Sailing Westerly... (or why the Second Warden is missing)...

...we couldn't put it off any longer... and set off on what was planned to be a two season trip around Britain...

Many of you may know that my husband, Brian,  and I are keen sailors, of the cruising rather than racing variety, and have sailed our Westerly yacht around the south coast, Holland, Belgium and France for many years.  We had a plan that when we had more time we would sail round Britain. 

In the 70’s when the North Sea oil was coming in, Brian had helped put computer systems into the oil refinery at Sullam Voe in Shetland, and his ambition was to sail there on our trip.  I wanted to visit Hull, where I was born, and Aberystwyth, my alma mater. In 2016, we couldn't put it off any longer. I retired from my role at Cass CCE, in time for the sailing season, and we set off on what was planned to be a two season trip around Britain.

The first year we made it from our home port in Gosport up to Lossiemouth in Scotland before we had to concede that the weather was not going to be good enough for us to get up to Shetland that year.  We went through the Caledonian Canal and left the boat for the winter on the West Coast. 

Spring 2017 we retraced our track through the canal and circumnavigated Scotland getting around the top of Shetland, the Muckle Flugga and Out Stack rocks and down through the Outer Hebrides into the Clyde by early September. 

This year the plan is to go across to Northern Ireland, down to Dublin, across to North Wales and back round the west and south coasts home.

We have been having a fabulous time.  So many highlights: watching otters fishing in the dusk on the shore near the boat,  listening to seals ‘singing’ in the Shiants.  We have learnt so much about life in the ports and islands that we’ve visited.

The lowlights have been the weather.  Scotland had its wettest summer on record last year and we sat out gale after gale in the Outer Hebrides. We have, however, taken time to visit places that interested us and enjoyed having the luxury of time to wait out bad weather.  

At the start I wanted to keep a diary to remember our travels. I found posting a blog was the easiest way of getting words and photos together with the advantage that family and friends could follow too.  

So, apologies for my absence over this summer, if you are wondering where we are you can check our progress at:

https://seaquest.wordpress.com

Denise Fellows, Second Warden, and husband Brian