9 September 2022
The holiday of a life-time. I loved every minute. Obviously the views and islands were amazing but the boat and the especially the crew were amazing also. Angus, Will, Callum and Charlie made us feel part of their boating family and we all entertained each other over dinner in the evenings with our stories and jokes. The other passengers were great and we continue to send pictures and memories to each other on our specially set up WhatsApp group. As a complete non - sailor, I felt safe at all times with Angus our skipper, and I relished the adventure. Will, our wildlife expert, made sure that we witnessed some spectacular events, including a couple of white tailed Eagles; Dolphins sporting with us on the bow wave; and Gannets showing their skills diving for mackerel. Callum was lovely, always attentive to our needs and always smiling, filling up our glasses, bringing us tea on deck without spilling any. ( How did he do that?) And Charlie, our Chef, wow the food was superb, what a star. I am hoping to start painting the fabulous sea scapes very soon while the warm glow of the experience is still in my veins. Thank you for a very special time.
Rita Mitchell
We set off on 28 June from Oban for our ten days exploration of the Hebrides with the hope that we’d visit St Kilda. We did, and so much more. The crew (Chris (skipper), Alexa (wildlife guide), Pete (cook), Emma (bosun), were fantastic from the off. They effortlessly transported our mountain of luggage to our comfortable cabins which Emma kept spotless through the cruise, as well as looking after us on the rough crossing to St Kilda through to Caribbean strength G&Ts. Chris was a really good skipper. He sailed the boat well and did his best to find a route that best managed his passengers’ seafaring abilities, and he also had a ceremony to give homage to the Blue Men of the Minch! Pete’s amazing menus incorporated our requests – I’ll always remember his mussels on the first night, his haggis Scotch eggs, my mother’s clootie dumpling and much more – and we appreciated how he involved the kids (9 to 11) in the kitchen. Alexa (with Chris) magic’d up an amazing array of wildlife with huge enthusiasm and great knowledge. We became blasé about the number of dolphins we saw – I can best quote Chris “the weather and the wildlife sightings are some of the best I’ve known in almost 20 years”. The weather was fantastic which enabled us to land and explore Tobermory, Canna, Sanday, Taransay, Hirta (St. Kilda), Mingulay, Vatersay, Rum, Lunga (Treshnish Isles) and Loch Buie, as well as sailing past Neist Point (Skye), Boreray (St. Kilda), Monachs, Hellisay in the Sound of Barra, Eigg, Staffa, Ulva and Iona. The weather was so good we were able to swim off Sanday, Taransay, Mingulay and Vatersay, as well as enjoy the hot tub. This was a trip of a lifetime for us all. We were able to see so many places which have been specks on the horizon for so long. The cruise was magical and extra special. It’s given us memories to last a lifetime!
George Mitchell: 28 June 2018Private Charter 10 Nights