Southampton to West Highlands Legend 356 Summer 2024

[Old Pretender]

I'm considering sailing from the Hamble to the West Highlands this summer in a Legend 356 and am looking for up to date guidance. There are some great discussions on the forum, some promising links and 'The UK and Ireland Circumnavigator's Guide' looks excellent. But most of the links are old/dead and 'The Guide' is now 13 years old. Can anybody point me in the direction of a useful book/website/whatever that's a bit more contemporary? Many thanks in advance. (P.S. let's avoid the temptation to repeat the 'Caley Canal' debate. Strong feelings are understandable, but it's been extensively discussed already.)

 

[Concerto]

Welcome to the forum.

In 2022 I sailed singlehanded anticlockwise round Britain via the top of Shetland in my Westerly Fulmar. I have a lot of information on this forum about this trip. Follow the link in my signature or via my photo avatar and click on my About Me tab (you may need to post at least 5 times to activate this). There are a series of videos on my YouTube channel. https://www.youtube.com/@FulmarConcerto

For my trip I used the Cruising Association almanac as there is plenty of up todate information on all ports. If you are a member of the CA, you can access their CAptains Mate app with lots of members comments on ports and anchorages.

There is a new 3rd edition of UK and Ireland Circumnavigator's Guide by Sam Steele is currently being produced and should be available before you set sail. Sam contacted me at the end of last year as part of her updating for this new edition, hence how I know about the new edition.

There are a number of excellent forum members who sail the western isles and can give you plenty more information and I feel sure they will be along shortly with their of advice.

 

[Old Pretender]

Thanks Concerto - I've made a start on the videos and they look great! Good to hear a new edition of the Sam Steele book's on the way

 

[jbweston]

I'm planning to take a new-to-me motor boat from Falmouth to the Clyde in early summer, so have been doing much the same planning as you.

I second Concerto's suggestion of the Cruising Association's Captains Mate, available free to members as a mobile app or accessed at home from a PC via the web. It has lots of information about ports, including some I've never heard of, all provided by members. Often there are photos too. I think it's brilliant but if you know a CA member you could get a demo before making the decision to join the CA.

In adition to Reed's Almanac and the appropriate Navionics and paper Imray charts (for backup), I've ordered the Irish Cruising Club's East and North Coasts of Ireland Sailing Directions. For Scotland everyone seems to use the Clyde Cruising Club's Sailing Directions and Antares electronic charts for places other than the main harbours.

I haven't bothered with a pilot guide / sailing directions book for the UK side of the Irish Sea as Reeds has enough tidal and pilotage information for me, although I imagine how much to have is a matter of personal taste. For information about shops and pubs and places to visit ashore on windy days I can use the internet.

I've attached a few screen shots showing a sample of the Captain's Mate information for Peel, Isle of Man. In addition there are 9 photos. An orange pin on the map means there are reports for that place. A green circle with numbers (for example the '2' at Castletown) shows that at higher scale you will find more pins - so two orange pins in the Castletown area.

 

[[2574]]

I'm considering sailing from the Hamble to the West Highlands this summer in a Legend 356 and am looking for up to date guidance. There are some great discussions on the forum, some promising links and 'The UK and Ireland Circumnavigator's Guide' looks excellent. But most of the links are old/dead and 'The Guide' is now 13 years old. Can anybody point me in the direction of a useful book/website/whatever that's a bit more contemporary? Many thanks in advance. (P.S. let's avoid the temptation to repeat the 'Caley Canal' debate. Strong feelings are understandable, but it's been extensively discussed already.)

A lot depends on whether you’re treating it as a delivery trip or a cruise from Hamble to the Clyde. We did Falmouth to the Clyde (with the assistance of an esteemed forumite of this parish) in a non-stop passage. Departed Falmouth Monday night, arrived Troon for breakfast on Thursday. Pick your weather and go for it, very simple.

 

[ylop]

looking for up to date guidance. ... ... 'The Guide' is now 13 years old

I think you might need to help the forum out by suggesting what it is you need guidance with. The geography hasn't changed in 13 years so the passage planning is going to be much the same. Where are you planning / hoping to end up? West Highlands is a broad description. When you get there are you planning to stay / leave the boat and come back / tour the Hebrides etc. Do you need transport links for you or other crew? Are you planning to do the trip non-stop or as a series of shorter passages. etc ...

 

[oldmanofthehills]

Are you going via West of England and Cornwall or East of England and the Cally. Any ancient pilot book will give you most of what you need, and Reeds can tell you iof anything critical has changed. I assume you will have basically upto date charts on your plotter or on paper, and whether they have changed some lateral buoy for a cardinal will make not a jot of difference. The river mouths, harbours and great big sticky out rocks havestayed the same for centuries

 

[dunedin]

As posts #2 and #4 above, worth considering joining the Cruising Association - as well as CAptains Mate their Celtic Section has quite a few people doing this sort of trip.
Also as above the relevant Clyde Cruising Club Sailing Directions are essential when in Scottish waters (an Almanac is too high level and doesn’t cover the best places). The Irish Sea Pilot probably do for the trip up/down the Irish Sea.

 

[Humblebee]

Agree with Dunedin, the Clyde Cruising Club books are the definitive guides up here. If you are thinking of visiting a few islands then Haswell-Smith's tome, The Scottish Islands is a wonderful read in its own right as well as being useful for a sailor. Also, Welcome Anchorages has some useful details but is not a source I would place too much reliance on. Still, its free!
Link to last year's below;

Welcome Anchorages

 

[[2574]]

Agree with Dunedin, the Clyde Cruising Club books are the definitive guides up here. If you are thinking of visiting a few islands then Haswell-Smith's tome, The Scottish Islands is a wonderful read in its own right as well as being useful for a sailor. Also, Welcome Anchorages has some useful details but is not a source I would place too much reliance on. Still, its free!
Link to last year's below;

Welcome Anchorages

And let's not forget that Bob Bradfield's charts are an essential for off piste cruising on the West Coast.

Antares Charts

 

[Humblebee]

Just seen Red Baron has four Clyde Cruising Club books for sale on the for sale page!

 

[cpedw]

Agree with Dunedin, the Clyde Cruising Club books are the definitive guides up here. If you are thinking of visiting a few islands then Haswell-Smith's tome, The Scottish Islands is a wonderful read in its own right as well as being useful for a sailor. Also, Welcome Anchorages has some useful details but is not a source I would place too much reliance on. Still, its free!
Link to last year's below;

Welcome Anchorages

This year's Welcome Anchorages has arrived earlier than expected!

 

[dunedin]

This year's Welcome Anchorages has arrived earlier than expected!

And sadly still suffers from a lot of out of date information - there doesn’t seem to be any rigorous process to remove entries which have not been updated or confirmed.

 

[Old Pretender]

Thanks to one and all. Delivery trip or cruise? Honestly we've not totally made up our minds yet. The final destination will be somewhere in the region of Plockton/Kyle of Lochalsh etc. If all goes according to plan we will be purchasing a property in that part of the world shortly and are planning to keep the boat there for a season or two (at least). I've got local connections which will hopefully provide useful advice about where to moor (although any info would be most welcome). I'll investigate the Cruising Assocation membership option - the Clyde Cruising Club books sound like essential purchases.

 

[srm]

All you need is charts for the areas, tidal information, and pilot books if making a cruise of it. Otherwise Reeds is sufficient for passage ports if a delivery type passage.
I have done the west coast passage between south coast of England and Scotland's Northern Isles a number of times over the years, both with crew and single handed.
Its no big deal, just allow twice as much time as you think it might take, then set out, follow weather forecasts, and get on with it.
Sometime in the 80's we got a decanter for the boat making the most effort to attend Yachting Monthly's Classic Boat Rally in Brixham. Shetland to Brixham, via St Kilda though the organisers were not aware of that interesting diversion. Then headed off back north after the week of fun.

 

[boomerangben]

Quite a few years ago, we did Burlesden to Stornoway in 7 days, stopping in Weymouth (fuel) Brixham (overnight), Salcombe (fuel), Dun Loaghaire (fuel), Bangor (dinner and tide) and Stornoway. Four crew in a UFO 31. Quite a bit of motoring unfortunately but time was constrained. Great trip though.

 

[Pete7]

Sailing HJEM did this trip last Summer and Autumn and made a series of videos about their trip. Quite a good watch

https://www.youtube.com/@sailinghjem/videos

 

[Old Pretender]

A few months on and a few changes of plan.... I'm about to purchase a Hallberg Rassy 26 in Chatham and need to take her to Kyle of Lochalsh. Anticlockwise via the Caledonian Canal is shorter. But clockwise is potentially more scenic???

Planning to set off April/Early May and I understand that Easterlies are relatively common on the South Coast in Spring. Which would help the clockwise approach somewhat.

Any advice? Is the stuff about spring Easterlies on the South Coast fact or folklore? (struggled to find any actual data)

Thanks in advance

 

[boomerangben]

I’ve done Hamble to Stornoway and clockwise was our shortest route. That took 7 days stopping only for fuel and the tidal gate in the North Channel. It all depends on how long you want to take. If I remember we did it late June early July and had little wind on the south coast but when we did there must have been some east in it because we spent a pleasant afternoon playing with the several coloured sails on board.

It is my perception that we often get steady NW winds in the NW of Scotland in May, presumably due to high pressure in the Atlantic. That might translate to easterlies down south.

Either way you have a couple of long days/overnighters legs if “day sailing”. I guess what it comes down to is what the weather forecast is on the day you depart

 

[Concerto]

Planning to set off April/Early May and I understand that Easterlies are relatively common on the South Coast in Spring. Which would help the clockwise approach somewhat.

Any advice? Is the stuff about spring Easterlies on the South Coast fact or folklore? (struggled to find any actual data)

Thanks in advance

I am leaving Chatham Marina in My Westerly Fulmar for N Wales at the end of March. The winds are more likely to be easterly based in March April but then swing to the more regular SW. I am expecting to run/reach along the south coast rather than beat and once at Lands End it will be off wind the rest of the way (fingers crossed).

Personally I would wait until you leave to decide whether to clockwise or anti-clockwise.