Far and Away: Lochinver for the Winter

All good things must come to an end. At the moment chaos reigns on Far and Away. Bedding and cushions have been hauled off so we can clean out the water tanks and sails are stacked in the cockpit out of the rain, awaiting space to be stowed below. The steering gear has been checked for wear and tear. We will check the sails carefully IF it stops raining long enough. We are eating the last of the food and the icebox has been turned off.

Nico and I will head back to the States with lots of memories. Writing the blog, keeping a diary and making a photo book is how I process all we have seen and done. Nico keeps the more technical log and he writes articles for magazines. I don’t want this blog to be a typical Facebook - like post that makes everything just too perfect. Sailing in Scotland has been tough, but as a result we have a great sense of accomplishment. Everyone knows how hard it was for me to leave family, friends, Violet the dog and Miss Rumphius the pony - along with my volunteer work and garden. But everyone and everything will be there when I get back. It was a little tough dealing with Lyme Disease and then a sunlight reaction to the antibiotics. I got seasick a few times. I admit it - there were meltdowns.

Then there was the weather. It was cold and wet almost every day. We had ice pellets in the beginning. Everyone apologized for the worst summer on record and even the weather forecasters were undone by it. Nico and I both came down with chilblains from the constant damp, raw weather. I thought only laundry women from the Victorian era got them! Painful and ugly.

There was also the challenge of daily navigation in unfamiliar waters with treacherous currents. Windy.com, BBC Scotland Weather, and the local tide/current charts were our friends. Nico took great pains not to be out in rough weather and often we would stay a day or two in a location until more settled conditions. Most importantly, there were no major scary times or moments of near disaster. We passed through several locations, known for bad conditions or treacherous waters, with no problems because we planned our passages carefully.

The rewards were many. I’ll always remember our evenings of backgammon, sipping on whiskey and listening to music after a full day. Our motto, from Calvin and Hobbs, was “the days are just packed.”