Lunar Sea

Day 97  Portavadie to Largs. Saturday 5th Aug. 2017 Portavadie is a good safe, deep water, up market marina.  However, it is more of a holiday apartment destination overlooking the marina and as such there is more going for the apartment cliental rather than the sailor.  There are a couple of  trendy restaurant come bars and an expensive heated small pool with a heated outdoor infinity pool and hot tubs, but next to nothing ashore for the sailor and no telephone signals - may be a good thing in some cases!  It is a shame as it could have a lot going for it.  The marina had originally been cut out of the side of the mountain to build drilling platforms but that project was abandoned and hence the marina complex. Portavadie Marina After the morning swim and a nice coffee we left at 1150 for the 23 mile journey to Largs making use of the tide and sailing, goose winged, South down the remaining part of Loch Fyne, around the Southern tip of Isle of Bute and through the passage

Crinan Canal to Portavadie Day 95 Crinan Canal Left Bellanock Bridge mooring at 10:30 after a night of rain.  The day threatened to rain some more but apart from a small try at it the passage of just 3 miles was truly stunning.  Unlike the Caledonian Canal where all the locks are operated hydraulically for you, in the Crinan Canal apart from the Sea Locks all others must be operated by boats crews.  Frank and Julia did the first 5 rising locks group and then Frank and Steph did the next 4 falling locks group.  Luckily, after all the hard work there was a nice mooring after all these at Cairnbaan with electricity and more importantly a bar and restaurant the other side of the canal.  I was very happy indeed to buy the first round of drinks for all the hard work endured by all of the crew and with no dramas to speak of apart from the frustrations caused by a cantankerous old gent in the boat before us who insisted that he wouldn't leave the lock until the lock gates of the next

Day 92 - Dunstaffnage After 2 weeks at Dunstaffnage we were about ready to leave.  Because we had modified our plans we met up with Steve and Dee as originally planned and spent 4 days in a B&B at  Inverness and Glencoe and then 3 nights with them on the boat, but as they had a car we managed to see a lot more of Scotland's fantastic scenery. Dunstaffnage marina is only about 4 miles or 10 minutes by bus from Oban and the town marina was finally opened on Sunday, mainly we think, for the West Highland Regatta Week.  When we went in  to Oban to meet Frank and Steph Martin from the train, who had come to join us on our next few legs, the new pontoons were full of Regatta boats.  Nevertheless, I am sure I made the right decision to stay in the delightful yet slightly isolated Dunstaffnage marina with its views of the Castle and Lochs. During dinner at the 'Wide Mouthed Frog', the restaurant and bar attached to the Marina, Frank was reminded of the Wide Mouthed Frog