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we've come back from our 4th trip, now the boat is based in Scotland. The scenery is stunning, and sailing challenging at times. The wildlife has been more than we hoped for. Only the weather has been mixed - with cold and wet, warm sunshine, stong winds and fog - all inone week.

With the last lap of this years’ cruise now in sight we arrived at the Crinan Canal entrance at about 13.15 on the 7th August and in company with a couple of other yachts hung around outside the sea lock for a while waiting to be called in. Nothing much happened until it transpired that a junior staff member was running the lock and was not sure how to get us all in and in what order. Eventually all came right and we locked in, paid our dues and made ready for the transit. After chatting to the now complete and ever friendly staff it transpired that due to the lack of rain over this summer and last summer there was a shortage of water to keep the canal full. Scotland? No rain? Surely not!

We set off southwards from Helmsdale on the west side of the Moray Firth on the 21st July in a brisk north easterly Force 5 and bright sunshine. Storm Petrel is a well mannered cruising yacht and she loves it (as does her skipper) when the wind is behind the beam. We had a cracking sail on a bouncy sea touching ten knots at times passing Tarbet Ness at lunchtime until we came in to the shelter of the Inverness Firth where the land converged on either side of us, folding us into its sheltered embrace. With brother Michael’s friend Peter having departed the day before we were a family crew of three and spent a happy day indulging our favourite hobby and reminiscing about adventures in days gone by before navigation became so routine and predictable.

During the 80s and early 90s we regularly sailed to Holland for our annual cruise but had never explored the ‘Staande Mastroute’, so the plan was to enter Holland at Vlissingen and sail the canals, rivers and lakes to Den Helder. Our intended start from Beaulieu on 22 June 2013 was delayed by gales so we left Gosport on Monday 24 June for Dover arriving at 2230 to find HMS Puncher and Dasher already tied alongside in the outer harbour. An early start saw us leave first for Ostend but we were quickly overtaken before the shipping lanes. We arrived off Ostend harbour after an uneventful passage to find it closed for an hour to allow Goliath, a wind turbine construction barge to leave fully laden and under tug (pictured below).