Stormy morning in Loch Tarbert, Jura

Position at Anchor Tuesday 55˚52’543N 05*54’979W
Position at Anchor Wednesday 56˚25’121N 05*29’313W
Distance travelled Tuesday 0 NM
Distance travelled Wednesday 30 NM
Weather Tuesday sunshine/rain 40 knots of wind
Weather Wednesday sunshine /rain 28 knots wind

Two days log today as there wasn’t much point doing one for Tuesday, as we didn’t go anywhere other than a trip to the raised beaches of Jura. Very interesting but hardly relevant to our mission of cetacean spotting.
We ate well on Tuesday, having a leisurely breakfast of cereal, toast and tea/coffee. Luckily we were just washing up when the anchor slipped and it was all hands on deck to raise the anchor in 40 knots of wind, and reset it and the fisherman’s anchor. This was all made more difficult by our discovery of a suspected sunken wreck right under the hull as we tried to haul and set the anchors. After an hour and a half of hard graft they were both holding, and we returned below for coffee and chocolate biscuits.
Clare then put us to work on data input of reported sightings from the public, and we suddenly realized that it was 3.15 and we hadn’t had lunch yet. Frittata and salad were prepared and quickly devoured, then a few hardy souls decided it was time for a brisk walk over the crags of Jura to the raised beaches. This also gave Duncan a chance to TRY to get the weather forecast from the highest point on the island, as the boat was out of all contact, radio or mobile, with the outside world.
While we walked a cake was baking on board, and this was quickly eaten when we were all back on board, before we set our minds to dinner.

Wednesday morning dawned to a wind shift to the West, blue skies and occasional rain squalls. Duncan and Dave went back up the hill to get the weather, and it was decided that we had better leave our anchor before we all exploded due to overeating!
So we headed out dead into the wind, battering our way through the waves, then turned north for Kerrera, passing the Garvelacchs and Insch to port and heading up the Firth of Lorn under sail. The sea state was too rough to allow visual surveying but we had the hydrophones out and picked up 22 porpoises! and some snapping shrimp acoustically. We are currently moored to a huge mooring off Kerrera, looking over to Oban, and are looking forward to onshore showers and DINNER! Haggis tonight with Bakewell tart for afters! Yum!!

Denys, Earthwatch volunteer

Elsa & Barb on watch, grinning in the rougher seas

Position at Anchor 55º52.543 N 005º 54.979W
Distance Travelled 60 NM
Weather Beautiful sunshine deteriorating later to rain (once we’d anchored).

You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows…
The day started with the gentle lapping of water against the Silurian and a beautiful sunrise over Port Ellen, Islay. The weathermen were promising us force 8 gales from the South West so the crew were discussing which anchorage would provide a port in the storm for tonight. The rest of us went to avail ourselves of the fine single malts from the island. After a quiet wildlife day yesterday we were hoping for Dolphin and Minke Whale today, we headed out past the Mull of Oa and the Rhinns of Islay, the boat was rockin’ and rollin’ along and before long one of our number was re-experiencing her breakfast! the rest of us munching on sandwiches and Duncan’s delicious chocolate brownies.
After seeing the Risso’s Dolphin yesterday we were still hopeful of more cetaceans leaping our way; but no, just 4 Porpoise picked up acoustically, a dead sea Urchin, a Lion’s Mane jellyfish and a few grey Seals.
Later, Silurian running under sail tilting at a perfect angle to the sea at speeds approaching 7 knots had volunteers clipped onto the mast and walking at angles, inside the boat nothing but water visible from the windows portside and the sky starboard and Duncan was particularly proud of his zig zags. We set anchor for the night in Loch Tarbert on Jura, a beautiful sheltered spot and hoped for a good night’s sleep and dreams of leaping Dolphin. If the wildlife wasn’t exciting the sailing certainly was!

Kym, Earthwatch volunteer

Deer on the Ardmore islands from Day 4

Captain Barb in the crows nest


Position at Anchor 55º38.134 N 006º 11.736W
Distance Travelled 45 NM
Weather Blue skies and clear sailing weather to start off with

I was very pleasantly surprised to open my eyes and see a blue sky through the above window. It was another good sleeping night. As folks stirred about while putting on the kettle and setting the breakfast table, Jenny and I held firm to the instructions of waiting for the generator before rising. Then…there it went and then I was up and going. Jenny, well…she has to make sure the generators are really on and not just a tease. So with ‘first’ breakfast down and the dishes done, it was time to ‘pull’ up the anchors…literally. So Duncan, Dave and Jenny took the rubber boat out to bring up the anchor to the boat then hoisting it onboard. Apparently because we had two anchors out, that was the only way. They also brought in a fair amount of seaweed. I was down in the chain locker, poised and ready (for almost half hour) to sort out the chain as it was eventually winched in. It’s a glorious job and everyone should give it a go whilst crammed in the little locker made for hobbits. Okay, the anchors are in, everyone knows the new rota and off we go slowly out of our mooring spot snuggled in among the Ardmore Islands. We watched with amazement at the deer and seal that lined the shoreline to bid us farewell. It was a glorious day for sailing. The seas were calm, the winds were very light and the sun was shining. Jenny and I had the first watch however, we didn’t see any porpoise and our acoustics didn’t pick up anything either. After our watch on visual, I headed off to data and Jenny scurried up to the crow’s nest. Again, the next hour didn’t bring much excitement but at least we had great weather. Then with the next shift, I took my turn in the crow’s nest. It’s quite an accurate name since it has been the two old crows in the crew that have been nesting up there so far. Little did I know but as I was trying to manipulate my way up the ladder, Denys thought she saw the aftermath of a big splash. I finally got situated up in the nest and after scanning, scanning, scanning my 90 degrees of area ahead of me, WOW!, there she blows, at eleven o’clock, a dolphin. As I shouted out, I could hear the cheers of the folks below and I watched as they all brought up their binoculars to take a closer look. It was quite a big dolphin, even from up in the crow’s nest. But I was disappointed not to see another roll or two. Then I thought maybe I had imagined it. Then suddenly, just off the starboard bow, right next to the boat, there it was. I screamed with excitement and could hear the oooohs and aaaahs from the folks below as they scurried and scampered about. Clare was ‘Johnny on the spot’ with her camera and was positioned on the bowsprit at the ready to capture pictures of this humongous and beautiful mammal. She verified that it was a Risso’s Dolphin and she was so excited as were the rest of us. The dolphin stayed with us for quite a bit riding the waves along the bow. It was vary a bit to the right and the left and occasionally head under the boat. I was shouting one o’clock, eleven o’clock and now it’s twelve o’clock as it made its way over to one o’clock just as quickly. It was quite a view from above as I could see it turn its head to the left and the right before heading down and then coming up to give us a ‘blow’ and spray of sea. Then it slowed and turned off to two o’clock, then three o’clock and then down to the depths. Clare instructed folks to take their designated areas to see where it might surface. I turned to my right as it appeared it was heading off in that direction. Then within a few seconds at five o’clock, it came up for us one more time to show us just how beautiful and free spirited it was. It was quite exciting for us all. Duncan and Dave managed the boat to give us a bit more time with it but our mission was to continue on with the survey. The rest of the day was a bit of a bore with nothing significant to report. The seas turned rougher and skies grew more cloudy as the winds picked up. Then as we got closer to our destination of Port Ellen, the seas calmed and the sun returned. We docked and tied up with no problems. Then it was time for an old fashioned boat cleaning. Elsa went into a cleaning frenzy and not a piece of dirt was safe from her. The boat was cleaned from bow to stern both in and out. We filled up with fresh water that took donkey years to fill. Then it was off to the showers…real showers, for most of the women folk. It was glorious. Then back to the boat where Duncan had prepared a feast of fish pie, salad and an apple torte. I had been waiting for that apple torte all afternoon. I passed up the wonderfully smelling brownies that he had baked earlier just so I could enjoy the apple torte without feeling guilty. Dinner was indeed delicious and we retired to bed well fed, very clean and memories of a glorious day at sea. Fair winds and following seas until we meet again.

Barb, Earthwatch volunteer

Jenny on the helm on day 1

Position at Anchor 55º40.095 N 006º 02.124W
Distance Travelled 65 NM
Weather overcast, but not very windy, so it did not feel as cold as yesterday. One layer less I reckon!

Well – that old generator went off this morning, and then the kettle went on, and I finally got to the point when I just had to open eyes and get up! Everyone else (of course) was already at breakfast and as soon as we had finished, we set off, having hauled up, by hand, yards of anchor. The weather was quiet, and we soon spotted a porpoise in the Firth of Lorne, but after that things went rather quiet - especially when the engine failed! Dave tried to get some sail out of her, while Duncan stripped off (well, not completely), and climbed down into the engine room to sort out the filters). There was not really enough wind to sail, and the water was full of chaotic currents and little overfalls, which pushed the boat about – this was in Corrievreckan. On the way through we spotted what Duncan thought was a golden eagle, but it was difficult to see colour and shape distinctly. Work went on – watching and recording, and Duncan finally got the engine going again, which was just as well as we had come down to about 1.2 knots through the water, and then finally to a standstill. So – we regained our required 6 knots and went on our way. Still not much activity, apart from a very few porpoise, some jellyfish, guillemot and some gannets (oh – and a carrier bag – plastic!). Although we did not seem to see a lot, Clare reported about 40 odd hits with the hydrophone. To liven things up we thought about putting someone in the crows nest. Barb went up first, somewhat cautiously, but with great success, and spent a happy hour sitting up above us. The sea state however was too disturbed to give a great view into the depths. Denys and Elsa then had a go, but were too sensible to go ‘all the way’ – and finally I went up, and stayed until my hands got so cold I was afraid I would not be able to climb down. Clare had good control of the safety rope, which was very comforting.
Finally, at around 6pm, we came in through some ‘skerries’ to anchor between the Ardmore Islands, off Islay. We found that the little bay was full of wicked rocks, and was also seal city – there must have been a hundred of them watching us, laughing at us and generally gossiping about us – they came in all colours and sizes, as well as being quite banana shaped in some cases. Some were grey, some spotted, and some very white. There were also the obligatory shags, plus a heron, and then Denys spotted some deer on a rocky islet hardly a kilometer across – we decided they must be swimmers! Then we saw another one – certainly an adult and a smaller one, and we think red deer. The anchor went down, but was not happy – being overcome by the kelpy bottom, so Duncan paid out more – but we had to raise it all up again (second ‘roving’ of the chain in one day – not my favourite job!) – then we laid it again, followed by setting a Fisherman’s with a trip in the tender, just to make sure. Finally all settled, in a quiet place, with whisky mac’s and a good supper – before the yawns set in at the end of the day.

Jenny, Earthwatch volunteer