Wanderer Scotland

Wanderer Scotland
18th, 19th and 20th May 2024
at Carry Farm, near Tighnabruaich, Kyles of Bute,

report by Leonie Griffin (abridged)

The beautiful Kyles of Bute beckoned Wanderers to meet up for the first Scottish Wanderer Association event North of the border, at Carry Farm. This is situated on the remote Ardlamont Peninsula, a finger of the Cowl Peninsula, Argyll. This is between an ancient hazel woodland and the shores of the Kyles of Bute. It is run by Derek and Fiona and family. Derek runs the excellent Tighnabruaich Sailing School

Five boats signed up for the event, with sailors from as far afield as Kent, Lincolnshire and Cumbria joining the local sailors from Glasgow and Edinburgh. A good mix of ages and styles of Wanderer dinghies were in attendance. The Anglo Marines – Iain Urquhart and Richard Maltby in Catspaw W471, Thomas Gavin and Des in Gypsie W1480, Leonie Griffin and Janice Kerrisk in Jennifer W1487; and Hartley boats – Alasdair Simpson and Chris in the anonymous W1768, and Simon and Ashlie Smith in the brand-new Fields of Faith W1857.

With a beautiful sunny start to day one, closed-hauled in a south-easterly force 3- 4 breeze, we rounded Ardlamont Point and headed towards Loch Fyne for an exciting journey towards Asgog Bay for lunch, a stunning horseshoe bay with fine white sand gently shelving with the odd rock and shimmery clear turquoise green water. On the return passage a very speedy run past Kilbride Bay took us back to Ardlamont Point, cornering back up the Kyle, to hug the west shore as the wind and waves were picking up and, as it was a frisky lee shore, dropped our mainsails to come in on the jib alone. Alasdair treated us all to a sumptuous tapas dinner delivered from Thyme and Tide in Kames in the luxury of Alasdair and Chris’ lodge and his kindness in organising this and his generosity were greatly appreciated.

Day two, the campers were woken up gently by a real cuckoo ‘clock’ at dawn. Not to be out-done, the oystercatchers decided to join in with their noisy chattering and chirruping. After the morning muster, we launched and set sail north up the West Kyle. The tide was coming in and this, combined with a light wind from the south-east, gave us a gentle push up to our first rendezvous point on the top west corner on the Isle of Bute. After a quick sugar fix, we set off towards Caladh Harbour. The wind often changes around midday and it flipped 180 degrees allowing us to head towards our original destination of Wreck bay on North East corner of Bute. This is another idyllic picnic spot with the added benefit of a composting toilet because it is part of the Argyll Sea Kayak Trail. Back on course, intense tacking was needed to make headway back to Tighnabruaich. Day two finished on a gentle run from Tighnabruaich to Carry Farm. Another fantastic day’s sailing, no midges and Scotland’s weather at its best!

Day three was different. This was not just because the breeze became a steady Easterly Force 3/4, affording a straight sail from start to finish to the more southern shores of Bute. Catspaw led the way for the three boats, sailing past the deserted, golden sands of Ettrick bay, into the Midpark island channel to anchor in a beautiful and peaceful cove, home to the few, shore-side cottages of Straad. A high-speed return sail saw Catspaw’s GPS register eight knots. Simon and Ashlie were now sailing so fast they had to restrain Fields of faith from overtaking. Altogether, we enjoyed wonderful weather with day temperatures of 19o-24o, stunning scenery, great sailing, lovely company and true adventure. Even in benign conditions, the provision of a support boat and the guidance of a local expert in these waters can be thoroughly recommended. This was a brilliant first. Thank you, Alasdair and to all for making it such fun.