like that again, but the Mull should IMO never be taken for granted.

- W

 

[Spyro]

Is there no slack water period around the MoK, so that you can carry the ebb South down one side & the flood back North up the other?

.

Not really, That's not how it works. If I'm undestanding correctly what you mean you must be thinking that the tide flows South eaither side of Kintyre on the ebb and North on the Flood. It doesn't, on the ebb it flows south down the East side of Kintyre and North up the West then opposite on the flood. And also most of the time people would be heading from the Clyde or to the Clyde so not actually going down one side and up the other.
There is quite a bit of water to cover before you actually get to the Mull Lighthouse. If going west to east you have 20 odd miles from Islay or Gigha with nothing in between so arriving at exactly slack water is not easy. Also there are opposite flowing eddies close in which start to flow in the opposite direction from the main flow anything up to an hour before slack water. These can be used to your advantage if you arrive to early. Going east to west you can't really arrive at the Mull at slack water because you will have had to fight the tide all the way through Sanda Sound.
If you've stopped at Sanda which is about 6 miles from the Mull best bet is leaving just as the tide starts to Ebb and you can carry it all the way round the Mull and up to Islay or Gigha.

Hope I've got that all correct and not made a t1t of myself

 

[Searush]

Thanks, an interesting challenge then. I should have got off me fat bum & looked it up myself I suppose!

Yes, I assumed that the flood, coming up from the south would split either side of the Mull, but the North Channel & Ireland, plus the islands NW of Kintyre have quite a lot of impact I guess. I have an Admiralty pocket tide atlas upstairs, it's just that it's a right nuisance hobbling up there with me peg leg.

 

[Spyro]

Thanks, an interesting challenge then. I should have got off me fat bum & looked it up myself I suppose!

Yes, I assumed that the flood, coming up from the south would split either side of the Mull, but the North Channel & Ireland, plus the islands NW of Kintyre have quite a lot of impact I guess. I have an Admiralty pocket tide atlas upstairs, it's just that it's a right nuisance hobbling up there with me peg leg.

Easy mistake, the flood comes in from the NW around N Ireland round the Mull and into the Clyde.

 

[Clyde_Wanderer]

Is there no slack water period around the MoK, so that you can carry the ebb South down one side & the flood back North up the other?

I like this picture, but what sort of jaw bone is that?

I like your adaptation of what I was taught at Scouts "Take nothing but memories & leave nothing but your thanks" No-one to thank there was there.

That was a Porpoise jaw.
Its, "Take nothing but memories and leave nothing but footprints".
C_W

 

[pagoda]

MOK - Sanda

I went round from the Clyde on Monday this week, anchoring briefly at Sanda for a lunch stop. There are definitely 4 large red moorings with pick ups now- all marked £10 to use.
We were just hesitating at HW and went inside of them to anchor, but had they all been occupied I think remaining anchoring spaces would have been a little restricted. They are all well tucked in off the beach from the pier towards the boat house- the most sheltered spot available. I reckon they should offer free mooring if you eat ashore?? like most resurants/hotels? but I suppose £10 ain't too bad.
Approaching the Mull, we spotted a wall of surf about half a mile out off Deas Point, and for the first time went close inshore maybe a cable or less off the cliffs (felt like less!) .
Lots of washing machine swirling water - but no surf, so I'm convinced on the inside route being much kinder (at least at times). We had a SE 4-6 all the way to Gigha, 8-9Kts over the ground. Great fun.

Graeme

 

[Sgeir]

We were just hesitating at HW and went inside of them to anchor, but had they all been occupied I think remaining anchoring spaces would have been a little restricted. They are all well tucked in off the beach from the pier towards the boat house- the most sheltered spot available.

I was worried about this. I rather resent well used traditional anchorages like the bay at Sanda being taken over by commercial moorings, particularly in an area that is tidally sensitive for passage making.